The Dynamic Adventure
by Alex The Owl
Summary: Blu is a bird who lives the perfect life in Moose Lake, Minnesota. However, one day, he ends up finding a fruit that gives him superpowers and meets special birds who will get him into crazy adventures. A dynamic one, that is.
1. Problems with gooses

**Hey, guys! I'm back! Before you state it, I know I still have to finish Super Rio Y (Though I'm still debating over whether to do it or not) and publishing Super Rio X and Age Of Destiny. But you see, I recently finished my Kung Fu Panda story along with my friend ending his which makes me feel happy and sad. To digest this, I decided to return to my roots of the Rio world.**

 **I know the fandom isn't as active as before, but I'll try to enjoy writing this as much as I can. Have fun :)**

* * *

Life couldn't be more perfect for Blu the Spix macaw. He lived in the calm town of Moose Lake, Minnesota with a human companion named Linda who really loved and cared for him. In a sense, she was more like a mother than a companion to him. Unfortunately, the other birds of this town were not seeing it that way: they all though Blu was just a looser and too weak to take care of himself and needed a human to help him. Because of this, he had practically no friends.

Okay, he had no friends at all.

"Blu! I'm gonna make the groceries! I'll be back soon!" Linda called from behind the green scarf wrapped around her head to protect her from the cold wind outside along her big coat.

Blu replied with a squawk as she walked out the door. He then returned to read his book about aerial stuff. See, Blu was what we called a book-lover: he truly liked to read anything those pieces of paper could offer, but mostly about science and astrology. He wasn't too much into fiction and all that kind of stuff. When he was into it, it was mostly when he played video games in the living room.

Usually, he would do so and watch TV during the weekend, but today, he decided that he would go out and have a nice walk out in town... Oh yeah, I forgot to point this out: Blu didn't know how to fly. The reason was that, since he was risen by a human instead of a bird, he never learned how to fly like his feathered comrades. But that didn't really bother him. He didn't NEED to.

So, once he was done with his book along with the cup of hot chocolate and cookies that came with it, he used his agility to reach the front door's knob which he turned and quickly went outside to close the door before the cold wind could enter the house. Luckily he had warm feathers to protect himself from the cold wind.

Now that it was done, Blu started walking in the snowy streets of Moose Lake, like a normal person - no wonder everyone found he looked more human than avian. There were almost no people today, but the few ones he met simply looked down at him curiously without really interacting with him. Of course, everyone knew about the librarian girl who was the only one to own a Spix macaw in Moose Lake.

As he walked in the snow, he spotted a group of young gooses having fun in the local park. The two most popular girls in this quarter of the town, Alica and Chloe, were messing around with their friends. Actually, Blu had known them for a while - they were the ones who kept reminding him that he was just a weak, useless pet. And he hated them for that.

Looking into a pond of water, Blu understood another fact about his unpopularity: with his slender body and nerdy look, he could only look cute at best and that was mostly because of his blue feather. At least his hazel eyes were somehow adorable.

Anyways, he simply walked past the group of gooses without being spotted and came across a turning point of the sidewalk where was a pretty popular fruit market called At Joe's. Linda knew the owner, Joe (as the name implied it) who was a pretty nice guy and one of the very few who liked Blu outside of Linda. The market was open today and he could see from the front window that there were a few people inside, looking to buy fruits and veggies.

Smiling, happy that Linda's friend was doing well with his business, Blu resumed his walk, only to stumble over something round and falling flat on his head. "Ouch! He groaned in pain and rubbed his head with his wing before turning to look at what made him fall.

To his surprise, it was neither a puddle of ice nor a snowball, but a fruit. However, it was a fruit Blu never saw before. This one was light green like a lime, had the shape of an apple and strange patterns over the surface. The macaw scratched the back of his head in confusion as he never saw this kind of fruit before, and he read a lot of books about vegetal life. He didn't even know fruits could have patterns on them. Did it belong to Joe? Did he drop there by accident?

GROOOWL!

It was only then that Blu realized the cookies he ate left a spot in his stomach. He was still hungry and looked up at the fruit. Usually, he wouldn't eat, let alone TOUCH something he didn't know as he was very careful with his life, but just a fruit couldn't possibly hurt. And Joe wouldn't be mad at him for it, right?

So, he took the fruit in his wings and took a bite in it. It tasted pretty good: sweet and juicy. Blu didn't eat a lot of fruits, but he loved those who tasted just like this. So, eating everything to the core, he threw the remaining into a nearby trash can (which was an amazing feat considering strength was his weakness) and whipped the juice that he got on his feathers.

He suddenly started feeling weird, as if his stomach started spinning on itself. He clutched his wings around it and coughed a bit, expecting vomit to come out, but the only thing to come out was fresh air. He started asking himself what was in the fruit he just ate? The blue macaw should probably go back home and wait for it to pass.

As he started walking back home, Blu passed before the park once again and saw that the gooses were still there. However, there was another thing that caught his sight: a bird was tied to a pole in the middle of the park and the gooses were making fun of him. Or so he thought. But one thing was for sure: he felt something bad was going on. Even though he didn't know how he could help, Blu decided to go across the street and to the park to get a closer look.

Once he was close enough, he got a better view of the tied bird: a beautiful male golden eagle with white head feathers and brown for his body with a golden beak and talons. However, his most notable feature was a scar going across his right eye. His feathers were all messy and he had a mark on his cheek. Probably those coward gooses jumped on him and decided to tie him there for fun. Judging by the way Alice and Chloe were talking to him, Blu was perfectly right.

"We don't like strangers who think they can just come out in our town and act like normal people!" Alica said with a smirk.

"Yeah, you're a strange bird, you have a scar across your horrible eye and you talk strangely. We don't like this at all." Chloe added to which the other gooses nodded.

Blu, who was hiding behind a trash can, was trembling of both nervosity and anger. He really wanted to help this bird as he was being mistreated because of his difference which was something Blu was himself a victim of, but he didn't know how: those guys were more numerous than him and he would get seriously injured at best. He was far from being a fighter after all.

The ideas were all spinning in his head until he finally decided to jump out and shouted: "HEY! LEAVE HIM ALONE!"

He immediately regretted this as all the gooses turned to look at him. "Well, well, if it isn't our little pet," Alice said with a smirk, finally getting away from the trapped eagle. "You came here to play the hero?" She taunted which made the whole gang laugh.

"What did I thought about? I can't do anything against those guys!" Blu scolded himself mentally and was about to leave by running, hoping to get back home before they decided to follow him. However, he quickly found himself surrounded by the whole group who flew all around him, leaving no exits possible.

"You're trapped, boy!" Alice said before looking up. "Actually, not that much. You can always leave by flying - Oh wait, I forgot that you can't fly. My bad." She tauntingly said and then laughed out loud along with all the others.

This caused Blu to frown. He hated to be mocked because of his difference. Whether it was his inability to fly or his different appearance. If they thought they could simply hurt his feelings and physically harm an innocent bird and simply get away with it, they were wrong. They were going to hurt Blu anyways, so he might as well hurt them first!

Charging forward, he went for a smash and then, something completely unexpected happened. His wings that he clutched into a fist stretched forward like a string and actually landed in Alice's fast, knocking her down into the snow. As his wing returned, Blu looked at it with a surprised and confused look. How did he do that?

"W-What just happened?!" Blu realized that the gooses were even more shocked than him - so much that no one helped Alica back up yet.

After looking at his wing for a moment, Blu decided to try again and went for another punch. Surprisingly, his wing stretched again and connected with Chloe's stomach before returning to its normal state. The macaw then took one of his wingtips in his beak and stretched it away. It was like he became a plastic man!

"A monster! Let's get out of here!" A goose called before flying away along with all the others, marking the first Blu actually got the last word against them.

After looking at his wings for a while, surprised at his new power, Blu got brought back to reality by a cough that came from the still tied eagle. "Oh, sorry!" He quickly said and went to cut the ropes with his beak, letting him fall on his knees. He went to help him up. "You're okay?"

"Yeah..." He simply replied with a British accent.

"Sorry about this; those guys are real jerks," Blu explained before looking at the eagle's body. "Are you hurt?"

"No: they barely damaged me." He said before smiling. "My name is Yusei Saklov, but you may call me Dominic."

Blu tilted his head in confusion. "You're Russian?"

"Yup, I came here just recently. Don't really have anywhere to go, y'know." He replied with scratching the back of his head with his wing.

An idea suddenly popped into Blu's mind: this guy was new and didn't know anything about him. It was the perfect occasion to bond with him and maybe make a new friend.

"Why don't you come to my home? My owner and I could feed you and protect you from the cold." He proposed with enthusiasm.

"Sure, why not. Just wait a sec'." Dominic replied and walked behind the pole he has been tied to and returned with what looked like a bird-sized katana into a green scabbard.

"What's this?" Blu asked.

"It's my sword. I carry it everywhere I go." Dominic simply answered as if it was common. His body turning plastic, a Russian eagle carrying a sword. Decidedly, Blu really saw everything today. "So you ate a Magical Fruit?" Dominic suddenly said.

"A what?" Blu asked in confusion.

Dominic also rose an eyebrow. "Well, from what I've seen, you have the power to stretch your body like plastic. That's because you ate a Magical Fruit, right?"

"Well, yes, I did eat a strange fruit before coming here, a few minutes ago," Blu recalled. "I did feel strange afterward, but I've never seen such a fruit before. What is a Magical Fruit?"

"Oh boy, I landed far from my home," Dominic mumbled. "Magical Fruits are special fruits that give powers to the bird who eat them. They are very rare and have a great value in the whole world. Looks like the one you ate turned you into a plastic bird."

Okay, that was one of the craziest things he ever heard in his whole life. If he wouldn't have stretched his wings like that, he would have though Dominic has gotten too many hits on the head.

"So? Where's your house? We should be able to fly there quickly?" Dominic asked and looked around.

"Yes, it's close." Blu nodded before smiling sheepishly. "But, hum...I don't know how to fly..."

* * *

 **So? Enjoying it so far? Do you like my way of writing, the characters, and story? Lemme know in the reviews ;)**


	2. The macaw, eagle and owl

**Finally, I decided to continue Super Rio Y along with starting a new Angry Birds story, which is why I'm so late for this new chapter. Enjoy :)**

* * *

After taking his new eagle friend back to his home, Blu made sure that Dominic was well-installed and gave him some cookies along with hot chocolate to keep him warm - even though he insisted that everything was fine. When Linda came back, she was very surprised to see a golden eagle in her house, but Blu quickly explained her everything with a paper and a pencil. She understood and nicely patted Dominic before leaving Blu with his new friend.

"That's a nice owner you got there, fella," Dominic remarked before taking a sip of his hot chocolate cup.

"Honestly, she's more like a mother to me," Blu replied with a smile.

"That's nice," he replied with eating another cookie. "But where's your biological family? I'm curious."

Blu rubbed the back of his head with his wing. "I never actually met them."

"So you got sold here then? Macaws aren't really a common species in the United States that I know."

"Not exactly; Linda found me in a box that fell from a truck on the side of the road when I was just a chick. It's then that she decided to adopt me and took care of me ever since."

"I'm glad to hear that," Dominic said with a smile.

"Thanks. What about you? I mean, what were you doing before ending here, in Moose Lake? You told me you're from Russia?"

"Yup," the eagle nodded. "I was born in Moscow and grew up with my father. I never learned about my mother after I was born. He taught me hunting, surviving and all that kind of stuff - he even made me drink alcohol at only 5."

"Seriously?!" Blu asked in shock. "Why would he do that?"

"My father was a dumb man," Dominic answered and laughed. "Once I became a teenager, I started learning the way of the sword as I found it cooler than fighting with knives and guns. I entered this academy where they taught the Bushido way. After ten years of training there, I decided to leave Russia and explore the world to become stronger on my own. I took a random plane which brought me here. Ever since, I've been wandering to where the wind leads me, overcoming any challenge in my way."

Blu looked at the eagle, dumbfounded. "That sounds like a crazy action movie scenario. If you're so strong, how could you get taken down by Alice and Chloe's group?"

"The gooses? They attacked me while I was peeing in a corner," Dominic answered with an annoyed glare.

"Oh, okay," Blu said, a bit uneasy. "But, back to those Magic Fruits you talked about, I'd like to know more about them."

"I already told you everything I know about them: they give you powers, they are very rare, and people would be ready to pay really high to get hands on them," he replied before taking a bite of another cookie.

"But is there any way to cancel its effect?" he asked as he stretched his wing again. "It's just that I never planned to become a plastic bird, y'know."

"Sorry, fella, I don't think there's any way to cancel the effects of a Magic Fruit can be canceled: once you ate it, you're caught with it." He then finished drinking his hot chocolate cup before giving a serious look. "Now tell me, is there any strong and bad people in your town?"

"Whoa, whoa! Why the sudden aggressiveness? You just come back from taking a beating," Blu protested with his wings lifted.

"I'm though. It takes more than just that to keep this eagle down," Dominic replied with a smirk. "And besides, as I told you, I want to get challenges and strong opponents to become stronger than I already am. So is there anyone strong in here we could go take on?"

Blu tapped his feather on his chin as he thought. "Sorry, but I'm afraid Alice and Chloe's gang are the strongest there is in here. And besides, they're not that strong; it's their number that makes the difference."

A big smirk formed on Dominic's beak. "Well, what do you say we go teach them a good lesson about bullying together? It would be a good occasion to test your new Magic Fruit powers."

Blu blinked a few times. True to be told, fighting has never been a good thing to him, but he always felt so angry at Alice and Chloe for treating him like nothing more than a bag of crap for all his life. Now, he had a chance at retribution with his very first friend. He didn't want to miss that. So, with a determined look, he declared: "Okay! Let's go!"

Dominic nodded and was about to head for the door before stopping dead in his track and looking around. "Someone's in here."

This caused Blu to widen his eyes and look around nervously as Dominic carefully walked toward the entry of a vent. He suddenly opened it and grabbed someone inside who he threw out on the floor. To both bird's surprise, it was a male barn owl with white and dark brown feathers, a heart-shaped head and yellow eyes. He was wearing a light green cap on top of his head along with a backpack of the same color on his wing.

"Ouch!" He groaned and was about to stand up, but was stopped by Dominic who pointed the tip of his saber toward his face. "Please! Don't hurt me! I'm just a poor guy!" He pleaded for his life.

"What were you doing in this vent?" Dominic sternly asked. "Were you spying us?!"

"N-No, sir!" the owl answered with his wings in the air for emphasis. "I-I just saw you two at the park and found it weird that a blue macaw and a golden eagle meet together like this and head to a library. This is very uncommon in Moose Lake. I'm a very curious person and I followed you to know what you were doing, but I didn't hear anything! I swear!"

While Blu found this story interesting, he was most surprised to see a barn owl in Moose Lake. A golden eagle was uncommon, but owls were too. "Where do you come from? I've never seen any owls like you in Moose Lake."

"I-I always lived here, mister!" he quickly replied. "My name is Apollo Bird and I grew up in this town, I can guarantee you that!"

Dominic simply rolled his eyes and agreed with Blu through a small gaze exchanged that the owl wasn't lying. He regained his sword but kept his stern glare. "You should avoid spying people like this, Apollo; you're gonna look suspicious."

Blu went to help the owl back up. "Nice to meet you, Apollo. I'm Tyler Blu Gunderson - call me Blu - and this is Dominic. You really didn't hear anything we said?"

"Well, I actually lied about this part," Apollo admitted. "I heard you were going to fight a gang of bad gooses." He then lifted his wings curled like fists. "I wanna come with you; I can fight too!"

Dominic simply gave a scoff. "Blu ate a Magic Fruit and is now a bird of plastic, and I'm a master of Bushido and a true beast in battle; what do you have that could be useful in a fight?"

Apollo gave a smirk and reached into his backpack to take out a small slingshot that he tied to the back side of his right wing so that he could aim with it. "This slingshot is an invention of mine and a deadly weapon. Especially with these," he said with reaching into the side pocket of his backpack and taking out small red bills.

"What are these?" Blu asked curiously as he pointed at them.

"Those are pepper bills. One shot in the face and your eyes, nostrils, and beak will feel on fire," he said with a smirk as he adjusted his cap for emphasis. Blu was impressed at the owl's smartness.

Dominic sighed. "If you're really ready to fight and not afraid to take a beatdown, then come."

With that being said, the macaw, eagle, and owl headed out of the library toward the gooses' place...


	3. Dealing with the gooses

Blu, Dominic, and Apollo were walking through the Moose Lake streets and toward the Gooses gang's hideout. The trio of newly made friends agreed to go give them a good lesson and make them forget the idea that they were the strongest in this town. As they walked, Blu looked at Apollo.

"Say, Apollo, you made this slingshot and bills yourself?" he curiously asked.

"Yes, I'm a great inventor of tools and gadgets of all kind." He said, talking high for himself and showing his slingshot. "I made this with only a few debris found in a trash can! I can great awesome things from even the meaningless of little junks!" He talked like a superhero proud of his accomplishments.

Dominic turned his head to glance at him. "Have you ever been in a fight before?" The barn owl widened his eyes and gave a hesitant look at the question. "Making battle tools and using them in a fight are two different things. If you're not ready to get one hit or two, you should stop following us right now."

Blu frowned a bit at this rudeness but knew it was true. There was to point in engaging a fight if you were not ready to get hurt. That was one of the principal risks. "Me? Running?!" Apollo suddenly exclaimed. "Not even in your dreams! I've fought the strongest birds around the world and defeated them with my gadgets! It's not a few gooses that will scare me off!"

Blu and Dominic clearly saw that it was a lie, but decided to not point it out and simply kept walking. Eventually, they arrived into an alley behind a building where a huge group of gooses which included Alice and Chloe was having fun, doing thug stuff. Our three friends went to cover behind a wooden box to not be spotted.

"Wow! That's a lot of gooses," Apollo remarked with his eyes wide open. "You're sure it's a good idea to attack them? I mean, maybe Blu scarred them so much with his new power that they won't be coming back anytime soon."

The golden eagle frowned again. "What did I say on the way here? If you're not ready to fight, get the duck out of here!"

Apollo flinched because of his threatening tone. "Okay, guys," Blu said. "We need to think of a strategy to get them all down. They're more numerous, but if we work together, we surely can get the advantage-" He didn't get to finish his sentence as Dominic took his sword out and jumped out of their hiding spot. "...Or we can go ahead without thinking like idiots, that's an option," Blu mumbled before following his eagle friend.

It didn't take long for the gooses to notice the intruders. "Hey! It's those guys again!" one of them shouted as Alice and Chloe glared.

"You have the guts to come back here again, monster!" Alice said.

"Shut up!" Blu shouted. "It's you, the monsters! You've been nothing but mean to me simply because I committed the 'crime' of accepting a human as my family and having a warm home instead of freezing my butt out there! But now, it's over! I won't be bullied anymore and you know why? Because I have two friends who are giving me the courage to stand up for myself!" the macaw released all his years of pain.

Instead of looking surprised, the gooses looked more confused. "Huh, two friends? But I only see one." Chloe pointed out.

It was only then that Blu realized that only Dominic was standing beside him. The eagle groaned and went back behind the wooden box to drag Apollo out. The barn owl looked terrified, but then quickly put on a heroic air.

"I-I was simply deciding which way I was going to deal with those cowards of Moose Lake, my friends!" he affirmed with a smile, though his legs were trembling.

"Watch out, boys; it's gonna be hard," Dominic mumbled. "But a man really knows his true strength when being strong is its only choice left."

Blu looked at him curiously. "Is that true?"

"Hmm, I don't know, but it sounds cool," the eagle replied which made his macaw friend chuckle.

One of the gooses decided to go on the attack, only to receive the tip of Dominic's sword handle in his stomach, making him spit saliva and clutch own in pain. As the gang attacked, Blu realized that the old eagle didn't really need his sword as he took them one easily with his wings and fighting techniques. He only used his sword when he got overcrowded or when one of the gooses would try to use a weapon like a pipe.

Things were going differently for Blu. He who was not used to fight at all, he mainly stretched his now plastic body to avoid the gooses' attacks. However, he quickly realized he couldn't just block and dodge all the time and decided to start swinging his members like whips to knock the gooses and even smashed them the same way he did with Alice, a few hours ago.

"GAAARGH! LEAVE ME ALONE!" Apollo screamed as a few gooses were chasing him and that was not to give him hugs. They were about to catch him when he suddenly stopped and turned around. "Gotcha!" He shot pepper bills with his slingshot right in their face, making them cough and cry. He finished them off by grabbing a small nail hammer from his backpack and knocking them out with it. "You underestimated the great Apollo Bird!" He said in triumph.

Blu was actually having fun using his stretching wings to smash the gooses in the face. He who thought fighting was horrible, he was actually having fun doing it against those bad guys. Before long, all those featherheads were laying down, defeated and covered of bruises. Dominic was holding Alice and Chloe by the collar of their necks.

"I think you have something to say to Blu, ladies," the eagle growled with a smirk as he held them in front of Blu.

"W-We're sorry!" Alicia quickly said in fear.

"Sorry for what?" he asked with a little chuckle.

"For all those years of bullying you for fun!" Chloe said. "Please, don't kill us!"

To their surprise, Blu simply put his wings on their shoulder with a look of sympathy. "Girls, even after everything you did to me during those years, I won't kill you. I'm not this kind of bird. Just promise me you won't bully anyone around here anymore, and we'll be cool."

The girls were surprised that Blu was still so kind with them even after everything they did to him. Dominic simply let them go and then walked away with his macaw friend away from all the knocked out gooses. Apollo took a cool pose and pointed at them.

"And don't ever try to be the villains again or I, Apollo Bird, will bring justice upon you once more!" He then left to go after his two friends.

"Hey, guys, wanna go back at my home to play some games?" Blu proposed as he wanted to spend more time with his two new friends.

"Oh, yes! I love games!" Apollo jumped in excitation as Dom simply nodded.

* * *

Later on, back at Blu's library, the three friends settled around a bird-sized table on which were scattered the items required to play Dungeon & Dragons. A game Blu kept in his house for long, but never really got to play as Linda was very busy. But now, he had two friends with whom he could play. Though Dominic was actually having a hard time learning.

"I turn to the left room," Apollo declared. He and Dominic left their weapons out of view as they didn't want Linda to creep out by seeing two birds carrying weapons. Speaking of which, Blu's mother figure was really happy to see her brave boy socializing with two new friends.

"Okay," Blu said from behind his book. "You hear a strange squirming noise that makes you afraid... Then, from the corner of the room comes out... A GORGON GIRL!"

"Crap, I knew we should have turned right," Dominic remarked.

"Hey! It's you who decided to go left!" Apollo replied.

"Whatever," Dominic said and took a 20 dice. "I throw a jet of endurance."

Before he could throw his dice, a huge BUMP! was suddenly heard. The three birds turned their heads to see a strange man resting onto the library's window from outside. He was tall and slender with a pair of glasses and puffy brown hair.

Linda quickly let go of the phone she was using to go open the door and ask the man if he was okay. Once he assured her he was, she allowed him to enter the house. "You were searching for books?" she asked him.

"Books? No, no, no; I've come from thousands of kilometers to see your macaw." He said with pointing at Blu who instantly looked in confusion as well as his two friends.

* * *

 **We're gonna stop there. Anyways, you already know how it's gonna go, don't you? Yeah, BTW, I'm a D &D player too :)**


	4. Jewel

The man wearing glass revealed himself to be an ornithologist named Tulio Monteiro from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. He was absolutely fascinated by Blu who was apparently a very rare specimen even in his hometown along with Dominic and Apollo as it was very uncommon to find birds like them in a place like Moose Lake. Luckily he didn't saw their weapons, or he would have completely lost it.

"So, Dr. Monteiro...," Linda started.

"Oh, no, not doctor: call me Tulio," he politely said. "Did you know that your bird is a very rare species? Actually, as far as we know, Blu is the very last male of his genre."

"Are you serious?" Linda asked with her eyes wide open, just like the three birds.

"Absolutely. And we recently found a female, so we hope to get them to mate to save the whole species."

At the mention of the word 'mate', Blu gulped as Apollo chuckled and Dominic looked at him with an amused look. "Oh, sure, when can she come?" Lind asked with a little smile.

Why did she ask this? Blu didn't want any of this! During his whole life, his only interactions with birds were with a gang of annoying gooses, his two new friends, and sometimes, with other birds at the vet. And now, they expected him to mate with a female of his own kind, remembering that outside of books and tv shows, he never actually saw another one of his kind.

"Linda! Tell him no!" Blu panicked, even if he knew she could only hear his squawks.

Tulio chuckled a bit at him. "Don't worry, Blu. Jewel is a nice bird. Very pretty too!"

"He's just a little shy, that's all," Linda assured, making the two other birds laugh as she really didn't understand what Blu was saying.

"I'm sure the two will get along just fine," Tulio said with a smile. "I'm staying up the road, at a very sweet hotel. I will be back in a very little while," he said and said a polite 'Goodbye' before walking out of the store.

Linda turned to her blue macaw and looked like she was going to talk to him about something, but was interrupted by a customer who entered the store and she went to take care of him. As this was happening, Blu broke down in panic.

"They want me to mate?! What the heck?!" He started breathing fast. "But that's impossible! I barely started having contact with other birds! I cannot get into mating like that!"

Apollo came and put his wings on his macaw friend's shoulders. "Calm down, dude! Just meeting a girl - and probably having to 'do it' with her (he mumbled this part) - is not the end of the world."

"Actually," Dominic came in "I've fought a lot of things in my life, and I can tell you that girls are the most dangerous ones existing." Apollo answered him with a 'you're not helping at all' glare.

"B-But if I'm really the last male of my kind, then I don't have a choice!" Blu said with rubbing his head. "But how could she fall for someone like me? I'm not masculine at all," he said with puffing his chest to look more masculine, but only ended up looking like a puffball, for emphasis. "I don't know how to fly," he said with showing his excuses for wings. "Who would want of a bird who can't FLY?!"

Dominic crossed his giant wings. "Come on, dude. You got positive points too; you're very smart. Not many birds can read a book about physics and understand it; you're pretty funny and enjoy having fun, and you even have powers from a Magic Fruit. Not many birds can claim the same."

Blu's eagle friend wasn't wrong. He DID have some good traits. Maybe he could have a chance with this Jewel, after all. Linda suddenly finished with the customer, waving him goodbye, and turned to Blu, picking him up on her wing and placing him next to her computer.

"Is there a problem?" Linda asked as she saw Blu glaring at her.

The macaw took a pencil from the board along with a piece of paper and wrote down a note for her: "Why didn't you ask me for saving the species before accepting?"

"Oh, I'm sorry, Blu. I just thought you would be okay with it," she apologized and Blu wrote another message.

"It's not that I don't want; the only problem is...what if Jewel doesn't like me?"

Linda rode the paper and smiled. "Oh, Blu, why wouldn't she like you? You're kind, passionate, smart, and funny." Apollo and Dominic nodded to her argument and exchanged her fist-bump with Blu. "Now why don't you guys go finish your Dungeon and Dragon game before Tulio returns?"

* * *

Later on, as the three birds were still playing at D&D on their table, they soon heard the entrance bell ring and Tulio's voice as he came in. Linda took Blu on her arms as Dominic and Apollo watched from away and walked to Tulio. He was carrying a kennel in his hand which was probably holding Jewel. He carefully put it down.

"Do you have anything to drink?" Tulio politely asked.

"Sure, would you like a cup of milk?" Linda offered and soon led the doctor in the kitchen to get his requested drink.

As for our feathered friends, curiosity got the best of them and Blu walked over to the kennel, looking through the entrance to see the creature in question. However, it was too dark and he couldn't see one thing. everything was silent. Maybe she was sleeping?

Suddenly, a set of talons grabbed him by the throat and slammed his head against the side of the cage, starting to suffocate him to death. The harder he tried to pull away, the more his attacker tightened its grip on him. Luckily, Dominic jumped in to bite her foot away while Apollo grabbed Blu and pushed him out harm's way.

Looking into the dark, Blu spotted some light blue feathers and a turquoise eye with reflected nothing but hate. She said some words in a foreign language that sounded pretty hateful too.

"What is she saying?" Apollo asked.

"No idea; I don't speak Portuguese," Dominic replied with a shrug.

Blu quickly backed away after his first near-death experience. Linda and Tulio suddenly arrived, alerted by the noise they heard. "Blu! You okay?" Tulio asked in concern.

"What happened?" Linda asked as she checked her little Blu for any sign of injuries.

Tulio nervously rubbed his neck. "You see...Jewel is very...spirited, you could say."

"She attacked Blu!" Linda beamed with a bit of anger.

Blu smiled as his mother figure was on his side. How was he supposed to save the species, if he couldn't get near this wild, crazy, spirited bird? Linda just had to send this man away with his crazy bird.

"Wait, Linda. Please, try to understand, Jewel is very scared. Just give her some time," Tulio begged.

Linda looked at Tulio, then at the kennel and sighed. "I just don't want Blu to get hurt."

"Don't worry, it won't happen again. Right, Blu?" Tulio said and patted Blu's head, making him give a pointing look.

After that, the two walked upstairs to talk privately, probably about Blu and former turned his attention to the kennel and though he saw the same turquoise eye as before.

"Hello?" he called but didn't get an answer.


	5. Learning more about each other

After the incident that almost got Blu killed, the Spix macaw along with his two friends decided to eat a little and chat about the situation, when Tulio and Linda soon returned.

"Alright, we're ready to go!" Tulio happily exclaimed.

Blu gave a confused glance. "Going where?"

Linda rubbed her arm with a look of concern. "We decided, Blu... That it would probably be best if we give you and Jewel some...alone time."

This caused Blu to widen his eyes in horror. Alone time? With this girl? But she was going to kill him! She WANTED to kill him!

* * *

Despite Blu's screams of protestation, he was forced into a kennel that was brought into Linda's car and started driving away. No matter how much he squawked from the kennel on the backseat, the humans just wouldn't stop driving.

Jewel was also in her own kennel beside his and chuckled a bit at his squawking. He heard that and gave a glare in her direction.

"What are you laughing at?" he grumbled.

Jewel didn't answer and simply thought about getting back to her homeland, once this stupid doctor would have understood she wasn't interested in him. She already thought about feeling the fresh air, smell the good natural foliage of the jungle and hear the songs of the wildlife.

She knew the doctor was bringing her and Blu to a fake jungle environment in hopes of calming her down and get her to mate with him, but that wasn't going to work. This was going to fail and then, goodbye, Minnesota, hello, Rio. She'll make it clear, once they'll be alone in this cage. For this poor Blu, his fears of getting beat down without his owner or eagle and owl friends to protect him will become true. But why should she care? He was just a pet after all.

The rest of the car ride was silent except for the radio music, and after a while, they arrived. Tulio took both kennels out of the car and into the aviary. As their kennels were carried side-to-side, Jewel couldn't help but snarl as Blu was hiding at the back of his kennel, looking at her in fear.

"We can start saving the species anytime. Any objection, Linda?" Tulio asked.

"No, I guess we can get started," she replied.

"Hey! I have an objection!" Blu protested, falling into deaf ears.

The kennels were carried in front of small window doors farther into the aviary. Probably the fake jungle's entrance. Tulio opened Jewel's kennel first as he guessed she wanted to finally get out of it with anticipation.

"Go, don't be afraid," the doctor said.

Jewel obeyed and entered the fake jungle, quickly darting out to the nearest bushes and peaking out to see Tulio leave with the kennel. She decided to touch the plants with her wings, but could already guess they were fake made of plastic. Hush!

She just waited for Blu to come in now. The second door opened and Jewel smirked, knowing she was about to make their whole mating plan go down in smoke. A panicked Blu was slowly pushed toward the door by his owner.

"Go on, Blu. There's nothing to be afraid," she assured.

Oh, how wrong she was.

As Blu refused to move from his cage, Jewel couldn't help but smile. Linda was soon forced to literally push him inside and closed the door behind, leaving the two birds alone.

"YOU TRAITOR!" he angrily shouted.

Blu was now alone in this cage with no one to protect him. Jewel waited for him to move closer to the bushes so that she could catch him by surprise. As he gulped and slowly turned around, his back was facing her. Perfect! He slowly began walking back toward the bushes, looking around to see where she was.

The poor bird never saw it coming as in a flash, Jewel darted out of the bushes and pinned Blu to the ground, her talons on his neck. The predator had caught her prey.

"Please! Don't kill me!" Blu begged at her in fear.

That was exactly what Jewel knew would happen all along. She tightened her grip on Blu's neck which was surprisingly bending easily under her force. Either his neck was too weak, or she was stronger than she thought. Blu gasped for what would probably be his last breath.

He opened his eyes to look up at Jewel and, even though she was going to murder him in cold blood, he couldn't help but admire her beauty which shone under the fake jungle's light. His head started spinning and his vision to black out as the agonizing pain in his chest was too strong and his lungs begged for air.

"Stop crying, would ya?" Jewel said as she loosened her grip to allow her prey to take much-needed air.

Blu took many deep breaths and his vision returned to normal. In barely a few hours, he had two near-death experiences. Nice. This almost made him forget that Jewel actually talked for the first time and in English.

"What a stupid pet."

"Wait, you can talk?!" Blu asked in surprise as he turned his head as much as Jewel allowed him too. She simply nodded and he was going to question her more before noticing a detail. "Could you get off my back, please?"

"Only if you say please," Jewel declared with a smirk.

"Please," Blu reluctantly said and Jewel walked off his back, allowing him to get back up again. He brushed himself off and then turned to her. "Why didn't you killed me?"

"Because I pity you," she answered with a wing on her hip.

True to be told, Blu felt better to be pitied than be killed. "Why are you only starting to talk now?"

"Because I'm not planning on building a relationship with you."

"Hey, I don't want one!"

"Why? Am I not good enough for a pet?"

"No! that's not what I said! In fact, you're more than anyone could ask for," Blu admitted with a blush and rubbed the back of his head, practically forgetting she tried to murder him moments ago.

"I'm flattered," she sarcastically said, still with a wing on her hip.

"It's just that... Don't you think it's a bit fast, even if it's about saving the species?"

"I'm okay with saving the species; I'm just not okay with the fact that the last male of the kind is a pet."

She really wasn't afraid to speak her mind and it was starting to get on Blu's nerves.

"For the record, I'm not a pet but a companion," Blu spoke high for himself.

"Whatever you say, pet."

Blu rolled his eyes and decided not to let her annoy him any further. He just had to ignore her, like he used to do with Alice and Chloe.

"So what happens now?" he asked.

"Now we wait until your owner comes to take you back home."

"What will happen to you after?"

"I will go back to my own home."

"Oh, Rio?"

Jewel gave a simple nod. There was an awkward silence afterward with both birds looking at the ground, waiting for the other to say something. Blu decided to go at it:

"So...is this anything like a real jungle?"

"Are you kidding?" Jewel suddenly said with a fake chuckle.

"No, it was an honest question," Blu simply said, rubbing the back of his head again.

"Not for me; it's just another cage," she replied with a disgusted look at the ceiling.

"I just wondered how different would be the life in the jungle," Blu explained.

"It's very different from what you're used to."

"Why's that?"

"You wouldn't survive a day in the jungle," Jewel smugly laughed.

Blu was about to respond to her but hung his head low in defeat instead. She was right. A bird who couldn't fly was an easy prey for anyone in the jungle.

"Jewel?"

"What?"

"What is it like, y'know, to fly?"

Her expression lightened up as she suddenly seemed open to talking. "Honestly, it's indescribable, but if you had to, I would say it's...freedom."

Judging by her sudden change of attitude, from aggressive to calm and relaxed, flying must truly mean a lot. Blu started thinking a lot about what she said. Freedom. This word meant different things for everyone - like for teenagers, it meant like staying with their friends late at night, while for the people of Egypt, it was like democracy.

But what did it meant to him?

He did have freedom; Linda let him eat what he wanted to and also to stay late to watch TV with her. But was that freedom or nothing more than being spoiled? Looking back on today, Blu got forced into this whole save the species thing, forced to be brought to this aviary, forced into this fake jungle with Jewel. If he couldn't make his own decisions, then maybe this freedom was just an illusion. Maybe Jewel was right and that he was just a pet after all.

"I'm sorry," Blu sighed with looking down.

"Sorry for what?" Jewel asked with a curious look.

"Well, you wouldn't be in that situation, if it wasn't for me."

"I don't personally blame you. It was the humans. I mean, you don't really wanna be more than me, right?"

"Huh, yeah, I think," he quickly said.

Maybe Jewel hated him, but he still enjoyed her company. She was the only bird he knew outside of Alice Chloe and his two new friends, Dominic and Apollo.

"Is something wrong?" she suddenly asked.

"No. Well, it's just that..." He wasn't sure of how to talk.

"I knew it! You have a crush on me!" Jewel said with an amused smile.

"What?! No, I'm not!" Blu protested with his wings before him.

"Well then, what's the matter?"

"It's just... It's fun to have another bird to talk to. I mean, I did make two new friends - it was those you saw with me at the house, but being a pet also have its downfalls."

"I didn't realize it, sorry," Jewel apologized with rubbing her wing.

Blu smiled a bit at her attitude getting better toward him. "So, do you have any family back in Rio?"

"No...," she mumbled. "Not anymore..."

She looked down. Something terrible must have happened and he just brought it back.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-"

"No, it's okay. you didn't know," she cut him off.

"I just wonder if it's better than me not remembering my family?"

Jewel looked up at him. "You don't?"

"No I don't, but I'm thankful for it," Blu admitted with a little smile.

"Why?"

"Because it doesn't give me a lingering pain."

"But a parent's love is something everybody should experience."

"Well, I have Linda," Blu replied.

"Blu, she's a human, she can't be your parent," Jewel pointed out, her smile dropping.

"Why not? She makes everything to keep me happy, comfort me when I'm sad, and cares for me. Isn't that what a parent should do?"

"Yes, but-" Jewel was about to argue again, but got cut off by Blu.

"No, Jewel. Maybe for you, the fact that she's human automatically disqualifies her, but I see things from a different point of view. Deal with it!"

His tone was harsh and he kinda expected Jewel to smash his face. However, she just remained silent and looked at the ground.

"Okay, if you say so..."

Before Blu could say anything else, the door opened and Linda and Tulio came in.


	6. Off to Rio de Janeiro

After Blu and Jewel's encounter at the aviary, Tulio took the latter back with him while Linda took her little boy back home, glad he wasn't injured at all (at least). They returned to their home where Dominic and Apollo awaited and were also happy to see their macaw friend was still alive.

After a good night of sleep, Blu tried to get back into his old routine and invited Dominic and Apollo to play Dungeon & Dragons. However, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't help but think about Jewel, their conversation of yesterday, and how she was feeling at the moment. Was she scarred alone in her cage?

"Blu, it's your turn!" Apollo said, bringing him back to reality. "We're not gonna defeat this dragon alone."

"You're still thinking about this young girl, am I right?" Dominic gave a guess, resting back into his bird-sized chair.

Blu nodded. "It's just that...she's not as bad as I thought. I don't know how else to say this, but I kinda like her - NOT THAT WAY, but as a friend. Linda has been great to me and you guys are my first bird friends, but it's been pretty nice to talk to someone of my kind. I can't honestly recall the last time I've been so entertained by simply talking."

"Then why don't you ask Linda if you can see her one more time?" Apollo suggested. "Tulio isn't gonna leave today, is he?"

Suddenly, the phone rang and Linda went to answer. "Oh, hello, Tulio." A big coincidence.

After she said that, Tulio started talking on the other line for a moment and Linda's smile slowly dropped. This earned a concerned gaze from Blu as he guessed it was concerning Jewel. After a moment of chatting on the phone, Linda said goodbye and hung it over. As she turned around, she saw Blu gave her a questioning look which she immediately understood.

"It was Tulio, Blu. He called to tell me he received a call from his aviary and that he will have to go back to Rio tonight for an emergency."

Blu widened his eyes in surprise. Jewel was already going to leave him so soon? Right after they met? But he didn't want; even though she tried to kill him, she was actually a good person, once you get to know her. And besides, he still had to save their species.

Stretching his elastic wing to catch a paper and pencil, he wrote a note which he gave to Linda: But I don't want her to leave so soon! I actually like her (not the way that you think), it's so nice to have someone else of the same species as me to talk to. Linda, I know you care a lot for my security, but we have to save the species. Can we go with them to Rio?

Linda was very surprised that Blu would ask her to leave their home where they lived for more than fifteen years together for a whole new country a few hours after meeting a girl. She slowly looked up at him with a smile.

"I recognize my brave little boy," she said with reaching her hand to caress his hair. "I'll go buy our tickets online; you prepare our stuff, okay?" she said with walking away.

Dominic and Apollo walked over to Blu after Linda left. "What's going on?" Dominic asked.

"We're leaving for Rio de Janeiro," Blu answered with a smile.

"Really?!" Apollo exclaimed in surprise. "This is great! I always wanted to discover Brazil's culture and traditions! I go pack up my things and I come back!" he said with excitation and flew out of the library before neither Blu nor Dominic could say anything.

"I feel like he's gonna bring a lot of stuff," Dominic mumbled to Blu.

And he was right. Apollo returned with his backpack filled to the point it seemed ready to break out in two.

"Okay, I took everything; my food, tools, hammer, flare gun, special weapon, duck tape, etc," he mumbled with counting on his wingtips.

"Apollo," Dominic groaned with rubbing his forehead, "we're just going to Brazil for Blu to save the species; we're not gonna journey for many months on an abandoned island!"

Apollo crossed his wings. "I'm a well-prepared bird, Dom. And you'll know that duck tape can save from almost any situation."

Blu only chuckled at this. It was going to be a fun travel.

* * *

So by night time, the group went aboard the plane that left for Rio de Janeiro with Blu and his friends traveling in the animals' section. Some other pets were surprised as it wasn't very common to see a bird stretching plastic wings, carrying a sword, nor a backpack with many tools.

After a full night and day of flying, the plane finally landed in Rio de Janeiro. As soon as they walked outside, our friends were met by a strong heat which was the polar opposite of Minnesota's coldish atmosphere. Tulio drove everyone in his yellow jeep with the kennels containing the birds settled behind.

Blu, Dominic, and Apollo couldn't help but look at the warm Brazilian atmosphere of Rio de Janeiro while the car was rolling. People were having fun right and left, the sun was shining high in the blue sky, a warm breeze was flying through their feathers and everyone - humans and birds - seemed happy.

"There, Blu, careful not to catch a sunburn," Linda said with reaching her hand to rub some sunscreen on her blue boy's beak, causing Dominic and Apollo to chuckle a bit.

The three birds enjoyed the warm breeze for a while before the car stopped and some local guys wearing strange costumes and dancing arrived at the car and startled Blu.

"Whoa! What's going on?!" asked Linda.

"You arrived just in time for the carnival!" Tulio answered with a smile.

"The carnival?"

"Yes. It's a period that last two days during which Brazilians are partying and dancing!" the doctor said and mimicked music which made Linda giggle.

While the two were chatting, Blu and his friends heard someone singing and looked up to see two birds on top of the cage they were sharing - Jewel was asleep in the other one and out of view. One of them was a male yellow canary who was using some kind of bottle cap to drum while the other was a chubby red-crested cardinal with punk-like hair, red head feathers, black wings, and a white-grey body. The first one sang a bit before they both flew down in front of them and talked in Portuguese.

"Chto?" (What?) Dominic teasingly replied in Russian as he didn't understand what they said.

Blu took a Portuguese book which Apollo brought and tried to find the good words but accidentally dropped it. "Hum, I'm not from your country," he tried to explain.

"Hey, Nico, those guys are tourists," the red-crested cardinal told his friend named Nico.

"Strange, you look like you're from here," he said in Blu's direction.

"Really, you think?"

"Yes, except for the big seagull drop on your big," the cardinal said with pointing at Blu's beak.

"What? No, no, that's just sunscreen to protect me from the sun," he quickly explained with rubbing it off with his wing.

"Who are you guys anyway?" Dominic asked while laying back against the cage's wall.

"I'm Pedro and this is Nico, we are the party kings of Rio, yes sir," the cardinal named Pedro said with swinging his wings like a rapper.

"Nice to meet you; I'm Blu. This is Apollo and Dominic," Blu introduced everyone with the former waving his wing and the latter doing the same with a smile.

"So you guys came here for carnival?" Nico asked with swinging his bottle cap.

"Well, actually, we came here because our blue friend must save his species with a girl," Dominic explained with a smug.

"Oh, a girl?" Nico said with sudden interest. "I'm gonna give you some tips; YOU must be the one to make the first steps. Brazilian girls like dudes who are full of insurance," he said with spinning and catching Pedro in his wings for emphasis.

"Okay?" Blu said, unsure.

"Yeah, so take a macho air," Pedro said "push up your chest," he said with puffing up his already round chest "swing your tail," he added with lifting his tailfeathers and slightly shook it "and give a killer glare, like a crazy lovehawk. CA-CAW!" he finished with giving a strange seductive look.

"Huh, I may not be a love specialist, but wouldn't it be better to just be himself?" Apollo asked.

"But first, we're gonna get you guys out of there!" Nico exclaimed.

"What?" Blu asked in surprise.

"Yeah, I'm gonna make this cage pop like a soda can!" Pedro said with doing Kung Fu moves before smashing the kennel's bar with his head, wings, and even his rump.

"Huh, you know there are other places to do this?" Dominic remarked with an eyebrow rise.

"You call this popping it like a soda can?" Nico asked.

"This is some strong stuff!" Pedro remarked.

"No, no, guys! The cage's okay. I love this cage," Blu said with hugging the metal bar.

"Okay, as you wish," Nico said with flying away.

"And don't forget the love-hawk, CA-CAW!" Pedro shouted before flying away and said one last word in Portuguese.

"Yes, to you too, whatever that means!" Blu shouted back before the car started driving again.

"Those guys were strange but nice," Apollo remarked with a smile.

"I hope the other people in this town will be as nice," Dominic added.

* * *

Later on, they arrived at the city's aviary where Tulio was greeted by all the other ornithologists before leading Linda in the infirmary.

"This is the center where we take care of every bird. Our infirmary," Tulio said before starting welcoming tens of different birds over him.

"Whoa! They are attached to you," Linda remarked before even more birds came to him. "VERY attached!"

"Yes, I'm their big momma bird," Tulio said with a clumsy laugh before filling his mouth with bird food and feeding a little blue bird.

"Bark!" Blu, Apollo, and Dominic exclaimed simultaneously in disgust.

"You want some?" the doc offered with his mouth open.

"Oh, no," Linda politely declined.

"Never!" Blu squawked.

"I already ate," Apollo quickly said.

"I'd rather eat my own drop," Dominic coldly said, even though Tulio couldn't understand them.

"Many birds have been kidnapped by smugglers and some are hurt or even killed, most of the time," Tulio explained as they walked across the clinic filled with injured birds. "but if we take good care of them, we can save them. Here, look," he said as they came across a special cockatoo who seemed more injured than the others. "We found this poor creature half-dead in an alley."

The weak bird gave a weak, yet happy-looking smile at Tulio.

"Hello, my little guy, you look way better than yesterday," he patted his head before walking away.

"Get better soon," Blu nicely wished to the cockatoo who answered with a rather creepy glare which gave Blu a shiver to his spine.

"This guy seems pretty strange to me," Dominic mumbled with a suspicious look, earning a nod from Apollo who went to hide behind him.

After some discussions which they couldn't hear, the four birds were put inside another fake jungle cage, but this one was way much larger than the one in Minnesota and more well-decorated. Dominic and Apollo were kinda surprised as they expected that Tulio would have wanted Blu and Jewel to stay alone to mate.

"Blu?" Jewel asked in surprise after being forced into the cage, following the first three. "What are you doing here? Didn't this human only wanted me back here?"

"Huh..." Blu needed to come up with an explanation; if he told her he was the one who decided to follow to Brazil, she would immediately guess he was feeling something for her.

"The human offered Linda vacations in Rio as an opportunity to relax and discover his country. Linda thought it would be good for her and him to take some rest, so they accepted," Dominic explained and gave an accomplice wink to Blu.

The Spix macaw mentally thanked his eagle friend for taking him out of this situation.

"Oh, okay," Jewel simply said.

Before they could talk again, they heard some strange noises from the other side of the fake jungle. Jewel gave a curious look and followed them as if they were familiar to her. Blu, Dominic, and Apollo exchanged questioning glances as they carefully followed her.

She then stopped as four birds - Spix macaws, just like Blu and her, much to their surprise, came out from the bushes and walked over to Jewel. She looked surprised and relieved as she seemed to know them.

"We're not the only ones?!" Blu exclaimed in surprise.


	7. Jewel's friends

Blu, Dominic, and Apollo were still looking in surprise as Jewel was reunited with the four Spix macaws.

"There are other ones like us...," Blu mumbled in awe.

"So that was Tulio's emergency to return here," Dominic remarked with a wing on his hip.

Once they newcomers were done talking with Jewel, they turned their attention to her three friends. One of them, a male macaw with three head feathers that rested close to his blue eyes and the physically smallest of the group, dashed over to Blu and looked at him under every angle.

"H-Hey! Some intimacy!" Blu protested as the bird lifted his wing and watched underneath it.

"I never saw you before. You're not from the Amazon, are you?" the bird asked without stopping to look at Blu's body before finally realizing what he was doing and held his wing for a wingshake. "Oh, sorry, I'm a really curious guy. The name's Polie."

"Blu," he presented himself too and shook Polie's wing.

Another one of them stepped forward. It was a female with light blue feathers, hazel eyes, and head feathers tied into a ponytail by twigs. She was more slender and curvy than Jewel.

"Nice to meet you, Blu. I'm Star, and this is Adam and Alicia," she said with gesturing to the two others with Adam clearly being the oldest of the group with messy head feathers that covered a small portion of his serious face and dark blue eyes while the named Alicia had no head feathers at all, ice blue eyes and was a bit larger than Jewel with her facial expressions being differently shaped.

"I'm very glad to meet you," Blu politely said. "Those are my friends Dominic (he gave a slight wing wave while resting against a tree) and Apollo."

"Huh, I'm confused," the owl said. "Didn't this doctor said that Blu and Jewel were the last of the species?"

"It's possible; we just recently got caught," Adam said. "It was two days ago."

"Yeah," Polie said with excitation "We flew after those humans that captured Jewel for days until we arrived in this city. It was then that we got caught!"

Blu looked at Jewel. "You got captured? Where?"

Her look saddened as she gazed at the ground. "In the Amazon rainforest. After it got burned down to ashes..."

After she said that, her four friends also looked down sadly which caused Blu, Dominic, and Apollo to soften their expressions.

"Sorry for your rainforest," Apollo said with rubbing the back of his head.

"Thanks," Polie said before suddenly lightening up again. "But we also have good news; we managed to hide our weapons from those humans. Come!"

Polie then led Jewel along with the others to a bush at the very end of the cage where the cameras couldn't see. He made sure no one of them looked in their direction before moving the bush aside to reveal four items. There was a bird-sized wooden stick, a small red ball which seemed to be used for some sort of game, and a circular wooden shield with a drawing of a green leaf on the front.

"Whoa! You kept it!" Jewel happily said as she took the stick in her wings and made some moves with it.

"Huh, what are these?" Blu asked curiously.

"It's our weapon we got back in the Amazon," Polie said with grabbing the red ball and spinning it on a pointing feather.

"Your weapon is a ball? Really?" Dominic asked with an eyebrow risen.

"Hey! It's not just a ball; it's the Polie Ball!" he angrily replied.

Finally, Adam took the shield and wrapped it on his right wing. This made Apollo notice a detail.

"What about you, girls? Don't you have weapons?"

"We don't need; I can use white magic," Star answered with a smile.

"White magic?" Blu and Apollo asked simultaneously.

"You ate a Magic Fruit?" Dominic asked.

"No, you never heard about black and white magic?" she asked to which they all shook their heads.

"Oh boy," Alicia groaned with rubbing her forehead. "We're farther from home than expected. To make this short, black and white magic aren't from Magic Fruits; they are natural energy that can be used by certain birds. What is the difference between black and white magic you ask? Well, white magic is principally used to heal people and neutralize the user's opponent while black magic is used to hurt and sometimes even KILL someone. You understand? Star can use white magic while I personally can use black magic."

Blu remained silent for a while before rubbing his forehead to let that information sink in. A few days ago, he was a normal bird living a perfectly normal life with his owner, Linda, back at Moose Lake where he lived for all his life. And now, in just a few days, not only did he ate a fruit that turned him into a plastic bird, met an eagle who could fight with a saber, an owl who could craft all sorts of crazy tools, the supposedly last female of his kind which he didn't even know existed before moving to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and finding out even more of his species who talked to him about magic.

Was this all a dream? Did he drink too much coffee before going to sleep?

"And you? Do you have any superpowers or skills we should know about?" Alicia then asked.

"Well, I ate a Magic Fruit and I'm now made of plastic," Blu said with grabbing his cheek with his talons and stretching it out.

"I am personally the wisest bird in all of Canada as I'm capable of crafting anything - from weapons to gadgets to tools, if you need a special equipment or upgrade, I'm your man," Apollo said, speaking high for himself.

Before Dominic could talk, Polie suddenly ran in front of him with stars in his eyes. "OH MY GOD! OH MY GOD! IS THAT A SWORD?! A TRUE ONE?!"

"Huh... Yes?" Dominic said unsurely.

"I always dreamed to see a real one with my own eyes! Are you a ninja?!"

"No; I'm just a Bushido practicer."

"Sorry about that; Polie has always been obsessed with ninjas," Jewel said with rubbing the back of her head.

"Hey, ninjas are the coolest thing on this planet, you'll know!" the young Spix macaw madly replied with a ridiculous posture.

"That's cool and all, but we did a long travel to come here and we're kinda tired," Apollo said with putting his equipment down. "Is there a good place where we can take a good bath? I'm feeling kinda dirty."

"Sure, there's a small pond a little farther in this cage," Adam said with pointing in a direction and was going to show them the way.

Polie gave a little smirk. "Hey, since we're apparently the last of our kind, we're gonna have to start bathing together, if you see what I mean."

This remark caused Blu to became all red in the face. In all of his life, he never took a bath with a woman. Granted, Linda did bath him most of his life, but he never took one at the same time as her. Apollo just broke down laughing at this remark while Adam and Dominic rubbed their forehead desperately.

"Not a chance!" Jewel sternly said. "You guys go take a bath on your side while we take one in ours! Got it?"

* * *

After putting their weapons away, the boys jumped into the cage's pond and started cleaning their feathers with the water which was surprisingly well-balanced between cold and warm.

"So you guys are from the United States?" Adam asked while cleaning his head feathers.

"Yup," Blu said with a nod "from Moose Lake, Minnesota, to be precise. I was born and raised there by my owner, Linda."

"For me, I'm from Moscow. It's in Russia," Dominic explained with rubbing water over his dusty feathers.

"And I'm from Montreal, Quebec, Canada," Apollo added.

"Never heard about Quebec nor Montreal," Adam remarked.

"Why does nobody ever acknowledges Quebec's existence?!" the barn owl growled in anger.

Adam chuckled before noticing a detail. "What the hell are you doing, Polie?"

His macaw friend started climbing up a fake tree, using the colored stairs. "I'm gonna go get a little look over the girls. If they don't want us to be with them, then I sure as hell can watch them," he said with a naughty chuckle.

"Are you crazy, dude?!" Apollo said in awe.

"Shhh, you're gonna alert them," Polie said with a feather before his beak. "Come with me, it's gonna be a sight to see!"

He then grabbed Blu's wing and dragged him in his crazy adventure despite his protest.

"It's an excellent way to get killed, dude!" Dominic said with shaking his head.

"Hey, I'm a ninja: I will not get caught!" Polie affirmed as he dragged Blu on the tree's branch and started jumping from one to the other while remaining hidden behind the leaves.

"Polie! Stop that!" Blu exclaimed in a whisper. "I don't want to get in trouble with Jewel: she nearly killed me when we first met. Twice."

"Blu, dude, trust me, seeing a pretty girl cleaning herself is one of the most beautiful things you can see on this planet. And it's your lucky day; we have the chance to see THREE of them. You don't want to miss that," the little hyperactive macaw said.

They soon reached a branch with many leaves and Polie gestured to Blu to stay quiet as he gently and carefully pushed the leaves apart and reveal a pretty stunning sight.

Jewel, Star, and Alicia were standing in the middle of another pond, splashing and rubbing water over their beautiful feathers which caused them to reflect the cage's lights from the ceiling. Their wings moved with grace and elegance as they rubbed every ounce of dirt from their already beautiful body. As much as Blu didn't want to admit it, Polie was right; it was an absolutely gorgeous sight and he couldn't remove his eyes from the girls - especially Jewel.

"See, dude? I told you it was a beauty of nature," Polie said with a dreamful face as he rested his head on his wings.

However, the moment was quickly interrupted as Alicia suddenly grabbed a rock and swiftly threw it right into Polie's face, startling Blu, and causing Polie to fall off the branch with a loud THUD! and groaning in pain.

"You pervert! You're a big pervert, Polie!" Jewel shouted while covering her body with her wings.

"Crap!" Blu though as he quickly ran away before the girls could spot him too.


	8. Birdnapped

After taking a bath, night time came and our avian friends decided to go to sleep. Well, almost all of them. While Blu, Dominic, and Apollo were trying to sleep in their corner of the fake jungle, loud banging noises could be heard not too far as Jewel and her friends tried to break out from an air vent.

CLANG! was the noise that could be heard as Jewel smashed her stick against the metal. Blu groaned as he removed the leaves he put on his eyes to help him sleep and turned toward her.

"Excuse me, guys. Could you make less noise, we're trying to sleep here."

"Oh, I'm sorry, sleepyhead, I'm trying to escape." Jewel sarcastically answered.

"Seriously, Jewel, could we take some rest; we've been working at it for hours," Polie asked with rubbing his visibly tired eyes.

"And if our ironwood weapons don't work against this, it could take a long while. We might as well rest until tomorrow," Adam added with a nod.

"Don't tell me that you guys seriously think about sleeping for a full night in this creepy cage!" Alicia suddenly exclaimed with a frown.

"Come on, Alicia; it's not THAT bad," Star said with rolling her eyes.

"And besides, why would you want to escape anyway? This cage is pretty awesome," Blu said with a smile.

"This cage?!" Jewel briefly exclaimed before sighing. "But why am I surprised? I wouldn't expect a _pet_ to understand," she spat before going back to work.

Suddenly, an empty bird-sized bottle was thrown in her direction and broke against the wall, causing her and everyone else to jump in surprise. "SHUT UP! I WANNA SLEEP!" Dominic angrily screamed before going back to rest his back against a tree with his eyes closed.

Apollo then gestured Blu to come back to sleep. "You know what, you guys can escape if you want, but tomorrow morning, Linda will come back to pick us up and this nightmare will be over."

Blu started feeling a bit regret of wanting to spend more time with her with the way she was treating him. If he came, it was because he wanted to make sure she wouldn't be feeling alone or scared, but now that she was reunited with her Amazon friends, he had nothing left to do there. He just had to wait for Linda to pick him up and they'll go back home at Moose Lake.

"Incredible!" Jewel said with rubbing her beak before turning toward Blu. "You would rather be with a... a-a-a human, than with your own kind!"

"Well, sorry to disappoint you, but this 'human' as you say, took care of me for fifteen years while my own kind tried to choke me down in barely five seconds, remember?" Blu spat back with trying to use a leaf for cover, referencing their encounter back at Moose Lake.

"Yeah, well, because of them, we've lost everything. You can't trust them!"

At the same time, the cage's door opened and someone entered to charge toward the five macaws.

"Humans are not all the same, girl!" Dominic replied with his eyes still closed. However, he surprisingly didn't receive any answer.

"Jewel? Guys?" Blu asked as he got out of his leaf and realized they were gone - not through the air vent as the hole in it was still too small. "Guys, where are you?" he asked and walked around a bit before a figure caught him from behind and knocked him out by smashing his head against a tree.

It was only later that Apollo noticed Blu's absence and got up to search for him, only to realize the five other macaws had disappeared as well.

"Blu? Jewel? Polie?" he called in concern before going over to Dominic. "Dominic! Hey, Dominic! Wake up!" he said with slapping him in the face.

The golden eagle groaned before opening his eyes and glaring at his owl friend. "You better have a good reason to wake me up so late, if you don't want me to give you the beating of your life!"

"Dominic! It's Blu and the others; they're gone!" Apollo panicked.

Dominic widened his eyes and got up in a sitting position. "Gone? What do you mean, gone?!"

"They disappeared! They're no longer here! What else do you want me to say?" Apollo continued to panic.

The eagle and owl searched in the whole fake jungle and, thanks to Dominic's hunting skills, discovered traces of struggle near the half-broken air vent as well as a mark of smashed skull against a tree. They hoped it wasn't Blu's. The traces led them to the cage's door which was surprisingly open.

"Strange, not human came in here, or I would have heard them," Dominic remarked.

"Then it can only mean one thing; a spy came in and captured Blu and the others!" Apollo panicked.

"Quick! They can't have gotten far!" Dominic said before flying out of the cage with his owl friend.

* * *

At the same time, Blu groaned as his regained his senses. The world was spinning around him and his skull felt like it was broken. He rubbed it with his wing a bit before opening his eyes.

To his surprise, he was actually in some kind of cage for pets covered by a blanket which prevented from seeing outside. The only positive point was that Jewel, Polie, Alicia, Adam, and Star were with him too. Well, as long as Jewel didn't try to murder him again.

"Dude, you're alright?" Polie asked in concern as he helped Blu to get back on his feet.

"You took a good shot, poor thing," Star said with gently rubbing Blu's head.

"Thanks, but what happened? And where are we?"

"We got attacked and kidnapped by a bird in the fake jungle," Adam answered while Jewel kept looking for an exit. "As for where we are, I'd say we're in a cage and being carried to god-knows-where."

"Shhh!" Jewel suddenly said. "We're arriving somewhere!"

Indeed, they heard the sound of a door opening and then two humans talking before the one carrying them entered. After more chatting, the blanket soon got removed and they found themselves getting watched by four humans. One of them was an older brown-haired guy wearing glasses. He was accompanied by a pretty fat guy and a black one with an afro. In the very back was an 11-year old boy who was holding money in his hands. Strangely, he didn't seem very happy.

"Here they are," the man with glasses said as he admired the six birds behind the cage. "The very last specimens of their kind. They're gonna make us rich!"

He then held his hand to touch at them. Bad idea. Jewel grabbed her stick and smashed his hand away with it. Unfortunately, this gave some bird the occasion to catch her leg from the outside. To Blu's surprise, it was the same ugly cockatoo that he saw at the aviary before entering the cage with the others. However, he seemed to be in way better shape now.

"Bad move, pretty girl," the cockatoo said with a smirk before suddenly wrapped a chain on Jewel's ankle. He then turned toward Blu. "Hey, you, come over here."

Too scared to disobey, Blu stepped forward and the cockatoo grabbed his ankle to wrap the other end of the chain to it, trapping him to Jewel with this last one trying to break free, only to discover that the metal was too solid for her ironwood stick.

"Good job, Nigel," the man with glasses complimented him as he flew back on his shoulder. "Now go put them in the reserve, Fernando."

He talked to the young boy who took the cage and walked past a door which led into a pretty terrifying place. The room was dark with the only light coming from the moon rays by an open window with bars and it was filled with all kinds of birds trapped in cages. There was notably one filled with little green birds safe for a dark blue on in the very middle, one with a crazy yellow macaw girl who kept saying she was the most beautiful and one containing a bat claiming that he was innocent.

"Sorry, it's nothing personal," the little boy known as Fernando apologized to the macaws before leaving the room, closing the door behind.


	9. Finding a way out

"No panic, no panic, everything will be fine..." Blu mumbled while taking deep breaths.

"No one's panicking in here," Alicia remarked.

"I was talking to myself," Blu responded. "But it's okay; Linda's gonna find us and we'll be safe."

"Oh yeah, and then she'll put us behind other bars, right?" Jewel sarcastically asked.

"Yes-What, no!"

"Look pet, cages might work for you, but I don't want to belong to anyone."

Just then, they heard the door open and the crazy cockatoo, Nigel, walked in with banging a bone against some birds' cage to tease them before suddenly jumping on the macaws' one with a creepy laugh.

"Oh, I know I'm not a cute birdie, but before I was a charmer, a real star," he said with pointing at a movie poster behind him which showed a pretty handsome cockatoo.

"Who's this guy?" Polie innocently asked.

"It's me," Nigel replied.

"Impossible; this macaw looks all awesome and glorious while you look like some villain bird from Pirate of the Caribbeans," Blu jokingly said though none of his friends understood as they never saw any Pirate of the Caribbeans movies (as if they ever saw a movie at all), but Nigel groaned a bit as he understood.

"That's what I'm talking about," he said with jumping off to the poster. "Lights. Camera. Action!"

 **(I'm gonna skip Nigel's song as I don't really like it; I'm not trashing Jemaine Clement's work, but we already know who Nigel is at this point, so there's no need to waste time with a song about his story while we can make this story advance)**

After he was done signing a scary song about how he was a star with everything before being replaced by a parrot and turned ugly, Nigel affirmed that he was gonna make them all as ugly as him and then left the room.

"Not cool, dude! Scary, but not cool!" Blu said before turning toward Jewel who already got help from her friends. "Are you alright?"

"No. I'm not and I'm mad!" she angrily answered as she started banging against the cage.

"Good idea!" Polie said with a smile as he grabbed his balloon and threw it at full strength against the bars, only for it to bounce back into his face, knocking him down.

"Good idea he says," Alicia mumbled as Jewel kept smashing the bars which caused the cage to start swinging around.

"Stop! Stop! Why don't you just open the door?" Blu asked as he then opened the cage's lock with his beak, much to his macaw friends' surprise.

"How did you do that?!" Star asked with her eyes wide.

"What? It's just a standard flip slide bolt," Blu explained.

"Whatever, let's go!" Jewel said and dashed out of the cage to fly alongside the four others, but Blu held on the cage's bar with his beak, causing his neck to stretch a bit because of the force Jewel pulled. "What are you doing?!"

"I can't...," he mumbled through the bar.

"What? You can stretch? We already know that!" Alicia pointed out.

Just as Blu was gonna say something else, he noticed that Nigel suddenly burst out into the room and flew in his direction with a mad glare. He instinctively let go of the cage which was sent crashing face-first into the cockatoo. He regretted it instantly as he started falling down.

"I can't fly!"

Because of the chains binding them, Blu dragged Jewel in his fall. They went through a series of jumps and flips around (luckily he was now made of plastic) before landing into two boxes filled with pieces of cotton. Jewel walked out of it, clearly not happy.

"Is there something else I should know about?"

"Yes, I can't fly, I pick my beak, and once in a while, I pee in the birdbath. Happy?" Blu replied.

Polie and Adam frowned because of this. "Dude, that's gross!" Adam spat.

Just then, Alicia saw the cockatoo who had taken back from the cage shot flying down toward them with a deadly glare. She rose her wings toward him. "Take that, FIRE!" Using her black magic, she shot some fire toward him.

However, the cockatoo smirked and suddenly turned his body into metal which countered the attack. "Sorry to disappoint you, pretty girl, but I ate a Magic Fruit which gave me the power to turn any part of my body into metal," he said with praising his metal body.

"Whoa! That's some crazy power!" Polie said with an excited smile, earning desperate glances from his friends. "I need to find a Magic Fruit for myself."

Adam caught him by the collar and started running away. "Wait, wait. Listen to me. Flying may not be my thing, but walking is," Blu explained to Jewel as she tried to run. "Follow my lead, inside leg, outside leg!"

Jewel reluctantly followed his lead and they started running across the streets with their friends flying above their head. Whenever Nigel would get too close, Alicia would shot a Black Magic spell at him to slow him a bit.

Eventually, Blu and Jewel came across a cat who was too busy cleaning himself to notice their presence. By instinct, Blu sent a punch to his face by stretching his wing (like he did with Alice and Chloe's gang) which stunned him long enough for Jewel to knock him out with a swift move of her stick and then resumed running.

"See? I too know how to fight!" Blu happily said though Jewel did not seem really interested by this.

"Oh, this is great. I'm chained to the only bird in the world who can't fly!" she complained.

"That's not true! There are a lot of other birds who can't fly!" Blu responded.

"Plunge!" Jewel suddenly said.

"No; flying!" Blu responded before noticing they were running toward a wooden box lowered by two humans and he indeed plunged to avoid losing his head.

Then, as Nigel was about to catch them with his talons (Alicia probably ran out of Black Magic), they fell down from a small hill and started bouncing everywhere which ended up with them riding a metal plate across the roofs of the city.

"Yes!" Nigel shouted as he was once again close to catching the two birds.

Just then, Blu smirked and stretched is wings to grab a pillar and move out of the way in time to let Nigel crash into a power generator which caused an explosion and the city to fell in the dark with the power running out.

"Man! What a chase!" Blu panted as both he and Jewel got down from the metal plate and got joined by their friends.

"Blu! That was AWESOME!" Polie excitedly said with wrapping around Blu's shoulders. "This crazy metal guy was about to catch you and then you just stretched your wings and got out of the way and he went exploding like an idiot!" he said as he made gestures of the whole scene for emphasis, causing the others to chuckle.

"You were not kidding about fighting. I don't know a lot of birds who can smash a cat like this," Adam added with a wing around Blu's shoulders as the girls nodded.

"Thanks," Blu said with blushing a bit.

"Enough with the compliments; we must go back to the jungle before those crazy humans realize we're gone," Jewel said and dragged the group toward the outside part of the city.

* * *

A while later, the macaws arrived in the forest. As they calmly walked around and looked for a safe spot, Blu was practically in hysterical fear which annoyed Jewel.

"What was that?" he asked as he stepped on something.

"A twig," Star replied without stopping walking.

"And that?" Blu asked again.

"It's just a leaf," Adam replied.

"I knew it," Blu said, trying to look cool before suddenly stopping. "Hey, is that a spider on my back?"

Jewel had enough and turned toward him. "You would stop complaining?! It's just a leaf, turn around!"

Blu obeyed and slowly turned around to reveal a big spider climbing on his back. This caused the five friends to exchange glances before Jewel slapped the spider away.

"A leaf. Told ya," she said with an innocent smile as Polie nodded unconvincingly. "Come on. We need to find a safe place to spend the night."

"A safe place?!" Blu asked. "Safe? We are in the jungle! You know when people say, 'It's a jungle out there'? Well, I'm pretty sure they don't mean it as a good thing."

"Come on, dude; it's not that bad. We lived in the jungle all our lives and we're still alive, aren't we?" Adam pointed out.

"Yeah, but we aren't flightless," Alicia said which caused Blu to look down and Adam to give her a pointing look with Star giving her a slap on the shoulder.

"Maybe the predators won't eat you because you're made of plastic?" Polie suggested while drumming his balloon on the forest floor.

"There," Jewel said as they reached a good-looking tree, "this one seems perfect. Stretch your wings to get on the nearest branch, Blu."

"I don't know," Blu admitted. "I would feel much more comfortable on something... man made." He then started looking around before spotting some kind of Vista Chinesa. "Hey, how about up there?"

They all looked at it and Star tilted her head. "This doesn't look bad, actually."

So the group made their way with everyone except Blu and Jewel flying up to the beam of the Vista Chinesa. "I can't believe I have to drag your clumsy butt up there," Jewel sighed.

"Drag me?" Blu asked with an insulted look. "Watch and learn."

He ran up and started flipping all around while dragging Jewel who protested as she didn't saw it coming. "Wait, Blu!"

"Who's dragging who's butt now?" Blu asked while standing backward which made Jewel put on an amused look.

"Ha, ha, very funny," she said before Blu resumed dragging her until they reached their own beam of the Vista Chinesa.

"See? Who needs flying?" Blu asked as he saw Polie finding a sleeping spot with Star while Adam found one with Alicia.

"Birds, birds need flying," Jewel replied and then gazed at the full moon. "Flying is... it's freedom and not having to rely on anyone. Don't you want that?"

Blu rubbed the back of his head. "Honestly, family and friendship count more than freedom for me," he admitted.

"Let's get some sleep," Jewel said and snuggled into a corner.

"Okay, goodnight, Jewel," Blu said with a smile before looking at the full moon. "Goodnight, Linda, Dominic, and Apollo..."


	10. Meeting a family of toucans

The next day, after the Spix macaws awoke, they immediately started looking for a way to get Blu and Jewel rid of the chains that were holding them to each other. However, they revealed themselves to be more solid than expected and couldn't break it, regardless of Adam smashing his shield on it, Star and Alicia using their white and black magic respectively on it, Polie throwing his balloon at it only to receive it back to his head, Jewel smashing her stick on it, or even Blu trying to stretch his plastic leg to get out of it.

Eventually, they decided to change tactics and Blu worked on a plan to lift a big rock with some vines thanks to a tree branch.

"Huh, you're sure we're not gonna end up squashed?" Jewel asked through the vine she was holding with her beak.

"100% sure; look at my calculations," Blu answered with pointing his wing at a series of calculations he traced in the sand.

"D-Do you understand any of it?" Polie asked Adam through the vine he was holding in his beak to which he answered with a head shake.

"That's very reassuring, thanks," Jewel sarcastically as the six birds kept dragging the vine. "What matters is to break this chain."

"Yeah," Blu said just as they finally tied the tip of the vine to a branch, "then we can go find Linda."

"No, YOU can go find Linda," Jewel replied. "Once those chains are off, I and my friends are going back to the Amazon and search for our friends. Okay?"

"Sure," Blu answered as he positioned their chains under the giant rock. "High-five," he said with lifting his wing and accidentally knocked the vine in the process.

The vine got unhooked from the branch and caught Blu's beak which caused him to be dragged alongside Jewel and it ended with the two of them flipping everywhere before landing beside the giant rock. With their chains still on...

"Are you alright?" Star asked as she and the three others rushed at their side.

"Well, we almost got killed, but except that, I'm fine," Jewel replied as the two girls helped her standing up.

"What matters is to try," Adam pointed out as he helped Blu back up as well.

Blu suddenly heard some noise coming from the bushes. "I-I think something's watching us!" As he said that, everyone got ready to fight any predator that could come out...only to see a few baby toucans coming out.

"Aww, they're adorable!" Star beamed as she welcomed one of them into her wings with Alicia reacting the same way.

Polie and Adam picked them too as they were too adorable to resist. Jewel did the same, but Blu was kinda hesitant as one of them held his wing and jumped as he wanted to be taken.

"Careful, Blu; he might hug you to death," Jewel teased at Blu's hesitation.

The macaw hesitated a bit more, looking between his friends and the little baby bird who kept jumping. After all, what could go wrong with taking a kid? So, he finally decided to take the little toucan in his wings and made him rest on his chest...and immediately regretted it as he started plucking his chest feathers with his beak.

Blu started panicking as more little toucans arrived and attacked the macaw group, plucking their feathers, biting them, and generally harming them in many ways at the same time. Before long, all six of them ended up falling down, Blu and Jewel getting their legs trapped in their chains, and the youngest of the toucans called for all the others to attack them. Luckily, an adult toucan who seemed to be their father came out from a nest.

"What are you doing, down there?" he asked before flying down to get the kids away from the macaws. "Enough! Get away, kids," he said, but then they all turned their attention to him while shouting: "Dad!"

The old macaw chuckled. "Guys, I've told you a thousand times. Manuela, Sofia, come on now, listen to me," he tried to control, the kids before one of them poked him in the eye. "Ouch! Right in the eye."

"Aw, little angels, right?" Jewel commented as she got back up alongside her friends and dusted their feathers off.

"Kids? Seventeen of them, and one on the way," the toucan remarked before noticing something. "Hey! It's not a maraca! Stop shaking him!" he screamed at two of his kids who were shaking an egg in their nest. He then sighed. "They're giving me gray feathers! Oh, this papa needs a break!" he moaned before turning his attention to the macaws. "So, you six lovebirds heading for Carnival?"

This caused the six of them to blush. "Wow, lovebirds?!" Jewel asked.

"Not exactly," Adam said with rubbing the back of his head.

"We're just trying to break our friends free from those chains," Star explained.

"And we got captured by some crazy cockatoo with human smugglers!" Polie added.

"We want to go back in the Amazon rainforest," Alicia added with a nod.

"Yes, and I want to find my friends and mother, Linda-OUCH!" Blu said but got interrupted by a baby toucan who bit feathers off his tail. "What's their problem with feathers?!"

"No idea; they have a psy," the toucan answered with putting a kid off his wing and onto his shoulder.

"Say, won't you have an idea to get these chains off?" Jewel asked with showing the chains.

The toucan gave a smile. "Lucky for you, you know Rafael, and Rafael knows everyone," he said before another kid jumped and hit him in the eye. "Ow, again with the eye! Okay, you want me to call your mother?"

As he asked that, the kids suddenly put on scarred looks and ran away with shouting: "NO!"

The toucan named Rafael chuckled. "Works every time, they're scared to death of her." This comment caused the macaws to give confused glances as they didn't understand.

Suddenly, a female keel-billed toucan with a pretty strict air arrived. "Call me for what?" she asked which caused the macaws to drop their confused glances as they immediately understood.

"Eva, my love," Rafael said with quickly dropping his scarred air as he went beside the macaws and somehow managed to wrap his wings around all of them. "I must take those young couples to see Luiz."

"Luiz? Huh, you don't fool me around for a second!" she said with a furious glance. "You and your amigo just want to sneak off to carnival," she said with her wings crossed.

"Man, she's harsh!" Polie mumbled to Blu.

"What was that?!" Eva asked.

"Nothing!" Polie said with looking away.

"Aww, carnival," Rafael sighed. "That magical time when I met the most beautiful bird in the world," he complimented with giving a kiss to his still unconvinced wife's wing.

This made the six macaws roll their eyes. Eva took her wing away from her mate with a "Hmph!" and turned her back to him.

"I still remember that song that played when I first laid eyes on you," Rafael said as he started singing a song in Portuguese which Blu actually found cute. "Come on, baby, sing it."

If Rafael had a cute voice, Eva had the complete opposite of it as she sang so horribly wrong that the macaws had to cover their hears and the last note she sang was so loud that some nearby birds flew away in fear.

"Like a river of the sweetest honey," Rafael sighed.

"Seriously?" Alicia asked with a confused look as she removed her wings from her ears. "Does this guy have a hearing problem?"

"Looks like love is deaf too," Jewel said to her friend.

The two adult toucans then shared a big kiss which disgusted the kids that were watching from a tree branch.

"Okay, take them to Luiz, but at least take your fork with you," Eva happily said as her mate was holding her with a wing.

"I will, my sweet mango," Rafael assured as he went into his nest for a moment, coming back out with a big bird-sized fork that would normally be used by peasants for their hay along with a bag tied around his waist.

"I can't believe she actually let me go," Rafael remarked as he dragged his macaw friends away from his nest.

"So, is this Luiz far from here?" Blu asked.

"Not too far, thirty minutes as the crow flies," Rafael answered.

"Oh, and as the macaw walks?" Blu asked which earned him a confused look from Rafael.

"Bobo here doesn't know how to fly," Jewel answered which earned her a glare from Blu.

"But he's a bird," said a confused Rafael.

"Yes, but he was raised by a human and had no one to teach him how," Star explained with compassion for her friend.

"Well, I want to help. To walk the whole way, it can't be done," Rafael said before looking at his wife fighting to get the kids to bed. "But, hey, we can always try new tricks, let's go," he said with wrapping his wings around the macaws' shoulders and started walking away. Blu tried to turn his head to look back at the toucans, only to be stopped by Rafael. "Oh no, don't look back, they sense fear."

* * *

 **Alright, our macaw friends met with Rafael. If I gave him a peasant fork is for a reason you'll understand later.**


	11. Learning how to fly

After leaving the forests, Rafael led his macaw friends to the edge of a cliff from where humans could go for an hand-glider ride. Blu took a glance down the hill and realized how high they were which caused him to stumble back and fall on his butt.

"I don't want to do this! Can't we just check the bus timetable?" Blu asked which made Rafael sigh.

"Come on, buddy, you're not gonna back up now." He then lowered to his level and mumbled: "Not in front of ladies."

"Huh, yes, of course," Blu nodded nervously.

"Alright, that's the spirit!"

"You're sure to be ready for that?" Jewel asked in concern as she didn't want to end up crashing on the ground again.

"Of course, it's not like we're gonna jump from a hill cliff, right?" Blu nervously asked as he stood up.

"Actually, that was my whole plan," Rafael pointed out.

"I hate this plan," Blu simply said.

"Aw, come on, Blu, it's in your DNA," Adam said with a wing around Blu's shoulders. "And besides, you are made of plastic, so what's the worst that could happen?"

"Yes, and if our featherless friends can do it, it should be easy," Rafael pointed out before seeing two humans taking on a hand-glider with one of them panicking and calling for his momma. "Fun, right?" Rafael asked as they all looked at Blu with unconvinced smiles.

"Yeah, fun...," Blu answered, unsure.

"Alright, now I want you two to get closer," the toucan instructed Blu and Jewel who slightly stepped toward each other. "More." They did it again, but not enough. "Closer," Rafael said with pressing his wings together for emphasis and the two macaws finally touched each other after one more step. "Perfect. Now, I need you to put one wing above each other."

"What?" Blu asked with a terrified look, earning a glance from Jewel.

"Relax, she's not gonna bite you," Rafael said with a chuckle before getting serious again. "Right?"

"We'll see...," Jewel said with an evil smirk at Blu which made him tremble in fear.

"She's not gonna do it for real, right?" Polie whispered.

"You never know," Alicia answered with her wings crossed.

"Anyways," Rafael continued, "you (Blu) flap your right wing and you (Jewel) the left one. And together, you will fly."

"B-But that seems scientifically impossible," Blu pointed out while looking at his wing unsure.

"Aye-aye-aye-aye!" Rafael exclaimed as he came beside his blue macaw friend. "Don't think. We, bird, don't fly with this," he said with putting his wing on Blu's head. "We fly with THIS," he said with pressing his wing against Blu's chest, where his heart was beating, and the others gave nods of agreement. "And when you listen to your heart that beats to the rhythm of samba, you fly," he said with falling purposefully down from the hill and then rocketed up to the sky, flying with joy.

"See? This is simple!"

"Simple? Easy for you to say because seen from here, it looks very hard!" Blu commented.

"Blu, if you wanna see Linda again, this is the only way," Jewel said with pointing her wing forward.

"Okay, you're right," he said with his eyes closed.

"Yes, I am."

"This is for Linda..."

"Yes, it is," Star said.

"Keep it simple."

"Nice and easy," Alicia nodded.

"Thrust, lift, drag..."

"Okay, enough, let's go!" Jewel said and grabbed Blu to run toward the cliff.

Their friends encouraged Blu who seemed like he was really going to do it, but dropped at the last second and instead held on the cliff's edge.

"Not again!" Jewel groaned before Blu let go of the cliff and dragged her in his fall.

"Aya-caramba!" Rafael exclaimed as he flew down toward them alongside the other macaws.

Luckily for them, the two landed on the top of an hand-glider, safe and sound. "Are we dead?" Blu asked with his eyes closed.

"No! We're alive! Wahou!" Jewel cheered.

As the hand-glider flew above it, Blu could admire the beauty of Rio de Janeiro, including the Chris The Redeemer Statue, from the skies.

"I've never seen anything so beautiful!" Blu commented.

"You see what you've been missing all this time?" Jewel asked to which Blu nodded. She then stood on her two legs and enjoyed the breeze flying through her feathers.

"See, Blu? You're flying!" Rafael called as he flew near them. "Well, sort of. Okay, not really, but you know how it feels!"

"How do you find that?" Adam asked.

"This is awesome! I can feel it!" Blu answered and then noticed Jewel enjoying the breeze. He decided to do like her and stood up to feel the breeze, slowly opening his wings to make them feel it too...and regretted it immediately as the wind caused them to fall down from the hand-glider, dragging Jewel with him.

"Not again!" Alicia sighed as she went after her friends alongside the others.

The fall turned into a series of catastrophes as Blu and Jewel were sent flying everywhere across the Copacabana Beach, ending with them crashing into a surfboard. While his body was made of plastic, it still felt painful to Blu.

Their friends landed beside them. "Tsk, tsk, tsk, you didn't fly with your heart," Rafael commented to Blu as he along with Jewel were helped back on their feet by the others.

"No kidding!" Jewel groaned.

They then heard a car engine and spotted a truck containing fruits about to leave. "What about getting driven to Luiz?" Rafael proposed as he flew into the back of the truck. "Quick, Vamos, Vamos!" he called as Blu and Jewel ran after the truck.

"Watch out! We're the last of the species!" Blu commented to the humans before nearly getting his head smashed off by a cyclist that passed by.

He and Jewel eventually managed to catch on the truck and were helped to get in by Polie and Adam.

"Five minutes without nearly getting killed, is that too much asked?" Blu said as he rested against a pile of papayas.

"For a bird who can't fly, yes," Jewel commented.

"Even if he's made of plastic?" Polie innocently asked.

* * *

After a while, the truck ended up reaching a fruit market with humans buying things at fruits stands all around. As the back of the truck opened, Blu fell down while dragging Jewel and crashed on the ground. She gave an angry glare before Blu received a papaya on top of his head.

"I'm gonna peak my leg off if we don't find a solution soon," Jewel groaned.

"Relax, knowing Luiz, he shouldn't be too far," Rafael assured as he flew down and looked around.

"Hey, Rafi!" called a voice. To Blu and Jewel's surprise, it was none other than Nico, the little yellow canary with a bottle cap on top of his head that they met on their way to the aviary, followed by Pedro, his chubby red-crested cardinal friend. "Here's the carnival king himself!"

"Nico! Pedro! What's up, family?!" Rafael asked them with joy.

"Where have you been, big nose?" Pedro asked.

"We thought you were dead!" Nico added before his cardinal friend noticed something.

"Wait, let's go back in time," he said with imitating the sound of a machine as he flew beside Blu. "Isn't that the guy from the cage?"

Nico came beside too and admired Jewel. "I see our seduction lessons have paid well." He then remarked Polie, Adam, Star, and Alicia. "Did you already multiplied yourselves?"

"Wow! You impress me, bro," Pedro complimented Blu which earned him a confused gaze from Jewel and the others.

"No, no, no! It's not like that! Those guys are friends we met at the aviary. And we ended up getting chained," Blu quickly explained.

"Ah, that's cool with me too, bro," Nico said with a chuckle. "Say, where are your eagle and owl friends?"

Blu then remembered about Dominic and Apollo Bird and looked down. "We got separated at the aviary and we haven't seen them since."

"BLU!"

As if destiny decided to play with him, Blu heard a familiar voice and turned around to see an eagle and owl rushing at him. "Dominic! Apollo!" he happily exclaimed as his two friends gave him a big hug.

"There you are!" Dominic exclaimed. "We've been searching you since last night! Where have you been?!"

Blu explained them everything that happened since they got captured by Nigel and the smugglers and how they arrived here.

"...And now, you must find this Luiz to get those chains off?" Apollo asked to which Blu nodded.

"You sure you don't want me to try and cut it off with my saber?" Dominic proposed.

"Don't waste your time; we already tried," Adam stopped him.

"This makes me think," Rafael said as he turned to Nico and Pedro, "have you seen Luiz somewhere?"

"Yup, we did see him, but you missed him, Rafi," Pedro answered and then pointed at the streetcar on a bridge far behind them. "He took the streetcar to go back at his garage."

"Oh, great!" Jewel sarcastically said.

"Relax, hotwing, you'll take the next one," Nico said in a relaxed tone with a wink.

"Yeah, for now, it's time to go for the next level," Pedro said with doing gestures with his wings.

"Next level? Like in a video game?" Apollo innocently asked.

"No, dude; the next level where we start shaking our booties!" Pedro answered with shaking his plump butt for emphasis. "Come on, let's go!" he said as he and Nico tried to drag Blu and Jewel somewhere, but these last ones were hesitant.

"Come on, lovebirds! It's time to have a little fun!" Rafael said with dragging Blu and Jewel with the others following with curious looks. They failed to notice a little monkey following them from behind...

* * *

 **Two chapters in one day? I'm on fire! Anyway, I think the next chapter's gonna be the funniest :)**


	12. Dancing and fighting

Rafael, Nico, and Pedro led their macaw, eagle and owl friends inside some kind of big club where birds of all kinds and colors were dancing to some great samba music. Multi-colored lights were shining all around and the birds seemed to have a lot of fun.

"Welcome to paradise!" Nico said to the newcomers as he flew to the stage alongside Pedro.

"Cool place, right?" Rafael asked as he walked across the crowd.

"Cool? This. Is. The. Most. AWESOME PLACE I'VE EVER BEEN TO!" Polie exclaimed with enthusiasm.

"There's a lot of noise though!" Apollo said with covering his sensitive ears with his wings.

"Not bad," Dominic remarked with a nod and a smile.

"It is a really nice place," Blu said. "This is the coolest place I've ever seen, despite all the obvious health code violations."

Rafael let out a laugh. "I love you. None of what you say ever makes sense."

"What are you talking about?" Apollo asked. "The health code is a rule system that makes sure an environment stays clean and-"

"Ladies and gentlemen!" the voice of Nico suddenly cut him off. "Rafi has some special guests from out of town, and let's show them some love, I don't think they get out much," he said as the spotlight turned on the newcomers which made Blu step back in hopes of avoiding the attention.

"Yo, yo, yo!" Pedro said from the stage. "Let's clap, flap, swing and make some noise!" he said before letting out a crazy lovehawk sound.

"Party in Ipanema, baby," Nico seductively said with holding his bottle cap.

("Hot Wings" from "Rio" by Will . i . am and Jamie Foxx)

Pedro slammed on drums alongside Nico from the stage. As they sung, the duo also danced the samba together.

 **I wanna party**

 **I wanna samba**

 **I wanna party**

 **I wanna samba**

 **I wanna party**

 **And live my life (my life)**

They pressed their back against each other and exchanged a brief smile

 **I wanna party (party)**

 **And fly!**

After saying that, they took off in the air before landing down and Nico sang the next part while drumming on his bottle cap

 **I'm flying, flying like a bird**

 **Pedro: But you're a bird**

 **Nico: Oh yeah, you're right**

 **So let me fly just like a rocket babe**

 **Pedro: Ok!**

As Nico got on a spoon, Pedro jumped on the other end to send him flying in the air

 **Nico: Fly so high**

 **But I need to come down for oxygen**

 **Pedro: Hey!**

As the song kept going on, Blu started to feel the beat and tapped his foot, catching the attention of his friends

 **Nico: 'Cause when we get started, baby**

 **Ain't no, ain't no** stoppin **it!**

 **Pedro: Hey!**

 **Nico: 'Cause I just wanna live my life and party**

 **Pedro: Hey!**

The two friends got back-to-back and shook their bodies together

 **Nico: All I want is to be free and rock my body**

 **Pedro: Okay!**

Blu saw his tailfeathers moving and suddenly, he got a flashback from finding himself in a similar position as a kid. He finally started dancing for true.

"Blu? What are you doing?!" Jewel asked in surprise.

"I don't know! My body's moving on its own!" he replied and kept dancing.

Rafael saw this and smiled. "Nice, Blu!"

 **Pedro & Nico: I wanna party (party!)**

 **I wanna samba (party!)**

 **I wanna party (party!)**

 **And fly!**

 **Pedro: I'm the samba, samba**

 **Master, master, master, master, master**

 **Who shouts out I'm gonna get your blaster, blaster, blaster, blaster, blaster**

 **You dance fast, but I dance faster, faster, faster, faster, faster**

 **You're too slow, you need to catch up, but you can dance and dance**

As he was lost in the rhythm, Blu soon noticed that all his friends also started dancing. The one to catch his attention the most was Jewel who did beautiful moves. The other girls did as well, but Star caught Polie's attention while Alicia caught Adam's. Dominic and Apollo were surprisingly good at dancing too which Blu would have never guessed.

"Wow! She likes you!" Rafael mumbled as he came beside Blu.

"Are you kidding? You saw how she's talking to me?" Blu replied.

"Nope, but I've seen how she moves," he said with admiring her swinging her beautiful wings which caught the attention of many guys around. "Be yourself, Blu, let's go!" Rafael said with pushing him right into Jewel.

The two exchanged a shy glance before Jewel gave a hip nudge to Blu and invited him to dance with her. Soon, he got into it and accepted to share a dance with her.

Not too far, Polie shyly walked to Star who noticed him. "Yes?"

"Hum," he said with looking down at his foot which he dragged on the floor. "Would you like to...hum...y'know..."

He didn't have to say anything more as Star grabbed his wings started a dance with him. He got surprised, but soon enjoyed it.

Adam was about to ask the same thing to Alicia, but before he could talk, she grabbed him and started doing like her friends. Rafale smiled at his success.

 **Nico & Pedro: I wanna party (party!)**

 **I wanna samba (party!)**

 **I wanna party (party!)**

 **I wanna samba (party!)**

 **I wanna party (party!)**

 **And live my life (my life)**

 **I wanna party (party!)**

 **And fly!**

Soon, everybody in the club (even Dominic and Apollo) sang together

 **Everyone: Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey!**

Then, Blu span Jewel around before throwing her high in the air as she sung the next part

 **Jewel: Layalayalalaaaa!**

 **Layalayalalayalaaaaaa!**

Time seemed to freeze as Blu admired Jewel shining under the purple lights, looking more beautiful than ever. When he first laid eyes on her, he thought he saw beauty in its greatest form, but that was before seeing Jewel like this; she seemed happy and about to come back down, only to be brought back on the ground back the chains that were bonding them together.

Blu looked deep down into her beautiful turquoise eyes that reflected the purple lights as she did the same with his hazel ones. They slowly leaned toward each other, their beaks getting closer and closer...

"Dude! Look!" Apollo said in excitation as he tapped on Dominic. "They're gonna do it!"

However, just as their beaks were gonna connect, the blankets that were used as a roof for the club were suddenly pulled off and the lights got replaced by the sunshine, causing everyone to stop singing. Well, safe for a little female green bird who kept singing: "Hey! Hey! Hey!" before realizing what was going on and stopping.

Suddenly, a big gang of marmosets monkeys came into the club with all of them being black except their apparent leader who was brown with golden bracelets and a gold watch around his waist. He walked toward Blu and Jewel.

"Alright, you bluebirds, you all come with me!" he ordered.

"In ya monkey dreams!" Jewel said and arrogantly spat in front of him.

"That's gross, Jewel!" Apollo complained with a shiver.

"But she's right, we're not going anywhere with some kind of...baboon," Alicia added to which Star nodded.

"Huh, for the record, I'm not a baboon but a marmoset, and my name is Mauro," the monkey introduced himself.

"Whatever, what do you want our friends for?" Dominic asked with a slightly annoyed tone.

"Well, there'a crazy cockatoo guy who hired me and the boys to bring back a group of six blue macaws - the last of their species - to him. And looks like we did find our target, now we just have to bring you to him before he comes back to break my neck."

"Not likely," Dominic said with a threatening glare as he started dragging his sword out of his sheath and Apollo took out his slingshot.

Mauro simply chuckled before Rafael came to put a wing around his shoulders. "Come on, can't we just all go along?"

"Mind your own business, big nose!" Mauro replied and was about to slap the toucan who swiftly grabbed his peasant fork he brought along and blocked his hand.

"Sorry, pal, I might be a lover and not a fighter, but when provoked, I can fight."

"And us too!" all the other birds declared with the clear intention of fighting.

"Yeah, little King Kong!" Pedro said with a mad glance at the little leader.

Both the monkeys' and the birds' side glared at each other in a deadly silence which was only disturbed by the sound of some random marmoset tapping on a drum to build the suspense. However, he got interrupted by Apollo throwing a monkey wrench at his head. "Knock it off!"

"I don't understand what's going on," the little green bird girl remarked before flying away to safety.

"BIRDS VERSUS MONKEYS!" Pedro screamed before both sides finally charged and engaged an all-out brawl.

Before the fight started, Pedro took out and put on his wings black gloves and started delivering punches to all the marmosets who came in his way. Nico was fighting alongside him, using his bottle cap like a shield to block the attacks and to smash too.

"Yippe kai yay, monkey man!" Pedro shouted after smashing down a monkey and then did a chest-bump with Nico.

Most of the marmosets were too scared of the big golden eagle that was Dominic to dare attack him, but the few ones who did ended up with a cut from his sword, not enough to kill them, but enough to make them bleed and put them out of action. "Do not underestimate the power of the bushido's way!" he said with taking a cool pose.

Apollo was using his slingshot to shoot pepper bills to the monkeys who coughed and cried before collapsing. One of them almost surprised him with a kick, only for Apollo to take out his mallet from his backpack and swiftly smash him in the face. "I always come fully equipped!"

Polie threw his balloon right into a marmoset's face which knocked him out and bounced toward another one who ducked and laughed as he took Polie missed his shot, only for the balloon to bounce on a wooden box and come back right into his face.

"Nice trick, Polie!" Adam complimented his friend as he joined his side, fighting off monkeys with his wooden shield. One o them tried to deliver a strong kick to him, only to be blocked by the shield which made him hold his foot in pain before getting knocked out by a shield smash from Adam.

"Wow! Looks like it's our lucky day, boys!" one of the marmosets said as he and his friends surrounded Star and Alicia. "We get to have fun with the ladies!"

This earned him a deadly glare from Alicia. "You think so?" She rose her wings and charged her black magic. "FIRE! ICE! THUNDER! ICE! FIRE! FIRE! THUNDER! ICE!"

Before long, all the marmosets around them were knocked down by either fire, ice or thunder. One of them groaned and tried to stand up, only to get knocked down again by a kick from Star. "Don't mess with the ladies, dude!"

Rafael was using his fork swiftly to block the monkeys and sting them at the right time without the intention of killing them. One jumped before him and showed some Capoeira moves to try and impress him. The toucan replied by simply pecking him on the head with his large beak which knocked him out completely.

Meanwhile, Blu and Jewel were getting attacked by many monkeys and had to work together to fend them off. Jewel used her wooden stick to smash them away, doing elegant and swift moves. "Blu! Use your power!" she called to him.

Blu took a deep breath and tried to remember the same thing he did with the gooses back at Moose Lake. As the marmosets attacked him with Capoeira moves, he used his agility to dodge and replied by stretching his wings for punches to their faces, knocking them out like a boxer. He would sometimes stretch his body to dodge and reply with a stretched kick.

"Nice job, Blu!" Jewel complimented him before Mauro suddenly knocked him down with a kick and was about to attack again. However, Jewel noticed that his legs were on both sides of the chains and lifted it up to smash it right into his parts. He spat some diamonds out of his mouth before collapsing.

Jewel then helped Blu to get back up before noticing the next trolley car on the bridge leaving. "Come on, let's go!" she said as they both started running.

They spotted Adam on their way with his shield. "Jump on my shield!" he ordered.

Blu obeyed and took Jewel on his back before jumping on the shield at which moment Adam pushed them as far as he could. Blu then stretched his plastic wings to grab the trolley car and bring them up to there, landing on the roof.

"Nice job, Blu!" Jewel thanked before they were joined by their friends who all cheered in joy.

"That was freakin' awesome!" Polie beamed.

"We have all been awesome!" Blu declared with a smile.

"More than that!" Jewel added.

"Dude, what you did with that sword was too cool!" Rafael complimented Dominic.

"You did pretty well with this fork too, my friend," the eagle returned the compliment.

"What were those things you shot at those monkey heads?" Adam asked Apollo.

"Pepper bills," he replied with showing one, "it's a creation of mine. I like to be equipped when I go somewhere."

"And how did you this thing with your wings, pal?" Nico asked Blu.

"It's my power; I'm made of plastic," he said with stretching his cheek for emphasis.

"You make a good team," Rafael remarked to both he and Jewel. "You guys were like fire and ice."

"Thunder and lightning!" Nico added.

"Hip and hop!" Pedro said.

"The sword and the shield," Dominic added with a smile.

"The ninja and the kunoichi!" Polie said with excitation and doing Kung Fu moves.

"Strength and speed," Apollo said with a nod.

"Water and wind!" Star said with a giggle.

"Rock and steel!" Adam said with showing his thumb.

"Light and darkness," Alicia said with a wink.

"Cheese and sprinkles," Blu said which got everyone to stop laughing and look at him in confusion. "It's a Minnesota thing," he quickly explained with rubbing the back of his head.

The other suddenly started laughing. "See? Nothing of what you say makes any sense!" Rafael said again.

"Not at all," Apollo interrupted, "Cheese is milky and delicious, so if combined with the sweet and cracky taste of sprinkles, it makes a perfect combination." He then took out some cheese from his backpack. "If you don't believe me, we can make the test. I have some cheese; anyone got sprinkles?"

* * *

 **Seriously, I've always wondered if cheese and sprinkles really do make a good combination. But even seven years later, I still didn't try it.**


	13. Getting to the garage

After taking back from their battle with the marmosets at the club for a while, our heroes calmly relaxed on the trolley with Blu and Jewel sitting together at the front, admiring the sunset which was making the petals of the cherry blossom trees around shine a pink light.

With all the others standing at the back of the trolley, Rafael let out a: "Psss!" to get Blu's attention and then hinted him to get closer to Jewel, as he did back on the hill.

"Don't worry; I got it," Blu mumbled as he got closer to Jewel.

"He's doing it! That's my boy!" Rafael mumbled in excitation.

Once he was close enough to her, Blu tried to place a wing around Jewel's shoulders, but she noticed his wing and looked in his direction. He quickly dragged it back in his direction and started winding himself.

"Is it hot? I think I'm sweating. I didn't even think that was biologically possible, and yet, look!" he said with showing his wing which surprised Jewel, but not in a good way.

"What a moron!" Adam groaned as he face-winged himself.

"Because you would know what to do?" Alicia remarked with an eyebrow.

"Hum, yes, I think...," Adam said with blushing nervously and rubbing the back of his head.

"Okay so he needs a little help," Rafael said. "Come on let's give him some, set the mood."

"Let me do it," Pedro said as he flew forward. "I know how to set the mood, check it out." He suddenly started singing a dirty rap song too fast for anyone to understand what he was saying.

"Hey, hey, hey, knock it off!" Dominic interrupted the cardinal who almost ran out of oxygen by the last notes he sang. "I may not be a romantic expert, but this is totally not an appropriate song!"

"Pedro, Pedro, a little too aggressive," Nico said as he flew beside his cardinal friend. "Not hatin' on your creativity, but I think I got this one. Follow my lead."

He then started whistling to start a romantic song as Pedro went to the trolley's electric cables to play a violin-like melody. "You know what, this is good," Rafael said as he flew off into the cherry blossom's tree branches to make the petals fall and give an even more romantic mood.

Dominic actually got an idea; he took his sword out and lifted it into the little breeze which created a soft flute-like melody. As Nico sang his song while softly drumming on his bottle cap, Blu and Jewel were slowly getting into the mood.

"Wow! What a beautiful sunset," Jewel remarked.

"Yup, a beautiful sunset," Blu nodded.

He then heard a "Pss!" noise again and saw Rafael flying near him. "Blu, tell her: "You have beautiful eyes," he instructed him.

"Okay, good idea," Blu said and turned toward Jewel. "I have beautiful eyes," he said with widening his eyes big enough so that Jewel could see them completely.

"Huh...," she said, looking unsure. "Yes, sure, I find them beautiful," she slowly turned her head away.

Meanwhile, Apollo and Polie broke down laughing in the back of the trolley which earned them glares from Star and Alicia. "No, Blu, not your eyes! HER eyes!" Rafael quickly corrected his friend.

"Right, yeah. Your eyes, your eyes are great, not mine," he quickly said to Jewel who gave him a clearly charmed smile. "I mean, mines are okay. But yours, I bet you can see right through them."

Jewel's smile faded as she looked away which Blu didn't expect at all. "Blu," Rafael mumbled once again. "Tell her how you feel for her."

Blu took a deep breath and mentally prepared himself to tell her everything. How beautiful he found her, how he loved her free-spirited personality and how wonderful she was to him. "Jewel."

"Yes?" she asked with a smile.

"I've been wanting to tell you that I..." Then, fate decided to be cruel with him as a flower petal flew into his beak before he could talk and started choking down on it.

"Oh, you're choking on your own words. That's cute," Jewel said with a smile before turning around and seeing that Blu was LITERALLY choking down. "Oh! Okay, you're really choking down!" She quickly got behind him and tried to make him spit the petal.

At the same time, Pedro saw this and stopped playing on the cables. He slightly tapped Nico to make him top singing and watch as Jewel got behind Blu and pressed her wings on his stomach to make him spit it. The others saw it as well.

"Huh, are they...?" Polie asked.

"No, no, no; Blu is just choking on something and Jewel try to help him," Apollo quickly explained before Polie could get any dirty ideas.

"Yup, that's my boy," Rafael sadly said as Nico imitated the sound of a plane falling down and crashing.

* * *

Later on, as nighttime arrived and the sky turned dark, the trolley finally came to a stop before some kind of old garage and the avians all came down on the ground before the trolley left and looked at the garage's sign.

"Ladies and gentlemen I give you: Luiz's garage," Rafael said as he flew inside the garage.

The others followed with Blu and Jewel closing the walk. "You first," Blu said like a gentleman as he slightly pushed the door open for Jewel.

"No, no, you go first," Jewel politely denied.

"No, I insist," Blu continued. Eventually, they decided to go in at the same time and bumped into each other which almost Jewel fall had Blu not caught her with his wings.

"Well, it's here that we part ways," Jewel said, some sadness in her voice.

"It was a cool adventure," Blu admitted with rubbing the back of his head.

"It's the end of the journey," Jewel said, earning a nod from Blu. "Guess things like this don't happen in Tiny-Soda."

Blu looked at her curiously. "Tiny-Soda?" He then understood. "Oh, Minnesota, okay, yes, that was funny."

"Ew, this place would need a cleaner," Dominic remarked as he saw all the dust in the old garage. "And an exterminator," he added with spotting a cockroach which he slapped away with his wing.

"This place looks great!" Apollo said in excitation. "I always dreamed of having my own garage with all the equipment to build and craft everything I want!"

"So, where's this Luiz you talked about?" Alicia asked.

"Luiz? Where are you? We need your help!" Rafael called.

Suddenly, a beast jumped out from an empty car. It was a big bulldog with white fur and brown spots, angry brown eyes, and giant cheeks from where trails of saliva were flowing down. He rushed toward the group of birds.

"Ah! Run!" Nico panicked as he and Pedro flew away.

Blu and Jewel tried to run away, but the dog was faster and pinned them on the ground. One of his trickle of drool was getting close to Blu's face which made him close his eyes in fear. "Hold on!" Dominic shouted as he, Apollo and the other macaws were about to attack. However, the dog suddenly burst out laughing which made them all look curiously.

"I got ya all!" he laughed.

"What?" Blu and Jewel asked simultaneously.

"Yeah, I could've eaten you alive, but I didn't," the bulldog said with a smile and licked his lips before getting a thinking glance. "But I could have..."

"Luiz, stop scaring my friends," Rafael called as he joined him.

"Rafi, old buddy! In my paws!" the bulldog now confirmed to be Luiz happily beamed as he caught the toucan into a big hug, put some saliva on him in the process. "You look great!"

"Wait, Luiz is a bulldog?" Jewel asked in confusion.

"You got a problem with dogs?" Luiz asked with an insulted look.

"I do when they're drooling on me," she answered to which the others nodded in agreement.

"It's a medical condition," he sadly said.

"Hey, hey, buddy, we need your help," Rafael said with a wing on his friend.

"She's mean, bro," Luiz said, always with a sad tone.

"Come on, wouldn't you know how to take these off?" the toucan asked with showing the chains that were holding Blu and Jewel together.

Luiz looked at them and licked his lips before smiling. "I think I know what to do."

And the macaws really did not like his solution which was some kind of buzzsaw on a cutting table with the blades looking VERY sharp. Luiz joined them on the table with a protective metal mask and a smile while the other birds took some distance.

"Huh, are you sure there isn't any risk?" Blu nervously asked.

"Oh sure, there's nothing to it," Luiz assured before putting his mask on. "Now if something goes wrong, scream _really_ loud, because I don't hear too good with this thing on." He then turned his head away. "Hey, Raffie, hit the switch, please!"

"Don't worry; he's a professional!" the toucan assured before turning the energy switch on and the buzzsaw started spinning really fast.

"I don't feel it at all!" Polie nervously said as he shook in fear.

"Get ready to get in, if things go north!" Dominic instructed to everyone as he took a position similar to a predator ready to jump.

"Now try not to move, I can't really see outta this thing, either," Luiz instructed as he pushed the two scarred to hell macaws while Pedro was hiding behind Nico who himself was hiding behind his bottle cap.

Luiz gently pushed Blu and Jewel before he suddenly slipped on some of his own salivae and accidentally pushed them too fast forward. By instinct, Jewel jumped in the air and held on the lamp which swung forward and Blu got lifted just in time above the buzzsaw which still cut some of his head feathers.

Seeing things getting out of hands, Rafael tried to turn off the switch but to no use. "Crap!" Dominic swore as he joined Rafael to try and turn off the switch to no use.

"Hold on!" Star said as they all flew to go help the birds. However, as they swung, Blu accidentally knocked Luiz' metal mask on the buzzsaw which cut his mask open in two. During the next swing, Jewel let go of the lamp and the chains got knocked into Luiz' mouth who found himself holding them backward. His saliva slowly flowed down on the chains and over to the macaws' ankles to make them slip out from the locks. Luiz then spat the chains into the buzzsaw, trapping them into it and finally bringing it to a stop.

"Ewww! Gross!" Blu spat as he looked at his saliva-covered foot before realizing something. "Wait, my chains. I don't have chains!" He then got excited. "Jewel! Jewel! We're free!" He stopped a moment to rub the saliva off his feet on the floor. "Covered of saliva and probably infected, but free! You realize that it's finally-" he stopped as Jewel FLEW past him while shouting in joy. "...over."

"WE'RE FREE!" Jewel yelled joyfully as she flew by Blu who turned to look at Jewel sadly.

He saw that Jewel was happy to be free and didn't want to ruin it with awkwardness and inability to fly. He saw Jewel flying out of the garage followed by all the others and then walked out of the garage to see all of them having fun together in the sky, shouting in joy. It was then that the fact of not being able to fly started giving him a terrible feeling both in his heart and stomach.

"Is Jewel going to leave me now?" Blu thought to himself.

"You wanna be with them, don't you?" Blu turned his head to see Dominic and Apollo still there.

"Guys? Why aren't you going to fly with them instead of staying with down with me?" he sadly asked.

"We've been flying all night long and I'm a bit tired, to be honest," Dominic replied. However, Blu could clearly see that there was another reason. Probably he knew that Blu was suffering a lot and didn't want to leave him alone.

After a moment of watching their friends flying in silence during which Luiz came to talk about his desire to chase and catch the birds, Apollo wrapped a wing around Blu and started walking away. "Come on, let's go find Linda."

At the same moment, Jewel noticed the three birds walking away and decided to join them. "Hey, where are you guys going?" Seeing that they didn't answer, her smile dropped. "Blu?" she asked and this time, Blu stopped walking and slightly turned his head toward her. "Blu? What's wrong?"

He quickly whipped his tear away and turned with a smile. "Nothing's wrong. Everything's fine," he lied. "You guys'll be off to the Amazon rainforest and I'll go back to Linda as we planned."

Jewel put on a sad face as she remembered the deal they made many hours earlier. "What? Come on, Blu, you're coming with us," Polie said.

"Yeah, I'm sure this Linda must be a very nice person, but your place is with your species," Star added to which Alicia gave a sympathetic nod.

"We can show you the way to live in the jungle; you'll see, it's not that hard," Adam said with a wing on Blu's shoulder.

By now, everyone was listening to the macaws' conversation.

"Blu, I was thinking that we could maybe-" Jewel started but got interrupted by Blu.

"What? You want to come to Minnesota with me? Wrong idea, Jewel; you saw how it is not made for you. You belong here, with your friends. And I belong to there, with Linda."

"No, Blu, that's not what I-"

"What? You want me to stay here in Rio? With you? Look, this a great town and it's very nice - well, when we're not followed by a crazy cockatoo, but I can't. You guys can't expect me to stay here and be mocked for being the only bird here who can't fly," he explained and started walking away.

"Hey, it's not my fault if you can't fly," Jewel retorted in anger which caused Blu to suddenly stop as these words hurt him pretty much - not physically, but emotionally.

"Awkward...," Pedro mumbled to Nico as they were both looking nervously.

"I don't like where this is going," Apollo mumbled to Dominic who nodded.

"Easy, easy," Rafael said as he came between both Blu and Jewel. "You know what, this is good. Just clear the air, just be completely honest with each other."

It was then that something snapped inside Blu's plastic heart. They didn't understand a damn thing about what he was feeling right now. "Being honest?" he groaned. "You want honesty, fine, I can be honest! I don't belong here... in fact, I never wanted to come here in the first place." He then started taking deep breaths as he was about to say something that was probably gonna end up hurting them a lot. "And you know what...I hate samba!"

Everyone gasped and looked in horror at those words as Nico suddenly started crying into Pedro's chest. "This is a little too much," he angrily pointed out.

"Make the mean bird take it back!" Nico cried with looking at Pedro with cute eyes.

"How can you say that?!" Alicia shouted in anger.

"Yeah, I said it... every song sounds exactly the same," Blu affirmed before starting doing a ridiculous dance for emphasis. "Tico-taco, ya ya ya, tico-taco, ya ya ya!" He then rubbed his eyes before starting walking away. "I'm tico-taco out of here."

"Fine! See ya around, pet!" Jewel angrily said before turning to her friends. "Let's get out of here, guys!" She then flew away.

"Wait, come back!" Rafael called. "You belong together! You are Juliet to his Romeo! Sure they both die in the end, but... you get my point," he tried to say as an example.

"Dude, that's not a good image," Apollo said with removing his cap to rub his head.

"Ah, young love, always so melodramatic," Rafael sighed before turning toward Nico and Pedro. "All right, boys, go after them," he said as Nico and Pedro flew after Jewel and the others while Rafael went after Blu, Dominic, and Apollo. "Guys, come back here, come on!"

At the same time, Luiz walked out of the garage with a carnival dress only to realize that everyone was gone.

* * *

 **Author's note: sorry if the dialogues aren't the same as in the movie; I only saw it in French. I did watch one scene or two in English, but I didn't memorize them all.**


	14. The carnival

Blu and his friends silently walked down the streets on their way to the aviary in hopes that Linda was still there. On their way, Blu annoyingly noticed that Rafael was still following them.

"Rafael, stop following us. You're going the wrong way; carnival's in this direction."

Rafael chuckled as he came beside his blue friend. "I'm not going to Carnival, no, I'm going home."

Blu gave him a curious look. "But you said you loved carnival, didn't you?"

"I do, but I love my family much more. And that's a choice I made with this (put his feather on Blu's chest), not this (put it on Blu's head)."

Blu sighed. "To be honest, Rafael, I'm not even sure I know how to use my heart." He then turned his head toward Dominic and Apollo. "Guys. Can I ask you a question? Why do you want to stay with me and be friend with a pathetic flightless bird like me?"

Dominic stepped forward and placed his wing on Blu's shoulder. "Blu, you are far from being a pathetic bird. If I want to be your friend, it's because you are good, but also because you're generous."

"I'm good and...generous?" he asked with a sad look.

"Yes," Apollo nodded with patting Blu's back. "And to be generous, you must be strong, regardless of if you're a swordsman, crafter, or plastic bird. People like this are rare, so birds like this are even more."

Blu gave a little smile and would let out a tear before saying thank you to his eagle and owl friends, have it not be for the sound of people calling for him hurryingly. As he turned around, he saw Nico and Pedro flying toward them with Polie, Adam, Star, and Alicia. Strangely, Adam had a clawing mark on his torso and they all seemed to panic.

"Blu! Blu!" Pedro panicked. "We were flying when we saw this big cockatoo!" Pedro said with taking the shape of a balloon for emphasis.

"Yes, with big ninja talons!" Nico added.

"This cockatoo was ugly, but that's not the point," Pedro added.

"And then he grabbed Jewel by the throat and said: 'You will come with me, pretty princess!'," Polie mimicked the scene.

"And then she defended herself," Pedro said with showing some fake fighting moves before moving like a girl for emphasis, "I ain't your princess, leave me alone!"

"And then, he started panicking," Polie tried to get back in and all the boys talked over each other. Seeing the confused looks on Blu, Rafael, Dominic and Apollo's faces, Alicia sighed.

"Jewel got captured by Nigel and he took her to the carnival's parade!" she finally broke.

Blu gasped in horror. "That's all my fault," he mumbled with looking at the ground. Dominic put a wing on his shoulder.

"What do you want to do now?"

Blu hesitated a moment before putting on a determined look. "Let's fly!"

And he did just that...by jumping on the back of Luiz as he ran toward the carnival. "Carnival, here we come!" the dog happily shouted before letting a drop of saliva fly into Nico's face.

"Luiz! Watch out! You almost drowned me down!" the canary complained with whipping the saliva from his face with his wings.

"At least you won't have to take a bath!" Luiz joked.

"If he put the slightest drop of saliva on me, I am going mad," Dominic mumbled to Blu.

* * *

Many minutes later, the group arrived at the carnival with Luiz entering the starting line of the large alleyway reserved for the cars carrying tens of dancers dressed in colorful costumes. The music was loud and everyone seemed to have fun. Blu would have probably enjoyed it if he wasn't in a hurry to save Jewel.

"Yeah baby, now I can get my freak on," Luiz cheered and started dancing.

"Hey, saving Jewel first, dancing after, okay?" Blu asked.

A gang of drummers then forced the dog to start running forward across the legions of enthusiast dancers. "Blu!" Dominic called from above him. "Apollo and I are gonna go ahead and see where Jewel is! We will send a flare in the air when we spot her and you'll join us there, okay?" he shouted before flying forward at full speed with Apollo behind him.

Luiz kept running across the parade until Blu heard a familiar voice calling him from behind. Turning his head, he was surprised to see none other than Linda herself on top of a carnival car. Strangely, she was dressed in aSpixx macaw costume which exposed a lot of her skin - more than Blu has ever seen before. She called for him as she tried to get down from the car, walking on the male dancers and dancing a bit in the process. This caused him to chuckle to himself a bit.

"Blu!" He got brought back to reality by the voice of Adam who flew above him and pointed forward to where a red flare as been shot in the sky. "Dominic and Apollo found Jewel! Come on, let's go save her!" he shouted and flew toward the flare's location with the others.

Blu hesitated. He could go back to Jewel and return to his old life with her, back to Moose Lake...but that would mean leaving the others to go save Jewel while he was the one who planned to come here to rescue her.

"Let's go save Jewel!" he decided and Luiz started running away. It was reluctantly that he ignored Linda's call for him.

After many more minutes, Luiz and Blu left the carnival's parade zone and made their way to an old abandoned (or so they though) airport where their friends were hiding behind wooden boxes. "Hey, not that I don't want to save Jewel, but mind if I go enjoy the carnival for a while?" Luiz asked after Blu jumped from his back.

"You can; I'm sure we'll be able to handle them ourselves," Dominic answered and the bulldog happily ran back toward the carnival.

"Where is she?" Blu asked nervously to which Star pointed her wing toward a plane that was getting loaded with cages containing birds - the same ones from the smugglers' hideout. As if they were not expecting it, the three smugglers themselves were doing it. The kid that apologized to them was there too, though he seemed reluctant to charge the birds.

"What are we waiting for? Let's go!" Pedro said as he was about to charge, only to be stopped by Dominic.

"Wait; look!"

To everybody's surprise, the little boy, Fernando, went to Jewel's cage and mumbled something before trying to unlock her door. "He's helping her!" Star exclaimed in surprise.

"But why? Isn't he a bad guy?" Nico asked curiously.

"No; he just helped them because he needed money, but he's a good boy inside," Blu said with a smile.

He finished by opening Jewel's cage and she seemed surprised for a moment before coming out. Apollo waited for the smugglers to look away before taking out his bird-sized flair-gun and shot a flair in the air to signal their position to her. This worked as Jewel saw them and flew to their position alongside Fernando.

"Guys!" she happily said with taking Polie, Adam, Star, and Alicia in a big hug. "You came for me!"

"Of course we did! We are your friends after all!" Polie answered.

"More than that, we're a family!" Star said.

"Anyone who wants to hurt you's better to get ready to go through me first!" Alicia affirmed.

"We'll never let you go!" Adam said before they broke from the hug.

Jewel then noticed Rafael, Nico, and Pedro, and was pretty glad to see them too. However, before she could thank them for coming, her attention turned toward Blu and his two friends. She widened her eyes in surprise as she didn't expect them to come to her rescue after what happened at the garage.

"B-Blu?! Why are you here?" she asked, trying to hide the fact that she was actually happy that he didn't leave Rio yet.

Blu rubbed the back of his head nervously as he wasn't sure what to answer to that. "Well... I wasn't going to give up on a friend to those smugglers, right?"

Jewel looked curiously. "You-You see me as a friend? But I thought you hated Brazil and all that?"

Blu looked down sadly, regretting what he told her, before looking up with a determined look. "I didn't mean what I said. And I apologize to you all for those words as I know it hurts you all - especially you, Nico. I want you guys to know that I see you as friends, the only ones and greatest that I ever had."

Everyone looked at Blu with little smiles with others having bigger ones. Before any of them could respond to him, Fernando talked: "Guys, guys, it's great that you are reunited and all, but we need to get out of here before they find us-"

Suddenly, the leader of the smugglers jumped out of nowhere and grabbed him by the arm. "What are you doing there?!" he asked, clearly mad.

Luckily, before he could hurt the kid, Apollo lifted his flare gun and shot a flare close enough to his face to blindfold him and allow the kid to run away. "That was my last shot!" the owl groaned as he regained his pistol.

Deciding to take revenge, Blu jumped and swung his two plastic wings backward before slamming them hard into the smuggler's face. "POWER SLAM!" This knocked the human down with a good mark in the face.

"Cool! This is your new attack?" Polie asked as he jumped in the air and threw his balloon in one of the two other smugglers' face while Nico shot his bottle cap in the other's, knocking them down both.

"Yes, I just invented it," Blu explained with a smile before he was suddenly knocked to the ground with a strong figure over him, exactly the same way Jewel did to him in the first cage they met. Coughing a bit, he then looked up to see a familiar cockatoo standing over him with a smirk.

"So we came to save our friend? How heroic and cute," he teasingly snarked.

"LET HIM GO!" Dominic shouted as he dashed at full speed and swung his sword at Nigel.

Unfortunately, the cockatoo turned into metal which caused the blade to bounce on his metallic feathers instead of cutting them off. "Missed," Nigel chuckled before delivering a strong kick that knocked Dominic away and sent him to crash into wooden boxes.

"Dominic!" Adam exclaimed in horror before starting to chase Nigel who flew into the abandoned airport which was empty and a bit dark. The macaw looked around for the metal cockatoo when "ARGH!" Nigel stabbed his metal talons into his back which caused him to bleed a bit.

Groaning, he turned around and swiftly smashed his wooden shield into the cockatoo's metal face which made a BANG! and made Nigel flinch, but barely. "Is that all you got?" he asked before rising his talons, looking to cut down the macaw, but just then, Polie charged into him and knocked both of them down.

Polie got back up first and shot his balloon into his face which made him flinch again. "Ah!" Nigel got back up and charged at Polie who dodged to let him crash into a wooden box and then kneaded him in the belly...which he regretted immediately as he forgot it was made of metal.

Polie almost lost his balance but grabbed Nigel's wing to keep himself up. The cockatoo threw two punches with his free wing but missed both times. Upon going for a third attempt, Polie quickly dodged and threw his balloon into his face again for the same result. Nigel replied by grabbing him by the wings and flipping him over him and onto the ground with a loud CRASH! It almost sounded as if Polie got broke in two.

It was then that he received a bottle cap to the back of the head and turned to see Nico and Pedro entering the airport. "I already said it: you don't mess with Pedro's friends!" Pedro shouted and charged up to Nigel, delivering a storm of boxing punches to Nigel's torso...which had no effect and left him to look at the cardinal with no interest.

He gave Nico a "is he serious?" glance before grabbing a big wooden with his strength. Instantly, the two friends understood what was in store for them and flew away in fear, only for Nigel to throw the wooden box which crashed on top of them and broke in pieces. "Okay, maybe not a good idea...," a down Pedro mumbled.

Alicia then arrived and, knowing that metal was weak against fire, sent a fire magical jet which touched his right wing and made it melt a bit. "Clever," Nigel said before picking a steel pipe and swinging it at Alicia who groaned as the swing hit her in the right side and knocked her away from a few feet.

"Alicia!" Star exclaimed as she rushed at her friend's side to heal her with her white magic. However, she then saw Nigel walking toward her with an evil grin, clearly saying that he wasn't planning to spare her just because she was a girl. She looked in horror as she was helpless in this situation.

It was then that Rafale jumped in by grabbing the steel pipe from Nigel's wings and whacked it into his head, causing him to let out a: "Ow!" As Nigel kicked the pipe from his wings, Rafale then grabbed his fork and tried to sting it into the cockatoo's stomach, but since it was made of metal, the tips of his forks bent down in submission. Nigel spat before grabbing the old toucan in his metal wing and headbutting him so hard that he started bleeding from the forehead and flew away.

The evil cockatoo was then about to continue what he was doing on Star as if nothing happened. Luckily, Apollo arrived and used his slingshot to shoot a pepper bill into Nigel's face, causing him to cough and cry. "Your body might be made of metal, but that doesn't mean your way of breathing is different for more," Apollo pointed out with a smile.

Unfortunately for him, Nigel quickly recovered and gave a deadly glare before dashing and grabbing the barn owl by the throat in his talon to apply a Chokeslam (like the wrestling move) with the intention of choking him down afterward. It was then that Jewel alongside Dominic who took back from the hit he received charged into him and knocked him off their barn owl friend.

"Don't hurt Apollo! Fight us!" Dominic ordered with rising his sword.

"I'm gonna claw your eyes out for my friends!" Jewel declared with anger as she rose her wooden stick.

"You're really annoying!" Nigel sighed before charging and swinging his metal claws at his opponents who ducked and Dominic caught his foot and managed to flip him over. "Argh!" Nigel groaned before grabbing another steel pipe which was bigger than the previous one and swung it at Dominic like a sledgehammer, but the golden eagle managed to block it with his sword.

This gave Jewel the opportunity to give him a smack to the back of the leg with her stick, making him kneel down. The eagle and macaw then started slashing and swinging their respective weapon at him to medium success because of his metal body.

"How can you still be alive?" he asked Dominic as he pushed him back.

"I'm a warrior who learned everything about survival, pal!" Dominic answered.

Nigel got angry and attacked the golden eagle who dodged a few of his attacks before getting his sword knocked out of his wings. Nigel followed with a violent uppercut under his beak which made him spit some blood and knocked him down after sending him flying a bit high. As he rose his talons to finish him off, Jewel suddenly jumped on top of Nigel's head.

"LEAVE HIM ALONE, NIGEL!" she shouted with clawing his talons at his metal head which left a few marks. Unfortunately, he overpowered her and threw her off into a pile of wooden boxes with one falling on her wing, breaking it like a twig.

"Jewel!" Blu, who justly arrived, screamed in horror.

"My wing! It's broken!" Jewel cried in pain with a pleading look.

"Too bad; now we have two flightless bird," Nigel cooed with a smirk at Blu before laughing out loud.

Taking a look around, Blu saw all of his friends down and injured while trying to protect him. Upon seeing this, mostly Jewel who seemed to be in true pain, something snapped inside the young blue macaw. As if a fire he never knew inside of his body just turned on and started spreading everywhere in him. It was then that he took the biggest decision of his life: he will no longer be the one that needed to be protected, but the one who will protect.

"Linda, Jewel, Dominic, Apollo, Adam, Polie, Star, Alicia, Rafael, Nico, Pedro...," he though really hard, "...thanks for defending me until now, but as of this moment, I am the one who will protect you all!"

He jumped on his wings and stretched his leg before delivering a strong swinging kick to Nigel which was actually strong enough to knock him away into wooden boxes that got destroyed. Blu was so surprised by what he just did that he almost ignored the stinging pain it left in his leg. "Awesome! I didn't expect this result! I think I'm gonna call this attack Whip Swing."

"BLU!" Jewel called and brought Blu back to reality as he saw Nigel charging madly at him. Using his agility, he dodged talons swing before wrapping his plastic body around Nigel's metal one in a way to almost prevented him from moving.

"You are made of metal? Well, I'm made of plastic, so that makes two of us!" Blu declared while still holding the angry cockatoo back.

"You really think?!" this last one replied as he ran toward the airport's wall to smash Blu into it. Luckily, the macaw released his grip and moved in time to let Nigel crash alone, making a crack in the wall.

"I'm gonna try this; FIST STORM!" Blu shouted and started throwing his wings back-and-forth so fast that it seemed like he was sending a storm of punches at Nigel (a bit like Luffy's Gum Gum Gatling attack). While the punches themselves didn't do that much effect, the quantity Nigel received actually pushed him back against the wall and left some marks on his metal body. Blu was surprised as he didn't know he could actually do it.

"Time to finish this!" Blu said with stopping his attack and then threw his wings backward as he ran toward Nigel who also took back from the Fist Storm.

"I will not lose against a flightless bird like you!" Nigel shouted and also ran forward. As he met him, he delivered a strong punch into Blu's plastic face at the same time this last one hit his Power Slam right into his stomach, knocking both of them away from each other. As they weakly tried to stand up, Nigel coughed as the air got knocked out of him for a moment. "Okay, time to turn to cheat," he said with eyeing the defenseless Jewel who was still trapped under the wooden box and dashed toward her.

"BLU!" she screamed as Nigel arrived toward her, ready to finish her off with his talons.

"No!" Blu shouted at seeing Jewel about to be killed. Suddenly, time seemed to freeze around him. Seeing his friends hurt made him awake his inner desire to protect everyone, but now, he was feeling something similar yet entirely different in his heart which started beating really hard. Almost on instinct, he slowly opened his wings before sending his foot to wrap it around Nigel's waist and stop him before he could reach Jewel.

Then...he took off in the sky and dragged Nigel along with him in the sky. It was only when he felt the fresh breeze across his feathers in the same way he felt it on the hand-glider the day before that he realized what was happening.

"BLU! YOU'RE FLYING!" Jewel shouted in joy.

"I am?!" he said before smiling. "Yes! I'M FLYING! I'M NOT AN OSTRICH!" However, his attention turned back to Nigel and he dropped him before charging his plastic wings again. "Take that, not cool guy, HAMMER SLAM!" He did the same thing as the Power Slam but smashed Nigel so hard onto the earth that it created a big explosion of dust that flew everywhere.

Once it faded, Blu could see that Nigel returned to his normal form and was badly injured with almost all of his feathers being gone, leaving him naked like a chicken. He did it! He defeated Nigel and saved all of his friends!

He snapped out of it as he remembered Jewel being and flew down to her. "Jewel, are you alright?" he asked with using his plastic wing to break the box and move it out of the way.

"I think it's broken," she replied in pain before suddenly smiling widely. "But Blu! You just fly! You did it! You realize that?!"

"Yeah!" Polie said as the others all joined them and pulled him into a big hug. "I knew you could do it! I knew it from the start!"

"Yeah, nice job, Blu," Adam added with a wing around his shoulders.

"Sorry for thinking you were a scared bird all this time," Alicia said with a wing on his shoulder.

"You thought that?" Blu asked with a curious glance.

"Not anymore."

Star also picked him into a big hug. "You have no idea how proud we are of you, Blu!" she happily beamed while Polie secretly wished she could hug him like that.

Once she was done, Dominic walked over to Blu with a solemn look. He then picked him into a hug. "See? I told you that you are not a pathetic bird, but a strong and generous one," he said to which Apollo nodded in agreement.

Blu smiled and quickly whipped tears of joy away from his eyes. "You guys are really the best friends a bird like me could ask for."

"You finally listened to your heart, my boy," Rafael happily said with putting a wing on Blu's chest.

"And that's all thanks to you, Rafie," Blu happily replied with hugging the toucan before remembering something important. "Jewel, your wing is still broken. We need to do something."

"I can't do anything," Star said with a sad look as she took Jewel's broken wing with both of hers. "I already used almost all of my white magic to heal the others and her injury is too deep for me to take care of it anyways."

Before they could start thinking of a solution, they heard some screaming: "Linda! They're here! They're here!" They recognized this voice; it belonged to Fernando who justly arrived with Linda and Tulio (who was also dressed as a Spix macaw).

"Blu!" Linda happily called as she rushed toward her little boy who decided to fly up to her and receive a big hug. "You're okay! And you can fly?! You learned to fly!"

Blu happily snuggled into his mother figure's neck as he was very glad to see her again. Once the reunion was done, he pointed at Jewel who was still injured. "Oh my god, she's hurt!" Tulio exclaimed as he kneeled and held his hands toward her.

Jewel seemed very hesitant as she wasn't used to human yet. "Don't be afraid; he won't hurt you," Blu softly said as he jumped down from Linda with a smile.

Jewel looked at him for a moment before getting in Tulio's hands who then turned toward Fernando. "Could you call the police? Looks like we got some criminals to pack up," he said with giving a pointing look at the smugglers who were still out.

* * *

 **Man, this chapter is probably the one that took me the most work, but it was worth it. I think it's the first time I write a chapter that's over 4000 words long.**

 **The next chapter will be the final one of the first season (yes, I'm planning a second and maybe third one). I sure hope you enjoy this story so far. Let me know what you think of it in the reviews as I like when people share their opinion with me :)**


	15. One big decision

**Alright, time to settle the first season of The Dynamic Adventure, my friends.**

* * *

After calling the police who caught the smugglers and put them to jail for many years as well as taking the kidnapped birds and setting them free, our heroes followed Tulio and Linda (who took the time to change in their normal clothes) back to the aviary alongside Fernando. There, everyone rested a bit as they had a very long night while their human friends checked on Jewel's broken wing.

"Do you think she's alright?" Polie asked before gasping. "What if her wing is destroyed and she can never fly again?!"

"Calm down, Polie; it can't be that bad," Adam assured as he tried to relax but couldn't completely hide his worry for his friend.

The birds were all waiting in the waiting room along with Linda and Fernando as Tulio was checking on Jewel in the medical room. They were all very impatient to know if she was okay, Blu more than all the others.

"Don't worry, I'm sure she'll be fine," Fernando assured the macaws.

Blu gently rubbed his head against Fernando's face in response, despite the fact that the boy had kidnapped him and his friends for money, Blu was bidden to ill towards him and forgave him.

"So, do you guys forgive me for kidnapping you?" Fernando inquired, even though he knew they couldn't talk, they seemed pretty intelligent.

Blu flew over to a notepad with a pencil beside Fernando and wrote him a note. The young boy took it and read it carefully: _"No, I don't forgive you; I thank you. It's because of you that I can now fly and made new friends. Though I hope Jewel loves me more than just a friend."_

* * *

In the operating room, Jewel was laying on the table while Tulio was looking for his stuff. As much as Jewel didn't want Tulio to attend her, she didn't really have a choice. The doctor gently picked her up and put her bad wing into an x-ray machine which made her scared and let out a squeak.

"It's okay, Jewel, don't get scared. It's just scanning your wing, see?" he said as he showed the x-ray picture of her wing to assure her that he knew what he was doing.

Despite hating humans, Jewel had to admit the way they could see in her wing was kind of clever.

"Okay Jewel, I have to start operating now. Ready?" Tulio inquired, stroking her head feathers with his finger to keep her calm.

Jewel merely nodded in response to make him understand it as a yes. She was scared. Scared of what may happen to her. But the best thing she could do for now was to trust this human and wait, and hope.

* * *

After about an hour of waiting outside the operation room, Tulio finally came out of the room, holding the female macaw in his hands. She now had bandages wrapped around her broken wing.

"Jewel! You're fine!" her friends happily beamed and all went to hug her, careful not to touch her broken wing.

"The good news is that she should make a full recovery," Tulio announced with a smile before dropping it down. "The bad one is that it could take several weeks or more."

"She's safe and that's all that matters," Dominic remarked with a smile.

Blu was glad to see that Jewel was okay too. However, he put on a surprised look, when she ran at him and gave him a big hug with her good wing followed by a kiss on the cheek which caused his face to turn red.

"W-What was that for?" he shyly asked.

"To thank you for saving me," Jewel answered before breaking the hug. "And also...for finding the courage to overcome your fear and learn how to fly."

The others all nodded with smiles which made Blu blush even more as he never thought he would one day get friends who would congratulate him for such a heroic action (not showing off; defeating a strong metal cockatoo was hard). Star then stepped toward Blu after the moment had passed. "Blu? I'd like to ask you something."

"What is it, Star?"

"...Will you come to the jungle with us or will you leave back to Moose Lake?"

This question turned the happiness into sadness as Blu completely forgot about this detail. Now that he finally made friends who accepted him for who he was and even pushed him to learn how to fly, he didn't want to leave them. However, Moose Lake was his home; it was where he lived all of his life with his beloved Linda. Despite Rio being more colorful and joyful than it, he couldn't just ignore it without thinking a bit.

After long seconds of looking down, Blu rose his head and walked to the notepad on which he wrote again before giving it to Linda. She read it: _"Linda, I will never thank you enough for taking me out of this box as a kid and then raising me like your own child. To me, you will always be more than just a friend; you're like the mother I never had. And as such, I respect your desire to return to Moose Lake, but I want to stay here with my new friends as I waited for too long to get ones like them."_

Linda widened her eyes and then looked at Blu who put on his most sincere look. She soon smiled and caressed his head feathers. "You've changed so much in just a few days. You are now made of plastic, you met birds like you who became your friends and you even learned how to fly. You know I always wanted what's best for you. So if you really wanna stay here with them, then I can only accept."

This brought the biggest smile ever on Blu's beak as all his friends (even Rafael, Nico, and Pedro) then caught him in a big group hug. Once it passed, Blu took his notepad again and wrote one last message: _"Thanks a lot, Linda. And you know, you don't have to go back to Moose Lake alone; how about you move the library here in Rio? I'm sure there's a lot of people who would want nothing more than have a good library where to buy thousands of international books. Also, don't worry for me; I can fight on my own and I also have strong friends with me to protect my butt."_

After reading that, she rose her head to see Dominic give her a nod with a wing on his chest while Apollo did the military greet. This made Linda giggle, knowing her little boy would be in good hands (or wings). "You know what, this is a great idea, Blu. This is a beautiful city where I would be happy to move to." Blu noticed that, as she said that, she exchanged a little smile with Tulio who blushed a bit.

"YES! BLU IS STAYING!" Polie happily shouted and caught Blu in yet another hug, almost choking him to death.

 _"It's the start of a new life for Linda and me..."_

* * *

 **Finish! The first season of The Dynamic Adventure is officially done. I hope you enjoyed and wish nothing but joy for our favorite blue hero.**

 **I should publish the next season soon with this one following the Rio 2 movie plot-line but with some modifications. Also, just to let you know, this season along all the future ones will be published on this same story and not as different ones.**


	16. Season 2 kick-off

**I know it's still soon, but I really wanted to start off this new season for The Dynamic Adventure. So here I am, ready for it! Hope you are too :)**

* * *

"Why are you taking me there?" Jewel asked.

It has been many weeks since she got injured and she now had fully recovered. She could fly again and was currently following Blu in the sky.

"What, you don't want to see Linda's new house?" Blu asked with a smile. Ever since they moved to Rio, Blu and Linda got a new house which was located near the forest. Blu wasn't ready to live in there, so he instead opted to stay with his mother figure, but the other birds didn't judge him because of it; it was his choice.

Jewel gave him a smile. "True."

Soon, they arrived at the house in question which looked like any normal houses of the city with a car parked near the entrance and a set of birdhouses on the side. The two Spix macaws entered by the window which was surprisingly left open. Jewel was a bit taken aback as all the lights were turned off, leaving nothing but darkness inside.

"Huh, Blu? Why are all the lights turned off? Blu?"

Suddenly, they shot open to reveal a house filled with tons of birds. "HAPPY RECOVERY, JEWEL!" they all shouted at unison.

All of their friends were there: Polie, Adam, Star, Alicia, Dominic, Apollo, Rafael, Nico, Pedro, Eva, and many more. There were even some birds from Dominic's newly opened fighting dojo present as well.

Jewel gave a smile with a wing on her chest. "Oh, guys, you all came for me?"

"Of course, girl," Alicia said with a wing around Jewel's shoulders. "After so many weeks of being unable to fly, we had to celebrate your recovery, don't you think?"

"And besides, it's been so long since we last had a party," Star added with a smile.

"Yeah, hot wing, so let's dance!" Pedro shouted as he turned some music on a computer on and it started resonating on the whole house, leading the birds in it to dance to it.

As the party was going on, Blu shared a dance with Jewel while Polie did one with Star and Adam with Alicia. Even after the events with Nigel (who was still missing) and the smugglers, the Spix macaws were still not in relationships as they were unsure of their feelings for each other, but they were still very close friends.

After many minutes of dancing and enjoying the fun time, Dominic soon came with a few birds to his friends. "Hey, guys," he said, "I'd like you to meet my dojo students. This is my old friend which recently returned, Vladimir."

Vladimir is a male golden eagle just like Dominic, but much taller with more muscles and a very stern-looking face. "Oh, hum, nice to meet you," Blu politely said with holding a wing toward him.

The big bird nodded before shaking Blu's wing, making him realize how strong his hold was. Luckily that he was in plastic. "Nice to meet you," he politely said.

"So you know Dominic?" Adam asked.

"Yes, Vladimir's one of my old friends, back in Russia. We got separated after I left, but now we're back together," he said with a smile which Vladimir shared. "Here's another of my students, Alex."

Alex is a small snowy owl who's also apparently still a kid. He has a round-shaped body (which is unusual for a snowy owl) and short legs with a primarily white plumage and black spots. His eyes are yellow and he wears a purple bowtie on his chest along with a brown bag on his right hip with the strap going over his left shoulder.

"Hello," he said with a smile.

"Awww, he's so adorable!" Star said with nuzzling the snowy owl kid who blushed.

"Don't make me compliments! If you think it makes me happy, you're completely wrong!" he denied despite having a charmed smile on his face.

"You're training a kid in the art of fighting?" Polie asked with a curious look.

"Don't underestimate him; he got his own way of fighting, but he's strong," Dominic assured with kneeling and putting a wing on the kid's shoulder.

"Stop complimenting me! I don't like that at all!"

This made everyone chuckle. "And my last ones, Lazaro and Hernandez," Dominic finished.

Lazaro is a male puffin with black and white feathers, an orange beak and legs, and his head feathers tied into a ponytail by a twig. His eyes are oranges too. Hernandez is a male pelican of a pretty tall size (reaching above Vladimir) with white feathers, black ones on the tip of his wings and an orange large beak. Despite his muscles, he seems pretty soft.

"Nice to meet you," Hernandez softly said.

"Heya," Lazaro said with a wave of his flipper.

"You guys are from Mexico?" Blu asked.

"Yup," the little puffin confirmed. "And proud to be."

* * *

Later on, after a few hours, the party calmed down with the music being turned off. Many birds had left by now and Apollo was currently playing a game of Chaotic cards with Alex while Lazaro, Hernandez, Vladimir, and Rafael were playing Super Smash Brothers on Blu's Wii U, Nico and Pedro were watching some funny videos on the internet, and all the others were playing Dungeon & Dragons at the table. Blu and Dominic's Spix macaw friends had difficulties at first, but they soon started getting the hang of it and had fun.

"Whoa, this game's really fun," Alex commented as he put on an avalanche attack card.

"I know. You knew this game actually got a great cartoon adaptation, but it got canceled because of 4Kids," Apollo explained.

"Aw, too bad."

Meanwhile, Vladimir won the game by last eliminating Lazaro. "Hey! No fair! Your character is way too strong!" the little puffin complained with jumping on the couch.

"No character is stronger or weaker in this game; it's just that they all have their own fighting style and you need to find the best-suited one for you," the eagle replied.

"Yeah, why don't you try Yoshi this time?" Rafael proposed.

"I use a shuriken attack!" Polie said and threw a 20 dice which landed on 8.

"8 plus your 4 bonus gives you a 12," Dominic explained. "You make 19 of damage to the Gorgon."

"Oh yeah, a ninja never miss his target!" the Spix macaw happily said.

"My turn," Star declared with taking a 20 dice. "I use a thorn fist magical spell," she said and threw the dice which landed on 5.

"5, that's an epic miss, sorry," Dominic said.

Adam laughed a bit which earned him a slap from Polie and Alicia simultaneously.

"My turn," Jewel declared with confidence. Blu smiled at seeing all his friends having fun. Decidedly, moving to Rio was one of the best things that ever happened to him. He enjoyed his new life.

* * *

 **The new season is started, guys! This one will follow the Rio 2 movie.**

 **Also, I honestly think what Apollo said: Chaotic was a great cartoon show and I'm really mad 4Kids got it canceled as I really liked it as a kid.**

 **Except that, Polie, Adam, Star, Alicia, Dominic, Apollo, Alex, Vladimir, Lazaro, and Hernandez are my OCs while all the others belong to Blue Sky Studios. You saw it too; Alex will be different from Super Rio in this story :)**


	17. Sign of more like them

"Who wants a good breakfast?" Blu asked as he made a pancake flip into a frying pan before throwing it on a top of a pancake pile in a plate.

The morning after Jewel's recovery celebrations, Blu welcomed his Spix macaw friends to his house for a good breakfast of pancakes (which he knew Polie and Adam ADORED). Linda and Tulio had recently left the house and the city to go make some ornithology research in the Amazon rainforest which was a bit ironic since it was where Jewel and her friends came from.

"I DIE to get one!" Polie replied with enthusiasm as he jumped on the table with Adam, Star, and Alicia smiling at their friend's excitation.

"Calm down, Polie, it's just pancakes," Star tried to calm him down.

"JUST PANCAKES!" he shouted as if she just insulted him. "It's more than just that; it's the most delicious, awesome, tasty and awesome meal a bird like me could ever wish for!"

"You said awesome twice," Alicia pointed out with rolling her eyes.

"Because it is twice awesome!" Polie declared, making his friends laugh.

Just then, Jewel landed at the window with something in her talons which looked like some kind of coconut. "Guys! Guys! Look what I found; a Brazilian coconut."

"Woah! I didn't even know there was in Rio!" Star exclaimed as she and Alicia flew over to Jewel to get a better look at the fruit.

"Boys, let's come get breakfast."

"Sorry, Jewel, we're already eating the most miraculous breakfast in the world," Polie replied as he started eating the pancakes with Adam and Blu.

This caused Jewel to look annoyed at how her friends became obsessed with human stuff. Sure, she no longer hated humans, but still, she did enjoy to retain her wild roots. Soon, she noticed something interesting playing on the kitchen's TV. "Hey Blu, it's Linda and Tulio."

Indeed, Linda and Tulio were passing in the news, so Blu grabbed the TV remote and turned up the sound so that they could hear them. "So what did you find out exactly, Dr. Monteiro?" the reporter asked.

"We have encountered a wild blue Spix Macaw deep in the Amazon jungle," Tulio said in excitation. "There may be a whole flock out there. If there is, we will find them and protect them." He showed a blue feather that clearly belonged to a Spix macaw with saying that.

"Hello, Blu," Linda waved her hand at the camera.

"Hello, Linda," Blu said with waving his wing at the TV.

"We're not the only ones...," Jewel mumbled with a clearly surprised look which was shared by her friends. They were all so surprised that even Polie stopped eating his pancakes. "There could be a whole flock like us outside. All this time...I thought we were alone."

"That wasn't so bad," Blu pointed out.

"Of course not! But just imagine if there were a whole flock of us...?"

"That would be awesome!" Star said in excitation.

"D-Do you think we could find our friends or even our family?!" Adam asked with his eyes wide open.

"We need to do something!" Jewel declared with confidence in her eyes. "We need to go off to the Amazon!"

"What?!" Blu exclaimed in surprise. "B-But we can't just go off like that."

"And why not?" Alicia asked.

"Well, because the Amazon is super far and our friends will be scared if we just disappear like that."

Adam then came to wrap a wing around Blu's shoulders. "Blu, dude, I understand that you're afraid of leaving the comfort of the city for the wild world and that's understandable, but if there are really more Spix macaws like us in there than we need to find them. They're our family."

Blu still looked unsure. "Well, they're not MY family as I'm from the United States." This answer caused everyone to give him glares with Adam removing his wing from around his shoulders and glaring at him too. Blu gulped and tried to smile. "But you're right, we need to go find them as they're from the same species at us after all."

"Now you're talking!" Polie said as they all smiled. "Let's go get ready to leave!"

"I'm gonna go tell our friends about it so that they won't worry," Blu said and flew out of the house. Once he left, his happy face turned upside down. Darn it! He was gonna leave Rio for the Amazon rainforest. Argh! The humidity, predators, bugs and all the rest! Just thinking about it made him want to go back to bed.

* * *

Blu flew over to the city and to Luiz' garage where he saw many birds in line on a cable for an audition. They were organizing a party for soon and wanted to find some stars to perform on the stage. As he entered, he accidentally slipped on some of Luiz' saliva on the floor.

"Sorry about that, Blu! It comes alone," the bulldog apologized.

"It's okay, Luiz; I'm used to it," Blu said with a chuckle before Nico and Pedro flew down to him.

"Listen Blu, we are looking for a singer, a dancer, the whole package!" Pedro said with showing some moves for emphasis.

"Yeah, and you're more of a mumbler-shuffler, you catch my drift?" Nico said to which Pedro nodded in agreement.

"First, go duck yourself," Blu said with an insulted look, "second, I didn't come here for the audition. I just came to tell you that Jewel, Star, Polie, Adam, Alicia and I are gonna leave for the Amazon."

"Ama-what?" Nico asked with a confused look shared by Pedro.

"Amazon, it's a rainforest located a few days of flying away from here," Rafael explained as he joined them. "But why are you going there? You're taking vacations?"

"No; Linda and Tulio found a Spix macaw feather in there and think there's more like us. My friends insisted that we go there to help them in their search." Blu explained.

"You know that in these jungles, snakes can swallow you whole," Nico said.

"They got mosquitos that suck your blood," Pedro said with sucking his whole tummy in for emphasis.

"And flesh-eating piranhas that eat...your flesh," Luiz finished with his eyes wide open.

"Don't worry, Blu," Rafael said with a wing around his shoulders, "if you can take down a cockatoo made of metal, I don't think those predators will get you so easily. And beside, plastic must not be so tasty."

"Thanks," Blu said with a smile. "I'm gonna go tell Dominic and the others too. See you later," he said with taking off as his friends waved their wings\paw at him.

* * *

Blu soon arrived at Dominic's dojo which was located in a street alley at the very end and behind a pile of trash cans so that the humans won't think to come to see in this spot. As he walked pass the giant metal plate that served as a door he spotted his golden eagle friend in the middle of the room, his sword in wings as Lazaro, Hernandez, Vladimir, and Alex surrounded him.

Lazaro was the first to attack by charging with his right foot. "Take that!" he shouted and charged at Dominic to try and kick him, but the golden eagle dodged and used his sword to block his strong-looking kicks.

Eventually, Dominic managed to push him away with his wing, making the puffin backflip on his feet. Hernandez decided to join in by summoning a red and black armor over his right wing and tried to smash Dominic with it. However, the golden eagle moved faster and delivered a strong kick across the pelican's large beak which knocked him back.

"Too slow, Hernandez!"

Alex opened his side bag and took out a candy whose drawing showed some kind of beach balloon. "My turn, Balloon Candy!" Putting it into his beak and eating it, Alex suddenly transformed into a big round and fluffy balloon.

He started spinning to charge at Dominic who easily dodged every time Alex came back at the charge and ended up kicking the balloon to send him to crash into the wall before he turned back to his normal form, all stunned.

"That was a good candy choice, Alex, but you still need to master it before making use of it in a battle."

"I'm the one who created those candies; I already master them all!" Alex shouted with rubbing his head.

"Sure doesn't look like it," Dominic commented before Vladimir suddenly turned his whole body into stone and jumped to slam his two huge rock wings on top of his friend.

Dominic actually managed to block the rock wings with his saber to avoid getting squashed, but looked like he was pushing really hard to the point of sweating. After struggling for many seconds, he managed to push Vladimir back and sent him to crash into the wall.

Afterward, he withdrew his sword and smiled. "Very good, my students. You all did great, but there's still room for improvement." He then turned his head toward Blu. "You've been waiting here for long?"

"Just a few minutes, actually," Blu replied with a smile. "That was awesome - you were ALL awesome!" Blu complimented. "What were all those tricks you used?"

"I ate a Magical Fruit which allows me to turn my body into rock," Vladimir responded. "I ate it right before Dominic left Russia for the United States."

"This is why I had an harder time against him than before," Dom remarked with rubbing his head.

"As for me, I'm using a kick fighting style that only I can use," Lazaro said.

"Who taught it to you?"

"No one! I made it myself," the puffin replied with pride.

"Okay. What about you, Hernandez?"

"I can't really explain my power," the pelican said with showing the armor on his wing. "Since I was a teen, I always had the capacity to summon this on my wing to make my attacks stronger."

Then, Alex opened his bag and took a candy in his wing which he showed to Blu. This one had a muscle drawing on the front. "Those candies are a special creation I made back in France. Each one of them can transform the one who eats them and have a different effect on this person. This is why I customized the drawings."

"Really? Cool!" Blu said with a smile. "But back to the main subject, I just came to tell you that Jewel, Alicia, Polie, Star, Adam and I are gonna leave to the Amazon later on today."

"Why's that?"

"Linda and Tulio found some Spix macaw feathers there; we saw them in the television. My friends are convinced that we could find a whole flock there, so they want us to go help Linda and Tulio. Just wish us good luck," Blu said with flying off the alley.


	18. Off to the Amazon

"Amazon, here we come!" Polie shouted with excitation.

After Blu went to tell their friends about their upcoming journey, the Spix macaws prepared to leave Rio and were currently gathered at the birdhouses next to Linda and Tulio's houses, ready to take off.

"Is everything ready?" Adam asked as he put his wooden shield on his back.

"I think so," Alicia answered with checking their food supplies.

"Great," Jewel happily said with tying her wooden stick around her back. She then looked at Blu who adjusted a fanny pack around his waist alongside a backpack on his back. "A fanny pack?" she curiously asked.

"Yes, Apollo made it specifically for me. It contains a lot of things that will be helpful on the way," Blu explained with a smile.

"So everyone's ready to go?" Star asked.

"Wait a sec!" they suddenly heard and turned to see none other than Rafael arriving. He had his fork tied on his back. "Your favorite toucan is coming too."

"Eva let you come?" Jewel asked.

"Yes, I promised her a spot in our show in exchange of my freedom," he explained and then wrapped a wing around Blu's shoulders. "Don't worry buddy, we got your back."

"We're coming too!" they heard calling again.

"You guys are late," Rafael remarked as Nico and Pedro arrived.

"Clock late," Pedro said.

"But musician early," Nico added.

"So you guys all wanna come with us?" Adam asked.

"Yes, we still need stars for our show, so we're gonna follow you to the Amazon and find which hidden talents are hiding into this distant forest," Nico said with passion.

"Is there room for more?" Everyone turned to see Dominic arriving alongside Apollo and his students. "We'd like to come with you too."

"Dominic? You wanna come?" Blu asked.

"Of course, we're friends, so we have to stick together at all times, remember? And besides, Apollo needs to take some fresh air out of his hollow."

"Hey, I was about to create something really awesome!" the barn owl protested with his wings crossed.

"You can create it later, but for now, you're gonna come with us to the Amazon, got it?" Dominic said with a stern look which made Apollo understand that he was better not to reply back. "I decided to take my students as well as I think it will be good for them to also see the wild world," he added with pointing at Vladimir, Lazaro, Hernandez, and Alex.

"That's great!" Jewel said with a smile before looking at the sky. "Our friends and maybe even our family are possibly waiting for us in the Amazon rainforest, just waiting to see us again. We're leaving right now to go answer their call and let them know that we're safe and sound. Let's go!"

Following Jewel's speech, everyone took off in the sky except Blu who was looking at how his friends were excited to be in the wild again. However, he quickly snapped out of it and flew off after them. The start of a long journey ahead.

* * *

So, after leaving Rio, the flock of birds flew across the large and beautiful landscapes of Brazil for two days. During this time a lot of events happened; starting with Blu accidentally drinking the water from a fountain into which his friends were bathing.

When they stopped in a city to eat a bit, Blu inserted a coin from his fanny pack into a snack machine for a soda can, only to find out Polie already somehow sneaked in and exited the machine with the can which he drank and let out a giant burp, making the boys laugh and annoy the girls.

Another time, they went across a savannah where Alex got the chance to admire a flock of cute butterflies and even rode on ostriches' backs. During the travel, Dominic would sometimes take his students out to train which caused Blu and the others to wake up and tell them to make less noise.

They flew across a city and a giant bridge where Blu almost got hit by a bus, only to be saved by Vladimir and assured the eagle that he owed him one. During one night, as they couldn't find a place to sleep, the group continued to fly and Blu allowed Alex to sleep on his back which the girls - especially Jewel - found adorable.

After two whole days of flying, the flock arrived across a city which Blu said was their last stop before getting to the Amazon rainforest and decided to get on top of a boat that was ascending the river across the forest. The macaws (except Blu) were maybe excited to go search for their friends, but they still needed to rest.

* * *

As Blu and Jewel were sitting on the edge of the boat's roof, Jewel took in a deep breath, filling her lungs. "Can you smell this fresh and pure air? Goodbye, stinky city air!"

"Yeah, see ya later...," Blu mumbled, looking less enthusiast.

Jewel noticed it and felt bad leaving him like this. "Hey, thanks for coming with us all the way here. I truly appreciate it."

Blu smiled a bit. "You know there's nothing I wouldn't do for my friends, right?"

"Yes, I know," she said with a smile.

Later, as the sun started going down, leaving the sky orange and reflecting on the river, the flock was doing stuff to pass time. Blu and Apollo were playing a part of Yu-Go-Oh! card game.

"Man, where did you get such a strong game, Blu?" Apollo asked as he was on the verge of losing...again.

"It's an Exodia limited edition. One of the strongest decks a Yu-Gi-Oh! player could wish for," Blu answered with a chuckle as he played the last card that allowed him to win for the fifth time in a row.

"That's so unfair! If you got all the best cards, it's not hard to win," Apollo adjusted his cap and pouted.

Blu only chuckled to himself. "Hey, guys! Come to see the new technique I developed!" Dominic called. He was standing on the edge of the boat's roof with his sword out.

Blu and Apollo went to see him as he held his blade forward, closed his eyes and focused deeply. Soon, blue energy started emanating from the blade and he opened his eyes in a split-second.

"CUT SLASH!"

He swung his sword forward and shot a blue energy slash which flew into the water and made a small cut in it which sent water flying in the air, causing a little rain. Blu and Apollo looked at this with their eyes wide open.

"What was that?!" Apollo asked in awe.

"Cut Slash, my new attack. I developed it during the last weeks and it paid off," the golden eagle said with a smile.

"How can you send this? Is it magic?" Blu asked.

"No; it's my corporal energy. You'll be able to use it too, one day if you train hard," Dominic said with regaining his sword and patting Blu on the shoulder.

He nodded and then opened his fanny pack from which he took out a plastic bag containing pancakes. "Oh my god! You brought pancakes!" Polie shouted in excitation which also caught the attention of the others around.

"Yes, but there's not enough for everyone. Wanna play a game of Yu-Gi-Oh! to see who will get the most?" Blu asked and received a lot of positive answers with his friends exchanging competitive glares.

* * *

 **We're gonna get to the Amazon in the next chapter. But for now, it's time to Yu-Gi-Oh! duel to know who's gonna get the most pancakes :)**


	19. Search for the spix macaws

So, the Yu-Gi-Oh! game passed on and now, everyone had their pancakes. Jewel, Star, and Alicia hoped to win all of them as they didn't want the boys to get them, but ironically, they were the only ones who ended with no pancakes at all.

"This is delicious!" Alex said with his cute smile as he ate his pancake.

"I can only agree with you," Lazaro said as he ate his own pancake onto which he and Hernandez added some leaves and mushrooms to add some flavor to it.

"I could eat this all the time, every day!" Polie said as he engulfed the three pancakes he won.

"You would get fat, pancakes aren't the most nutritious food on earth," Apollo pointed out as he chewed on his own.

The three girls sighed. "Boys, always so immature..." Jewel mumbled.

* * *

The flock waited until the next morning and slept on the boat's roof before taking off for the Amazon rainforest. "Come on, everyone! Let's go into the wild and be birds!" Jewel said to which everyone except Blu cheered.

The group flew deep into the rainforest before finding a spot to set their camp up. They would start their search for the Spix macaws later. Blu couldn't help but notice the humidity that was annoying him big time along with the mosquitos that would have pierced his skin by now, had it not been made of plastic, and the strange noises all around. He was starting to feel more grateful for being made of plastic.

"My feathers are poppin' up on the back of my neck...," Pedro nervously mumbled.

"I don't like this...!" Nico added nervously too.

"Let's back it up. Beep...beep...beep...," Pedro said with slowly backing up into their tent made of leaves while mimicking the sound of a truck.

"Come on, dude, you're not THAT big," Alex said, trying to comfort the little cardinal.

"Okay, guys, the girls and I are gonna take a little bath in the river; we didn't clean ourselves in days," Jewel informed.

"And Polie, if I catch you spying on us again, I'll break your neck, got it?" Alicia warned with an angry glare.

"No worries, I learned my lesson, I won't do it again," Polie assured with a wing on his chest as the girls walked away.

"You're still gonna do it, right?" Adam asked.

"Of course I will," Polie said with a smile as he ran away, making Adam roll his eyes at his immaturity.

"Come with me, Blu; let's go take a look around to see any potential threat," Dominic said and dragged himself and Blu away from the camp.

They walked around, looking all around for any sign of danger. "Tell me, what bothers you, Blu? I see that you look troubled ever since we left Rio," Dominic asked while walking.

"It's nothing, Dominic, but..." He looked down, clearly bothered by something. "It's about Jewel and the others. Don't get me wrong; I would like nothing more than seeing them getting reunited with their friends and families...but, I'm afraid that would mean they'll stay here and leave me as the only Spix macaw in Rio. I don't want them to leave me, especially Jewel."

Dominic then abruptly stopped walking and put both of his wings on Blu's shoulders, making him look directly into his eyes. "Listen to me, Blu, remember what I told you when I explained why Apollo and I wanted to be your friends? We do because you're strong and generous. If they are worthy of being called friends, they will welcome you in their family, no matter if you're a plastic bird from the USA or not, okay? Also, I think it would help, if you tell Jewel your feelings for her."

"You think?" Blu asked to which Dominic nodded. He smiled as he truly appreciated his golden eagle friend's sincerity. He really always had the right word to say at the right time. "Thanks, Dom."

He simply smiled before they resumed their patrol. After more minutes, he declared: "Okay, I think this place is safe for now. Let's head back to the camp."

Blu nodded and they headed back to where the others were. "Hey guys, we scouted the whole perimeter and everything's alright-" He stopped as he saw that they were all gone. "Huh, guys?"

"Where are they?" Dominic asked as he was rather surprised too, looking all around. "Rafael? Vladimir? Alex?"

"Come on guys, this isn't funny," Blu said, but still didn't get any answer, making him understand that something was not right. "Where are they? Do you think they left somewhere without us?"

"No way, I feel more like they got captured and taken to somewhere else," Dominic replied as he put a wing on the handle of his sword and got into a fighting stance.

"That's not logical; we saw no predators around-" Blu never got to finish his sentence as something grabbed him by the legs and dragged him away in the air.

"BLU!" Dominic shouted as he immediately flew after his friend who got captured some kind of orange bird, from his point of view.

"ARGH! LET ME GO, YOU FREAK!" Blu shouted as he struggled in vain to try and break free from his kidnapper's clutches. "I'VE GOT MANY FRIENDS AND IF YOU TRY TO RAPE ME, THEY'LL ALL COME TO WHIP YOUR BEAK OFF!" he tried to threat to minimal success.

Eventually, his kidnapper dropped him in the middle of an arena and Blu immediately threw a plastic wing fist at him, only to miss.

"YOU'RE RIGHT TO GET AWAY FROM ME! COME BACK AND I WILL KICK YOUR FEATHERED BUTT SO HARD THAT YOU'LL NEED SURGERY!" he angrily shouted at the top of his lungs.

"Blu!" Turning around, he quickly grabbed by the neck in his wings...Rafael who seemed pretty shocked. "Whoa, whoa, whoa, dude! Calm down!" the toucan hushed as Blu calmly let go of his friend.

"Guys! Are you okay?!" Dominic asked as he arrived and realized that the whole group was gathered at the same place as Blu. "What happened?"

"I have no idea, dude!" Polie said. "One moment, I was spying on the girls bathing in the river, and next thing I know, I get caught from behind and dragged in the air!"

"Same thing for us; we were about to kick Polie's butt and got captured," Alicia added with a nod.

"I don't know who those guys are, but nobody will capture me and simply get away with it!" Lazaro declared with an angry glare before Nico suddenly got dropped on top of his head immediately followed by Pedro who landed butt first on top of the two.

"Sorry, guys."

The birds quickly regained their composure and took their fighting stance as they were ready to face their kidnappers. Soon, they saw all of them flying through a waterfall and, surprisingly, they went from orange to blue. This caused everyone to give confused glances.

"What the... Macaws can change colors?" Alex innocently asked.

"Not that I know," Vladimir answered.

Then, slowly but surely, more and more blue birds started coming out from the trees to look at the group with curious glances. Then, they all widened their eyes as they realized that they found this flock of _Spix_ macaws they came searching for.

"No freakin' way...," Apollo mumbled in utter shock.

"We found them!" Jewel beamed as she, Polie, Star, Adam, and Alicia all smiled in joy.

"Well, technically, they are the ones who found us," Alex pointed out.

"Whatever," Polie cut him off.

As more and more macaws came out, Blu looked at all of them with his wings on his head. "Cheese and sprinkles... So we really aren't the last of the species! We're not!" he happily shouted before his back bumped into someone and he turned around to see a tall and leery-looking male Spix macaw who gave him a suspicious look. "Hum...hi?"

"Who are you?!" he asked with a stern tone which caused Blu to step backward.

"Kendrick," a soft yet intimidating-sounding voice said. The bird named Kendrick turned around to see another Spix macaw come out of a hollow and land to them. This one's feathers came in different shades; the ones on his back, feathers, and head were dark blue, and the ones on his front were paler blue, and he had Jewel's facial markings. He had a short crest of flattened feathers on the top of his head. His eyes were pale green with bags under them and he was pretty tall for a macaw, reaching taller than Dominic.

He flew in front of Blu and put his face so close that it caused him to fell backward. "Who are you? Where do you come from, stranger?"

"Hum, my name's Blu and I'm from the United States," Blu nervously answered.

"HEY! BACK OFF!" Jewel ordered, jumping in front of him with her stick out as Dominic backed her up with his sword.

"Hey, excuse me young lady!" the big bird said and was about to speak again before suddenly looking at Jewel with his eyes wide open. "How is this...?"

Jewel glared at the old bird before widening her eyes in shock too. The two looked at each other in silence for many seconds before Jewel spoke again. "When the loggers came... There was... fire...and so much smoke... Gone..."

"It's okay, it's okay now," the old bird mumbled.

"Daddy!" Jewel said and suddenly took him into a big hug.

"Daddy?" Blu, Dominic, Apollo, Vladimir, Alex, and Lazaro said simultaneously, looking in pure shock.

Jewel's daddy soon broke from the hug which seemed to last an eternity before gently looking at her and stroking her cheek. "Welcome home, Jewel. You're so beautiful. Just like your mother."

"Is she there do?" Jewel asked. Her dad's smile turned upside down and he hugged his daughter again. This made her understand what it meant and she cried a bit.

"Eduardo!" Polie suddenly shouted and joined in the hug, followed by the three others.

"Polie? Star! Adam! Alicia!" the bird known as Eduardo exclaimed in surprise as he soon took all of them in the hug too. "You're alive! All of you! I can't believe it!"

"Neither do we, old man!" Adam said before going to grab Blu's wing and drag him over to Eduardo. "Eddie, this is Blu, a friend we made back in Rio."

"He's made of plastic, look!" Polie said with grabbing Blu's cheek and stretching it.

"You ate a Magic Fruit?" Eduardo asked in surprise, but before Blu could answer, he grabbed him into a huge bear hug. "Thank you so much for bringing me back my daughter and her friends!"

"You're welcome...sir...but...need...to breath...," Blu choked as Eduardo pressed him hard and he felt he was gonna pass out.

"Sorry," Eduardo said with patting Blu on the back. He then turned toward all the macaws who watched the scene. "My daughter and her friends has returned!" he announced, making everyone cheer in joy.


	20. Meeting the tribe and reunions

After the reunion was done, Eduardo took the group through the jungle by flying. "After the humans destroyed our home, we moved to this new place where we could plant our roots and grow as a tribe again."

Soon, they came out of the forest and into a giant place of the forest where the sun shone bright and with tens of spix macaws flying all around in joy. There was even a giant waterfall that created a rainbow because of the sunshine.

"Everyone! Come out now! My daughter has returned! She's back!" Eduardo happily shouted as even more spix macaws started coming out of hollows both in trees and a clay hill.

Soon, a figure flew through the whole flock macaws and toward our heroes. "Make way! Make way!" Jewel!"

Jewel widened her eyes as she recognized this voice. "Aunt Mimi?!"

As she landed on the ground, she received a big hug from a short female spix macaw who seemed to be rather old. She was plump, and similar in coloration to Jewel although this last one's feathers were a brighter blue. She had darker blue wings, tail, and head with a cluster of feathers on her head like most macaws; they were long and curled. Her eyes were a pale blue, and her beak and talons a pale gray. Her eyelids had a lavender tint, and her face and front were lighter than the rest of her. She had a pear-shaped body.

"My little wildflower has returned!" the macaw named Mimi happily said as she held Jewel's wings. "I knew you were coming back. I saw it in the droppings."

"In the droppings?" Lazaro mumbled. "Is she a fortune-teller or something?" he asked to which Hernandez simply shrugged.

"Mimi!" Adam happily said as he hugged her too.

"Adam! You came back too, my handsome man!" Mimi happily said before turning to Star and taking her face in her wings. "And Star! My beautiful little nebula! I missed you so much!" Next one was Polie. "Little Polie! My favorite nephew! You look great!" she said with nuzzling against his cheek. Finally, she hugged Alicia's tummy with strength. "And Alicia! You look as beautiful as the last time we've seen!"

Blu couldn't help but chuckle at how his friends were reunited with their auntie. Jewel then came to take Blu by the wing and brought him to her. "Aunt Mimi, this is Blu, our friend."

"My, what a handsome man," Mimi complimented with taking Blu's cheeks which turned red in her wings. "I don't doubt my little niece was safe during all this time now."

This caused Blu to blush even more. Eduardo saw this and chuckled. "So you met Sue, little sister?"

"It's Blu, old man," Dominic pointed out. "Sorry, we didn't introduce ourselves, did we? I'm Dominic, Missis (miss)," he said with a polite bow.

"You're Russian? That should a lot to your charm," she said with a coquettish smile which made Dominic chuckle a bit.

"I'm Rafael, the king of carnival from Rio," Rafael said with doing a little spin for emphasis before Nico and Pedro jumped on his shoulders to take a cool pose.

"This handsome canary is called Nico."

"And this cardinal is named Pedro. Together, we are the biggest party poppin', samba dancin', kings of Brazil you'll ever see!"

Mimi couldn't help but giggle at the boys' enthusiasm. "Allow me to introduce to you my students," Dominic said with showing them with his wing. "There is Lazaro (he smiled and waved his flipper at her), Hernandez (he said: "Nice to meet you."), Apollo (he said: "I'm not your student."), Vladimir (he gave a polite bow) and Alex (he waved his wing at her)."

In a split-second, the young snowy owl found himself into the elder macaw's wing, pressed against her chest. "OH MY GOSH! HE'S SO ADORABLE!"

Alex would have choked out, had Dominic not stepped in to gently take him out of her wings. "ALICIA!" they heard shouting and this last one turned around as she recognized these voices.

Two spix macaws flew at them. One of them was a male with two feathers standing on top of his head, slender blue body, dark blue feather, and brown eyes. The other was a female with a chubby body, light blue feathers, and dark blue eyes.

"Mom! Dad!" Alicia beamed as she ran to hug them.

"My little daughter has returned!" her dad said with hugging hard.

"I thought we lost you forever!" her mom said, close to tears.

"I missed you so much!" Alicia said, whipping her tears away and then smiling at her parents. "But don't worry, my friends have been with me all the time." Her parents at least felt good knowing their daughter wasn't alone during her time away from the jungle.

"Polie!" another female voice beamed and then Polie found himself into a thigh hug. This one came from a female macaw who seemed to be around his age. She had long head feathers that rested on her right shoulder with ice blue eyes and an hourglass shape.

"Brooke! Big sister!" Polie happily said and hugged his older sister back.

Eventually, they broke the hug and she held his face in her wings, looking deeply into his eyes. "Is that really true? You're not just a dream, right?"

Polie answered by pinching her wing, making her yelp in pain. "See? Not a dream, Brooke," he said with a little chuckle.

"If that wasn't the first time I see you in so much time, I would slap you in the face," Brooke declared with a little smirk.

"Oh my god! Star!" This time, it was a chubby female spix macaw with seven head feathers on her head with yellow eyes that arrived and hugged Star. "My little Star! You're alive!"

"Mommy!" Star happily said, hugging her back. The two hugged hard as if it would be the last time they were ever gonna be together.

Seeing his friends reunited with their families made Blu feel happy yet a bit jealous. He just wished his parents would come out now and give him the same love Linda gave him since day one. But that was just dreams; they probably wouldn't even recognize him as he lived with Linda since he was a baby. Maybe he just didn't have any biological parents at all...

"Brooke, meet our new friend Blu," Polie said with grabbing his wing as he presented him to his sister.

"Nice to meet you," Blu politely said with holding his wing out to her.

"Same here, I'm Polie's older sister, Brooke," she said with shaking Blu's wing.

"Blu is a ninja!" Polie declared in excitation with a wing around Blu's shoulders.

This made Brooke giggle to see that her brother was always so enthusiast. Once Polie removed his wing from Blu, this last one got caught in a giant hug between all of his friends' parents, almost squeezing him to death.

"Our kids told everything!" Alicia's dad said.

"Thank you so much for saving my little Star!" Star's mom gratefully said.

"How can we ever thank you for it! Alicia's mom added.

"Maybe by not choking me to death...," Blu coughed.

"Oh, sorry," Alicia's dad apologized as they finally let him go to fill his lungs with air. "My name is Bruno by the way. And this is my wife, Sarah."

"And I'm Kassie," Star's mom also introduced herself and gave Blu a pat on the head.

"Sorry, they're all like that," Jewel apologized to Blu with a giggle.

"What about you, Adam? Are your parents here?" Apollo asked.

He looked down with his wings crossed. "I never met my actual parents; I grew up with Polie and Brooke in the tribe's orphanage."

This made his friends widen their eyes in surprise. "Oh my gosh, sorry, I didn't know," Apollo apologized.

Adam just smiled. "It's okay, I had a brother and sister to look after me."

Suddenly, the conversation got interrupted by the soft sound of someone singing from above. This caused everyone to look up in the air where two female macaws suddenly pulled curtains of pink flowers to reveal the most handsome spix macaw Blu and his friends ever saw. He had dark blue feathers, darker than Blu's, was pretty tall with an impressive wingspan and large claws. The markings around his eyes and beak were a lighter blue that went down to his chest, fading to his main color. His eyes were blue, and his beak and talons gray. He had long, sleek dark blue crest feathers on his head which fell on the back and either side of his head.

He sang a very soft and charismatic song while gently flying down and landing before Jewel who looked at him with her eyes wide open. "Roberto?!"

"You look great," he complimented Jewel while holding her wing.

Blu felt slight jealousy at seeing his crush in trance because of this suasive bird called Roberto.

"Robbie!" Adam exclaimed as he went to give him a big bro hug.

"Adam, you're okay too," Roberto happily said as he returned the hug.

"This guy's his brother?" Blu mumbled to Jewel.

"No; they're just very good friends," she answered before dragging him up to Roberto. "Becto, this is Blu, our new friends," she introduced him and he shyly waved his wing at him.

"Ah, so you're the lucky bird who swept Ju-Ju off her feet," Roberto remarked which caused both Blu and Jewel to blush.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, we're just friends and we never got to the bed together," Blu quickly explained which made their friends laugh.

"There's my wingman," Eduardo said with wrapping a wing around Roberto's shoulders. "We can rest easy with Roberto."

"Eddie taught me everything; he's the bird," Roberto complimented.

"You're the bird!" Eduardo returned.

They kept repeating this to each other until Mimi came between them. "We get it; you're both the bird. Now let's stop talking and start the party!"

Suddenly, a song started to be heard from all around. "I-I recognize this song!" Jewel exclaimed in surprise as her friends seemed to recognize it too.

"It's Beautiful Creatures!" Polie beamed in joy.

"How could you guys forget it?" Roberto asked with a wing around Jewel. "It's in our blood, it's who we are!"

They then all flew off to some flowers and started using them to put paint on their faces. The guys put red while the girls put yellow and Roberto even added a yellow flower on top of Jewel's head as they all flew with the rest of the tribe to sing the song at unison. Jewel danced with Roberto while Polie did it with Star and Adam did it with Alicia.

Even the others joined in the song and dance as well. Rafael, Nico, Pedro, Alex, Lazaro, Vladimir, and Hernandez all went to have fun too. Blu just stood on a branch, looking sad as all his friends were having fun while he was excluded from the party. He soon decided to fly away and wait until they would stop the song.


	21. First night in the Amazon

Blu simply toyed with his Yu-Gi-Oh! cards on a branch with Dominic before his friends returned from the party. Soon, they all landed on the branch with Roberto still holding Jewel's wing.

"Whoa! That was fun!" she happily said. "When was the last time we had so much fun?"

"At your recovery celebrations maybe?" Blu mumbled not loud enough to be heard.

Dominic could see that Blu was feeling sad from the situation and decided to stand up. "That's great - no, I'm serious, guys, but the night will soon be here and we need to find a spot to sleep unless we want to get eaten by predators...and mosquitos."

"You guys just have to sleep over at my nest; there'll be enough place for everyone," Roberto kindly offered.

"Nah, we don't want to bother you up in your little nest," Blu denied, trying to hide the fact that he just wanted Jewel to stay away from him. This actually earned him a glare from Jewel.

"I'm gonna go sleep with my sister tonight," Polie said. "I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"

"Mind if I join you?" Adam asked to which Brooke nodded. He smiled and turned toward his friends. "See ya tomorrow," he said and took off with Polie and Brooke.

"We'll also spend the night with our parents. We wanna catch up with the lost time. Bye," Alicia said as she and Star flew off at their parents' hollow.

Rafael, Nico, and Pedro decided to also leave to go find a good spot to spend the night with Dominic deciding to do the same with Apollo and his dojo students. After saying goodnight, they all flew off together, leaving Blu and Jewel to go spend the night at Roberto's nest.

"This is awesome!" Pedro happily cheered as he was flying with all the others. "So much talent in this tribe that is just waiting to be shown to the world! Our quest has been successful!"

"Yeah!" Nico nodded. "We just have to ask some of them to follow us back to Rio and we can already consider our show to be a classic!" he said with spinning his bottle cap and then throwing it in the air...but it didn't come back.

Upon looking up, they saw Eduardo has grabbed it in his beak and then flew down in front of them. "Sorry to break your hype, city birds, but no one ever leaves the tribe. Oh, and no human objects are accepted here. So I'm gonna have to ask you to give them all to me," he said with giving pointing looks at Dominic's sword, Alex's side bag, and Apollo's backpack and cap.

Dominic responded with an unhappy glance and, with a swift movement, caught the bottle cap from Eduardo's wings. "Those 'human objects' as you call them are very important to my friends and I and we have no intention of getting separated from them," Dominic said with giving Nico his bottle cap back.

This caused Eduardo to look a bit madly as the golden eagle defied his orders. "Listen very well, eagle, I am very grateful that you brought me back my daughters and even protected her from the outside world, but I'm the leader of this tribe and I fix the rules. So I expect you all to respect them, got it?" he asked with holding his wing, waiting for Dominic to give him his sword.

"And I respect that, but there's also something you should know: my sword and I have been together since I was old enough to fly. And anyone - and I say ANYONE who tries to separate me from it will end up with their wings cut off, capiche?" he said and exchanged a mad glare with the tribe leader.

The two birds simply glared at each other in awkward silence before Eduardo simply spat a: "Fine then" and flew away. This left the group of birds to go find a place to sleep with Nico thanking Dominic for standing up to him.

* * *

"Whoa..." That was all Blu could mumble as he and Jewel followed Roberto his nest which was twice, or maybe three times, or maybe even FIVE times larger than a normal nest. It had place for many birds and even had a small pool. Not even counting the pretty flowers and plants that decorated it. "This must have taken you years to build this."

"Ah, this nest? It's just something I put together last minute," Roberto answered. "With my own two wings of course, and my strength, and my brawn," he said with making these last ones bounce, making Jewel look at them with a little something in her eyes, making Blu feel even more jealous than before.

"Anyways, thank you for allowing us to stay, Becto," Jewel said with hugging him.

"Anytime, Ju-Ju. I'm on patrol tonight, so you'll be alone. Have a good night, Ju-Ju. You too, Blu," he said with flying out of the nest.

"He's very nice, don't you think?" Jewel asked with a happy smile.

"Yeah...," Blu simply mumbled. Jewel noticed something seemed to bother him.

"Is something wrong, Blu?"

This made him shake his head as he didn't want to ruin the day she got reunited with her family with his personal issues. "What? No, no, everything's fine." He smiled and then removed his fanny pack and backpack which he put in a corner before settling down.

* * *

As much as he hated to admit it, Blu actually passed a good night as Roberto's nest was pretty comfortable. He woke up by the time the sun started shining on the jungle and saw Jewel sleeping comfortably in another nest. This made him smile as he found her cute and like an angel when she slept.

His smile soon faded and he flew away from the nest and to the tribe's hill from where he could get a good look at the sun getting up. The sight of the sunray shining on the waterfalls and creating a rainbow made him smile for a moment before it turned upside down.

He thought about how much things have changed in the last months; not so long ago, he lived a peaceful life with Linda, back in Minnesota where he thought he was the only one of his kind. Then, he ate a fruit that turned him into a plastic bird, made his first two friends, met more birds of his kind with one that caught his heart, traveled to Brazil, found himself fighting evil smugglers including a cockatoo who could turn into metal, and now, he was in the Amazon rainforest with the rest of his species including his friends' family and her crush' best friend who had to be suasive and charismatic just like Bruno Mars. Dang it!

"Hey, Blu!" He was brought out of his thoughts by the call of Adam who arrived with Polie and landed on the branch with him. "Slept well? I know Roberto knows how to make the most comfortable nests in all Brazil," he said with a chuckled before noticing the sad look on Blu's face. "What's wrong, dude?"

"It's just... I'm glad you guys got reunited with your families and tribe and all that, but...it's not the same for me. And Jewel had to reunite with her friend who is better than me in every way," he sighed with rubbing his head.

"Actually, it's her ex-boyfriend. They dated for years," Polie pointed out, earning a slap behind the head from Adam.

"Come on, Blu, they have been together in the past. After you saved her, I'm sure Jewel must have some affection for you."

"You don't understand!" Blu shouted which made the boys jump a bit. "The only reason she had affection for me was that she thought we were the last of our kind and you guys both already had a crush. Also, I don't want her to be forced to like me only because I saved her. You guys might be happy here, but I don't belong in the wild. The only reason I'm still here is because of you guys." He then flew away, leaving Polie and Adam to exchanged concerned glances.

* * *

Meanwhile, back in Roberto's hollow, Jewel woke up with a yawn just as Roberto returned inside with three Brazilian coconuts. "Good morning, Ju-Ju. I brought coconuts for all three of us."

"Aww, thank you, Becto," Jewel said with a smile before noticing Blu was gone. "Hey, where is Blu?"

"I saw him flying toward the tribe's hill a few minutes ago. We'll give him his coconut when he returns," Roberto said with giving the coconut to Jewel who opened it with her beak.

She happily ate her favorite meal before looking down with a sad expression. Roberto noticed it. "Is there a problem, Jew?"

"No, it's just about...Blu. I don't know why, but ever since we came here, he didn't look really happy. Maybe this is because we all have been reunited with our families while he still has yet to meet his parents."

Roberto's look turned to a surprised one. "He never met his family?!"

Jewel was about to mention Linda but knew how much her tribe hated humans after they had done to her tribe, years ago. She decided to keep this for herself. "No; he lived alone in the United States since he was a child. Luckily he had friends to look after him," she lied.

"Man, I didn't know it. That's so sad," Roberto said. "I'm gonna ask our friends to be warmer to him so that he feels welcome."

"Thanks," Jewel smiled and hugged her friend again.

"Anytime, Ju-Ju. Also, there was something else I wanted to ask. I talked with your dad earlier and he is planning a party for tomorrow night to celebrate your return. Mind to dance with me that night?"

"Of course, just like when we were younger," Jewel said with hugging him lovingly. Just then, Blu returned in the hollow and she quickly broke from the hug before he could see them. "Oh, hi Blu. Where did you leave?"

"Oh, you know, stretching my wings and taking some fresh air," he decided not to mention his little chat with Adam and Polie.

"Morning bird? I like that," Roberto said with a wing around Blu's shoulders, trying to be friendly to him. "Come eat; I brought a good breakfast. We'll go see the others after that."

* * *

 **Well, at least, Roberto is trying to be nice with Blu. And Jewel too; she doesn't ignore him :)**


	22. At the waterfall

Once breakfast was done, Blu, Jewel, and Roberto found Polie, Adam, Alicia, Star and Brooke as the latter wanted to lead the group to somewhere. After some time of flying, they arrived near the beautiful waterfall and to a site around the giant lake underneath it where the tribe was playing in the water.

"Whoa! It's like in our previous home!" Polie shouted in excitation.

"Yeah; after settling in this new territory, we decided to set our new swimming spot near the waterfall," Roberto explained as he led the group toward a special spot on the far end of the lake's beach.

It looked like some kind of bird-sized bar with spix macaws coming to get drinks in coconut shells filled with liquids given by a male macaw behind the counter. He looked rather old and grumpy with messy and dirty feathers that were pale blue. One of his eyes was white and that was kinda scaring Blu off.

"Yo, Kenny," Roberto greeted the bar bird named Kenny. "How you doing?"

"Fine for an old bird as you can see," he chuckled. "So I've heard some of your old folks had returned yesterday?"

"Yes, and we're gonna hold a celebration party for tomorrow tonight for this occasion," Roberto said with turning to the others. "Guys, meet Kenny, the tribe's bar bird. He makes the best mixes of juices and other drinks in this whole rainforest."

They all waved their wings and introduced themselves respectively to the bar bird. "So, what can I give you, young ones?"

"Nothing, Kenny; we're gonna play some waterfall ride so it's better to drink after," Roberto answered.

"Oh yes! I didn't play that game for long!" Polie excitedly said.

"What's water ride?" Blu asked curiously.

"It's a game that was very popular among us as kids," Adam replied. "It's a game where we get on top of the waterfall, pick lily pads and then drive all together down from it on them. The first one to splash in the lake below wins."

This caused Blu to widen his eyes in shock. "That sounds very dangerous!"

"Not at all, Blu, it's very fun," Adam assured. "Come on; let's go up there."

"Huh, thanks, but I think I'm gonna stay here with Kenny while you guys go have fun," Blu nicely denied.

"Okay, do as you please. Let's go!" Polie said as he flew up the waterfall with his friends.

"So you're the new guy in the tribe, he?" Kenny asked as he used a leaf to clean off a coconut.

"Yup; I'm from the United States, but I moved on to Rio recently. I've gotta say I really like Brazil's lifestyle," Blu admitted with a smile.

"Glad to hear it. So what can I serve you?"

"I'd like a cup of orange juice; it's my favorite one and it's very good for energy," Blu replied.

Kenny nodded and grabbed a bottle made of wood which he shook off before pouring it's orange content into the half of a coconut shell and then served it to Blu on the bar's counter. "Served," he said as Blu took his drink and started slurping it into his beak.

Meanwhile, Jewel, Roberto, and the others got on top of the waterfall and all grabbed lily pads. They now stood on the edge of the waterfall hill from where they could sense that the lake looked really far underneath them now.

"Wow! This is higher than back at our old territory," Alicia remarked with her eyes wide open.

"Are you sure we're not gonna get killed by the fall?" Star nervously asked.

"Don't worry; we already did it thousands of times," Roberto assured. "The worst case scenario is that the impact with the water surface will sting a lot."

"Thanks, that's very reassuring," Star sarcastically replied.

"Come on, Star, it will be just like when we were young," Alicia said with a wing around her girl friend.

She sighed before nodding and taking position at the edge of the waterfall alongside all the others. All of them were more or less nervous as they were about to start their little race.

"Ready?" Roberto asked, making the start. "3! 2! 1! GO!"

As soon as he said that, all six birds jumped down on top of their respective lily pad and let out a giant beam of pleasure as their adrenaline was rushing at its fullest throughout the fall. Polie and Roberto were both first as they already halfway throughout the waterfall's race. Even though they gained in speed and the wind flew into their eyes, the two birds exchanged a competitive glance as they bent forward to gain even more momentum.

In a matter of seconds, Roberto landed on the water with a huge impact that got blocked by his lily pad, followed by Polie, Jewel, Adam, Alicia, and Star. They all came out of the water and beamed in joy.

"Man! That was hardcore!" Adam said with whipping the water from his feathers.

"Sorry, Polie, better luck next time," Roberto said with a victorious smile.

"You got lucky! I want a rematch!" he exclaimed, making his friends laugh.

* * *

Meanwhile, in a further part of the forest, Dominic awoke soon to get all his students to start training. They were currently gathered in an open arena of the spix macaw tribe's territory where they were sure to not be disturbed by anyone.

Dominic was watching as all of them were training really hard to the point of sweating. The golden eagle never expected to find so special birds in Rio for his dojo. Not simply because of their powers, skills or the fact that they were foreigners, but also because of their respective story...

* * *

 **Sorry this chapter was so short. The next one will be dedicated to Alex's, Vladimir's, Lazaro's and Hernandez's respective story.**


	23. Flashback: Alex's story

**Here we go for the first flashback chapter.**

* * *

 _Originally, Alex was an ordinary snowy owl living in the great city of Paris, France. Well, he was different on two points; he grew up without parents as he was found as an opened egg on the beach by some seagulls guys and brought to the town's bird orphanage. And also, his body was round and different from that of a normal snowy owl or any owl at all._

 _This difference costed him to be putted away by the flock of owls he joined at 5, forcing him to fly behind them and to follow them from far away. This always hurt him to feel so rejected simply because of his looks and to not have any friend or close ones to share his pain with. For an adult, it would have been unbearable, so imagine for a kid._

 _One day, he had enough and flew away from his flock, crying and ended up being discovered by another bird - a dove with beautiful white feathers. Her name was Yukio and she belonged to a renamed French doctor called Charlie LeHaut who gladly accepted to take the young snowy owl under her care._

 _"Yukio!" shouted the little snowy owl. "Where are you?"_

 _"I'm over here!" the dove replied. "Alex, come look! It's snowing outside!"_

 _"What?! Really?!" he shouted and flew over to her. He found her sitting in front of a window with her beak pressed against it. He sat next to her and did the same._

 _"It's so pretty," Alex said as he watched the snowflakes fall._

 _"Yeah!" Yukio agreed. "It looks so magical!"_

 _"Shut up, you idiots!" shouted a shrill voice. The birds chuckled as they recognized the voice of D. LeHaut. "It's damn winter! It always snowing during that time!"_

 _"Yes," Yukio sang as she stood up. "But it's not always Christmas!" She twirled around in place, but only for a moment as she started feeling dizzy._

 _"Are you alright?!" Alex asked in concern when he saw her face getting pale._

 _"Of course!" she said, giving him a huge grin. "I'm always gonna be alright if I have a young doctor like you at my side."_

 _"Calling me doctor isn't gonna make me happy at all!" Alex replie with yet a big grin on his face. "Oh, that's right!" he said, growing more serious. "It's time for your medicine."_

 _Yukio pouted. "But I don't wanna," she childishly said._

 _"You have to," he said. "How can you expect to get better if you don't?"_

 _Yukio gave him a sad smile. "Of course, Alex. Sorry. Doctor's orders, right?" she softly said as she followed him into D. LeHaut's office._

 _"Alright, doc," Yukio started, "I've been feeling this fluttery feeling in my tummy and my heart has been racing a lot more often. I know I'm not exactly a doctor, but I think I might have caught the illness of Christmas."_

 _LeHaut sighed. "Why do I keep you around?" the doctor asked as she prepared the girl for her medicine._

 _"Because you're a good doctor," Yukio answered. **(Don't ask me how she can hear her birds talk)**_

 _LeHaut frowned at the dove who was sitting on the clinic's bed. She was swinging her legs back-and-forth, humming a Christmas song as she watched Alex organize some medical supplies._

 _"This is going to-"_

 _"Sting," Yukio interrupted LeHaut. "Yeah, yeah, I know the drill. I've been-OW!" she shouted as she felt the needle pierce through her skin, the usual burning sensation spreading across her wings._

 _"There was no need to be so rough. that was uncalled for," Yukio whined as she rubbed her wing._

 _"You shouldn't have cut me off, you brat," LeHaut told her._

 _Alex hopped onto the bed next to her and placed a bandaid over her, where the shot has been given. Her face lit up as she looked at the design of it._

 _"Are those candy canes?!" she shouted. "Are those Christmas bandais?!" Yukio jumped off the bed, grabbing Alex and hugging him tightly. LeHaut shook her head at the pair and left the room._

 _"You're the best doctor ever!" Alex reacted to the compliment as he usually did. She putted him back on the floor and sat down beside him so that their faces were side-by-side._

 _"Can we go outside and make snowmen?" she asked him._

 _"No!" he exclaimed. "You're still sick. If you go outside, you'll never be able to heal."_

 _"Alex," she started softly, but the snowy owl didn't let her finish._

 _"No! No disease is incurable! You're going to get better!"_

 _Yukio frowned as she saw tears starting to gather up in his eyes. She didn't wanted to see him like this, but she didn't want to lie either - she knew that there was no getting better for her anymore. She had been ill for so long. And it has only gotten worse._

 _LeHaut and her both knew that she wasn't going to live much longer; Yukio was sure Alex knew that too, but he didn't seemed too keen on accepting that reality, which didn't surprised her. They had grown so close during the time he learned to be a doctor._

 _"Have I ever told you the story of Rudolph?" she asked him. Alex shook his head which made her grin at his answer. She sat back down on the clinic bed with her legs crossed. Alex followed after her and crawled onto her lap. She wrapped a blanket around the two of them and Alex snuggled into Yukio's feathers._

 _"Rudolph reminds me a lot of you, you know?"_

 _"Huh?" he questioned, looking up at her. "How?"_

 _"Well, he was fluffy for one thing and he also a difference. He had a strange nose - a special nose?"_

 _"Was it big?" Alex questioned to which Yukio shook her head._

 _"It was bright red and really shiny. And it glowed like lightbulbs does." Alex tilted his head to the side. This made Yukio giggle at his reaction. "I told you it was strange."_

 _"So what happened to him?"_

 _"Well, the other reindeers were mean to him." Alex frowned. "They would laugh at him because his nose was different from the rest; and they would call him all sorts of mean names. They never even let him play in any of the reindeers games!"_

 _"But it's not his fault he was different!" Alex shouted as he looked up at Yukio, unadulterated sadness covered his grinned at him._

 _"I know. He didn't deserved to be treated that way. But y'know what? He got what he deserved at the end."_

 _"What do you mean?"_

 _"Well," Yukio paused; she relaxed herself and then began to sing. "One foggy Christmas eve, Santa came to say: 'Rudolph, with your nose so bright, won't you guide my sleigh tonight?'" Alex's face lit up and he started to grin at the words. Yukio had told him all about Santa Claus so he knew that he was a good person._

 _"Then how all the reindeers loved him," Yukio continued to sing, "as they shouted with glee: "Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer, you'll go down in history'."_

 _"I'm so happy that something so happy happened to him even though he was different," Alex told Yukio when she was done and she nodded._

 _"It's because he was a good little boy, like you are."_

 _"Do you think that something like that could happen to me?" Alex asked with looking down at the purple bowtie on his chest._

 _"That a red man who wears red will pop up and ask you to join me? Hmmm. Maybe." Alex looked up at her with hopeful eyes._

 _"Will you come with me if it happens?"_

 _She giggled. "I'll do if I can." She then shared another big hug with her snowy owl friend._

* * *

 _The happiest Christmas in Alex's life was followed by the saddest week of his life, three days later. Yukio's illness finally took her life away and she died happy on her clinic's bed with giving her best wishes to Alex who cried all the tears of his body._

 _Two days later, Alex decided to start fabricating his very own creation, the mutation candies which could transform his body with each having its own effects. He made them in candies for the sweet taste as he hated pills' taste._

 _A few years later, Alex was surfing on the internet and saw an announce about some golden eagle opening a dojo in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil to teach those who felt weak to become strong. He asked LeHaut to allow him to go there as he made the decision to become the strongest little man and make sure to become so strong and legendary that Yukio will hear his name from the heavens. To his surprise, she actually accepted and let him leave France the very same day._

It was the start of the smallest warrior's journey...

* * *

 **Man, that was a sad flashback story. How do you find this new version of good old Alex?**

 **Next chapter will be Vladimir and Dominic's flashback story.**


	24. Flashback: Vladimir's story

**Here we go for Vladimir's flashback story!**

* * *

 _Vladimir was born in the Soviet Union the first June 1989. During this time, there was a war between birds in the country and, due to his incredible size and muscular fit, he was enrolled among the eagle forces at a very early age._

 _He mixed his imposing figure with Sambo, a martial art made in the URSS to become the strongest fighter of his squad. By the time he was 18, his superiors decided to send him to Russia, their ally country, where he was to be taken under the rules of the force's champion, Yusef Saklov (it's Dominic's real name, for those who forgot)._

 _"Do you see this person down there, Vladimir?" his superior asked as they stood on top of the local eagles forces camp's building from where they could see a whole battalion of eagles walking in line. At the head of it was a younger Dominic who had no scar yet. "It's Russia's champion and he's gonna become captain. Soon. You, you're gonna become a soldier under his orders and serve him with your life. You understand that, Vladimir?"_

 _"Yes, sir," the eagle replied without being able to remove his glance from the younger eagle carrying a sword._

 _The first time he saw him, he though he was glancing at a battle god._

 _"Vladimir at your command, captain!" Vladimir said with bowing on his knee before Dominic in the court where they were alone._

 _"Ah, there you are!" Dominic happily beamed with a smile on his beak. "I suppose they told you what I wanted to tell you about?"_

 _"Yes," he replied. "I, Vladimir, will from now on devote my flesh and blood to your protection-" It was his seventh year as a soldier and he was already welcomed at Russia's champion's sides._

 _"Forget the 'captains'," Dominic cut him off. "It makes me feel old. Address me with simpler names. "Dominic" for example."_

 _This caused Vladimir to widen his eyes in shock. "Pardon?! B-But I can never allow myself to have such familiarity with you, capt-" He stopped as he saw Dominic giving him a bored glance. "Ah... Well, in that case, maybe I could call you...Sir Dominic?"_

 _"Pfff!" Dominic sighed. "You're strangely stubborn. But fine, call me as you wish, new guy," he said with patting Vladimir's head, despite the difference in height between them. "Anyways, I made you come here because I've seen that you possess a great talent. So it doesn't really matter how you call me. I want to take you as my protégé and I expect a lot from you!"_

 _This made Vladimir widen his eyes before slowly smiling. "Y-Yes! You can count on me!"_

 _Vladimir did not hesitate for a second. Even during the battles, he felt happy to fight alongside Dominic. He promised himself over and over again that he was ready to die for his partner._

 _They lived so many good times together; from fighter over food during launch time, to discussing about how to clean their feathers during their time in the shower to reading their favorite mangas together to train always hard. They DID share a lot of good times._

 _"I don't know if I should do that."_

 _But the best one was probably when Dominic found a Magical Fruit and decided to bring it to Vladimir._

 _"Come on, this is a once in a lifetime opportunity!" Dominic insisted._

 _"B-But you should be the one to have it, Yusef. You definitely deserve it way more than me."_

 _"It's not a matter of deserving it, but to need a power boost. We all know that I'm the strongest bird fighter in this country don't we?" he said with a smug which caused his friend to give him a pointing look._

 _He took the Magical Fruit in his wing; it looked like an orange but in grey. "So, hum...not that I'm scared or anything, but what effects will it have on me?"_

 _"No one knows for sure; it is said that the Magical Fruits all react and offers different powers and skills to the birds who eat them," Dominic answered with crossing his wings._

 _Vladimir longly hesitated before finally taking a bite of the fruit...and he could tell it was the most disgusting thing he ever allowed to come inside his beak. He almost spat it out, but forced himself to swallow the bite and quickly breathed some fresh air afterward._

 _"Sley eto! (Darn it!) This taste horrible! It's almost as if a rock just pooped on the ground!" He then looked at his wings. "Strange, I don't feel very different."_

 _"It's because you need to eat ALL of it to take effect," Dominic pointed out._

 _This made the younger eagle widen his eyes in shock. Taking all his courage, he forced himself to swallow the disgusting fruit one bite at a time until there was nothing left and felt like puking. However, he managed to keep his breakfast in his stomach and started feeling the transforming getting in work._

 _"D-Did anything changed about me?" Vladimir asked with turning toward Dominic who suddenly had his eyes wide open. "What?"_

 _He slowly pointed a feather at his wings and Vladimir looked down at them to see something rather shocking; they were now made of rock!_

* * *

 _And so was Vladimir's new power; he could turn any part of his body into rock. This new ability allowed him to get more wins during battles and was soon considered to be Dominic's equals. Unfortunately, before they could fight in a duel to find out which one of them was stronger, Dominic simply faded._

 _One night, as Vladimir wanted to visit him, he found Dominic was absent from his hollow and instead fond a note saying that he was tired of all the fighting and instead wanted to fly across the world to become a strong warrior in his own right, though he apologized for not bringing Vladimir with him, fearing he might never come back and knew Vladimir's place was in his country._

 _Needless to say Vladimir got really hurt by his best friend just leaving like that. Soon, all the battles in the URSS finished and he could finally live a peaceful life without all the war. He sure made new friends, but he missed Dominic everyday._

 _A few years later, he received a note from one of his superiors about finding a page from Dominic on the internet. One thing led to another and Vladimir flew off to Brazil where he got reunited with his brother-at-arm which was the happiest day of his life._

 _Though he still gave him a good bump on top of his skull for leaving him behind..._


	25. Flashback: Lazaro & Hernandez

**The third and final flashback story which will be about Lazaro and Hernandez. Enjoy :)**

* * *

 _There was a large bird village just a few miles away from New Mexico City, not far enough that the city could not be seen. It was a village that had plenty of sunlight and raining for adequate farming. Some spots in Mexico had too much sun to allow the farmers to do their job, but this very village was a blessed spot, apparently._

 _"Hernandez! What's the matter?!" Hernandez's mother asked in slight panic as she used a towel to whip the blood from his white feathers._

 _"I-I...fought again, mama," he replied with looking down, his huge beak not blocking anything._

 _"Darling, we already went through this thousands of time," his mama sighed. "Why did you fought this time?"_

 _"They all looked at me like I was some kind of monster," he responded with looking up at her. "I hate when they do that! It's not my fault I'm a bird larger than all the others! Nor if I possess a big strength that they all want!"_

 _His mother took him in a hug. "Hernandez, please don't cry anymore. I can't stand to see you cry."_

 _"Darling, stop making that boy feel so crappy for a little brawl!" a male voice entered the nest. It was an adult pelican who was older than Hernandez and the same age as his mother. "I know you mean to well in trying to prevent him from getting hurt, but you don't have to derail his self-esteem."_

 _Hernandez's mother huffed. "Dear, come on now. I'm trying to protect Hernandez. He's in serious pain which is something I'm trying to prevent him from experiencing! This is exactly why I have kept him sheltered!"_

 _Hernandez's father just smiled and kissed her beak, making her blush. "Pain is indeed an uncomfortable experience, but it's a necessary one. You can't keep the boy under wraps forever. Because if you do, he'll never be able to face the world when he goes out there. Because if he doesn't go after the world...the world will force him to."_

 _"What are you talking about?"_

 _"You can't expect to safeguard him from the world's danger his whole life. Either he confronts it himself, or something or someone makes him. And it has a high chance of being painful. I'd rather pick the former option." He looked toward her. "If he cannot get the experience he needs to face the world, he will never be able to leave the nest you carefully built around him. This nest cannot last forever. It will crumble one day, and he will become completely helpless. Huge strength or not, he will be taken appart in no time." He then smiled at her. "Sorry, but I'd rather not let that happen. I want our son to be ready to face the world."_

 _Hernandez's mother was quiet for a long time. She was proceeding at his words, trying to understand them. But before she could ask him a question, he had already moved on from her, much to her frustration. "Hey! Don't just walk past me and leave me with riddles!"_

 _He cheerfully ignored her as he approached Hernandez and patted his head with his wing. "Don't listen to your paranoid mother so much, Hernandez. I know she's just being protective, but there is indeed a line between that and smothering. She needs to let you out of protective gaze all the time. You won't grow that way. I'm trying to get her to understand this, but she's too stubborn...but that's okay. I really love that part of her."_

 _"At least, you're being honest," Hernandez's mother said with folding her wings and blushing slightly._

 _"Anyway, take it easy, son. Don't give up on making friends just yet. You just need a bit more time. You can endure it a bit longer. You don't need to be worried. Soon someone will stand by your side. Someone will pick you up when someone else knocks you down. And they'll never leave you. You can trust me on that, Hernandez." He smiled._

 _"Dad...?" Hernandez quietly asked as he then looked down at his wings. "Why was I born with such a big strength?"_

 _His father looked down at him for a moment before smiling. "I honestly have no idea, son. Sometimes, problems cannot be solved like maths and are pure mysteries."_

 _"I hate maths," Hernandez admitted._

 _"Me too, son, me too," Hernandez's father chuckled and patted his son's head again._

* * *

 _Nothing has changed. Hernandez continued to be a primary target of much bullying for the next weeks, as he always endured. He honestly wondered if what his father said had any truth to it at all. He had little hope in making any friend at all._

 _Then, HE came to change his life._

 _Hernandez has made a very bad call. He tried getting home, but a gang of birds have bee blocking his path. He wanted to fight them off with his strength, but he knew that would simply mean those bullies were right about thinking of him as a monster. So he just let them tie him off to a tree with his big wings being neutralized by tight vines._

 _They all laughed at him. "Come on, try to get out, monster! We wanna see what sound you make when you squirm and struggle!"_

 _Hernandez didn't replied. He didn't said anything. He wasn't planning on giving them the pleasure of entering their games. This annoyed the apparent leader of their gang who lifted his wing and curled it like a fist, ready to throw another punch. Hernandez closed his eyes and waited for the impact to connect._

 _SLAM!_

 _Hernandez slightly opened his eyes and then they widened in shock. The impact sound wasn't from his skull but rather from his attacker's as he received a violent kick to it which knocked him away and out cold._

 _His savior was a little puffin around his age, but far from his size. "I hope you're not bullying someone weaker than you! Because that's a really good way to get on my bad side!" he declared in annoyance with a mad look._

 _The group of birds who have probably bursted out in laugh at the little bird, have he not knocked their leader out in one kick before. "Hey! Who do you think you are to kick our leader like this, shortie?!" one of them asked as they all surrounded the puffin._

 _This last one gave a glare that was mixed between amusement and pure anger. "First, you bully someone, now, you mock my size? Congratulations, you just committed the two things I despite the most. I'M GONNA KICK YOUR FEATHERED BUTTS!"_

 _Hernandez just watched as the little puffin fought all the gang of bullies by himself, using some kind of kick-based fighting style. He was pretty agile with it. He knocked down many of them, but the number's game eventually caught up and he took a beat down. However, refusing to give up, he took all of them down after a long and brutal fight._

 _He was currently laying down on his back, covering of bruises and panting in exhaustion and pain and surrounded by the unconscious bodies of the bullies. After staying like this for a long moment, he managed to open his eyes and look up at Hernandez in a backward position._

 _"A-Are you alright?!" Hernandez asked in concern for him._

 _"Don't you 'are you alright?' me, pal!" he exclaimed with a stern yet tired tone. "A bird as huge and muscled as you shouldn't have to get beaten like that! Why didn't you fought back; you could have easily pushed them back like dust or broken those vines around you like twigs. Why didn't you do anything?"_

 _Hernandez was rather surprised by his reaction, but quickly looked down. "I-I can't. They all think I'm a monster. If I fight back, I'm simply making them right which is a pleasure I don't wanna give them-"_

 _"Are you serious?!" the puffin suddenly cut him off as he rolled onto his back, tired of looking at him backward. "You let yourself take a beating simply because you don't want to LOOK like a monster to the others? Is that a joke?"_

 _"...No?"_

 _The puffin sighed. "Who cares about what they think? Those jackbutts always though I was nothing but a small useless bird who should go live with penguins in Antarctica. Yes, here I just kicked all of their butts with just my legs, didn't I?"_

 _"Yes, but-" Hernandez started, but got cut off again._

 _"No buts! No excuses! I don't want to ever see you let any bully kick your butt on purpose, or I'll be the one to do it afterward, got it?" The little puffin's words and orders caused Hernandez to look at him with a surprised look._

 _He then just sighed and stood up to go free him from his vines. "Listen, I'm not planning on calling you 'Big Guy' all the time, so what's your name?"_

 _"Hum, it's Hernandez," he replied._

 _The puffin then gave an actual smile for the first time. "Well, Hernandez, my name is Lazaro and I have an offer for you; you have the size, but you don't want to hurt while I lack the size, but have the will. What do you say we play like this: you will give punches for me and I will give kicks for you. If you understand what I mean."_

 _Hernandez just remained silent as he slowly realized that his father's words were coming true: he was really making himself a friend. A huge smile forming on his giant beak, he held his wing to shake Lazaro's flipper, officializing their friendship._

* * *

Back to the present, Dominic kept looking as his four students were doing their warm-up trainings. As he though about all their personal reasons for wanting to train with him - Alex wanted to be such a great fighter that Yukio would hear his name from heaven, Vladimir wanted to become a great captain like him, and Hernandez and Lazaro wanted to keep getting stronger and protect each other - the old eagle couldn't help but smile as he really didn't regretted creating his dojo.

Putting his feelings aside, he took out his sword to get his students' attention. "Alright everyone! Warm up time is over: time to start for true!"

* * *

 **And we're done with the flashback chapters! The reason I made them is because I felt my OCs were underdeveloped and wanted to open them more before we could continue the story.**

 **Do not worry though for we will return to Blu and the others in the next chapter.**

 **Except that, what did you though about the flashback chapters? Which one did you like the most? Lemme know :)**


	26. The four siblings' story

**As promised, we go back to the spix macaws in this chapter. Enjoy!**

* * *

After a full day of playing in the water for our six macaws, except Blu who just stood on the sidelines and chatted with Kenny, the group parted ways as the sun started going down and wished each other goodnight before flying back to their respective hollow with Blu and Jewel still staying with Roberto.

The next morning, Blu woke up first again and went to take a little bath in the river near the nest. It wasn't as good taking a shower in his house, but he wouldn't complain about it. While washing the water over his plastic body, he couldn't help but look around in case some predator or wild beast would come out and try to jump on it. Yes, he wasn't adjusted to being in the rainforest yet.

"Hey, Blu!" His heart jumped as he turned around and saw Roberto landing in the river.

"Roberto! Don't make me jump like that!" he exclaimed with a wing on his beating heart.

Roberto just chuckled. "Sorry, I didn't know you were so nervous when taking a bath." He then noticed that Blu was doing a terrible job with cleaning his feathers. "Hum, did you messed your own feathers on purpose?"

"No, I'm not used to clean myself in a river, it's hard and the water is so cold," Blu explained with shivering a bit.

"Wait, let me help you." Blu shivered a bit as Roberto went behind him and started rubbing the cold water on his back, cleaning his feathers very well. He didn't got this feeling since Linda used to be the one to clean him as a chick. "You know, I'm a bit surprised that some at your age still doesn't know how to clean himself."

"It's because it's my mother that cleaned me most of my life. And also because I'm used to do it in a warm shower or bath," Blu explained.

"Oh, there is a lot of warm rivers and waterfalls in Rio?" Roberto curiously asked as he kept rubbing Blu's back.

"No; I clean myself in my house's bathroom," Blu replied.

Roberto widened his eyes in surprise at this revelation. "You lived into a human house with your mom? How's that?"

"Well, she's a human, so it's normal she lives in a human house."

Roberto removed his wings from Blu's back and jumped back a bit, which surprised Blu a bit. "Y-You lived with a human?!" he asked with a scared tone which was the first time Blu heard it.

"Yes, why?" Blu asked back.

"J-Jewel didn't mentioned this. H-How could you live up with a human?! They're evil!" Roberto said as if Blu just had told him the biggest insult in the world.

"What are you talking about? Linda's not evil; she took care of me like her own son since I was a baby. And even today, she still helps me when I need help. How's that evil?" Blu asked in defense of his mother figure.

Roberto gave him a confused look to replace his offended one. "S-She took care of you? She didn't locked you into a cage and fed you with crackers?"

Blu looked around, unsure. "Huh, no. She did got a cage for me, but it was only for when I had to get there, to sleep, or to punish me, when I did something wrong. Except that, I was free to go wherever I wanted to go at anytime. Also, she didn't just fed me with crackers; she also gave me fruits, cereals, and my favourite one, pancakes."

Roberto looked at him curiously as he didn't knew what pancakes were. However, he shook this detail off his head and returned to the main topic. "So you're telling me a human took care of you like her own kid since you were a chick? You,ll have to excuse me if I have some difficulties believing you, Blu. From what I know, humans are very dangerous."

Blu looked at him curiously. "Why do you guys think that? Why is your tribe holding such hate for humans?"

Roberto folded his wings and looked down at the river below him as his face slowly changed to that one a person remembering horrible memories. "To understand, you need to know what happened to our tribe _that_ day," he sinisterly said.

"You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to, Rob," Blu assured.

"No, no, no, you should know about it, Blu," Roberto said and started his story.

* * *

 _FLASHBACK TO MANY YEARS AGO_

 _During that time, Roberto was a little chick and the tribe lived in a different part of the Amazon rainforest._

 _"Back then, I had a little brother named Hario and a father named Bruno. They were both very important to me and I loved my little brother more than anything; he was cheery, full of energy and the best little brother a macaw could wish for."_

 _"He had three very close friends with whom he played every day and spent almost all of his time. There was one spix macaw girl named Lilly, a male one named Aqua, and a little elf owl girl called Sky. The four of them were so close that one day, they decided to take it to the next step."_

 _It was a beautiful day in the Amazon rainforest and Roberto watched from a corner of an open area where his little brother was doing some kind of ceremony with his three best friends._

 _Hario was a little spix macaw chick with dark blue feathers and hazel brown eyes. He smiled at his three friends which included Lilly, a female spix macaw with light blue feathers, brown eyes and head feathers tied into a ponytail by a twig. She giggled a bit as Aqua brought four coconut shells on a rock in the middle of them._

 _Aqua was a male spix macaw chick with dark blue feathers, grey eyes and some messy feathers. Once he was done with the coconut shells, he brought a wooden bottle on the rock. "There it is."_

 _"Hum, you sure this is a good idea, Aqua?" Sky asked unsure._

 _Sky was a little female elf owl with honey-colored feathers starting white from her legs and lower stomach to light brown on her neck, wings and head. Her head feathers were curled so that they covered her left brown eye._

 _"Of course, Sky," Aqua replied as he poured the bottle's liquid into the four coconut shells. "Did you know that sharing the same drink from the same bottle can allow us to become siblings for life?"_

 _"Siblings? Seriously?!" Hario exclaimed with joy in his face._

 _"Yes, all we have to do is share this drink and then, we will become bounded for life," Aqua affirmed as he finished pouring the drinks and then took one of the coconut shells. "We all have different dreams, but the same purpose; we all want to journey beyond the rainforest and see the world. So even if we go our separate ways, we will still be bond, no matter what because we will be brothers and sisters."_

 _The three smiled and also took their drink. "So let's say our dreams before drinking and sealing our bond forever," Lilly proposed._

 _"Good idea," Hario said with lifting his coconut shell. "I want to go in the human world and learn more about their culture."_

 _Lilly rose her drink next. "I wanna become a ninja and beat bad guys."_

 _Next was Sky. "I too wanna become a ninja and be a hero."_

 _"Dream stealer," Lilly snarked as Sky replied by throwing out her tongue at her._

 _Aqua chuckled before lifting his drink last. "I wanna become a pirate and travel across the sea."_

 _They made a toast and then drank their shell...before choking and almost spitting it out. "Darn it! It tastes like seagull's drops!" Aqua shouted as he coughed after swallowing his drink._

 _"You shouldn't trust Kenny on this kind of things in the future," Sky remarked as she whipped the little drank she spat on her beak._

 _"But at least we are officially siblings now!" Hario happily said as they all shared a big hug. Roberto saw this and was very happy for his little brother._

 _"The moment of joy was short-lived however. Later in the day, a group of smugglers passed across our territory, taking down trees for god-knows-what. Many of us lived in those trees, but they didn't cared. We had no choice but to fight them out of our territory. Despite our win, one of them started a forest fire which destroyed our whole territory. We lost many people that day. Daddy managed to get me to safety, but my little brother was never found."_

* * *

Back to the present day, Blu looked at Roberto with his eyes wide open at the revelations he just told him. "H-He never found your little brother? But what happened to the three other birds?"

"They all disappeared too. Lilly, Sky, Aqua... We've never heard about them again since that day. It was also the day Jewel, Adam, Alicia, Polie, and Star went missing. As for my father, he couldn't overcome the guilt of loosing Hario even after we found a new territory and committed suicide. He left Eduardo to take care of me."

Blu looked at Roberto with his eyes wide open. Upon seeing him for the first time, he had though Roberto was nothing but a show-off who wanted to charm all the girls and make himself pass for a though guy. But he was wrong. Loosing so much must have been painful. He who never really lost anything, he couldn't compare to his pain.

"My god, I'm really sorry, Roberto," Blu apologized.

"It's okay, I'm sure my little brother is watching me from above with my father," Roberto said with whipping a little tear away. "And beside, you brought me back five of my friends. And for that, I'm willing to believe you, when you say that your human mother is good."

Something else then popped into his mind. "Say, you know that we're having a celebration party tonight, right?"

"Yes. So what?"

"Well, I invited Jewel to dance with me and she accepted (Blu frowned). But what would you say about dancing with her too. And don't deny it; I've seen the way you look at her. I can teach you how to dance with a girl correctly if you want."

Blu looked down and blushed a bit. "You'd do that for me?"

* * *

 **I think it's the start of a friendly rivalry between Blu and Roberto.**

 **I'd like to take this occasion and mention which voice actor each OC have so that you can get an idea of how they're talking:**

 **-Remember when I said Alex talked with a french accent? Forget about that; he would be played by Brina Palencia, the actress who plays Chopper in the english version of One Piece. Yes, he would be played by a girl, it's a technique used in animes.**

 **-Dominic would be played by Sam Witwer who is known for playing Starkiller in Star Wars: The Force Unleashed as well as Darth Maul and The Emperor in Star Wars The Clone Wars and Rebels. As well as Private Jessup in The Mist (seriously, this horror movie is underrated).**

 **-For Apollo Bird, I though about James Arnold Taylor who is known for playing Tidus from Final Fantasy X and Ratchet from the Ratchet & Clank franchise.**

 **-Vladimir would be played by Idris Elba who played Chief Bogo in Zootopia and Heimdall in the Thor movies.**

 **-For Lazaro and Hernandez respectively, I though about Seth Rogen (who doesn't know him?) and Jamieson Price who is known to have played Chad in the Bleach anime.**

 **Now for the new OCs we met in this chapter:**

 **-Skyler would be played by** **Kate Beckinsale (from Underworld, Van Helsing & Click)**

 **-For Lilly, it would be Charlize Theron (From Atomic Blonde, Mad Max: Fury Road & The Huntsman: Winter's War)**

 **-And finally, Aqua would be played by Matthew Mercer who is known for providing the english voices of Trafalgar Law from One Piece, Captain Levi from Attack On Titan, Leon S. Kennedy in the Resident Evil franchise, Jack Cooper in Titanfall 2, McCree in Overwatch, and Yusuke Kitagawa in Persona.**


	27. Return celebration party

Night soon fell over the Rio rainforest and it was time for the return party for the spix macaw tribe. Blu, Adam and Polie were done preparing themselves for the occasion and were now just waiting for the girls to join them.

"Are you girls done soon? I'm getting tired of waiting!" Polie impatiently called from outside Roberto's hollow where the girls were getting ready.

"Yes, we're almost done!" Star replied.

"That's like the fourth time they say this," Blu remarked.

Adam just sighed. "Girls and their I-must-look-beautiful-wherever-I-go attitude..."

"Okay, we're ready!" Jewel announced as she came out of the hollow alongside Alicia and Star. They feathers were clean and polished to the point of shining and their head feathers were decorated with a pink flower for Jewel, yellow one for Alicia and red one for Star.

The boys were looking in awe at the girls' beauty which made them giggle. "Come on, we don't wanna be late for the party," Alicia said and the group flew off in the jungle's air.

Later on, the six spix macaws arrived at the party which was being held at the Brazil nut grove, a giant tree which, as its name suggested it, had a lot of Brazil nuts to its branches. The whole tribe was gathered near it and loud music was heard from some of them who played wild instruments from a stage. Birds were dancing on the dance floor either alone or with a partner.

Blu noticed that Dominic was already present and was taking a drink at Kenny's bar (how many did he actually had?) alongside Vladimir. Alex, Lazaro and Hernandez were having fun on the dance floor, though Hernandez didn't moved as much as the two others.

"Guys!" Roberto exclaimed as he came to greet them. He has elegantly took care of his feathers for the occasion which the girls around didn't failed to notice. "Glad you finally came, I started thinking you wouldn't. But I can see why now," he said with admiring their looks.

Eduardo soon arrived, but his appearance wasn't changed that much. "My daughter, you look beautiful!" he complimented her as he took her into an hug. "You girls too are," he added at Star and Alicia.

He then gave a look at the boys and, for some reason, Blu felt he wasn't entirely liking him that much. "As for you boys, I count on you to make those ladies pass the greatest return celebrations of their life."

"Oh, I'm planning on doing just that," Polie affirmed before taking Star's wing and gently leading her to the dance floor.

Adam sighed again. "Polie, Polie, Polie. Why does he always have to get so-" He never got to finish his sentence as Alicia grabbed him by the wing and dragged him to the dance floor too.

Roberto held his wing to Jewel who giggled before taking it and following their friends. Blu couldn't help but look in jealousy as they all went to have fun and dance together. However, he remembered that he would get to dance with Jewel after Roberto, so that kinda made him feel lighter.

For now, he decided to head to Kenny's bar and to Dominic and Vladimir. "Hey, Dominic, Vladimir."

"Oh, hey, Blu," Vladimir greeted him with a smile. "Nice to see you again after two days."

"What have you guys been up to?" Blu asked.

"Well, I've been training them since the day before. The jungle is the perfect place to train in the best conditions," Dominic explained before drinking some of his mango juice shell.

"He's been training us REALLY hard," Vladimir added with a pointing look to Dominic who simply chuckled.

"So where are Apollo, Rafael, Nico and Pedro?" Blu asked.

Dominic slurped his shell again before answering. "Well, Apollo decided to miss this party to go take some wood for crafting or I don't know what." Dominic marked a pause to mumble: " *cough* antisocial *cough*" He then resumed: "As for Rafael and the two little guys, they are preparing to sing a song for the party; they didn't wanted to miss this opportunity."

Vladimir looked at Blu's friends dancing in couples. "You know, I half-expected to see you dance with Jewel. She chose Roberto instead?"

Blu rubbed the back of his head. "Yeah, but she accepted to dance with me latter." He then looked down. "You know, I though Roberto was nothing but a show-off at first, but he's actually a very nice guy."

"And what made you change your mind about him?" Dominic curiously asked.

"Well, believe it or not, but he have a very sad story-" However, before Blu could tell it, a lot of flapping sound was heard.

"BUFFET IS HERE!" A group of spix macaws came down from the sky and were holding a giant leaf - or rather it looked like many smaller ones glued together - which they putted down beside the dance floor.

They then opened it to reveal it was indeed holding a giant buffet consisting of all kind of food from fruits, meat, nuts - EVERYTHING.

"FOOD!" Alex and Lazaro beamed and suddenly dashed at the buffet to eat everything they could get their wings on. It was as if this would be the very last time they would eat in their lives.

The macaws around looked at them with their eyes wide open as they chewed on more than their little beak could and got a lot of stuff on their previously well-cleaned feathers.

"Geez, they sure have big stomachs for little birds," Brooke remarked as she landed beside Blu. Just like the other girls around, she took care of cleaning herself, but not as much as Jewel, Star and Alicia, and had a red flower in her head feathers.

"Brooke, you came?" Blu asked as he completely forgot about her.

"Yeah, Eduardo putted me in charge of making the buffet and I like to do things correctly," Polie's sister said with a little smile.

"And you did a great job, Brooke," Eduardo complimented with a wing on her shoulder. "Though I hope those two little beasts will leave some for the others," he added with looking at Alex and Lazaro who were still eating the buffet.

Dominic finished his drink in one shot and then went to grab his two little students by the collar in his wings. "Okay, that's enough, you two! If you eat all that food, you will turn into balloons and won't make any progress in training!"

"Come on, Dominic!" Alex whined. "It's the first time we get to taste Amazon's exotic meal!"

"And beside," Lazaro added, "you're the one who made us train too hard for two days. Deal with it."

 **(Man, I can so picture Seth Rogen saying that!)**

Blu and his friends chuckled at the sight before Roberto, who was done dancing with Jewel, suddenly came and tapped him on the shoulder. "Come now; it's time for your dance.," he said with bringing him toward the dance floor. "Just remember everything I taught you."

Blu's heartbeat increased as he moved between the dancing birds and toward Jewel who was currently chatting with Adam about something he couldn't hear. Taking a deep breath, he pushed himself to walk over to her after Roberto left to go dance with Brooke.

"Hum, Jewel?"

She turned to look at him. "Yes, Blu?"

Taking his courage in hands (or wings), Blu held his wing toward her. "May I have this dance, please?"

Jewel giggled at his gentleman attitude and Blu saw Adam giving him a wink. "It would be my pleasure," she answered with taking his wing.

At the same moment, Rafael, Nico and Pedro arrived on the little stage of the groove with Pedro having a wooden trombone and Nico using his bottle cap as a drum while Rafael softly sang.

 **I feel so unsure**  
 **As I take your hand and lead you to the dance floor**

As the song gently started, the couples danced to a slow and Blu and Jewel did the same with Blu putting his wings on Jewel's hips and Jewel wrapping her wings around Blu's neck.

 **As the music dies, something in your eyes**  
 **Calls to mind the silver screen**  
 **And all its sad good-byes**

The duo gently moved along to the soft voice of their toucan friend, one step after the other.

 **I'm never gonna dance again**  
 **Guilty feet have got no rhythm**  
 **Though it's easy to pretend**  
 **I know you're not a fool**

Just then, Mimi grabbed Vladimir and dragged him to the dance floor to share a dance with him. Needless to say he was kinda dumbfounded, but still danced with the elder macaw.

 **Should've known better than to cheat a friend**  
 **And waste the chance that I've been given**  
 **So I'm never gonna dance again**  
 **The way I danced with you**

Pedro gently played his trombone to make a beautiful sound before Rafael would sing the next part.

 **Time can never mend**  
 **The careless whispers of a good friend**  
 **To the heart and mind**  
 **Ignorance is kind**  
 **There's no comfort in the truth**  
 **Pain is all you'll find**

Meanwhile, Brooke managed to convince a nervous Hernandez to dance with her. His big wings were holding her hips while she had her little ones around his large neck.

 **I'm never gonna dance again**  
 **Guilty feet have got no rhythm**  
 **Though it's easy to pretend**  
 **I know you're not a fool**

 **Should've known better than to cheat a friend**  
 **And waste the chance that I've been given**  
 **So I'm never gonna dance again**  
 **The way I danced with you**

Pedro played his trombone again and with more passions than the previous time.

 **Tonight the music seems so loud**  
 **I wish that we could lose this crowd**  
 **Maybe it's better this way**  
 **We'd hurt each other with the things we'd want to say**

 **We could have been so good together**  
 **We could have lived this dance forever**  
 **But no one's gonna dance with me**  
 **Please stay**

 **And I'm never gonna dance again**  
 **Guilty feet have got no rhythm**  
 **Though it's easy to pretend**  
 **I know you're not a fool**

 **Should've known better than to cheat a friend**  
 **And waste the chance that I've been given**  
 **So I'm never gonna dance again**  
 **The way I danced with you**

Pedro played the last notes of his trombone and then the song ended. The crowd all cheered at them for the song, safe for Blu and Jewel who looked into each other's eyes. Exactly the same way they did, when they danced together for the first time at Nico and Pedro's club.

The smile of Jewel's beautiful face made Blu feel this agreeable warm feeling in his chest. Time was frozen around him and she was the only thing to matter to him. She soon gently rested her head on his soft chest and could distinctively hear the quick beating of his heart.

He felt so happy...

* * *

Later on, after the song ended, Blu chatted a bit with his friends until Eduardo came to him. "Blu, come talk with me for a moment."

"Oh, hum, sure..." Blu accepted and followed him away from his friends. somehow, he felt he wasn't going to like what he was gonna tell him.

Once they were far enough from the party, Eduardo looked away for a moment before looking at Blu with a firm glance. "I've seen you dance with my Jewel during your friends' song."

This made Blu look nervously. "Hum... Sorry, sir, I didn't meant to make you feel wrong with that-"

"What are you apologizing for, Sue?" Eduardo cut him off. "Ever since my little daughter returned, two days ago, I never saw her smiling that much. She looked so happy to dance with you, as much as with Roberto. I don't know how you do, but I'm very grateful for that."

This caused Blu to smile shyly. "You're welcome, sir. And my name is Blu, not Sue."

"This is not what I wanted to talk about with you though," Eduardo resumed. "Since you're now part of my tribe, there's something you should know; I expect the members of my tribe to be strong and being able to survive. I don't know what you did during those two days, but you're gonna have to get tougher to stay here. And since you're a close friend of my daughter, I took the decision to personally take care of your training. We're gonna start tomorrow by dawn. Luckily, from what Roberto told me, you like to get up early, right?"

Blu's eyes widened in fear. Training with Eduardo was not gonna be a part of fun at all!


	28. Training and danger

**I forgot to mention: the song Rafael sang in the previous chapter is "Careless Whisper" by WHAM!**

 **Rest in peace, man :,(**

* * *

The next morning, as they planned, Blu woke up by dawn and waited outside Roberto's nest to be met by Eduardo. He took him away from the nest and to a peaceful part of the jungle. Or maybe it was only because the tribe was still sleeping.

The two of them were currently standing on the ground with Eduardo looking at Blu. "Before we start the training, I have one question for you, boy. Are you strong?"

"Hum...yes, I think?" Blu replied, unsure.

Eduardo suddenly punched him in the wing which did hurt a lot. "Not strong enough, boy. You need to be stronger than that." He grabbed his wings and squeezed them to feel their softness. "You must work your wings so they get solid and not soft like grass." He then grabbed Blu's cheek with his feathers and stretched it far. "Roberto told me about your Magical Fruit power. So you really are made of plastic. That's great, but you will need more than that to survive in this world."

He then held Blu's face close to his own and planted his eyes into his. "You need to be strong! Are you ready to train and be strong?! For your friends?!"

"Y-Yes, sir," Blu replied softly.

"I can't hear you!"

"YES, SIR!" Blu shouted out loud.

Eduardo smirked. "Perfect, we can start the training then."

* * *

Meanwhile, in another part of the forest, Apollo, who have been spending the whole night cutting wood with his tools, just finished crafting one of the wood lodges he got into a fine-looking wooden sword. He was tired and whipped some sweat from his head feathers with his wing, but was very happy of his work result.

"Look at that," he mumbled with taking his wooden sword in his wing and lifting it. "It might have taken me all night long, but it was definitely worth it."

He did some moves with his new sword and even cut some grass on the floor with it. He looked at the wooden blade with a smile before hearing flapping noises from behind and simply sighed in annoyance. "Dominic, I already told you I'm sorry for missing the party. But it was definitely worth it; look at what I've built-"

He interrupted himself upon seeing that the person who came to interrupt him was not Dominic, but some kind of bat with black fur wearing a mask of leaves on his face. And from the screech he pushed, he didn't looked very happy. Apollo widened his eyes as he though bats came out only at night, but then remembered he was the one with the sword here.

"Stay back! Or else I'll cut you to pieces!" he threatened with lifting his wooden sword toward the bat.

This last one suddenly pushed another scream and, next thing he knew, Apollo got surrounded by many masked bats. Neither of them was bothered by the sun. He widened his eyes and mumbled: "Crap..."

* * *

A few seconds later, in another part of the forest where Dominic was training his students, a shooting noise could be heard from Apollo's position and the golden eagle turned around to see a red flair has been shot in the sky. This caused him to look with surprised eyes.

"What's that?" Alex asked as he interrupted his training and noticed it.

"It's a flair from Apollo!" Dominic answered. "He needs help! Come on, stop your training and follow me!" he ordered with taking flight with his four students on his trail.

Before long, they all arrived on the scene to see Apollo desperately swinging a wooden sword at bats that were attacking by tens. He had many cuts over his body, they were not too deep but enough to make blood come out on his feathers.

"What position did you put yourself in this time, you moron?!" Dominic asked with taking out his sword in mid-air and dashing to slash a bat's wing off.

"Hey! It's not my fault!" Apollo replied as he got back-to-back with his eagle friend. "Those bats came out of nowhere and attacked me!"

"I told you to come back to the tribe! You exposed yourself to all those risks simply to craft a SWORD?!" Dominic replied with pushing a bat back.

"I DIDN'T EVEN KNEW BATS COULD COME OUT DURING DAY TIME!" Apollo replied and tried to fight the invaders back, but he wasn't exactly as agile with a sword like Dominic, and the tiredness from working all night long didn't really help.

"Great going, Apollo," Vladimir sarcastically said as all the others got ready to fight.

Dominic stood guard as a bat came charging at him, the eagle dodging and swinging his sword for a small cut in the bat's back, knocking him over. Apollo stood close as he grabbed his already out flair gun and shot at a bat, putting him on fire and sending him packing.

"Nice shot, Apollo!" Alex cheered.

The others wasted no time in helping out as well. Hernandez used his raw strength to throw the bats around the rest of his team. When surprisingly larger bats came out, Vladimir turned into rock and grabbed one of them by the wing before swinging and throwing him away into a pile of other ones.

"HERNANDEZ! HAMMER THROW!" Lazaro screamed as he ran, got caught by the foot by Hernandez and thrown toward the bats where he performed a tornado backward which allowed him to knock all of them down with a tornado of kicks.

It was now Alex's turn; the little snowy owl kid took a balloon candy from his side pack which turned him into a balloon. Spinning on himself, the balloon bird ran into many bats including the bigger ones, rolling over them and turning them into pancakes. Before long, all the bats around were down and Alex returned to his normal form.

"We did it!" Alex happily exclaimed and turned toward his friends who were a bit away from him. "Hey, Dominic, you saw me roll over them?!"

The golden eagle smiled at his little student who was clearly proud of his success. However, his eyes widened as two alligators slowly came out from a lake behind him which they failed to noticed before and slowly made their way behind the clueless snowy owl.

"ALEX! WATCH OUT!" he screamed in horror and ran toward him with his sword out. However, no matter how fast he ran, there was no way in hell he could get to him in time.

Then, just as the two reptiles opened their wide jaws and were about to swallow the kid, a figure jumped in time to catch him and get him out of the way. The young owl got confused for a moment before seeing the person who saved him.

"Roberto!"

Indeed, it was Jewel's childhood friend who saved Alex and putted him down on the ground. "You shouldn't lower your guard until the fight is really over, kid," he remarked with a smile.

"But it was over; we just came to fight the bats and save Apollo," Alex pointed out.

However, Roberto stopped listening and turned his attention to the two still hungry alligators who turned their attention to him as he would make a bigger meal than their former prey. They charged at him with their jaws wide open, ready to snap him.

Not flinching, Roberto rose both of his wings and they suddenly turned dark purple, purple drops falling on the ground as if they were made of liquid. Strangely, the drop created some steam upon touching the forest ground.

"POISON BALLS!" Roberto shouted with shooting two purple liquid balls at the alligators, right in their mouth. This caused them to choke for a long moment before collapsing, dead.

Roberto smiled in victory before turning to his friends who were all looking at him in shock. "W-What was that?!" Lazaro stuttered with pointing a flipper at Roberto's purple liquidated wings.

"Oh, yeah, I didn't told you. I ate a Magical Fruit which gave me poison powers," Roberto explained with showing his wings.

"T-This is poison?!" Vladimir asked. Alex, who wanted to hug Roberto for saving him, now instead took a few steps away in fear of getting poisoned.

"Yes. A single touch and you get poisoned," Roberto said with a smile as he returned his wings to normal. He then took a more serious air. "Sow what happened here?"

"Well, Apollo worked all night long here, cutting wood to craft a wooden sword," Dominic said with a pointing look at his barn owl friend.

"Hey, for your info, owls are nocturnal birds, so I have every right to-"

* * *

We're gonna go back to Blu and Eduardo while these guys are arguing.

Blu had lived the worst day of his life! All day long, Eduardo made him go through rough training which included covering his whole body in mud which served as camouflage, doing push-ups and sit-ups, flying in different ways (including backward like a mosquito), doing a parkour with dolphins in the river and even fighting Eduardo himself!

By the end of the afternoon, Blu was completely tired, covered of sweat and mud and barely able to stand on his legs. And he who though fighting smugglers was tiring...

"Well, you still have a lot of way to go before being able to survive on your own," Eduardo remarked. "But I have to congratulate you for all the progress you made in one day, Stu."

"It's...Blu..." he annoyingly mumbled as he was too tired to scream.

"Hey, old Eddie!" a voice suddenly called.

Blu and Eduardo turned their head in the direction of the voice to see three scarlet macaws flying and landing near them. The one walking in the middle seemed to be their leader. He had red plumage, with yellow and blue wing feathers. He had white facial markings around his eyes, on his cheeks and under his beak, which was white and gray like all scarlet macaws. He had a short feather ruffle on his head and green eyes.

"Hey, Felipe," Eduardo simply said with an annoyed expression."Aren't you a bit too close to our territory?"

"Hey relax! You know we got nothing but mad love for you," the leader, Felipe, said with a cool tone and a laugh. He then leaned toward the still tired Blu. "And who's the little guy? Your new sidekick nurse?"

"I'm Blu...and I'm not a little guy...," he said, still tired.

"Really? You sure look like one to me," he declared with another laugh. "Does your mommy ever come to console you, when you cry in your sleep?" The two other scarlet macaws laughed after Felipe asked that.

This made Blu look down sadly. Eduardo, on the other hand, glared angrily at how his tribe rival was treating his student. "Enough, Felipe! Get out of here before I'm the one who personally kick your butt!"

"Whatever," Felipe simply said and flew away with his two bodyguards.

Eduardo then looked down at Blu with a slight inch of sympathy for him. "Tell me, son, where are your parents? I didn't had time to ask you about that earlier."

Blu simply kept looking down before suddenly flying away, as if the training of today didn't tired him that much. Eduardo was about to call to him, but he was already too far away.

"Did I hit a sensitive spot?"


	29. The truth

**Sorry for not updating in a while; I was busy with other stuff.**

* * *

The next morning, Blu took a little bath in Roberto's nest pool to relax and clean the mud off his feathers as the training of yesterday left him too tired to do it and he went straight to sleep instead. But now was a good moment to do it as Jewel and Roberto had left to play with the others.

As much as he tried to relax, there was something rather bothering that he couldn't get off his mind; Eduardo was rather a good leader and bird in general despite his harsh and stern personality. However, what bothered Blu was his hate for humans which could cause a problem as his mother and newly father were humans. He though about confessing it to Eduardo, but was pretty hesitant about doing it.

His thoughts were interrupted as Roberto flew inside the nest. "Hey, Blu. Whatcha doing?"

"Hey, Rob, just taking a little bath and relaxing," Blu answereed as he stood up from the bath and shook the water off his feathers. "Last day's training with Eduardo completely drained me off."

"I can see that," Roberto remarked with a chuckle. "I come back from playing at the waterfall with Jewel and the others. 'Been a while since I've seen Brooke having so much fun since Polie left the forest." He then noticed Blu seemed bothered by something. "Is there a problem?"

Blu kept looking down before glancing up at Roberto. "Do you think I should do it? You know, tell Eduardo about my mom?"

Roberto widened his eyes in surprise at this question. "You wanna do this? Really? You do know that Eddie hates humans more than anything else, right?"

"Yes, you already told me, but if I'm really to stay here with you guys, he's gonna end up learning it one way or the other. And if he finds out I've been hiding it from him all along, it could cause trouble. So I might as well tell him myself, don't you think?"

Roberto though about it and after some seconds, decided it would actually make sense. It COULD cause problems to let Eduardo learn it that way. And besides, it's not as if Blu's parents were bad.

"Okay, I think this is actually a good idea. Do not worry about his reaction as I will back you up, if he was to not believe you. Okay?"

Blu smiled. "Thanks, Roberto. Let's go."

And with that, the two macaws flew out of the hollow and into the rainforest. Roberto led the way and they reached Eduardo's nest after a few minutes. Roberto entered first followed by Blu and they saw the old bird trying to take a nap.

"Hey, Eddie."

He grumbled and opened his eyes to see the two birds in the nest. "Oh, Roberto," he said with getting up, happy to see his right hand. "What good wind brings you so soon to my nest?" He then looked over at Blu. "And Drew. You taking well from your training session, son?"

He once again gave Blu the wrong name, but that didn't bother him up. "I-I have something important to tell you, sir," he seriously said.

Eduardo noticed it and gave a slightly concerned and confused look. "What is it?"

Blu exchanged a brief glance with Roberto before looking back at Eduardo. Taking all his courage in wings, he said: "Sir, my mom I talked to you about is a human."

Silence fell into the nest, we could only hear the outside noises. Eduardo's eyes became round and wide like dinner platers and reflected a huge shock. Blu expected him to jump at his throat anytime now.

"WHAT?!" he finally shouted really hard, as if we announced him his wife was pregnant. "You got rised by humans?! You're a pet?!"

"Companion," Blu corrected with slight irritation. "But sir, I swear that my mom is a good person."

Eduardo looked down with a serious look as he seemed to be lost in a turmoil of emotions. "Please, leave my hollow, Blu."

He didn't had to ask it twice as Blu silently flew out of the nest, feeling a bad tension rising up. After they were left alone, Eduardo slowly looked up at Roberto.

"Eddie, listen, I'm sorry for not telling you, but Blu is a good guy. If he says that his parents are good people, I'm sure-"

"It's not about that," Eduardo cut him off. "I'm not entirely sure to believe him, but the reason I asked him to leave is because...don't you think Blu is pretty similar to _him_?"

Roberto looked at Eduardo with a confused look, not understanding what he talked about. Then, after a few seconds, he shot his eyes wide open with a gasp. "You don't mean...?!"

Eduardo just nodded. "He's all clumsy, nerdy and honest...like your little brother was." He grumbled as he got bad memories from that day. "Hario was maybe not the most courageous of the tribe, but he was certainly the most honest one - even when he committed things easy to keep for himself, he would always admit it. He always told the truth...like Blu."

Roberto remained frozen for a moment. "You mean..." Then his wide eyes started filling with tears as he couldn't deny that everything Eduardo just said was true. "Blu...is my little Hario?"

* * *

Meanwhile, Blu flew back to Roberto's hollow, thinking about what just happened. He wondered if he had done the right thing or if Eduardo was going to kick him out of the tribe because of it. If the latter was to happen, he would never see his friends again and would go back to live with Linda, Tulio, Dominic and the others in Rio. That would he very hurtful for him.

"Hello, Blu." He was brought out of his thoughts by Jewel who flew back in. "Sorry for being late; I went to play with my friends at the waterfall and stay behind to chat a bit before returning. Did you sleep well?"

"Yeah..." Blu simply mumbled. "Jewel, there's something you should know."

He then explained her everything about his conversation with her father, his training as well as the fact that he wanted to go find Linda and Tulio and leave the jungle as he didn't felt welcome there. This made Jewel look at him with an annoyed look.

"Come on, Blu, my father won't kick you out simply because you got risen by a human."

"That's what Roberto already told me," Blu replied, unconvinced.

This made Jewel look even more annoyed. "Why do you have to be so dramatic about the situation. And why do you act like my tribe is treating you like an outcast; they happily welcomed you like you have always been a part of it!"

"Jewel, no matter what I do in here, your father doesn't accept me! He's racist toward humans and-"

He never got to finish his sentence as Jewel slapped him across the face. "How can you say that?! My family isn't racist! I can't believe you say that!" She then flew out of the nest, crying.

Blu instantly regretted what he told her. "I'm sorry, Jewel..."

* * *

 **Sorry if the argument sucked, but I tried my best.**


	30. War at the Pit of Doom

**Hey, hey, owl lovers! After five months I'M BACK! Time to get this story back on track!**

* * *

The next morning, as dawn slowly came up in the sky, Blu woke up in Roberto's hollow with a yawn. He saw Jewel sleeping in another nest and putted a sad look as he remembered what happened the day before, how they argued over the fact that Blu was probably going to get kicked out of the tribe.

Eduardo did not talk to him again since the visit of yesterday. He honestly hoped that Roberto did convince him to accept Blu. But for now, he was going to get breakfast before going to ask him to question and also apologize to Jewel afterward.

He silently walked to the nest's entrance and took off in the sky without his usual enthusiasm. Which was odd as, ever since he learned how to fly, it always brought him a good level of happiness. But not this time...

He calmly flew across the Amazong rainforest where the wildlife was slowly starting to wake up and searched for some Brazilian nuts. He didn't really liked them, but maybe it would ease Jewel's anger against him? He could always try and hope.

After around twenty minutes of searching, Blu managed to find two Brazilian nuts on a tree branch. They looked in pretty good shape. He landed on the branch and tried to bite them off with his beak, just like Eduardo taught him to.

FLAP!

"Huh?" Blu said with turning around to where he heard a strange noise and saw some leaves moving... Must have been just his imagination. He resumed his work, but barely two secondes after, he saw something landing before him. A red feather.

Gulping, he slowly looked up to see the same three scarlet macaws who mocked him, yesterday - Felipe, the scarlet tribe's leader, and his two friends. They glared at him, far from being happy.

"Well, well, well," Felipe said, "what do we get there? A trepasser?"

Darn it! Blu accidentally came on the scarlet tribe's territory without even knowing it. He REALLY was in the pickle.

"Oh, I'm really sorry, Felipe; I was searching for Brazil nuts and-"

"...you accidentally arrived on our territory," he completed with an eye roll. "That's always the same story: someone from another clan ''accidentally'' ends up in mine and steals our food." He then took a leap in front of Blu, causing him to flinch nervously. "You really must think I'm an idiot!"

"N-No...," Blu nervously mumbled.

"Go back to your tribe and tell them to meet us at the Pit of Doom for a war to decide who will get total control over the Brazil nut groove. And if you don't come, it will be a LITTERAL war. Capiche?"

Felipe and his two birds then flew off, leaving Blu wide-eyed as he tried to register what just happened.

* * *

He quickly flew back to the tribe and told Roberto what happened. This shocked him for sure and he wasted no time going to warn the others, including Eduardo, who gathered his best men in the tribe and they all went at the Pit of Doom.

On the way there, Blu asked Roberto if the two tribes were going to kill each other. He assured him that it won't be the case as their ''wars'' were different from what the name suggested it. They actually a bird version of soccer, like humans does. This calmed Blu down a bit.

The Pit of Doom was revealed to be a giant arena made of rock located in the very middle of the rainforest. Upon arriving, the rim which served as seats for the audience was half-blue with spix macaws and half-red with scarlet macaws. All of them cheering loudly and trying not to attack each other because of the conflict that Blu started.

He was currently standing beside Eduardo and the other members of the team on the edge of the pit's inner rim. He turned around to see Jewel with Mimi, Alicia, Star, Brooke, and her friend's parents in the audience. She gave him a brief look before turning her head, not looking at Blu. This made him sigh sadly.

"Sir, we need to stop this!" Blu begged Eduardo who surprisingly didn't looked mad at him.

"No, Blu," he replied with a focused look toward Felipe who was on the other side. "They started this war; we're gonna win it. I'm counting on you as much as the others, got it?"

Blu wasn't sure, but nodded anyway. Roberto flew on the stone in the middle of the arena and in front of Felipe while the rest of the team was behind him. The team counted Adam and Polie (the goalkeeper) who looked extremely excited. "SOCCER IS MY FAVOURITE SPORT!" he shouted in excitation, causing Adam to roll his eyes.

After Roberto and Felipe choose the side of a small bird who got thrown in between them (poor little girl), the ball, which was actually a fruit, was given to the spix macaw team and the game started.

For the first minute, both teams flew all around the game zone, stealing the ball from each other and making pass to other players of their respective team. During all the time, Blu was looking nervously as he knew that, should they loose, Jewel would most likely never forgive him.

"Come on, Roberto!"

This last one, once he caught the ball, decided that playing time was over and created purple poison over his body before making a dash to the opponent team's goal and shooting the ball right into the goal.

"AND ROBERTO SCORES THE FIRST POINT FOR THE SPIX MACAW TRIBE!" screamed one of the announcers as the whole spix macaw side cheered while the scarlet one just groaned angrily.

"How does the point system works already?" Blu asked Eduardo.

"It's simple; the first team to score five times in the opposite team's goal wins," Eduardo replied, right at the same moment Blu noticed a pretty beautiful female spix macaw taking a Brazil nut from a pile between her and a female scarlet macaw.

"Not bad," Felipe said with a smirk, "but don't go think you're the only ones with powers."

Right after he said that, and as his team had the ball, Felipe suddenly turned his wing into dark blue ribbons with boxing fists at the end of them. He shot one of them forward to move one of the spix team's defender out of the way and allow a member of his own team to score a point into their goal.

"AND IT'S ONE POINT FOR THE SCARLET MACAW'S TEAM!" shouted the announcer again and, this time, the scarlet side screamed in joy while the spix one was groaning and the scarlet girl took one Brazilan nut.

Many minutes later, both teams were equals with four goals meaning that the next one would decide of the winning team. The only problem was that half of the spix macaw's team was on the banch because of injuries as the scarlet tribe was cheating a lot.

"Darn it!" Roberto groaned while panting in exhaustion as he had to carry the team a lot, even with Polie and Adam's help. He turned toward the banch. "Hey! Blu! Come here; I need your help!"

Blu widened his eyes in shock; he was the responsible one for this situation and wasn't sure he wanted to participate in. "Huh, I don't know if-" but he didn't got to finish his sentence as Eduardo pushed him into the playing zone, forcing him to fly beside Roberto. As he did so, he took a glance in the crowd and saw his friends cheering for him - safe for Jewel who just rolled her eyes.

"Awww, they send the kid, how cute!" Felipe taunted.

"Don't listen to him, Blu; we're gonna beat them!" Roberto assured his friend.

Unfortunately, for the next minutes, things didn't go so well; Blu was having an hard time helping his team both because he wasn't that great of a soccer player (he did read on the sport, but never played it himself) and because his plastic skills didn't helped that much against Felipe's ribbon wings.

Eventually, he ended up getting the ball after Adam knocked it from a scarlet macaw's feet. Realizing it was his chance, Blu quickly dodged all the attackers who tried to catch it from him, flew to one side of the field, and kicked the ball in the air.

"Time to finish this! PLASTIC WHIP!" he shouted with stretching and swinging his leg to send the ball flying at full speed into the opponent team's goal...and actually managed to score.

"YES!" he happily shouted in joy as he made his team win...but no one else cheered. It was a dead silence.

He turned around to see Roberto and Adam looking at him in awe while Felipe was breaking down in laughter. "ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! YOU REALLY DID THIS?!"

Blu was confused and turned around once again to see...Polie?

It was then that reality struck Blu in the face: he scored into his own team's goal and gave the fifth point to the scarlet tribe, meaning that they won the war...and the Brazil nut groove.

* * *

 **Damn, it's good to be back!**

 **And now, let's be honest, that wasn't much of a twist. I mean, every Rio fan knows about this scene. We're just gonna find out about what impact it will have on the next chapter.**

 **Peace, my owl lovers :)**

* * *

 **One Piece**

 **Fairy Tail**

 **Mario Party 8**

 **Devil May Cry**

 **Bunnicula**

 **Yu-Gi-Oh!**

 **Egyptian**

 **Final Fantasy**

 **Inazuma Eleven**

 **Jak & Daxter**

 **Angry Birds**

 **TMNT**

 **Game Of Thrones**

 **Fate Night Stay**

 **Spyro The Dragon**

 **Plants vs Zombies**

 **Metal Gear Solid**

 **City Feathers**

 **Regular Show**

 **Kung Fu Panda**

 **Punch-Out!**

 **Shantae**

 **Dead Rising (combo weapons)**

 **Garfield Lasagna World Tour**

 **Super Mario Odyssey**

 **Zero Days**

 **Minecraft**

 **G. I. JOE**

 **How To Train Your Dragon**

 **Pirate Of The** **Caribbeans**

 **Surf's Up (1 & 2)**

 **Happy Feet**

 **Sonic**

 **Stranger Things**

 **Sly Cooper**

 **Ben 10**

 **Doom (Kludd's redemption)**

 **Minecraft**

 **Retro gaming (for Joe)**

 **Stuart Little**

 **Legends of Chima**


	31. My brother

The scarlet macaw tribe cheered loudly and mocked the blue tribe as Felipe went to taunt Eduardo about the fact that they were gonna have to live without Brazilian nuts. Meanwhile, Blu was left in the very middle of the arena, unable to move.

He didn't had the courage to turn around and face the glares of the tribe that were probably like guns. He didn't had the courage to turn and see any trace of fondness Eduardo and Roberto had for him disappear. He didn't had the courage to turn and see Jewel's friendship disappear forever.

Blu's heartbeat was getting off trail, his eyes were getting warm and the tears were not very far. He heard someone land beside him and didn't even gave him time to speak before taking off in the sky. He didn't paid attention to Roberto's calls from behind and just kept flying.

Blu just kept flying as fast as he could. As fast as his wings could allow him. Away from the shame. Away from the hate. Away from the pain. He didn't even knew where he was flying off to and did not really care about it. He just kept flying across trees, branches, and waterfalls.

He didn't knew for how long he has been flying, but he ended up running out of juice and, even though he wanted to keep flying, he had to stop and catch his breath. And it was just the right time; he came across a camping site which he recognized very well. It was Linda's and Tulio's! The same he saw in the TV!

Deciding that some comforting words from his parents would help him a lot, Blu flew down toward the camp...and was surprised to see it completely ruined with equipment being destroyed and turned upside down. His sadness and sorrow quickly turned into fear and concern for his parents.

"BLU!" he heard before having the chance to search for clues. He turned around to see Roberto landing before him. "Blu, wait, please!"

But Blu just turned around. "Stop following me, Roberto. I have other things to do."

"Please, Blu, I want to-"

"I appreciate your help, I really do, but it's too late. I won't return to the tribe. They all hate me now. Because of me, they have lost their Brazilian nuts and, even though I hated them, they all di... Jewel loved them. But now, she and the others too hate me..."

"Blu, I just want to tell you-"

"Stop, Rob, there's nothing you can say that will make me go back-"

"WILL YOU SHUT UP AND LET ME TALK?!" Roberto suddenly exclaimed, surprising Blu and making him turn around. "I'M JUST TRYING TO TELL YOU THAT YOU'RE MY LONG-LOST BROTHER!"

Silence fell in the camping site as the two macaws just glanced at each other. Blu had his eyes wide open while Roberto was panting deeply.

"... _What?!_ " finally came out of Blu's beak.

But just them, he got a flashback, just like the one he got at the samba club about his childhood:

FLASHBACK

 _Many years earlier, Hario, as a little chick, was crying alone in his hollow because of the sound of the forest getting destroyed outside. His dad left moments ago to go help the tribe fight off the invading humans. Luckily, his big brother, Roberto, flew into the nest._

 _"Hario! What are you doing here alone?!"_

 _Hario sniffed. "Daddy left me here! He said he was gonna help fight off the humans!"_

 _Roberto walked over to his little brother and wrapped his wings around him. "It's okay, little bro, I'm with you now."_

 _However, the relief was short-lived as en explosion made the tree tremble and Roberto understood that it was gonna fall down. He quickly grabbed Hario in his talons and flew out of the nest, just as the tree started collapsing._

 _Unfortunately, before he could get away, a tree branch smashed him and knocked him to the ground, causing him to drop his little brother in the process. By the time Roberto shook the pain off his head, he could only see his little brother getting carried away in a cage by a smuggler._

 _The little chick ran to the edge of the cage and yelled out. "ROBERTO! DADDY! SKY! LILLY! AQUA! SOMEONE! HELP ME!"_

 _"Hario..." Roberto mumbled before passing out._

FLASHBACK END

Blu now remembered everything. His past, his home, his old life, his brothers and sisters, his true name... Tears started forming in his eyes once again.

"B-B-Big bro! I-I-It's you...I remember now!"

"Yes, little bro, it's me," Roberto replied, tears forming in his eyes too.

The two brothers then started crying and immediately locked into the strongest hug ever. But they were not crying in sadness; they were crying in happiness!

Roberto was resting his beak on his little brother's forehead while this last one was crying into his strong chest. "I'm so sorry, Hario!"

Blu sniffed while crying. "It's okay, you're here now, big bro!"

"I missed you so much!"

"Me too!"

After many minutes, Roberto kissed his little brother's forehead and broke the hug. Before they could start chatting about being together again, a loud noise was heard and a giant truck suddenly came out from the forest, crushing many trees on its path.

"Move!" Roberto shouted with grabbing his little brother and moving out of the way, determined to not loose him another time. "The humans! They came back!"

"They're gonna destroy the forest again!" Blu realized in horror before putting on a determined look. "We have to stop them! Go warn the tribe; I'll try to hold them back!"

He was about to take off, but Roberto caught his wing. "No, Hario! I'm not loosing you another time! You go back to the tribe; I'll be the one to hold them back!"

But Blu shook his head. "This would be pointless; the tribe won't listen to me after what happened. And besides (he smiled) I'm no longer the weak, fragile bird you've known, all those years ago. I'm new and strong now. So you can call me Blu."

And with that, he broke free of Roberto's grasp before flying off after the truck. A tears of worry fell on Roberto's cheek.

"Be careful, little bro..."

* * *

And so, it was with a new determination that Blu flew after the truck driver who was justly about to crush a tree in which was hiding a female golden macaw with her little eggs. Certainly not.

Swinging his wing, Blu shot his fist to smash the smuggler out cold and off his truck before catching the keys to stop the machine as his wing came back at him, saving the lady. "That's one down!" he said with throwing the keys away before flying away.

As he kept flying toward where the truck came from, Blu saw that more and more wildlife creatures were rushing in the opposite direction he was coming from. Which was not reassuring at all. Eventually, he dodged a falling tree and found himself before the most horrible sight ever.

A huge area of the forest has been reduced to dust as there was tens of smugglers using machines to cut down trees and pack them away. They were destroying the whole Amazon rainforest.

"Cheese and sprinkles..."


	32. Our counter-attack started

Blu watched in horror from the sky as the smugglers were destroying the whole Amazon rainforest. But he was certainly not gonna let them do that without fighting back! The only problem was that he was alone and they were...tens.

The only thing he could was to try and hold them back until Roberto evacuated everyone in the forest. Or get them to fight the humans...no, after what happened at the Pit of Doom, there was no way they would want to fight at his side. They all hated him...Jewel hated him...

But it was no time to think about it! Taking all his courage, Blu dive down and smashed some smuggler about to cut down a tree with an axe with his plastic wing, knocking him away. "I might die today, but they won't say I went down like a whimp!" Blu screamed before sending his Wing Storm to smash more smugglers around, knocking them down.

"Hey! There's a weird stretching blue bird attacking our guys!" a smuggler screamed and grabbed a shotgun to shoot at Blu.

Luckily, he missed him (probably due to his small size) and Blu had the chance to smash him in the face with his plastic wing. The only problem was that humans were bigger than birds and monkeys, costing him more energy to defeat them.

"I can't give up! I'll win time for everyone to escape, even if I don't survive!" Blu shouted as he dodged an axe and a chainsaw before spinning his stretched legs and knocking out the two smugglers.

Suddenly, he received something sharp into his shoulder and collapsed down with a cry of pain. He putted a wing over his bleeding shoulder and saw that it was a small throwing knife. "W-What the...?!"

He then realized someone jumped in front of him. It was a small monkey with brown fur, safe for his hair and mustache (what the heck?) which were white. He was holding three throwing knives between his fingers in his right hand and a lollipop into his mouth.

"Trying to scrap Big Boss' plan, are ya?" he asked with his eyes half-closed. "Bad idea."

"W-Who are you?" Blu asked while still in visible in pain.

"My name is Ranallo The Clown, but you may call me Ranallo, if you want...before you die that is."

Then, just as Blu removed the knife from his shoulder, the monkey threw the three others at him, making him close his eyes, ready to feel death take him.

...But nothing happened. Opening his eyes, he gasped as a familiar eagle holding a saber was standing before him, his back facing him.

"D-Dominic?!" he gasped.

The eagle turned around with an air that was far from being happy, revealing that he used his saber to cut down the throwing knives from Ranallo The Clown. He walked in front of Blu and made him stand up on his feet...right before giving him a peck on the head.

"Ouch! Hey! What was that for?!" he asked in pain with rubbing his forehead.

"For engaging the fight without me," Dominic replied with a glare. "Can you tell me what went through that numbskull of yours?"

"Huh, well, I..." Blu tried to explain his actions.

"Roberto told us everything that happened before going to warn the tribe!" the eagle continued. "You were trying to get yourself killed by trying to stop those smugglers?! Without even coming to ask our help?!"

"How could you do that? You may have lost Jewel, Polie, Alicia, Star, and Adam's respect, but have you though about Linda, Tulio, your brother, and us? Are we not partners at arms, Blu?!"

Blu looked at his eagle friend in silence for a moment...before smiling as a tear formed in the corner of his eyes. "Yes, you're right. I'm sorry, Dominic."

"Aww, that's touching," Ranallo sarcastically said. "But my boss doesn't have time for that; we have to destroy that forest for the business," he said with making more throwing knives appear in his hands.

"How's he doing that?" Dominic asked as he and Blu turned toward the monkey. "He ate a Magic Fruit?"

"Exactly," he answered with throwing his knives which Dominic easily blocked with his saber.

"Sorry to disapoint you, but you're not the first bird with Magic Fruit powers that I face," he affirmed with taking his fighting stance.

"Forget about that, eagle, even then, you are not enough to defeat all of our convoy!"

A smirk formed in the corner of Dominic's beak.

"Who said I came alone?"

Right after saying that, a smuggler who was about to shoot with a shotgun, was hit by something that felt like a meteor in the cheek...while it was in fact a little puffin. An angry one, that is.

"THINK YOU CAN TRY TO KILL LAZARO'S FRIEND AND GET AWAY WITH IT?! NEVER!" he shouted with delivering a strong kick into a smuggler's leg which cracked and made him collapse in pain.

As always, Hernandez followed behind as he came down from the sky and smashed his armored wing into the front of a truck, causing it to bounce a bit, and destroyed the motor. The smuggler driving it ran away in fear.

"Am I so scary?" the pelican innocently asked.

Next was Vladimir as the eagle turned his body into rock before using his strength to lift a giant rock off the ground and tossed it into three smugglers in a row, knocking them down like dominos.

Alex was the next one to jump in the action by eating a Balloon Candy which turned his body into a rolling ball. He then rolled at full speed into many smugglers, knocking them down like bowling pins. "And it's a strike!" the young snowy owl happily cheered.

Apollo Bird flew to a smuggling pick up, landing on the front window. "Oh, a cute little owl!" the driver said with looking at him.

Apollo just rolled his eyes before taking out his new wooden sword and use it to break the window which shattered into shards. He then immediately used his slingshot to shoot a pepper ammo in the smuggler's face which made him loose control and go crash into a crane with the truck.

"Still cute to you?" Apollo asked with a chuckle and re-adjusting his cap on his head.

Ranallo groaned angrily. "It doesn't matter; there's still too much for you and your little group!"

"You think?" Dominic asked with a smirk before dashing at Ranallo and actually managed to cut him in two with his saber.

"Wow! You got him bad, Dom!" Blu exclaimed.

"I got as strong as that? ARGH!" Dominic wondered before suddenly feeling a sharp pain in his back. Turning his head, he saw that a throwing knife got planted into his back. "What the...?!"

He also saw in shock that, despite being well cut in half, Ranallo was still active and smiling, with his upper body floating. "Sorry to make you sad, eagle, but I'm not dead yet."

"H-How is that possible?!" Blu asked, also shocked.

"My Magic Fruit doesn't only allows me to create throwing knies; I can also separate parts from my body and float in the air," Ranallo explained with a smirk. "They don't call me Ranallo The Clown for nothing. I'm full of surprise."

Then, he heard one of the smugglers screaming in pain and saw him collapsing down, his body covered of...purple poison?

"BLU!"

Turning, Blu saw none other than his big bro with his poison wings on. But he wasn't alone. The whole spix macaw tribe was behind him - Eduardo, Mimi, Star, Alicia, Polie, Adam, Brooke, their parents, they were all here! Even Jewel!

"ATTACK!" Roberto shouted as everyone went on to attack the smugglers.

Adam and Polie were teaming up by smashing the humans with his shield and throwing his ball at their heads respectively. Not too far, Alicia was using her Black Magic to throw elemental attacks at the smugglers while Star was trying to be useful, using her White Magic to heal the injured.

One of the smugglers using a chainsaw shouted in pain as he felt a fork sting his butt, right before receiving a bottlecap into the cheek and finally, saw a cardinal jumping in his face. "PEDRO HOMERUN!" he screamed before punching the smuggler in the face like a boxer, knocking him out.

"RAFAEL! NICO! PEDRO!" Blu happily shouted, glad to see his three friends.

He then rushed to help Dominic, taking the knife out of his back, making blood come out. "You'll be okay, Dom?"

The eagle just faintly chuckled. "Our counter-attack started, it seems."


	33. The Macaw vs The Monkey

The battle between the smugglers and the spix macaw tribe alongside their allies was raging, at the entrance of the Amazon rainforest. Thanks to their super-powers, the avian side was able to get the upper hand over the humans and their cutting tools.

Ranallo The Clown looked all around and groaning angrily before looking back at Blu and the injured Dominic. "It's not over yet! I will take you down and then take on the rest of your friends! One-by-one, if I have to!"

"Dominic," Blu mumbled while glaring at the monkey, "I'm gonna ask you something. I want you to go back to the others and get healed while I take on this clown by myself."

This caused Dominic to look at him in surprise. "What? But Blu, this guy is dangerous-"

"Dominic!" Blu cut him off. "I appreciate your loyalty, but you said it yourself; we're brothers at arms! I have all the rights to protect you as much as you do with me!"

Dominic looked blankly at his friend...before smiling. "You're right. Okay, if that's what you want. Just be careful."

And with that, Dominic left his friend alone against the monkey. This last one chuckled. "You wanna take me? You're crazy; you're just going to die here all be yourself!"

"Don't count on it!" Blu said with holding a fist in front of him. "I'm an explorer and I'm planning on seeing the whole world before dying!"

Ranallo just scoffed. "I don't think you realize the dangers that our world holds for little jokes like you. You have to push the devil to go play in the big leagues. This is not the right place to make tourism!" Ranallo then laughed again.

Blu rubbed his chin as he knew Ranallo was right. He then putted on a smile on his beak. "In that case, I'll just become the strongest fighter in the world."

Ranallo fell on his head before of Blu's declaration. "ARE YOU REALIZING YOU'RE TALKING BULLCRAP!" he suddenly exclaimed. "If you become the strongest fighter in the world, then I'm a living god! Me and my boss are the only ones who will find all the biggest treasures in the world and become the richest ones alive."

"You're getting pretty rude, y'know," Blu remarked before getting on his fighting stance. "Come on, come and fight instead of talking."

Ranallo summoned more throwing knives in his hands. "You're the one annoying me. Y'know, you're kinda reminding me of a guy I met in the sea, before coming and working with Big Boss. This dude ruined my life. And his face was pretty similar to yours."

Blu gave a confused look. "You met someone similar to me in the sea?"

"Yeah, a spix macaw. He was a pirate."

"What was his name?" Blu asked.

Ranallo crossed his arms. "I don't see what this has to do with our fight, but if it can make you happy, his name was Water "Aqua" Law."

Blu's eyes widened and he fell silent.

" _What?!_ Aqua?! You know my brother?!"

Ranallo looked in surprise too. "What? Water "Aqua" Law is your brother?!"

"Do you know where he actually is?"

Ranallo smirked. "Maybe I do. Maybe I don't know where he is."

Blu narrowed his eyes at the monkey. "Are you dumb, by pure curiosity?"

Ranallo looked at him angrily. "ARE YOU DONE INSULTING ME?! Anyways, if you're searching infos about this pirate, I'm certainly not the one who will give them to you!"

Blu smiled and returned to his fighting stance. "Well, in that case, I'll just hit you and make you talk!"

"Tss, you'll be dead before asking me anything! Even a plastic bird like you cannot resist my blades!" the monkey affirmed.

Blu smiled. "Not false."

Ranallo then swung his leg which unhooked itself from his body, after making throwing knives appear on the tip of his foot, and send it spinning toward Blu. The macaw jumped to dodge it just in time.

"Don't go think you'll dodge all of my knives!" Ranallo said with throwing the knives from his hands toward Blu.

"You think?" he asked with stretching his wing to grab a rock and push himself out of the way, avoiding the knives. He then stretched it again toward Ranallo for a punch.

However, the monkey swiftly dodged it and smirked. "Not bad, but you're not fast enOUGH?!"

He realized too late that Blu shot his whole body toward him after his wing grabbed a tree, allowing him to hit a clothesline into his throat that knocked him to the ground.

"And that's not all!" Blu said with throwing his wing behind as far as he could. "POWER SLAM!" Shooting his wings forward, his attack smash Ranallo so hard that he best saliva and was sent flying to the other side of the Amazon rainforest.

At the same time, Blu realized that the remaining smugglers (including the injured ones) were fleeing away as they have been defeated. All the birds (and the animals of the rainforest too, now that Blu realized they came too) were cheering. It was a victory for them.

"Blu!" Turning around, Blu saw Linda arriving alongside Tulio. Relieved to see she was okay, he jumped on her arm and she affectionately nuzzled him.

"Wow!" Pedro beamed as he, Nico, Rafael, and the others arrived. "We totally rocked those smugglers outa town!"

Blu nodded with a smile before founding himself into a big hug from, not his brother as he expected, but from Polie and Adam. "Don't you ever leave the pit to go fight humans alone, you hear me?!" Polie shouted, sounding on the verge of tears.

Blu was surprised by their attitude toward him after what happened, barely an half-hour ago. "Y-You're not mad at me?"

"Not at all, dude! You gave your best, back there! You just scored in the wrong goal by mistake!" Adam said right before breaking from the hug as Alicia and Star joined them and hugged Blu.

"We're your friends, Blu. We won't let you down for such a stupid detail," Star said, whipping a tear away from her cheek as Alicia nodded in agreement.

Blu was getting close to cry too as he was touched by the loyalty of his friends. Barely a few months ago, he didn't had any friends at all, but now, he had them all. He was soon brought out of his thoughts as he saw Jewel arriving and making her way to him. Her face looked blank.

Blu gulped and nervously rubbed the back of his head. "Look, Jewel, I'm sorry for yesterday and about what happened earlier-"

He didn't got to finish his sentence as Jewel wrapped him into the tightest hug he ever felt. He didn't expected it at all. "You got me so worried," she mumbled before breaking the hug and whipping a tear away.

"Jewel...? You don't want to kill me anymore?" Blu asked in disbelief.

"Roberto told me everything; how you were sad for making me upset, how you started the conflict unwillingly by wanting to get me a Brazilian nut, that you are his long lost brother, and that you were willing to die to stop the smugglers." She then gave him a stern glance. "Don't ever do that again, by the way!"

"Don't worry; I already gave him a scold for it," Dominic remarked with a smirk.

Blu noticed his eagle friend had bandages wrapped around his waist. "Are you alright, Dom?"

He was about to answer, but then shut his beak upon seeing Eduardo landing beside Blu. He had a very firm look on his face and gave Blu a glare as he walked in front of him. He probably didn't got over the fact that he made his tribe lose at the Pit and was going to scold him too.

But he just swiftly wrapped his wing around Blu for an hug. "Congratulations for your courage, Blu!"

He finally got his name right... This got Blu to finally let out a tear which he quickly whipped away. Not only did he still had his mom with him, but he also had a dad, many faithful friends, and even his long-lost brother. He even got some clues about his brother's whereabout.

He wasn't alone anymore.

* * *

With the Amazon rainforest now being safe, and with Blu convincing its living habitants that humans could be good, Lind and Tulio made it known that the spix macaws were still existing in this forest and that they were going to put all their efforts to protect it. The rainforest became a protect zone by the ornithologist group.

The day after, Eduardo negotiated with Felipe who finally accepted to share the Brazilian nut grooves with the spix macaws. That way, they won't need to search for a new groove. That same night, Nico and Pedro organized a huge party to celebrate their new home and the tribe's partnership with the scarlet macaws. It was held in the middle of a lake with light flowers shining and reflecting all over, making a truly beautiful scene.

The numerous birds and species were partying all over the place as Nico and Pedro sang a duo together. The birds were dancing together in numerous couples: Blu with Jewel, Adam with Alicia, and Polie with Star. Dominic and Vladimir were sharing a little Russian dance side-by-side to the beat of the song, Rafael was sharing a dance with Eva who came to the Amazon, after receiving a message from Rafael and flew all the way to the rainforest alongside Luiz who was justly dancing not too far from them.

Lazaro was showcasing some pretty impressive and agile moves which impressed the girls. Alex was sharing a dance with Mimi (she convinced him with a cookie) and Brooke was sharing one with Hernandez (He was a bit too shy to move a lot though).

Blu was holding Jewel's hips while she was holding his neck, the two sharing the beating music together. Blu couldn't unlock his look from her beautiful turquoise eyes which were reflecting the night's lights, looking even more beautiful. He wondered if she was seeing the same thing in his own eyes.

"So you made up your mind, Blu?" she asked him. "You really wanna move here in the jungle? Even if you found it scary?"

"Jewel, as long as I'm with you and my friends, that's all that matters," Blu replied with still dancing.

Suddenly, she planted her beak into his for a kiss. Blu's eyes widened and his blushed a strong red as it was the first ever kiss he experienced...and he absolutely LOVED it. Closing his eyes, he battle his tongue against Jewel's for a moment until they broke the kiss.

"W-What was that?" Blu shyly asked.

"Well, the gesture the officialize our relationship," Jewel said with a giggle.

"So, you're saying that we're boyfriend and girlfriend now?" Blu asked with his eyes wide open.

Jewel just nodded and rested her head on his chest. Blu blushed a lot...but was super happy.

SPLASH!

Alex spat water as he came out of the lake.

"Okay, it's the last time I dance with someone who's taller than me!"

* * *

 **LOL! I had to end with a joke.**

 **But anyways, this is the end of season 2 for The Dynamic Adventure. I gotta admit I'm pretty satisfied with the results so far.**

 **But this isn't the end of the story yet; Blu still wants to see the world, he now wants to become the best fighter in the world, he have a new life with his new girlfriend, he got some infos about his lost brother's whereabouts, etc.**

 **I actually have plenty of ideas for tis story to continue. So until then, stay nice ;)**


	34. The Ninja Birds

**Alright, it's time to start a new adventure for this story that I enjoy so much writing! Now this one will be different from the previous one in many aspects; first, it will take place in New York instead of Rio and will follow Lilly, Kowalski, Skyler, and Sparky who are all OCs of my good friend Skyler The Elf Owl. It will also be about Japanese and generally Asian culture instead of Brazilian's one.**

 **Enjoy it ;)**

* * *

Far from the city of Rio de Janeiro and in the United States of America was one particular town called New York City which was also known as the city that never sleeps. In this city, people were enjoying the full excitation of life along the most annoying things such as endless traffic.

However, deep under New York City, there was an endless set of sewer tunnels. Into one of these in particular was a lair that inhabited a certain group of birds. A part of it which was decorated like a dojo of the old Asian medieval times was currently occupied by four young birds who were about to start training under the eye of their sensei, Master Yoshi.

The old peregrine falcon with with brown feathers, a white belly and yellow beak dressed in a nut-coloured kimono looked over his four kids. There was Lilly, a female spix macaw with light blue feathers, chocolate brown eyes and a purple band to hold her head feathers in a ponytail. She was wearing a purple bandana around her eyes, a brown belt tied around her waist and shoulder which held two katanas to her back, brown gloves on her wings and white bandages on her feet.

Before her was sitting her younger brother Sparky, a male elf owl with honey-coloured feathers and brown eyes who was pretty small in size and was wearing the same attire as his sister, except his bandana was yellow and he was using two nunchuks for both of his wings. His head feathers were dressed as a mini-mohawk.

The third one was Kowalski, a male barn owl with light brown feathers on the back and around his heart-shaped head while the rest of his body was white and his eyes were blue. His bandana was red and he had two sais as weapons.

The fourth and last one was Skyler (or Sky for short) who was also an elf owl with honey-coloured feathers and brown eyes just like Sparky. Her head feathers were curved to hide her right eye and her bandana was black while her brown belt was holding a bo staff.

Lilly was about to spare against Sparky while Sky was gonna do it with Kowalski. "Sutato!" their master ordered to start the sparing.

All four birds caught their respective weapon and engaged the fight. Sparky started by trying to discombobulate his older sister by using his agility to stay ahead of her attacks and trying to keep her off balance with taunts and boasts which worked a bit.

"How do you stop what you can't even see?" Sparky teased.

Lilly smirked and replied by hitting the back of her sword's handle into Sparky's stomach, making him fall down in pain. "Like that?"

"Good one, Lilly," Sparky groaned on the floor.

Meanwhile, Sky swung her bo staff at Kowalski who easily dodged it before grabbing it and then broke it in two with his knee.

"Hey! My staff!" Sky exclaimed in shock.

Kowalski nonchalantly knocked his sister on the floor and then twisted her wing in a painful way until she taped out, recognizing defeat. She then went to seat beside Sparky who let out his tongue at her while Kowalski turned his attention to Lilly.

They briefly kneeled before each other in respect before Lilly rose her katana while Kowalski took out his sais. They engaged the fight with Lilly swinging her sword at her brother who either dodged or blocked with his sais before hitting an elbow to Lilly's head and she replied with a spin kick that sent him flying backward. Refusing to recognize defeat, he kicked up and blocked Lilly's sword again, only for her to knock one sai out of his wing and close to Sky and Sparky.

They charged again, but this time, Kowalski managed to knock Lilly's sword out of her wing before using his sai to knock her down on the mat. "Nice try," Kowalski said as he walked over his sister victoriously with a smile.

"Yame!" Master Yoshi said to announce the end of the sparring and the four siblings all got on their knees before him. "You all did very well," he complimented.

"But I did better," Kowalski affirmed which earned him a pointing look from Lilly.

"This is about self improvement, Kowalski. Not about winning or losing," Master Yoshi explained as he walked behind him.

"I know, Sensei, but I won and they lost," the barn owl kept showing off with a smirk. This annoyed his master who pinched a pressure point on his neck between two feathers. "Ah, ah, ah! But, what's really important is that we all did our best! Good job, everyone!" he quickly corrected himself to make his master let go.

This last one slightly chuckled.

The training being done for today, everyone later met at the kitchen where they took their usual "delicious" meal of worms and algae. It was not their favourite food, but that was the best birds could find in the sewers. They all calmly took the worms in their plate with chopsticks before putting them in their beak to eat them.

"There's some more worms and algae left if anyone wants it," Sparky said with a smile as he spun the meal in a cauldron with a stick, being the only apparent one to enjoy this food. "Anybody?"

"No thanks," Lilly politely declined.

"I'm good," Kowalski added, trying to hide his disgust.

"They're yours," Sky said with a shiver.

"So nobody got enough place for cake?" Sparky asked as he suddenly putted a green and dark blue cake with a candle on top of it on the table.

This caused all of his siblings to look at it with wide eyes. "It is a cake!" Sky exclaimed as Kowalski took a slip of it in his beak.

"Made of...algae," he remarked before noticing a worm slipping on top of it. "And...worms."

"What's the frosting made of?" Lilly curiously asked.

"You don't wanna know," Sparky said in a sinister tone before smiling widely. "Happy mutation day!"

"Happy mutation day!" everyone cheered together.

"Ah, yes," Master Yoshi said with a smile, "15 years ago was the day our lives changed forever and we became the unlikiest of families."

"Tell us the story, Master Yoshi," Sparky asked.

"Sparky, I already told you many times," the old falcon answered.

"Please, pleeease!" Sparky begged with a cute face until Kowalski came and slammed his wing on his beak.

"Please, it's the only way to shut Sparky up," he asked.

"Ah, very well," Master Yoshi finally gave up before starting his story. "Many years ago, when I was still human, I was leaving the pet store with four little hatchlings."

"That was us!" Sparky interrupted with excitation.

"Yes, don't interrupt!" Master Yoshi sternly ordered. "I passed a strange man in the street. Something felt...off about him. I decided to follow. Unfortunately, I stepped on a rat who alerted the four men and I found myself trapped in an alley. I managed to fend all of them off, breaking a vase containing a strange substance in the process and accidentally dropping all my hatchlings in it along with falling into it myself. It was then that my body mutated into a peregrine falcon while you all grew up stronger than a normal bird should."

He then took out the broken canister which contained the substance in question. "That was the beginning of our life together. It was the mysterious substance in this canister that, in a way, gave birth to us all."

Sparky then took the canister in his wings and into a hug. "Mom!" he happily said which earned him dumbfounded glances from his siblings.

"So Sensei," Lilly said, "now that we're fifteen, I think we're finally ready to go to the surface, don't you?" she asked with an innocent smile which Kowalski and Sky imitated.

Master Yoshi simply glances at them. "Yes."

His answer caused the siblings to cheer in joy. "And no."

The cheers turned into groans of disappointment. "I hate when he does that," Kowalski mumbled.

"You have grown powerful, but you are still young," Master Yoshi explained as he got up from his chair. "You lack the maturity to use your skills wisely."

"But Sensei," Sky said, "isn't that just no?"

"Yes...and no. Wisdom comes from experience and experience comes from making mistakes," the old falcon explained.

"Ah-ha!" Sky exclaimed. "So, in order for us to gain the wisdom, we have to make the mistakes. So we can go," she tried to deduce.

"No," Master Yoshi responded.

"And yes?" Sky asked with an innocent smile.

"No!" The old falcon replied, causing the female elf owl to groan in defeat.

"Sensei, we know you're trying to protect us, but we can't spend our whole lives hiding down here," Lilly said.

This made Master Yoshi look down with a thinking look and rub his beak. As he was thinking, he turned his head to see all of his four kids looking at him with adorable puppy eyes (yes, even Kowalski). He ended up groaning.

"You may go tonight," he announced which made his kids cheer in joy again.

"High-wing!" Sparky said and rose his wing to share a big high-wing with his three other siblings.

* * *

Later, Lilly decided to pass time until nightfall by watching her favorite show, sci-fi classic "Space Heroes". This week's episode: the ship is rocked by an enemy bombardment! Ensign Crankshaw panics in the face of impending doom but Captain Ryan calmly slaps him, announcing he has a bold and daring plan!

Lilly was such a fangirl that at this point she was capable of mimicking the character's poses and dialogue exactly.

"You know this show is stupid, right?" Kowalski commented in his corner as he was casually flipping through a horror comic book.

"Space Heroes is a great show," Lilly replied with an annoyed glance. "And Captain Ryan is a great hero. Someday, I'm gonna be just like him."

"Now you do hear yourself talk, so you're on your way," Kowalski nonchalantly said, annoying his sister further.

Suddenly, Sparky and Sky arrived running in excitation. "It's go time!" the former announced in joy.

Taking their weapons, the four siblings gathered before their master as he spoke to them: "You are going up to a strange and hostile world. You must maintain awareness at all times."

"Ai, Sensei!" the four answered at unison before going toward the lair's exit, only to be stopped by their sensei again.

"Stay in the shadows."

"Ai, Sensei!" they replied and were about to leave, only to be stopped again.

"Don't talk to strangers."

"Ai, Sensei!"

"Everyone is a stranger."

"Ai, Sensei!"

"Make sure you empty yourself before you leave; the bathrooms up there are filthy."

"Ai, Sensei..."

Seeing that they were getting tired of his endless advices, Master Yoshi let out a sigh. "Good luck, my kids."

They all answered positively before finally running outside the lair and toward the up world.

"Look both sides before crossing the street!" Master Yoshi called one last time before looking down.

* * *

 **Our young ninja birds are gonna go explore the outside world. Let's hope it will be fun!**

 **Also, for those of you who haven't guessed it by now, yes, this story is based on the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles which Skyler The Elf Owl is a huge fan of. I wanted to make you happy :)**


	35. Up to the surface

The four ninja birds soon reached the surface with Lilly pushing the manhole and carefuly peaking her head out to take a glance around. Luckily, the sewer came out in an alley and the four of them could come out safely and enjoy the breeze of the outside world for the first time in years!

The alley was filled with trash cans full of trash, graffiti on the walls, flies flying around empty cans and even an homeless man trying to sleep on a bed mattress, but failing to. All four masked birds looked all around the alley in awe, also listening to the distant noises of the whole city.

"It's so beautiful..." Sparky mumbled, talking for everyone.

"This city is just full of possibilities," Lilly said as the group started venturing out of the alley. "There could be an adventure around this corner or this one, or this one," she kept repeating at every street corner they met, but didn't spotted that much of adventures. "Okay, not there, but there could be somewhere else."

The team kept advancing and watching around the street until Sky spotted a shop that was filled with computers. Since it was one of her main interests, she decided to get to the window and get a better look at them. The computers were turned on and were displaying either images or videos. One of them showed a female belly dancer dancing with a flamenco.

"What's this dance? It looks ridiculous," the young elf owl commented and even gave a glare at the fourth wall.

Meanwhile, her younger brother, Sparky was looking into a video game store where the latest exclusivities were displayed at the store's window. "What's this game? Super Rio: The Video Game? Looks fun, too bad we don't have a console at home," Sparky said with a smile.

Kowalski gave a look to a comic books shop which also displayed good-looking comic books. One in particular named The Blue Phoenix which showed a blue phoenix (duh) on the cover caught his interest. "This looks pretty good."

Finally, Lilly saw a shop that displayed old Japanese weapons and ouvres d'art that looked like they were from the Folklor culture. "Man, this is purely beautiful!" she thrilled before going to join her brothers and sister in the middle of the street.

"So where to next?" Sky asked just as a young boy driving a scooter bike stopped right before them. He was wearing a red helmet with glasses through with he gave a confused glance at the four strange dressed birds before him.

Kowalski smirked and decided to jump in front of him with a monster act. This caused the boy to scream in fear and quickly turn his bike away to drive in the opposite direction where he came from. He dropped a box from a pile that was sitting on the back of his bike in the process.

"We shouldn't stay in the streets and be exposed like that; let's get on the roof and keep going around without getting spotted," Lilly said and then climbed on the roof, followed by Sky and Kowalski.

Sparky was about to follow them, but then spotted the box the teen dropped and decided to pick it before climbing on the roof. As he joined them, Kowalski was the first one to notice Sparky's box in his wings.

"What's this, bro?"

"Dunno, the bike kid dropped it. We're gonna find it out," Sparky said with putting the box down and then read what was on the cover; "Pi-zza?"

"Think we should open it?" Sky asked as she looked at the box with a curious glance.

"Okay, but be careful; it could be dangerous," Lilly said before opening the box which released some steam coming from a circular thing that looked warm and was covered of pepperoni and cheese.

"I think it's...food," Sky pointed out.

"Doesn't look like any food I ever saw," Kowalski said with his wings crossed.

"I'll try it," Sparky declared with taking a point of the food and slowly bit the tip of it, causing his siblings to look at him in concern. The elf owl's eyes shot open in a split-second and he suddenly ate the whole pizza point instantly. "THIS IS DELICIOUS!"

He quickly picked another point and his siblings quickly followed before their younger brother could eat it all to himself.

"Man, Sparky's right, this is DELICIOUS!" Sky sighed with patting her stomach before letting out a loud burp. "Sorry."

"I never though I'd taste anything better than algue, but this is awesome," Kowalski added.

They suddenly heard what sounded like a girl screaming coming from down the streets. They all jumped and looked down to see something unexpected; strange black birds dressed in tuxedos were trying to drag two little green bird - an old male and a young female, probably a father and his daughter - into a bird-sized van. Which was odd as they never saw one before. Probably because they lived in the sewers for years.

"Wow, that little green bird girl is pretty cute," Sky remarked.

"You can tell her that after we save them! Let's go!" Kowalski said and jumped down the roof.

"No wait, Master Yoshi told us not to-" Lilly started, but stopped as Sparky and Skyler followed him. "Of course, let's not listen to what our master says and jump in action anyway," she sarcastically mumbled before jumping down too.

Kowalski charged at the birds and shouted a: "HEY!" before smashing one of them really hard with his wing curled like a fist. Strangely, after falling, the black bird simply glance at him with an uninterested look.

"Still standing, he? I can fix that!" Kowalski said with taking out his sais and getting on the attack as Sparky and Sky also jumped in the battle.

"I can't believe you disobeyed Master Yoshi after he clearly told us to stay away from people! And restrooms!" Lilly said as she dodged a strange bird's attack and fought back with her katanas.

"You wanted to be a hero like that dude in your show, right? Since when does heroes ask for permission?" Kowalski asked while pushing back a strange bird.

Meanwhile, Sky noticed the young female green bird getting carried toward the van by a strange bird on his shoulder. She quickly dashed at him and smashed him in the back to knock him away and drop the green bird girl on the ground. As she took back from the shot, she looked up as Sky held her wings toward her with a friendly smile.

"AAAAAH!" she screamed in fear.

"AAAAH!" Sky screamed too and kept doing it before stopping. "Huh, why are we screaming?"

The frightened green bird girl stopped and panted. "Are you one of those evil birds?"

"No; I'm nice. My siblings and I came to save you and your father," Sky assured which clicked something into the girl's head.

"My dad!" she said as she noticed the strange birds closing the back of their van where they locked the young girl's dad and started driving away. She tried to fly after him, only to be stopped by Sky.

"Wait, listen...hum, what's your name?"

"Tiny," the little green bird answered.

"Okay, Tiny, wait here and we'll go catch those birds for you," Sky said and then ran after the van with Lilly and Kowalski following.

"I can't believe you slashed my back with your sword!" Kowalski angrily said.

"I couldn't have know you would jump in the way at this moment!" Lilly replied.

Meanwhile, Sparky stood behind to fight one of the remaining strange birds. He swung his nunchucks at many part of his body, but didn't caused any effect. The strange bird soon caught his nunchucks and threw him away into an alley.

"Cheese!" Sparky mumbled as the strange bird slowly walked toward him. "N-No! Stay away!" the elf screamed and instinctively took the kurasigama blade out from one of his nunchucks which he swung at the bird's face, cutting him there.

Some kind of strange light started pouring from the cut as the man staggered away and collapsed. "What the...?" Sparky though as he curiously and cautiously turned the bird's body around and found something rather shocking.

He cut half the bird's face open to show some kind of robotic material that shone in bright purple with some sparkles coming out. Just as he though things couldn't get weirder, he noticed that the tuxedo was open and revealed some kind of creepy alien-like brain monster with a face that screamed.

"AAAARGH!" sparky screamed too as the brain jumped to his face and wrapped tentacles around it to stay there until Sparky finally managed to get him off and throw him on the alley's wall.

The strange brain monster than ran away on its tentacles and Sparky just stood there, trying to proceed what just happened before spotting his siblings coming back with the young girl.

"Guys! Guys! You're never gonna believe this. That guy he- he... had a BRAIN!" Sparky panicked, earning confused glances from his siblings.

"We all have brains, Sparky," Lilly pointed out.

"Not _all_ of us," Sky said with giving a pointing look at Sparky.

"In our chests?!" Sparky asked.

Lilly sighed. "No, Sparky. Not in our chests."

"YOU'RE NOT LISTENING TO ME!" the elf owl angrily screamed before Lilly suddenly slapped him in the face. "Did you just slap me?"

"I was calming you down."

"WHY WOULD THAT CALM ME DOWN?!" He then sighed. "If you don't believe me, follow me to this alley," he said and led his siblings to the alley, only to find out the robotic corpse was gone.

Sparky gasped and then looked at his siblings who gave him pointing looks before sighing. "But he was there! I swear!"

"Enough, Sparky!" Sky shouted and then pointed at the still scared Tiny. "This girl is named Tiny and she just lost her father. We need to take her back to the lair where she'll be safe."

"What?! Have you lost your mind?!" Kowalski asked. "We disobeyed Master Yoshi's orders; if we even bring a stranger to the lair, how do you think he's gonna react?!"

"I don't care! I'm bringing her back to the lair, wether you like it or not! Got it?!" Sky angrily shouted back at him and then took Tiny's wing. "Come with us, Tiny, we'll take you to somewhere safe."

She started walking away with her siblings following and Sparky taking one last look at the alley where he fought the brain monster before following everyone.

* * *

 **There was a few easter eggs to my other works in this chapter. I let you tell me which ones in the reviews ;)**


	36. Attack on the lair

"I don't know what should anger me the most: the fact that you disobeyed my clear command to not interact with anyone or the one that you brought a stranger to our lair!" Master Yoshi scolded at his four kids.

"B-But Sensei," Sky tried to explain with pointing her wing toward Tiny. "I swear that those strange birds tried to kidnap her! They got her father! We couldn't let her getting captured!"

"And those birds even had brains in their chest-" Sparky started, but got interrupted by a wing slap in the chest from Sky.

Master Yoshi sighed and walked over to the terrified Tiny. "You have anywhere to go, my young friend?"

"I-I...," she started with looking down. "I have a nest, a few streets away from here..."

"Please, Sensei, allow me to get her back there safely," Sky begged.

"There's something you should know, my child," Master Yoshi said with turning toward Tiny, "we have been living in the shadows of this city for fifteen years. And I would like things to stay that way. Can you keep our location a secret?"

"Y-Yes, sir," Tiny answered before Sky gently took her away.

* * *

Later on, the four ninja birds brought Tiny to her nest in a street with some markets. It was located right next to a jewelry shop.

"T-Thanks for bringing me back here, guys," Tiny said with looking down.

Sky saw this and putted a wing on her shoulder. "Don't worry about your father; we'll find him for you, alright?"

This made the little green girl smile and hug the elf owl. "Thank you." Sky blushed a bit but hugged her back.

"No need to thank us; that's what heroes are for," Sparky affirmed with a proud look.

"Tss, show-off," Kowalski mumbled under his breath.

* * *

Later on, as night time rolled around, Master Yoshi started a new training for his four kids.

"Do not forget; to be a true ninja, you need to fade into the penumbra. Darkness is the ninja's best ally while light reveal his presence." The old falcon was currently sitting on his knees with a candle light standing on the tip of his stick. "Now, will you be able to take this candle light from me without leaving the penumbra?"

Sky was the first one to give it a go as she jumped toward her master who easily ducked, letting her crash into a wall. "Too noisy, Skyler."

Next was Sparky who tried to swing his nunchuck at Master Yoshi, only to get easily pushed over his shoulder and sent crashing into his sister. "Too oaf, Sparky."

At the very same moment, Kowalski charged from the back and tried to kick his master who simply ducked. He then tried to attack with his two sais, but easily got leg-sweeped by his master's stick and sent crashing into the wall. "Wrong technique, Kowalski."

Finally, Lilly, who was holding on the roof above him, swiftly jumped down and cut half the candle before catching the upper half on the flat side of her katana. She looked at it for a moment before blowing it off, finishing the training.

Smiling, Master Yoshi turned the lights back on. "Congratulations, Lilly."

"Pff, boot-licker," Kowalski mumbled with his wings crossed.

"And you, you're just a big looser," Lilly spat back which made her brother groan and almost engage a brawl with her.

"My kids," Master Yoshi said to get their attention before sighing and rubbing his forehead. "My kids, if you want to become real ninjas, you still need to progress." The four of them then kneeled before him. "The path of your life will be long and full of obstacles. The outside world will never be safe for you. You are too different from the people at the surface to be accepted. To survive, you will need to master what I taught you. The power of dodging and mystery of ninjutsu. You have to become wise men, warriors of darkness, and the world must never learn of your existence. This is why I entrusted this young girl."

Suddenly, everything started shaking. "Huh? What is this noise?" Master Yoshi asked as everyone stood up.

"An earthquake?!" Sparky asked.

"That's possible, but most unlikely," Sky answered with rubbing her chin before avoiding a falling piece of ruble.

Suddenly, strange little robots with giant, sharp jaws broke through the walls and growled at the birds who took out their respective weapon. "What are those things?!" Lilly asked.

"They sure don't look like your usual vermin!" Sparky pointed out.

"In any case, I'm gonna show them they didn't invited themselves at the right place!" Kowalski declared before giving a violent knee strike to one of the robots.

Sky knocked one of the robots with her bo staff before another one caught it into his jaw, forcing her to lift and slam him down on the ground to destroy it. Meanwhile, Sparky knocked many ones in a row with his spinning nunchucks.

"My turn!" Lilly shouted with running in action and cutting many robots in half with her katanas.

At the same time, Master Yoshi was getting cornered and overwhelmed by many of those robots which he tried to fight back with his stick. "We have to help Master Yoshi!" Lilly declared as she and her siblings rushed through the robots and to their master.

However, on their way, the little robots started eating the pillars that held the roof in place and everything started collapsing down.

"WATCH OUT!" Lilly shouted as she grabbed Kowalski and putted him out of harm's way as the roof collapsed between where they were standing and Master Yoshi. "Master Yoshi?!" Lilly called as she struggled against the rubles. "MASTER YOSHI! NO!"

Seeing this, Kowalski angrily stomped on a remaining robot who was still active before putting his sais back to his belt. "You've seen this? What are those machines?" Sparky curiously asked with looking at the destroyed robots.

"I don't know," Kowalski said before kicking them away, "but now, they're good for the trash can."

"Hey, guys, we need to find Master Yoshi," Lilly pointed out as she still tried to push the rubles away. "Master Yoshi! Do you hear me?!" No response. "Sky, would there be a way to-What are you doing?" she interrupted herself upon seeing Sky taking out a phone.

"I'm calling him," Sky replied with looking at her sister. "He should have his communicator on him. Well, I hope."

After a few seconds, Master Yoshi responded, making the two sisters smile. "Gimme that," Lilly said with taking the phone from Sky's wing. "Master Yoshi, are you alright?"

"Hello?" the falcon said from the other side, clearly having difficulties with the gadget. "Where am I supposed to press?"

"No, no, Master, you don't have to press on anything; you've already responded," Lilly explained.

"Ah, Lilly. I don't know where those mechanic creatures came from, but one thing is certain; it's that they destroyed the infrastructure of our house and we must leave right now. Meet me at the old main collector located at the south of the city."

Upon hearing those instructions, Sky took out a map of New York City in her wings which she took from a stand before returning to the lair. "If we follow the main sewer to the south, we should make it to the ancient main collector."

"We'll see you there, Sensei," Lilly said on the phone before hanging up.

Not too late after, the group got ready to leave as Sparky was saying goodbye to his home until Kowalski grabbed him by the bandana and dragged him away.

"Looks like these monsters went through here," Lilly remarked as they walked through the sewers with many holes in the walls.

"All the walls have been seriously damaged, it's a chance that they didn't collapsed," Sky informed before their way suddenly ended as a large wall of rubles blocked their way.

"You were saying?" Kowalski sarcastically asked.

"We can't advance and we can't go back," Lilly remarked.

"In that case, we just have to go up," Kowalski said and walked over to the ladder leading to the surface.

"Huh, I don't know if that's a good idea, Kowalski, specially after what happened during our first trip," Lilly pointed out with holding her brother back.

"But we don't have a choice, Lilly," Sky sided with her brother.

This caused the spix macaw to sigh. "Alright, but we go back down at the next manhole, understand? Remember what Sensei said; it's very dangerous for us to be seen - yes, Sky, even after Tiny saw us," Lilly said which made her sister scoff.

"Okay, we understand, Lilly, save your saliva for later," Kowalski deadpanned. "Come on, follow me," he said and started climbing up the ladder followed by his siblings.

* * *

Soon, Kowalski reached the manhole and pushed it up to give a glance around. It was the same alley where they came out from the first time. He jumped out and Lilly was the next to give a look.

"Could you hurry up, sister? I don't really like seeing underneath you," Sparky said from under Lilly.

This caused to blush and give him a little kick on the head before coming out. Kowalski had already avoided some passing humans and jumped on a pole to scan the area. He quickly spotted another manhole not too far.

"Manhole right ahead." Jumping down, performing a few flips and dodging a parked car, Kowalski was soon forced to hide behind this one as a bird-sized truck came and parked itself right on the manhole. Three birds dressed as thugs came out of the truck and entered a building by the window.

"Great," Kowalski mumbled as he saw the manhole trapped. "Looks like today isn't our lucky day - even if it's night."

Kowalski then gave a kick into the truck as his three siblings arrived at the corner of the alley. "Very discreet, bro," Lilly sarcastically said.

"Perfect, I bet we heard you on the other side of the city," Sparky added with a chuckle.

"Hey, could you guys give me an hand to move this thing instead of doing a moral lesson?" Kowalski asked before trying to push the truck from behind.

Suddenly, the thug birds could be heard getting closer to the door and laughing. "Kowalski! Hide! Quick!" Lilly hurriedly whispered.

Just as the door opened, Kowalski tossed himself into the back truck whose door was still open. This caused his siblings to facepalm (or rather facewing) themselves. "Bad choice, Kow," Sparky mumbled.

The three thug birds tossed what appeared to be bags of money into the back truck before closing the doors and locking it with a numerical lock. They then got inside the truck and started driving away.

"Are you kidding?" Sparky asked after he and his sisters got out of hiding. "Can you girls imagine the heads those guys are gonna make, when they'll open their truck?"

"This is exactly what Master Yoshi feared," Lilly said with rubbing her forehead. "We need to free Kowalski."

The siblings nodded and jumped up on the roofs to get a good look at where the bird-sized truck was driving. "We can get them at the next crossroads," Lilly said.

"Yeah, if we run like little devils," Sky remarked.

"That's my way of running!" Sparky happily said before they started running and jumping on the roofs.

They were having fun doing it and did a little race. At a moment, Sparky used his nunchucks to slip on a clothesline, accidentally getting a pink bra in the face.

"What's this?" he asked after landing.

"We'll tell you later! Come on!" Sky said as they ran pass him and he followed them.

* * *

 **Looks like Kowalski got himself in trouble. Let's hope his siblings can save him and meet up with Master Yoshi at the rendez-vous spot.**

 **And, as always, I hope you enjoyed this, Skyler ;)**


	37. Ninjas vs ninjas

Eventually, the truck stopped in another alley and the four thug birds walked out with their apparent leader ordering the bigger one to stay and keep an eye on the truck in case someone would try to steal the money. Lilly, Skyler, and Sparky watched from the roof and tossed an empty can in a corner which made noise and caused the thug bird to go investigate.

As he turned around, Sparky was standing before him with a smile. "Sir, you're not allowed to park here. Here's your penalty," he said with delivering a kick to his face which knocked him out.

"Good job," Lilly complimented Sparky with a smile.

"Yeah, I know, I'm very talented," Sparky showed-off with a proud smile.

Sky just rolled her eyes before making her way to the truck's backdoor and saw Kowalski screaming from the window which blocked his screams, and looked at the robot lock. "Hey, where are the good old normal locks?" Sparky asked.

"Ah, but it would be too easy," Sky said with taking out her tools. "Now, I can actually have some fun." As she got down to work on the lock, Kowalski kept shouting through the glass.

"What? Sorry, but I can't hear anything you say! You need to speak louder!" Sparky teased his brother who growled in anger and started smashing at the door.

"Could you be quiet? Someone's trying to work here!" Sky angrily said.

After a few minutes of cutting and toying with the wires, Sky finally managed to break the lock and open the door.

"Hey, Kow, nice to see you again, bro-" Sparky started but got interrupted as Kowalski charged int him like an arrow and tackled him to the ground.

"They really think only about playing," Lilly said with shaking her head to which Sky nodded in agreement. She then turned around and widened her eyes. "Huh, Kowalski, we got more important business going on."

"Like what?" Kowalski as he was holding Sparky by the collar with both of his wings.

However, upon turning around, he realized in horror that the thug birds returned with even more ones like them, all armed with weapons like crowbars, chains, metal pipes, or baseball bats.

"Who are those guignols with those ridiculous costumes?" asked the leader. "Prepare yourself to receive a good correction! Nobody enters the Red Dragon territory, specially not with those ridiculous costumes."

The four ninja birds took out their respective weapon and jumped in action, starting with Sparky delivering a strong dive kick to a thug. In a matter of seconds, all the thugs were defeated and laying in a pile on the ground with the four ninja birds standing victoriously over them.

"Let's get out of here!" their leader shouted in fear and ran away, his men following behind. "ninja power, baby!" Sparky said with exchanging a high-five with Kowalski.

"Well, that was easier than I thought," Sky remarked.

"Too bad they ran away; I was just starting to get warmed up," Kowalski said.

Sparky then spotted shadows on the ground and looked up to see figures on the roofs around them. Upon further look, he saw that they were birds dressed in black ninja dresses. "Hu-ho. Looks like you'll have the chance to continue your training, Kowalski!"

"Are those guys...ninjas?" Lilly asked in surprise with rising her katanas.

The ninjas all jumped down and surrounded the group in a circle. "I don't know, but they sure look like it," Sparky answered.

"Be ready to fight," Lilly instructed with rising her katanas once again.

"I feel like I'm gonna have a lot of fun," Kowalski said with a smirk.

Sky did the first move by jumping between some of the ninjas and knocking them off their legs with her bo more then attacked her with katanas, but she managed to smash them off. She smiled victoriously...only to turn her face upside down as the two ninjas kicked up.

Three ninjas circled Kowlaksi and attacked him at turn, but he dodged their attacks. "Not bad, your attacks, guys," the barn owl complimented before performing a swinging kick which knocked all three of them away in one shot.

At the same time, Lilly clashed her sword against another ninja's before kicking him away and then jumped up on a roof. The ninja kicked up, also got on the roof and actually ran onto the wall before swinging his sword at Lilly who blocked.

Another ninja with a katana jumped on her other side and they both swung their respective sword at her which she blocked with her two sword simultaneously. Back down, Sparky fought two ninjas using wooden shield with his nunchucks while Sky blocked shurikens with her bo staff. However, both of them got overpowered and kicked back into the truck.

"Sky, are we beating them, or are they beating us?" Sparky asked innocently with putting his nunchucks back to his belt.

Sky responded by putting Sparky into the truck and shutting the door just as it got riddled with shurikens.

"Ask me again when we're winning, Sparky."

"Yeah, that's what I thought..."

Back on the roof, Lilly was getting overwhelmed by ninjas who were all holding her down. Eventually, she managed to either kick or smash them all back and then jumped down beside her siblings.

"How many times are we gonna have to knock them down to make them understand they're no match for us?" Kowalski angrily asked.

"No idea, but they seem to want more," Sparky remarked as more ninjas came.

"In that case, let's get to plan B," Lilly said before turning to Sky who was reprogramming the truck. "Sky!"

"I'm almost there, Lilly!" Sky said before connecting two wires which made the truck go on. "Come on, everyone! Get in!" Sky said with sitting on the driver's seat.

Her three siblings jumped into the back of the truck just as she started driving away from the black ninjas and into the streets.

"Wow! Sky, you know how to drive for a bird without a license!" Sparky jokingly remarked as the truck was shaking a lot.

"I can leave you the wheel, if you want!" she sarcastically replied with accidentally knocking some trash cans off the road.

"I don't know about you guys, but I found this day to be quite strange," Sparky said again. "First, those little robots attacking us home, and after, we get a ninja army - ninjas in New York. Something's not right about this."

"Yeah, and that's not all," Kowalski added as he took the bag of money the thugs stole and dropped its content before his little brother. "Look at this."

"Yeah! We're rich, baby!" Sparky cheered with taking some bills in his wings.

"Sparky, this money doesn't belong to us," Lilly deadpanned with taking the money off her brother.

Sky stopped near a bird police car (don't ask me why there are police birds in here) and Lilly tossed the bags of money on their car which caught their attention.

"Take care of this money, will ya guys?" Lilly asked before they drove away.

"Did you see that?!" the first officer asked with his eyes wide open. "Some girl dressed as a ninja gave us bags filled with money!"

"Tch, rookie," the second officer just said and shook his head.

Sky then drove the truck through a fence that led them into the sewers and they ended up finding Master Yoshi who was meditating beside remaining of destroyed robots. "Master Yoshi!" the four of them happily cheered with gathering around their sensei and checking for any injuries.

"I'm going very well. I too am very glad to see you again, my children," Yoshi said with a smile.

"Master Yoshi, so many things happened in one day," Lilly said with a smile.

"Yes, you will have the chance to explain all of it to me later. But first, I would like us to go home," Master Yoshi said and started walking.

"Home? But we no longer have an home," Kowalski said with kicking a robot's head. "Those cursed robots destroyed our sewer."

"Do not worry; I may have found the solution to our little housing problem, my children," the falcon positively responded. "The answer is down there," he added before jumping into an hole in the floor.

His four children followed and jumped down too. This led them to another set of sewer where Master Yoshi waited. "That was fun! Let's do it again!" Sparky happily said.

Master Yoshi then started walking toward an opening and Sparky followed him. "No offense Master Yoshi, but this place doesn't seem so great."

"Look with your heart Michelangelo, and not your eyes," he responded and advanced.

"Um...okay," Sparky said and scratched his head.

"And walk this way..."

Sparky innocently imitated Master Yoshi by hunching over and walking slowly with an invisible cane, only to be hit on the head by Sky's bo staff. "Ow!"

Master Yoshi then led them to a new and bigger spot. This new place was larger and more comfortable than their old one, with a bedroom for each of the siblings, an area for Skyler's lab, a large living area with an entertainment system, and an outlet into the ocean.

"I already like this new place, Master," Lilly said with a smile.

"Good, Lilly. You and your siblings will start by completely cleaning our new home, alright? This place is absolutely disgusting."

This announcement caused the siblings to moan in disappointment.

* * *

Meanwhile, in a dojo located very high in the city, a male crow was slowly drinking a cup of tea while the leader of the thugs who got defeated by the ninja birds explained that he lost the money.

"And you're telling me that you lost the money you promised me to those four individuals?"

"Yes, I'm sorry, master, I promise it will not happen again."

"Yes, I know, you will not fail me." The crow stood up as the thugs' leader widened his eyes in fear. "Never again..."

"No, sir, please! AAAAAAAARGH!"

* * *

 **Wow! In one night, the four ninja birds lost their home, found a new one, fought thugs and ninjas, and we even got a new vilain. Looks like their adventures are just getting started.**


	38. The mousetrap

Some time after finding it, the ninja birds and Master Yoshi were settling up in their new home. Sparky just finished installing the entertainment spot with many TVs.

"What is it, Spark?" asked Sky, who was hanging from a security rope to fix some pipes with a blowpipe. "You don't know what to watch?" she asked before getting back down on the floor.

"I need more power as ninja birds from the Bird Cave deserve the best entertaining equipment," Sparky affirmed before connecting two cables which gave power to the TVs. The elf owl then took the remote and turned the TVs on, but it was so powerful and loud that he had to turn it off immediately. Master Yoshi, who was sitting on the couch stitching a training mannequin, chuckled.

"Bird Cave? That is so lame," Sky remarked at her little brother.

"What would you call our new digs? The Nest-ter?" Sparky asked.

"Uh...how about Sewer of Solitude?" Sky proposed.

"Peregrine Station," Sparky tried again.

"The School for Gifted Avians," Sky tried once again.

"Ahem." The siblings turned toward Master Yoshi. "We will call this place...home."

"Hm, catchy," Sparky admitted.

"Good," the old falcon said with a smile. "Now, why don't you tell me where are Lilly Kowalski?"

"They went to pick up our remaining stuff at the old lair," Sparky responded with taking a punching-bag on his shoulders.

"And with the recent modifications I gave the hovercraft, they should be back soon," Sky added with returning to go work on her tools.

* * *

Meanwhile, Lilly and Kowalski finished gathering the items from their old lair, packing them up on the hovercraft.

"Our home for more than fifteen years," Lilly mumbled as she putted the remaining stuff, including the broken canister that turned them into what they are, at the back of the hovercraft. "Here's what's left of it."

As she tied the stuff with ropes, Kowalski angrily walked over to a pillar. "Lemme tell you something; once I found out who built those freakin' robots, I will..." He then smashed the pillar which cracked and made the roof tremble a bit.

"Kowalski, let's leave; there's no need to destroy this place more than it already is," Lilly said and jumped on the back of the hovercraft with their stuff while Kowalski jumped at the driving seat and turned the vehicle on. He started driving off and the hovercraft soon started floating above the floor.

"Don't forget that Sky didn't had time to fix the accelerator!" Lilly screamed through the engine noise at her brother. So go softlYYYYYY!" she screamed as Kowalski didn't listened and turned the turbo on, charging at full speed through the sewers. Kowalski was having fun while Lilly was fighting hard to not puke.

* * *

Back to the lair, Sky was still analyzing the remaining of a destroyed robot when Master Yoshi walked beside her. "Even destroyed, this robot is making me feel uncomfortable, Skyler."

"You know, this is very advanced technology, Sensei. A chef d'oeuvre," Sky said with picking up the robot's head. "I will find out where they are coming from."

Just then, Lilly and Kowalski returned with the hovercraft and landed down with it. "Good news, Sparky," Lilly said with jumping down with a box, "I found your big collection of DVDs."

She threw the box to her brother who caught it in his wings. "Awesome! I think it's time to watch a good movie not too hard to understand. Our TVs are ready to work," he said with taking the remote and turning on the TVs who were at normal power this time.

They were currently on a news channel. "...Today, during a press conference at the siege of Stocktronics, the most important research society of New york-"

"Boring!" sparky said and was already gonna change the channel.

"Wait, I want to see what's next!" Sky interrupted him.

The TV then showed the Founder and CEO, Dr. Dexter, giving a short speech before unveiling his invention to deal with the city's rat problem, the Robotic Bitters. To everyone's surprise, the robot was the same as the cadre of robots that destroyed their lair.

Sky rubbed her chin. "I cannot believe Dr. Dexter can make those little robots pass for the liberators of this city," she said with holding the head of a destroyed Bitter.

Sparky then took it. "Maybe we were wrong about them." He then made its jaw move to make it look like it was talking. "Finally, maybe we're useful," he mimicked.

Kowalski groaned in anger and suddenly stabbed one of his sais into a TV screen. "Let's go to Stocktronics and tell this doctor a good word!"

He was about to run, only to be stopped by Master Yoshi. "That's absolutely out of question!" the sensei declared and slammed his cane on top of Kowalski's head, making him twitch in pain. "Your last expeditions ended with absolute disasters. You cannot allow yourself to be seen again by birds from the surface."

"B-But Sensei...," Sky mumbled with thinking about Tiny.

* * *

Later on, Master Yoshi prepared another training for his four children. They all surrounded him and Sky attacked first by swinging her bo staff at her sensei who easily blocked her with his cane before kicking her in the back.

"Don't let your own weight getting you down, Skyler."

Lilly tried to take this opportunity to jump on her master from behind, only to receive a swift cane smash that sent her flying backward. "You need to anticipate your opponent's moves, Lilly."

Sparky was next to charge, but got instantly swiped off his feet and onto his head. "Be more careful about where you step, Sparky."

Finally, Kowalski charged with anger at Yoshi who jumped past him, knocked the sais off his wings and pinned him to the wall. "Your mind is away, Kowalski. You need to stay focused during your attacks."

Kowalski dusted himself off as his master let him go. "I'd be more focused, if I attacked the Dr. Dexter! Why don't we go see him and tell him we're mad?!"

"Because I forbid it!" the master firmly replied, causing Kowalski to sigh in defeat. "We will continue your training tomorrow morning," he added before retreating into his chamber.

"We will continue your training tomorrow morning," Sparky mocked him with mimicking his voice.

"I heard you!" Yoshi said which made Sparky widen his eyes.

"He got ya," Sky said with a giggle and nudging her brother.

"I'd like to talk with this Dexter!" Kowalski declared with smashing his fist into his palm.

"Calm down; if you need some distraction, we got everything you need here," Sparky said with jumping on the couch. "Tens of DVDs, a big choice of videoclips, the extreme sports channel, a strange news channel in Korean..."

"Otherwise, you can come help me with this robot," Sky added with returning to work on the Bitter. "If I can fix this one, I could reprogram it to return to its creation lab and maybe we'll find its true use."

Kowalski then let out a strange sort of yawn. "You know what, I'm tired. I'll go to sleep," he said and excused himself to his room.

Lilly looked at him curiously. "And since when does Kowalski goes to sleep early?"

* * *

Later on, Sparky fell asleep on the couch with the TVs still on, snoring loudly. Above him, Kowalski silently sneaked out of his room and made his way toward the lair's entrance/exit where he got met by none other than his sister Lilly.

"You're having an hard time sleeping?" she asked with rising an eye brow.

"Let me pass, Lilly."

"Master Yoshi said we stay put."

"Look, I'll go through you if I have to," Kowalski threatened with taking his fighting stance.

"I'd like to see you try, hothead!" Lilly responded with also taking her fighting stance.

"Careful what you wish for, Yoshi Jr!" Kowalski said and jumped on his sister whom he wrestled to the ground.

Just as they started, they saw none other than Skyler's Bitter passing by. "Did you see that?" justly asked this last one who ran toward them and after him with Sparky beside her. "I fixed it!"

"Quick! He's faster than he looks!" Sparky remarked and ran after the Bitter with his sister.

"So, Lilly, you're not planning on letting this Bitter escape do you?" Kowalski asked his sister with an eye brow.

Lilly sighed. "Master Yoshi will never forgive us," she said with getting off her brother and running after Sky and Spark. "Come on!" she shouted toward Kowalski.

"If you insist," he sarcastically replied and kicked off before running after her.

* * *

The Bitter led the ninja birds through a zone of pipe bridges with a big waterfall underneath them. "Watch where you're going unless you wanna make a big splash," Lilly instructed.

The Bitter then reached the wall and started climbing it with its talons. "This thing is very resourceful," Sky remarked with rubbing her chin.

"What should we do now?" Kowalski asked.

"Like Master Yoshi says, "A ninja is always prepared," Lilly said before taking out spiked gloves used for climbing.

"I thought that was the Boy Scouts," Sparky remarked with a chuckle. They then all started climbing the wall which Sparky disliked. "Next time, let's leave the wall crawling to the dude in the red tights."

"You read _way_ too many comic books, bro," Lilly replied with rolling her eyes.

The Bitter then entered another sewer passage where the ninja birds climbed and followed him. "We're almost there," Lilly said as they kept following the Bitter.


	39. Confronting Dexter

After running through the sewers for a long time, the Bitter ended up leading the four ninja birds out to the surface by biting through a floor. "About time, I was getting tired of climbing up like this!" Sparky complained after coming out of the hole.

"And he calls himself a ninja," Kowalski mumbled with shaking his head before realizing they were in a pretty big white familiar room. "Wait a sec', I know this place."

"Pinch me, we're at Stocktronics!" Sky exclaimed in surprise.

They then heard a girl screaming and looked up to see a little green bird trapped in a big robotic claw holding her above the ground. And looking at her from behind a security window at the command center was none other than Dr. Dexter himself, smirking at the poor little green bird.

"It's really too bad, young bird. If only you hadn't snooped around so much," the doctor said with clearly fake regret.

"Help me! Please!" screamed the little green bird and the four ninja birds immediately recognized this voice.

"Tiny!" Sky shouted.

The poor little green girl screamed in panic as she saw many Bitters on the floor underneath her. "Whoa. I don't like the look of it. They're even bigger than the last time we saw them," Sparky remarked with taking out his nunchucks.

"Such incredible technology...But...," Sky mumbled before looking up at the terrified Tiny with determination. "We can't let him get away with hurting a cute, helpless girl like Tiny!"

"Okay guys, let's go!" Lilly instructed.

And with that, the four ninja birds started taking down all the Bitters one by one. Dr. Dexter noticed it and widened his eyes. "What the...?! What are those things? Where do they come from?"

Tiny looked in the same direction as him and gasped with relief. "Guys!"

"Hold on, Tiny! We're coming!" Sky said with smashing the last Bitter and started running toward her green friend.

CLANK!

Suddenly, the wall blocking their path opened and revealed another Bitter - but this one wasn't like the others; it was pretty huge with a red head and two arms shaped like jaws that could bite.

"What again?" Sky annoyingly asked.

The Giant Bitter opened its arms and started shooting little missiles out of all things at her. She managed to dodge them all, letting them damage the lab's wall structure. Once she got close enough, the Giant Bitter swung its arms at her which she avoided by leap frogging above it and shoot shuriken to its back which seemed to be its weak spot because of the electricity that came out of it.

It only took a few more smash from her bo staff into its back before the Giant Bitter collapsed down and exploded with electricity, leaving it into pieces. This made her siblings look at her with wide eyes.

"Since when did she got as agressive as me?" Kowalski asked.

Seeing his situation, Dr. Dexter quickly ran away while Sky threw some shurikens at the robotic claw which let go of Tiny. The green bird fell safely into the elf owl's wings. This last one smiled down at her.

"Sky! You saved me!" Tiny happily said with hugging her friend.

Sky smiled too and returned the hug. "Don't worry, you're no longer in danger, Tiny," she assured her friend. "But tell me, how did you ended up here?"

Tiny let go of the hug before answering. "Well, after I moved on to my new shop, I happened to spot on of those robots passing by a manhole. Curious as I am, I decided to follow it and then I ended up here. This crazy man wanted to kill me," she said, frightened.

"But you are safe now," Lilly said with patting her friend's back. "Let's get out of here!"

As the team escaped by where they came from, Dr. Dexter was still running away. "I got them good-" he chuckled before bumping into something solid. Upon looking up, he saw in shock that it was a big spix macaw with blue feathers dressed in a black shirt with a red dragon tattooed on his right wing. He looked far from happy.

"You!" Dexter exclaimed. "What are you doing here, Dragon Face?!"

"Problems, Dr. Dexter?" he asked with a strong, intimidating voice.

"Problems? Not at all. Everything is going exactly according to my plan," Dexter affirmed with getting back up.

Dragon Face suddenly grabbed him by the collar and putted him right in his face. "It would be interesting for you to explain your predictions to the master!"

"Let me go, you fool!" Dexter screamed and insulted Dragon Face over and over again as he carried him away.

* * *

Later on, the four ninja birds had brought Tiny back to their lair and watched news of Dexter's disappearance on TV.

"What are you going to do now, my young friend?" Master Yoshi asked Tiny.

"Well, I guess I'm simply gonna return to my dad's shop and try to live there," she simply replied, when Sky offered her a cup of coffee.

"Don't worry, tiny; we'll help you overcome this difficult situation.

She smiled. "Thanks. You know, I'm still finding it hard to believe that a group of ninja birds along with a very nice falcon sensei are living here in the sewers."

Sky rose her own cup of coffee. "Toast to our new team!" The five birds pressed their coffee cups together and drank it together.

* * *

Meanwhile, at the dojo located on top of a building, the mysterious raven master was receiving Dr. Dexter while being guarded by Dragon Face.

"Any moron can realize that this minor accident doesn't have any effect on our agreement," Dexter nervously said to the master. This last one slowly took the Tekkō-kagi (a kind of kakushi buki hidden weapon deployed by the ninja of Japan). "If you keep giving me founds, we'll continue our researches," Dexter continued. "I'll be back to the labs Monday morning."

The master then rose his Tekko-kagi toward the human. "First, you must pay the price of your failure, Dr. Dexter."

Right after he said that, Dragon Face grabbed Dexter by the collar and carried him away as he screamed in protest. After that, a ninja spy came and bowed before the raven master as he gave him papers. "Here are the images you asked for, Master."

He looked at the paper which showed infrared figures of ninja-esque birds. "So these are the responsible of all this," the master said before angrily cutting the paper in two with its blade. "They will pay..."


	40. Meeting the owl with the hockey mask

**For those of you who are tired of the ninja birds and wanna see Blu and his friends again, do not worry; we'll be getting back to them soon. but in the mean time, I still have a few stories to tell for them :)**

* * *

 _"I guess you could call it fate, but I have finally met somebody as angry as I am and he was really making me mad. My name is Kowalski, and the bozo in the hockey mask is about to find out just how angry I can be."_

Kowalski was sparring with his brother Sparky. This last one was actually having the upper hand. "Vey good fall, Kowalski," Sparky taunted as his brother was laying on a pile of empty boxes where he got knocked into. "Now, if you want some more, I'm waiting."

The barn owl got back up and removed the box on his head before glaring at Sparky. "I got enough, Sparky! Brother or not, I'll teach you one thing or two!"

He jumped and went for a punch which Sparky ducked. "Got a good swing!" Sparky then dodged a series of kicks from his brother with ease. "Gotta good kick too!"

Just then, Lilly and Master Yoshi arrived to watch. "Your attacks are useful, but some speed would help," Sparky once again taunted as he dodged another smash and kicked his brother in the back. "I'd even say a LOT of speed."

Spitting on the ground, Kowalski charged again with anger and pride. And this time, he smashed Sparky in the face so hard that he was sent flying back into the wall and bleed from the nose. Lilly and Master Yoshi looked in concern as Kowalski charged once again with agressive attacks that Sparky barely managed to dodge while holding his bleeding nose.

"You think you're stronger than me?!" Kow shouted as Sparky performed a moonsault to put some distance between them. "You really think that?!"

They locked wings and turned it into a strength test which Sparky won by spinning and sending his brother into a table. "You're the one who's overconfident here!"

As Sparky walked away toward his sensei and sisters in triumph, Kowalski glared with pure anger and grabbed a still pipe nearby. "No! Wait! I'LL SHOW YOU!"

Sparky barely had time to turn around that Kowalski delivered a violent dive kick into his chest to knock him down and then pinned him to the ground before lifting his steel pipe in the air.

"No! Kowalski! Wait! Wait!" sparky shouted in fear who protecting himself with his wings.

Luckily, Lilly jumped just in time to hold him back. "KOWALSKI! HAVE YOU LOST YOUR MIND?!"

"Are you fine, Sparky?" Sky asked her little brother in concern before looking at Kowalski. "What is wrong with you, Kowalski?"

Seeing his little brother scarred, Kowalski widened his eyes in shock and then started panting really hard. "I...Lilly...Sparky...I..." He then slammed his wing on his head at the realization of what he almost did.

Master Yoshi came putting a wing on his shoulder. "Ah my son, so angry. Rage is a monster that will destroy you from within. Kowalski, a true warrior finds balance in all things."

Looking down, Kowalski got back up with an ashamed air. "M-M-Master Yoshi, I...I need to take some air!" Before they could call him, the barn owl immediately ran away and out of the lair.

Sparky with a look of concern was about to go after him, only to be stopped by Master Yoshi. "Give him some time, my son..."

* * *

Later on, Kowalski arrived on the roofs of the city and tightened his fists before letting out a scream of anger to the skies. "WHAT IS WRONG WITH ME?!"

At the same time, not too far from there, a bird was watching TV into an abandoned hotel. "...We also learned that more people have affirmed seeing an auto-defence maniac wearing a hockey mask. He is said to be responsible for the recent attacks over the Red Dragon gang. This gang would be in contact with the underworld's activities."

The bird in question listening to this was a male burrowing owl with brown and white feathers, yellow eyes, and long leg. He was currently lifting a weight with his strong wing which was covered by a yellow sports glove while listening to the news. "Those dragons are nothing but trash!"

He then got up and went to the part of the room where he stocked his items like a punching-bag, a moto, a sports bag, but most notably a white hockey mask. He justly picked this one in his gloved wings before covering his face with it.

"Somebody's gotta stop those Red Dragons. Somebody's gotta make them pay! And they will pay. They'll all pay! 'Cuz Ryker is on the job!" He picked up his sports bag and took out an hockey stick before walking away.

Later on, Kowalski remained on the roof until he spotted a female cardinal in trouble with three street thugs in an alley. "Those three guys have well chosen their moment to make me mad."

Before he could jump in action, a voice interrupted the scene. "Hey! Red Dragons!" They turned to see a burrowing owl with an hockey mask, stick, and trash can top on which he slammed. "Come play with me a little bit!"

"It's this crazy guy with the hockey mask!" one of the thugs exclaimed. "Let's get him!"

As they got near Ryker, Kowalski smirked. "I've got a feeling this is gonna be fun."

Ryker dodged the first thug's fist and smashed him in the face with his hockey stick. He did the same to the second one with the trash can cover, knocking him down. The third one saw this and lifted his wing to try to negotiate, only for Ryker to smash him in the face too before he could say one word.

He then got near the third thug once again. "No mercy for jerks! I'm gonna put you out once and for all!" he declared with rising his hockey stick again.

"This guy doesn't know what he's doing!" Kowalski exclaimed and jumped down to hold Ryker's hockey stick. "Calm down, cowboy! They're down; you stopped them and that's good work. Now, stay calm."

Ryker just pushed him away and then saw the three thugs running away in fear. "Damn it, they ran away!" He then turned toward Kowalski with anger. "You, the ninja, you're gonna mind you own business!"

He punched the barn owl right in the face, knocking him down with a mark on the cheek. He then ran after the three thugs. "You can try to run, you little rats! You won't escape Ryker!"

Kowalski just sighed and looked at the female cardinal. "Sorry about all that, miss" He then ran after the burrowing owl which was pretty hard as burrowing owls were known for their strong legs which allowed them to run pretty fast.

He eventually caught up with him as the burrowing owl was smashing down the three thugs with his hockey stick. They were covered of blood and bruises.

"That was the last girl you will ever intimidate, you piece of trash!"

"Unbelievable," Kowalski mumbled as he went to kick Ryker down before he could hit the thug once again. "I told you to calm down, didn't I?"

"And I told you to mind your own business!" Ryker replied with getting back up. "But since you seem a bit deaf, I think I'm gonna have to make you understand in another way!"

* * *

Back down in the lair, Sparky had made a drawing about the truck-van they stole from the Red Dragon but in a cooler and more cartoonish look.

"See Sky, we can have our very own Battle Plane. I've even got a name for it. I call it: "The Battle Plane"! I've got it all figured out. Turbo-boosters, double-action traction, cool secret thingies shooting out the back. We should be tricking out the armored car!"

"By we, you mean I, right?" Sky remarked as she was working on something else. "I don't have time, I have too much work on me right now." She then grabbed her brother's drawing, turned it into a ball, and tossed it away. "Besides, where would we keep the thing?"

"We could find a place. Just think of overhauling the wheels. Please? Please please please please? Did I mention you're my favorite sister?"

"Shhh," Master Yoshi suddenly interrupted their conversation from the middle of the lair. "Lilly is working on ameliorating her ninja techniques. You should try to pay attention." He then turned toward Lilly with two wooden boards. "Lilly, dive attack!"

She obeyed and did just that, only get pushed back by her sensei. She sighed at her failure. Master Yoshi putted a wing on her shoulder. "Try again, my daughter. I'm certain it will come with practice."

"Skyyyler. Skyyy," Sparky cooed after Sky as he took his drawing again. "If you build it, we will drive around. Like birds!"

Sky took the drawing and looked at her brother. "Hey, big talker, why don't you make yourself useful?" she asked with giving him a panel reading: "Home Sweet Home" along with an hammer. "Nail this somewhere to make it look good, okay?"

* * *

Back on the surface, Kowalski and Ryker started walking around in circles. "Listen up, there's something I wanna tell you; you're really getting on my nerve!" Kowalski declared, his wings on his sais.

"Really?" Ryker asked and started swinging his hockey stick at the barn owl who dodged him.

"Listen, I understand what you wanna do, but you're doing it wrong. You just need to learn to control yourself!" Kowalski insisted.

"You, the ninja or I don't know what, if you take those Red Dragons' defense, then you'll find me in your way, and you'll get hurt too!" Ryker shouted with swinging his stick once again, only for Kowalski to roll out of the way.

"Okay, enough with hockey playing!" Kowalski said and kicked the hockey stick out of Ryker's wings.

"As you wish, let's play baseball then!" Ryker said and took two wooden baseball bats in his gloved wings. "Ready for the service?"

Kowalski scoffed and took out his sais. "Alright, send the ball!"

* * *

 **The fight between Kowalski and Ryker is raging on! Who's gonna come out on top?**


	41. Kowalski vs Ryker

Sparky tried to follow Skyler's directions and nail the panel into a wall, but it was too solid for an hammer. So, he switched to a sledgehammer and smashed the bigger nail into the wall.

"And that's done," he happily said...right before many cracks started forming on the wall which then collapsed to reveal a strange jade-colored wall. "Huh, guys? You should see this," Sparky called.

Lilly, Skyler and Master Yoshi all joined him. "It looks like some kind of door," Sky remarked.

"Be careful with that," Lilly whispered.

"Why do we whisper?" Sparky innocently mumbled.

Sky just rolled her eyes and touched the door with her wing which caused it to open and release a strong smell. "Erk! It smells!" Sky groaned with blocking her nose.

"Don't look at me; it's she who says it that did it," Sparky defended.

They then entered the room which had light blue runes glowing on the walls. It also had a strange white crystal on the roof.

"Hey, I saw this kind of crystals before," Sparky remarked.

"I don't understand how power can come in this room," Sky remarked with rubbing her chin. "There's no cable anywhere."

Suddenly, the door closed behind them and the room shook. "Looks like we're moving," Lilly pointed out.

* * *

Back to the surface, the fight between Kowalski and Ryker was raging on with the latter clashing his baseball bat into the former's sais.

"Hey! Listen to me, would ya? You're angry, right? That's something I can understand, you can believe that," Kowalski argued. "But what if, someday, you catch the wrong guy and you go too far? you could end up with regrets."

Ryker broke free and knocked Kowalski away with one bat. "I have my reasons of doing what I'm doing! It has nothing to do with you!" He swung his two bats once again, only for Kowalski to block them with his sais.

"Good. So you only want to brawl," he remarked and gave a strong kick to Ryker's stomach, knocking him back. "Then let's go!"

Before he could make his next move, Ryker grabbed a bat and smashed him in the face, knocking him into trashes and making him bleed from the beak a little. Groaning in pain and glaring at the burrowing owl in anger, Kowalski got back up and kicked him so hard that he was sent crashing into the wall and coughed a little blood behind his mask.

Kowalski then walked over to him and took his hockey mask off to reveal his face. Upon seeing the anger on the burrowing owl's face, Kowalski gasped in shock. "W-What am I doing?" He then shook his head and looked at Ryker with a sorry look. "We're on the same side. We shouldn't fight but work together."

As he took Ryker's wing to help him get back up, this last one secretly took a golf club with the other one and then took his hockey mask back. "You know what? You're right. You showed me I was totally wrong. So, to be forgotten, TAKE THIS!"

He suddenly swung his club right into Kowalski's face, knocking him down into the trash once again. Ryker then laughed at Kowalski. "I didn't expected you to fall for so little!"

He then ran away and Kowalski went after him which was a bit hard as Ryker was a burrowing owl meaning he had strong legs that ran faster than his.

* * *

Back to the others, the capsule they took ended up opening and let them exit into what seemed to be an abandoned garage. "Where are we?" Sparky asked.

Sky walked over to the garage's entrance and lifted the door open to get a view out on the street. "So this strange capsule brought us up to the street level. That's weird," she said with rubbing her chin.

Master Yoshi then sniffed something and turned around. "This old warehouse seems to be abandoned for years."

"That's a good space," Sparky noticed. "But it seems to lack something. A pool? No. A kitchen? No." He then snapped his feathers. "I got it! A cool truck-van!"

"I think he's trying to give you a message, Sky," Lilly told her sister with a giggle before closing the garage door.

* * *

Back to Kowalski, he kept searching for Ryker until he ended up in a dead end alley. Just as he was wondering where he went, a light turned on and blindfolded him. He realized too late that it was Ryker on a motorcycle who drove past him and swiped his legs with his hockey stick to make him fall.

"I still have more service for you, ninja! If you want your revenge, meet me Friday night at central park! Adios, pal!" Ryker shouted before driving away with his motorcycle.

"Come back!" Kowalski shouted before stopping as his knees were hurting him.

* * *

Returning to the lair, the group got back down in their house with the capsule. "I don't know who installed this capsule in here, but if we're to use it, we might wanna be twice more careful and put some security precautions in the warehouse," Lilly said with a smile.

"This is gonna be a piece of cake," Sky confidentially declared.

"Hmm, cake," Sparky mumbled in hunger.

Just then, they spotted Kowalski returning. "Welcome home, Kow!" Sparky happily beamed. However, after a moment of silence, they noticed that he had dry blood on his beak and his knees looked damaged. "What's with this air, dude? What happened?" Sparky asked.

"That's a long story. But first, I...I want to apologize to you, Sparky. I'm sorry for loosing my cool like this. I didn't meant to hurt you."

Sparky just scoffed and wrapped one wing around his brother's shoulders. "Hey, don't make a story out of it." This made Kowalski smile a little.

"Okay, who are you and what have you done to the real Kowalski!" Lilly teasingly asked.

"Let's say I got the chance to think about my attitude just now. I'll tell you all of it after dinner," Kowalski assured.

"Dinner? I see you learned to take me language," Sparky happily said before they all left to go get dinner.

* * *

Later on, as it was bed time, the four ninja birds tried to sneak out of the lair to stop Ryker. "I don't know, Kowalski. Maybe we should talk about it to Master Yoshi," Lilly mumbled.

"So that he can stop us from getting up there?" Kowalski sarcastically asked. "We need to find this auto-defense maniac. He needs our help. He's not bad and just needs to be put back on the right side."

Suddenly, the lights were turned on and they all spotted their sensei standing next to the interruptor. "Ahem."

"Busted!" Sparky exclaimed.

"How many times have I told you not to sneak up to the surface?" Yoshi asked with crossing his wings and narrowing unhappily at his kids.

"This month...," Sparky mumbled as he tried to count.

"512 actually," Sky responded.

"It is dangerous for you to go about openly in the world above. You cannot simply walk amongst the surface birds. They will not accept who and what you are. It is as the great sage and warrior Kenji Hashimura once said, "Why walk when you can ride?"

"Come again?" Kowalski asked in confusion.

Master Yoshi simply smiled and led his children to the capsule. "Take the truck-van," he instructed.

The four ninja birds entered the capsule and went up to the garage. "Okay, we have 'till Friday night to get this mastodonte ready," Kowalski said with pointing at the truck-van they stole.

"Then let's get to work," Skyler said as they all started working on the vehicle.

By the time they were done, the vehicle was exactly like Sparky imagined it. "This should do the work," Kowalski said with a smile.

"And you still haven't seen anything," Sky said with removing her security glasses. "Let's get in!"

They all jumped inside their new Feather Plane with Sky driving and exited the garage and into the streets.

They soon arrived at Central Park. "To your left, admire Central Park. A thousand state of green nature and full of life," Sky said while driving.

"There he is!" Kowalski suddenly exclaimed while looking out at the window. Indeed, Ryker, still on his motorcycle, was driving past them. "Full speed, don't lose him!" Kowalski told Skyler.

"You should go see at the back, Kow; I prepared something specially for you," Sky responded with a smile. Kowalski went to see and gasped. "How do you find it? I called it the Viper Driver."

The Viper Driver was a red motorcycle with a red security helmet of the same color that was designed specifically for Kowalski. This made him smirk. "Sky, that was a genius idea!"

Putting on the helmet and getting on the Viper Driver, Sky opened the back of the truck for her brother to drive out in the street and go ahead of them. Getting into Central Park, he managed to caught up with Ryker who didn't seemed interested at all.

"Hey, champ, slow down a little bit!" Kowalski shouted at him. However, he simply drove faster, ignoring him.

"Get away!" the burrowing owl shouted as Kowalski tried to keep up with him.

"I told you to stop!" Kowalski shouted and pressed on Ryker's break to make his motorcycle stop instantly, sending him flying forward. "Time for us to rub our feathers," Kowalski said and jumped off his motorcycle and onto Ryker, pinning him down.

The burrowing owl groaned in pain. "I can't believe I lost my motorcycle to a ninja."

"Listen," Kowalski said with removing his helmet, "I'm no fan of the Red Dragon either. I'd like to help you get rid of them. But we must act with a bit of restrain."

Kowalski offered him his wing and this time, Ryker accepted it without hitting him by surprise. "Stop, you don't know what you're talking about!"

"Trust me, please," Kowalski asked with the most sincere of looks.

Ryker looked at him for a moment before lifting his hockey mask. "Well, a long time ago, those punks of Red Dragons burned the orphanage where I lived. I never forgave them." Ryker marked a pause for letting the memories pass by and whipped some tears away. "So don't come telling me how to deal with those Red Dragons."

"Still, be careful; your anger could get you off the trail. And you could end up becoming like them. I-It's my father that taught me that a warrior should always act with brains and wisdom."

"With wisdom?" Ryker asked with an amused look.

"Well, let's say the level of wisdom two hotheads like us can have," Kowalski corrected.

"Us?! You're the only hothead I seen around here, dude!" Ryker defended.

"Hey, I'm less than half-crazy as you are!" Kowalski replied and gave him a nudge on the shoulder.

"Sorry, but for a barn owl, I found you pretty much dumb."

"At least I'm not the one going everywhere with an hockey mask."

"I gotta protect my hero face. You never know who you'll end up facing."

"Aww, how romantic," a sarcastic voice interrupted and the duo soon found themselves surrounded by Red Dragon thugs all armed.

"So...When you said I went too far and I risked to get problems, you meant problems like this?" Ryker asked.

"Yeah, sort of," Kowalski responded with throwing his helmet down.

As the thugs closed in, the others arrived with the Feather Plane to make them step away before coming out and joining their two friends.

"Friends of yours?" Ryker curiously asked.

"Siblings, actually," Kowalski responded.

This made the burrowing owl chuckle. "I can see the ressemblance."

"I'm the pretty one!" Sparky cheered.

They took out their weapons and engaged the fight with the thugs, taking them down with ease. At a moment, Lilly performed a split-kick on two of them. "Hey! Did you see this split-kick?!"

"Sorry, sista!" Kowalski said before kicking a thug away. "Do it again!"

Lilly did it again on two other thugs. "Awesome! I give you a ten!" Ryker complimented her.

"And I give you nine!" Kowalski said.

"Why just nine?"

"Sorry, but perfection is not a part of this world!" Kowalski explained before resuming the fight.

Before long, all the thugs were laying down, defeated. "I know I might regret saying that, but I'm glad I met you, hockey face," Kowalski told Ryker.

"Same for me, red face. And tell you what, I'm starting to understand what you meant earlier," he said with putting his wing on his shoulder.

"Oh, you mean wisdom? And self-control?"

"No, I realize you're a strange ninja, ha, ha!" he chuckled with nudging Kowalski. "But I still like you."

The two kept nudging each other until it ended with them struggling on the ground.

"Aww, brothers...," Lilly sighed with a giggle.


	42. Nanobots

_"My name is Skyler, and I'm usually into building things. However, there are particular things I'd like to take apart, real fast... before they take us apart."_

* * *

In a ultra-tech lab, Dr. Richardson was conducting some experiments on the U.S. Government research project named "Nanotech." She watched a containment vessel through a powerful microscope as millions of microscopic robots, nanobots, disassembled a toaster and an alarm clock and then reassemble the pieces into something entirely different, a tiny, strangely human-looking contraption.

"Oh, no please. I though we fixed it," Dr. Richardson said. "The hive's mentality is similar to that of a three-year old kid to simplify its capacity to absorb new informations."

The little robot came tapping on the window near the doc. "Oh no, it's starts personify." She pressed on a remote which send a shockwave that destroyed the little robot. "This little personality problem should get taken care of and very soon. I need some coffee," she said before walking out of the room, leaving the nanobots alone.

They turned toward the remaining of the broken toaster and formed another kid robot with it with a drill in extra. They used it to pierce an hole through the containment vessel and escape by there. Leaving the robot here, the nanobots slipped into the vent and exited into an alley and into the streets.

As they wandered in the streets, they spotted a male seagull (his name is Harry) trying to sell little robots to passing people. "Approach! Approach! My new cyber-robots arrived! They're all new! Enjoy it!" The nanobots got closer to see him trying to sell ridiculous little robots on a table. "Come on, you thankless people! Someone's gonna buy one at least! Oh, I got it; you're all me despising me, that's it?" he asked in anger.

"Oh, daddy, can I get one robot?" a kid bird asked his daddy.

"Okay, okay. How much, sir?" asked the daddy.

"Five dollars, that's an affair, sir," Harry replied.

"I give you three."

"Three?! But I need to win my life!" he protested.

"That's take or leave," the daddy simply replied and handed three dollars (don't ask me what birds are doing with money).

"...Okay then," Harry groaned and took the money as the kid picked one of the robots and left with his daddy. However, as they left, Harry secretly took the daddy's wallet from behind. "I just have to live in another way then."

Jus then, the robot he sold fell into pieces and the kid started crying. As the dad was about to run after him, Harry grabbed his stuff and ran away to hide in a alley. "I didn't lost the hand," he happily said with opening the wallet...only to find it contained only 13$ "13 dollar?! 13?! I'll never catch a break!" Harry shouted and threw the wallet away in anger.

Jus then, the nanorobots arrived and Harry slipped on them, causing him to fall and spill the contents of his toy display case as well as his radio. As the toys smashed into pieces on the pavement, they got engulfed by the nanobots and re-assembled into a weird looking mechanical child, complete with a crude boombox voice. The little robot walked toward the terrified and confused Harry and said: "Daddy!"

"What?" Harry asked in confusion.

* * *

Meanwhile, a few streets away from there, the ninja birds as well as Ryker drove to Tiny's shop with the Feather Plane and Ryker's motorcycle. The young green bird was cleaning the place with a duster before hearing someone knocking at her door. She went to open and be greeted by a smile from Sparky.

"Hi, Tiny, the muscled cleaner you asked for is here!"

Tiny smiled upon seeing her friends. "Hello, guys. Thanks for coming because I need a lot of help. Sparky, if you could start by moving those boxes."

"Just gotta adjust my belt and I'm on it," the elf owl said with a smile before going to work.

"I brought this," Sky said with showing a bag filled with tools that could help her around.

It was then Lilly and Kowalski's turn. "As for you, I'd like you to move this cabinet filled with antiquities." She than gave them a slight glare. "Softly."

"Hey, I'm a ninja-" Kowalski was about to argue, only to be pushed forward by his sister.

"As you wish, princess," Lilly teasingly said.

Ryker was the last one to enter and Tiny looked at him with wide eyes upon seeing a burrowing owl (a strong one that is) for the first time. "You...huh, you're not a ninja," Tiny shyly remarked.

"Huh, Apparently not," Ryker responded on the same tone as her.

"I hope you don't mind if we brought up a friend, Tiny," Lilly excused herself.

Tiny offered a wingshake, but Ryker just waved his gloved wing at her. "Hi, Ryker is my name." He then walked past her. "Hey, that's a nice home"

"Yes, it belonged to my father, the shop I mean. I'm planning on re-opening it," Tiny explained. "Until I find something else to do."

"Ah, I got it. Until you find something serious to do, you hide in your father's home, that's cool," Ryker though he understood which was not the case at all.

Tiny seemed a bit insulted. "I-It was an antiquity shop, here, and I absolutely don't have to hide!"

"Okay, as you wish, sweetie," Ryker shrugged off and walked away.

"Sweetie?!" Tiny exclaimed with blushing a bit and then groaned.

Ryker went to join Kowalski to move the cabinet filled with antiquities. "Hey, Kowalski, let's do this together."

The two birds lifted the cabinet and started moving it together. Tiny tried to tell them to go softly, but as it was bound to happen, they ended up making the old dishes falling and breaking on the floor.

"Don't worry; we'll clean everything," Ryker cooly said. However, tiny just groaned in anger and walked away. "Wow, hey, is your friend always so...emotional?" he asked Kowalski.

* * *

Back in the alley, Harry was smiling at the little robot. "Come on, you little...I don't know what. Give me back my stuff." However, he then spotted a jewelry shop. "Wait a second. I just had a million dollar idea." He then looked down at the little robot. "This thing you did of turning machines into pieces, think you could do it with an alarm system?"

"Daddy!" the robot replied.

"You wanna have a daddy? You do what I tell you, and I will make myself a pleasure of being your daddy. Deal? Alright, smile and shake my wing - of course, with your robot head, it's a bit hard to tell if you're smiling or not," Harry remarked before the robot shook his wing. "Son, I got a feeling you're gonna bring me to rest time I wanted so much."

* * *

Later on, that night, Harry and Nanobot (that's how I'm gonna call him) sneaked behind the jewelry shop and this last one used its nanobots to disarm the alarm system. He also broke the door's handle, allowing his "dad" to enter in the shop.

He turned on a flashlight and started walking in the shop, deciding on which jewels to steal. A few minutes later, his bag was full and the duo of thieves left the shop unharmed.

Two days later, they stole from many shops and were now practically rich. "Good job, son, you finally gave me the rest time I deserved," Harry said with patting Nanobot on the head before hiding him into his new sports bag.

* * *

One night, at Tiny's home, this last one was expressing her concern to her friends. "Those burglaries are making me a bit nervous. The jewelry that has been robbed is at the tip of the street. So I'd appreciate if you could stay to sleep here, just for tonight," she asked her friends.

"Don't worry, Tiny, we'll keep an eye on you," Kowalski assured with a wing on her shoulder.

She sighed in relief. "I really feel safe, when you're here."

Kowalski then opened the window and showed his thumb to Ryker who was standing on the other building's roof with his hockey mask and weapons.

* * *

At the same time, Harry and Nanobot passed by Tiny's shop and stopped before it. "Oh, that's pretty!" he said with noticing some golden rings at the front window. He then turned to Nano. "Go get me this ring, would ya?"

Meanwhile, at the superior stage, the four ninja birds fell asleep in the living room, in front of a Kaiju movie and white food and drinks around them. As Harry and Nano sneaked into the shop, the little robot noticed many white masks that reflected every emotions: happy, sad, angry and scarred.

At the same time, Harry finished stealing and was about to leave. "Come on, son, what are you doing?" He then found him using the masks on his face. "What are you doing with that? Come on; we gotta leave!" he hurried the robot who followed him with the masks in his hands.

They exited the shop by the backdoor and tried to run away, only to end up meeting a visibly (actually, not so much because of his mask) Ryker. "So, you came to meet your destiny?" he angrily asked before gripping the seagull by the collar. This caused Nano to put on his scarred mask. "Doing groceries after closing time, pal? What did you steal? Give it back right now!"

Seeing his father getting attacked like this, Nano quickly used his nanobots to disassemble a car and create himself a new, bigger and more powerful body. Ryker saw this and widened his eyes in shock as the big robot putted on his angry mask and walked toward him. Before the burrowing owl could do anything, Nano slapped him away, sending him to crash into the alley's trash cans.

Back into the apartment, Lilly heard Ryker's groaning of pain and woke up. She softly shook Sparky awake. "Shh," she said with a feather before her beak. "There's noise down there."

Tiny then awoke too and came out of her room. "Hey, did you guys hear somethin-" She interrupted herself upon seeing the four ninja birds were gone. "Guess they heard."

They all jumped out of the window and landed in the alley and before Nano. "Okay...what is that? Sky?" Lilly asked upon seeing the big robot.

"Uh, insufficient data, boss," Sky simply replied with a shrug.

* * *

 **Ryker has been hurt! Will the ninja birds be able to stop this giant robot? Stay stunned to find out!**


	43. Nanobots part 2

"Oh my god! That's impossible! Samurais!" Harry exclaimed as he went to hide behind Nano out of fear. "Right at the moment my problems are getting away! We're getting invaded! Kid, don't let them get near me!"

Nano lifted and slammed his big fists on the ground, forcing the four ninja birds to jump back to avoid getting squashed. Kowalski then went on the offensive first by slashing his sais on the abdomen zone. However, it didn't caused any damage and Nano tried to stomp on him which forced the barn owl to jump away again.

Sparky then jumped and delivered a dive kick to its back, only to get easily pushed away and land next to Skyler. "Hey, don't you have a better idea of what it is now, sister?"

"Don't think about it," Sky responded with taking out a blowpipe from her bag, "just try to keep it busy."

"I don't know why, but I was sure you'd say that."

As the three siblings faced the big robot, this last one went for a punch at Lilly who ducked and sneaked between its legs which made him turn around and allowed Sky to burn him in the back with her blowpipe. As its back was on fire which seemed to affect him a lot, Nano putted on his angry mask and smashed Sky away into a wall.

"Don't let those samurais get you, son! Squash them!" Harry shouted which turned the attention back on him.

"Hey, you, you know this machine?" Lilly asked with walking to him.

Seeing the three ninja birds closing in on him, Harry panicked. "Help! Son!"

"Daddy!" the robot shouted and easily knocked away all three of them before grabbing its dad and running away. Just then, the shop's door opened and Tiny came out.

"What was that thing?!" she asked before seeing Ryker weakly trying to get up. "Ryker! Oh my god!"

She rushed to him and helped him stand up while also lifting his hockey mask. Tiny, so...did I win?" he weakly asked with a smile.

Suddenly, Sky noticed a piece of Nano on the ground and took it in her wing. "Hey, look! This thing is still moving."

* * *

Later on, our heroes returned in Tiny's shop and made Ryker lay down on the couch while Sky analyzed the piece of robot.

"Wow! That's not something you see everyday," she said with looking at it through her telescope.

"What did you find?" Sparky asked.

"Take a look for yourself," Sky said with letting Sparky look into her telescope to see thousands of nanorobots.

"What's that?!"

"Nanorobots," Sky responded. "Little robots who all work together."

"Are they dangerous?" Kowalski asked.

"They move a bit randomly. It's probably after getting separated from the hive that they lost their mind."

"Just like Kowalski when he leaves our group: he loses his mind," Sparky jokingly said, causing Kowalski to give him a nudge.

"Speaking of loosing mind, does this thing seems...lost too?"

"Yeah, like a little kid," Sparky backed up his brother's argument.

Sky then took another look in her telescope and noticed something new. "Uh-ho. They're reproducing themselves. Every robot produces a clone of himself which himself creates another clone. It's a phenomenon that quickly becomes impossible to stop."

"In that case, we need to stop it right now," Lilly said with slamming her fist into her wing. "Think you can track this thing?"

Sky rubbed her chin with her wing. "Hmmm, those nanorobots must all have the same energy." She then snapped her feathers. "Hey, I bet the tracing GPS of our Feather Plane can find him."

"And once we have found our robot friend, what do we do?" Sparky asked.

"Well," Sky said with taking her blowpipe and turning it on, "as painful as it is for me to destroy such a technology, I'm glad to see they react at strong heat." Getting the fire near them, Sky looked in her telescope to see the nanobots melt away.

"What are we waiting for then?" Kowalski asked as they started heading out of the shop.

"Hey!" Ryker called from the couch, covered of bandages. "Gimme time to catch my-ARGH!" he groaned in pain.

"You aren't going anywhere, mister. You wait right here till I get some more bandages," Tiny firmly said and left to go get bandages.

Kowalski then came to Ryker. "You wouldn't be milking this boo-boo thing, wouldja, Ryke?"

This made the burrowing owl chuckle. "Hey, show a little concern, feather-for-brains."

Kowalski chuckled and winked at him. "You owe us one, pal."

"Definitely," Ryker said before wincing in pain once again.

* * *

Meanwhile, in a junkyard, Harry chuckled as he looked at everything he stole. He then turned toward Nano. "You know you're very strong, son? I though those samurais were gonna get me, but you took care of them. I'm really proud of you."

This made him put on his happy mask. "Do you think those strange birds come from the same place as you? Whatever that place is supposed to be. You think they came to take you back with them?"

Nano putted on his confused mask. "Aww, I wouldn't like that either. I think it is time for us to leave this city."

Not too far from there, Sky used her GPS in the Feather Plane while driving. "I think we're coming right to it." She looked at the GPS. "I think it's there, right behind the fence."

They broke through the fence with their truck which alerted Harry. "You heard that?"

Sky stopped the vehicle and the group walked out of it to search in the junkyard. "Where is that thing? The locater says it should be right here.," Sky pointed out with looking at her tool.

" I know it's been used before guys, but I'm gettin' a baaaaaad feeling about this," Sparky expressed.

Just then, the big robot jumped out of nowhere, making them jump back and take out their weapons. Then, rising its arms, the robot sent nanobots to take stuff from the piles of trash and became practically a giant.

"And now I'm getting an even badder feeling about this," Sparky said again with his eyes wide open, just like his siblings. "Okay, someone's got an idea of how to take this?"

"Like we always did before; together!" Lilly responded with a smile. "Strike him so fast that he won't have time to reform himself! Go!"

Jumping into action, the four ninja birds attacked the giant robot from everywhere, but that was revealed to be pointless as he always used nearby trash to fix any damage made. He then grabbed Sparky in one hand and lifted him up.

"Sparky!" Lilly exclaimed in horror.

Holding him by the leg, Nano started swinging him around. "I'm gonna be sick!" the young elf owl exclaimed.

"Hold on, Sparky! I'm coming!" Sky said with coming back with her blowpipe.

"Quick! I'm gonna crash! Literally!" Sparky called.

Just as Sky jumped toward the robot, he gave her a punch that knocked her away, also causing her to drop the blowpipe. "He's fast!" she groaned while holding her injured head in pain as Kowalski joined her.

"And meeeeean!" Sparky shouted as he was finally thrown beside his siblings, his head spinning a lot. "Okay, finally, that plan left a lot to be desired. Plan B?"

"Plan B," Lilly nodded and they all ran into the Feather Plane which Sparky conducted for the first time.

As they drove away, Nano gave them chase and ended up catching the truck-van in one hand. He used the other one to smash it on the side. "Faster, Sparky! He's destroying us into pieces!" Sky shouted.

"My foot is on the floor, captain!" Sparky responded while sweating. "I'm giving everything this machine have!"

"Kowalski, ready?" Lilly asked her brother who was getting on the Viper Driver.

"Once again, I'm on the crazy job!" he said before driving out of the truck and into Nano's face.

He rolled around the big robot to confuse him, eventually leading him close to a trash crusher. "Now!" Lilly said and Sparky charged right into the big robot, making him fall into the crusher. It turned on and crushed the robot into a cube.

"Yahoo! Looks like that did it!" Kowalski said.

"Yeah, he's flat broke," Sparky nodded.

Or so they though. Nano reactivated himself and started coming out. "You know, I'm gonna stop with the puns. Seriously, they always come back to bit you!"

The group drove away as Nano came out of the crusher and started chasing them once again. "How much time you need to get in position?" Lilly asked her sister.

"It's almost as if it was already done!" she responded with a wink and jumped out of the truck and ran away, sneaking past Nano.

"Lilly, please! Tell me you got a plan C!" Kowalski called on the radio.

"Plan C, before you, at noon!" Lilly responded.

Indeed, Sky ran to a crane holding a magnet and used it to stop the robot before he could smash Kowalski, lifting him up in the air.

"No! Son!" Harry screamed as he ran to the crane. However, while he did this, Sky turned the magnet holding Nano, positioning him above a furnace."Hold on, son! Daddy's coming!"

He ran at the crane's power system and turned it off. However, by doing this, he caused the magnet to release Nano who was sent to fall directly into the furnace below, splashing lava everywhere. "NO!" Harry shouted in horror as he ran near the furnace.

Nano lifted his melting hand out of the furnace while mumbling one last time: "Da...dy..." before the furnace closed and he was gone forever.

Harry collapsed on his knees and looked down at the happy mask of his own a bit damaged. He took it in his wings and started crying. "I can't believe you're gone...my one real lucky break...and I broke ya...I'm sorry..."

The police birds arrived on the scene. Meanwhile, the ninja birds drove away with the Feather Plane. "You know...I feel kinda bad for the little bot," Sparky admitted.

"Yeah," Kowalski said with a nod and looking sadly at the ground. "He was kinda like a little kid."

"Too bad he had such a rotten dad," Sky said and whipped a tear away while driving.

"I wished we could have helped him," Lilly admitted too in sadness.

They arrived at Tiny's shop and, as they entered, found a strange scene of Ryker and her arguing. "Taking care of myself?! But I hurt myself while taking care of you by saving your life!" Ryker shouted.

"Because you though that I needed to be saved?!" Tiny replied with glaring at him.

"You always take wrongly everything I say! Tss, women!" Ryker sighed with rolling his eyes.

"I think we should leave them alone," Sparky mumbled to his siblings who nodded as Tiny and Ryker kept fighting.


	44. Metal Turtle

_"My name is Skyler. And this is the story of how my greatest creation to date came to be."_

* * *

The four ninja birds were fighting off Red Dragon thugs in a old warehouse. They found them trying to make weapons traffic and decided to stop them. The fight was raging on and, in the middle of it, a thug broke Sky's bo staff in two with a steel pipe.

"Crap!" she swore before kicking him away and looking down at her broken weapon. As a thug was about to attack her from behind, Lilly jumped in time to knock him away.

Meanwhile, Sparky was having fun swiftly beating every thug with his nunchucks. "Oh yeah, who's number one? It's Sparky boy!" he showed-off.

"Number one?" Kowalski asked after kicking a thug away. "We'll see; how many ones did you got? I took six down!"

"Ah! I'm at eleven!" Sparky responded before kicking a thug away. "Twelve now."

Unfortunately for Kowalski, the thugs all ran away after giving up their weapons, meaning the game ended there. "Tss," he scoffed before putting his sais back to his belt. "Next time, I won't let your spiky hair get ahead of me, you can believe that."

"I can't believe you're turning this into a game. May I remind you that saving this city is serious matter?" Lilly asked after putting her katanas away.

"Come on, Lilly, it's just for self-motivation," Sparky assured before turning to Sky. "Hey, don't make that head, sister; I'm sure you can fix your weapon in no time."

"It's not that," Sky said with sighing. "It's just...how am I supposed to fight all those advanced bad guys with only a 6-foot stick? I need to upgrade my craft," she affirmed.

"And how are you gonna do that?" Lilly curiously asked.

Sky just smiled. "You'll see."

* * *

Later on, Sky passed many hours in her workshop, working on something very important. Her three siblings looked at her from afar and exchanged looks of concern.

"She's been working for hours. What do you think she's been doing?" Sparky asked.

"I have no idea; Sky always had a big brain. Let's go see," Lilly said and they all went to see Skyler. "Hey, Sky."

Just then, the little elf owl removed her security helmet and smiled at her siblings. "Guys! You came just in time! Look what I've done," she said with showing her bo staff which was back in one piece. Pressing something, a blade came out from the tip of it.

While Sparky was impressed, Kowalski seemed unsure. "You've been spending hours working on that?"

"Not only that," Sky said and took out a bird-sized NES controller. "Ladies and gentlemen - and Kowalski (this made him glare at her), allow me to present to you my greatest invention so far: Metal Turtle!"

She pressed a few buttons on her controller and loud steps were heard. Soon, the trio could admire a little robot that was shaped like a turtle and was painted in yellow. They all looked at it in surprise.

"W-What's that thing?" Lilly asked in surprise.

"You remember this robot we fought at the junkyard?" Sky asked. "Well, even if he got destroyed, I managed to keep a piece of its fabric for myself. I modified and used it to create a small version for myself: Metal Turtle."

"But isn't it risky to use the same material as this robot that went rogue?" Kowalski asked with crossing his wings.

"Don't worry, bro; I wouldn't have made it, if it could be dangerous. This is the future of ninjutsu," Sky said with confidence.

"I though the future of ninjutsu would be taller," Kowalski dryly said.

This made Sky glare at him. "If you don't believe me, why don't we hit the training room? I'll show you what Metal Turtle can do."

Afterward, the four of them went to the training zone with Lilly, Kowalski and Sparky surrounding Metal Turtle with their weapons and Sky standing to the sides with her NES controller in wings.

"I implanted the fighting styles of both the Red Dragon as well as ninjas' in his head so that he can fight both," Sky explained.

"Yeah, I don't think he can simulate MY fighting style," Sparky affirmed with a smirk.

"Let's just go!" Kowalski said and jumped to go strike the robot.

However, this last one simply delivered a strong punch that knocked him away. Lilly tried to take this chance to jump behind and swing her katana at Metal Turtle who caught her blade in his hands and then delivered a spin kick that sent her into the wall.

He then turned his hand into a little flamethrower and shot a jet of flame at Sparky who ducked it. He then swung his nunchucks at the robot who dodged him and then shot his fist right into his face, making him spit saliva and fall down before flying back into his robotic arm.

"See?" Sky said after stopping to press on her controller. "This little wonder is as useful as any of us on the battlefield."

"Indeed, my daughter," Master Yoshi said as she arrived and Sky turned to look at him. "However, there is one thing you must not forget: technology will never replace ninjutsu itself."

"Don't worry, Sensei, I won't forget," Sky assured with a smile and patting Metal Turtle on the head.

* * *

 **Hey, guys. I know this chapter was short and I'm sorry if that bothered you.**

 **But I have an announcement that could make you happy or sad. This was the last ninja birds chapter for the moment; we will go back to Blu and his friends in the next one. Lemme know what you tough about this switch of place :)**


	45. The WVBA

**I hope you enjoyed the ninja birds, but now, it's time to return to Blu and his friends in the Amazon rainforest. Let's go!**

* * *

Two months have passed since the whole events of the Amazon rainforest. The loggers had all either disappeared or been captured. With the conflict between the spix and scarlet tribes solved, there was no more problems for our friends outside of the occasional friendly matches at the Pit of Doom.

Speaking of which, in this beautiful, warm day, Blu and his friends were having a match at the pit. It was Blu, Dominic, his brother Roberto, Alex, and Polie as the guardian against Adam, Lazaro, Hernandez, Vladimir, and Apollo as the guardian.

Jewel, Alicia, Star and Brooke were sitting on the sidelines, watching the match. "Wow! Did you see that?! Polie is on fire today!" Brooke exclaimed as her brother blocked another ball.

"Yeah, I've seen players doing way better," Alicia simply said with rolling her eyes.

"Come on, Blu!" Jewel shouted for her boyfriend. And that worked as her encouraging made him play even better through the other team's defense.

As he was about to score, Pedro suddenly erupted into the game zone while screaming nonsense and shaking his wings everywhere" "Guys! Guys! There's thisandtheycamerecentlyit'ssoaweome!"

"Woah, woah, woah!" Lazaro said with putting his flippers before the cardinal. "Calm down, amigo! What's going on?"

"T-T-They are coming!" Pedro managed to calm down enough to speak. "The WVBA is coming here!"

This earned him confused glances from his friends. "The WVBA? What's that?" Jewel asked as the girls joined the boys.

This caused Pedro to look at them in awe. "What?! You never heard about the World Video Boxing Association?! Come on, that's gotta be a joke! It's the biggest boxing league in the world! I'm a fan of it since I was a kid!"

"I though you loved samba," Alex remarked.

"True, but boxe is my favorite sport. That explains my boxing fighting style," Pedro said with a chuckle. "Anyway, I learned from Eduardo that they will be coming here, in the Amazon rainforest, this very day!"

"What?!" everyone exclaimed in surprise.

"But Eddie never told me about it" Roberto remarked with a raised eyebrow.

"Neither to me," Blu added with a nod.

"He kept it as a surprise. But can you guys believe it?! I'M GONNA MEET MY IDOLS!" Pedro cheered in joy which made everyone smile for him.

* * *

Later on, the time came and all the spix macaw tribe gathered at the village's main place to see a group of many birds arriving. "Remind me who they are already?" Blu mumbled to Pedro who was too excited to listen. So it was Nico who talked to him instead:

"They are in total 13 to form the WVBA. The first four birds form the "Minor Circuit" at they are known. This group includes:

-Glass Joe (nicknamed "France's Glass Jaw"), a seagull from Paris, France who is said to be pretty weak

-Von Kaiser (nicknamed "The German Steel Machine"), a German brown macaw boxing veteran

-Disco Kid (nicknamed "Kidquick"), a scarlet macaw from Brooklyn who uses a special fighting style that includes dancing moves

-And the circuit's champion, King Hippo (Nicknamed the "Island King"), and orange pheasant who, as you can see, is pretty huge and, apparently, cannot speak our language."

"Wow!" Blu said, impressed. "Those birds sure looks interesting."

"Then wait to hear about the four birds that constitues the Major Circuit:

-Piston Hondo (nicknamed "The Hurricane"), a male crane from Tokyo, Japan

-Bear Hugger (nicknamed the "Canadian Bear"), a lumberjack duck from Canada

-Great Tiger (nicknamed the "Champion of India"), a strange bird with tiger-themed feathers from India who possess mystical powers

-And the circuit's champion, Don Flamenco, a golden macaw from Spain who is said to be as strong as he is charismatic. Seriously, all the girls fall for him."

"Really? Man, those guys seem though too," Blu said before Nico continued.

"Yet, they're nothing, compared to the World Circuit's members who are said to be the strongest boxers in the whole world:

-Aran Ryan (nicknamed the "Irish Psycho"), a male duck from Dublin, Ireland who is said to be crazy and also a big cheater

-Soda Popinski (nicknamed "Soda Pop"), an eagle from Moscow, Russia who is obsessed by soda - he can drink up to 100 bottles a day

-Bald Bull (nicknamed "Mask X"), a puffin from Spain who is said to be agressive like a bull

-Super Macho Bird, an Hollywood star who is known as much for the blockbuster movies he starred in as the awesome boxing matches he makes

-And finally, last but none the least, Mr. Sandbird. He is said to be the strongest boxer in the whole world. In his whole career, he had 40 matches and won all of them. Which is why he is the World Circuit Champion. A title he held for more than a decade."

And Blu understood why. Mr. Sandbird was walking ahead of all the other fighters. He was a spix macaw wearing yellow and orange boxing shorts along with green boxing gloves. Measuring 6' 5", he was a literal tower of muscles and the energy emanating from him could be felt even from afar. It was understandable that all the birds near him ceased to cheer and looked at him with wide eyes during his passage.

Even Eduardo, who was considered to be one of the toughest birds in the Amazon, seemed impressed by Mr. Sandbird. "Hum, hello, Mr. Sandbird. I speak for my tribe by saying that we are honored to receive the whole WVBA league in our forest."

Mr. Sandbird just glanced at him for many seconds before putting his gloved wing on his shoulder and twisting his beak into a smile. "We are happy to be here too. We heard a lot about the famous spix macaws on the verge of extinction suddenly returning. We wanted to come make a visit and see for ourselves."

"Unfortunately, we will have to leave this eve night; we got a lot of business being the biggest boxe league in the world, y'know."

"too bad; those guys look strong. I would have wanted to face them," Dominic remarked.

"They look so classy!" Alex said with stars of admiration in his eyes.

"Pff, from my point of view, they're just a bunch of stereotypes," Apollo scoffed.

"And they're far from looking as impressive as the luchadores from my country," Lazaro pointed out. "Right, Pedro? Pedro?"

It was then that the group of birds realized their cardinal friend were no longer there. "Hey! where is he-PEDRO!" Nico suddenly shouted as he saw his best friend flying away.

"Excuse-me, sir." Mr. Sandbird turned around in confusion after hearing the little voice but saw no one. Only upon looking down did he spotted a little cardinal standing at his feet.

"Oh, I didn't saw you, little one," he remarked with glancing at the chubby cardinal.

"I understand," Pedro said, working really hard to hide his excitation before suddenly taking a serious air. "Listen, Mr. Sandbird, my name is Pedro and I'm also a boxer. I'd like to ask you a favor."

"What is it?"

"I would like to face some of your fighters in one-on-one boxing matches."

This statement caused all the birds around to go "WHAT?!" in surprise. Even the WVBA boxers seemed surprised that the little cardinal would ask something like that. Sandbird rose an eyebrow.

"You say you're a boxer and you wanna face some of my fighters?" he asked to which Pedro nodded. This made him smirk. "Very well then, some entertainment is more than welcome."

"PEDRO!" Rafael shouted as he flew over to him and grabbed him by the shoulders. "Have you lost your mind?! You can't seriously fight these guys!"

"Why not?" Pedro asked with looking at his toucan friend. "I've been practicing boxe almost as long as I've been doing samba. It's my chance to see how strong I've become, dude! I can't miss that."

Rafael exchanged a look of concern with Nico who joined them before looking back at Pedro. "Okay, but try to not get killed or I'll never forgive you, got it?" Nico firmly said.

Pedro just smiled and nudged his best friend. Mr. Sandbird then took a box out of his shorts and tossed it in an open arena. BOOM! A bird-sized boxing ring appeared right there, making all the birds look in pur surprise.

"What?" Sandbird shrugged. "I always carry a boxing ring with me everywhere I go. You never know when a fight can happen."

* * *

 **Looks like it's Pedro's time to shine in this story (which I recognize looks more like a filler, but don't worry, I assure you it will have an impact in the future).**

 **As for those of you who are gonna say: "You copied Punch-Out!", thanks for pointing for those who didn't understood at first glance.**


	46. Pedro in action!

"HELLO, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN OF THE SPIX MACAW TRIBE!" shouted the bird which usually served as the referee for the matches at the Pit of Doom. He was standing in the middle of the boxing ring around which gathered many birds and wild creatures. "TODAY, THE WVBA WILL PROUDLY PRESENT YOU A SERIES OF BOXING MATCHES FEATURING A YOUNG OUTSIDER!"

"Time for the first match! Introducing first, to my left, from Paris, France, with a score of 1-99, he is ranked #3 on the Minor Circuit, "France's Glass Jaw" GLASS JOE!"

The seagull with curled head feathers and wearing red boxing gloves and shorts walked in the ring with saying: "Bonjour! Bonjour!" (Hello! Hello!) and waving his wing to the crowd before loosing his balance and almost tripping. Regaining his composure, he innocently smiled at the crowd.

"Okay...," the ref said before turning to the next one. "And to my right, from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, making his official debut in the WVBA, he wants to be nicknamed "Red Fist" PEDRO!"

The crowd cheered for their cardinal friend, who was now wearing red and black boxing gloves and shorts. "You don't even have red fists," Nico, who served as his corner help, mumbled.

"I know, but "Black Fist" sounds a bit racist, so," Pedro explained before stepping forward to meet Glass Joe in the middle of the ring as the ref called for the bell (where was she coming from?), starting the match.

Glass Joe just nervously walked around, throwing left jabs and right hooks which Pedro easily dodged and replied with punches to his head and torso. "This Glass Joe guy is not that strong," Brooke remarked.

"With a score of one victory for ninety-nine defeats, that's not very surprising," Alicia said with her wings crossed.

After many punches, Joe was getting covered of bruises and even had a black eye. As he was panting, Pedro scratched his head. "Are you serious6 That's all you can do? Dude, you're leaving WAY too many openings in your defense and your attacks are too predictable. Try to innovate a bit."

Joe blinked at him before straightening up. "Okay, if you say so." He then lifted his fist which he charged with red energy. "Eh, eh! Vive la France! (Long Live France!)" After saying that, he charged at Pedro for his strongest attack.

The cardinal just shrugged and jumped at the last second. "Dolphin Kick!" he shouted and performed a jumping dolphin pattern before delivering a strong kick under Joe's jaw, sending him flying and collapse down. The poor seagull groaned as he saw croissants spinning around his head as the ref started counting him down.

"1! 2! 3! 4! 5! 6! 7! 8! 9! 10! KO!" the ref screamed, meaning Pedro won the match.

"YEAH!" the cardinal wasted no time cheering and throwing a fist in the air in joy. "I WON MY VERY FIRST WVBA MATCH!"

"Nice job, Pedro!" Alex beamed in joy.

"Don't encourage him too much, Alex; that was his first match and Glass Joe was pretty weak," Lazaro deadpanned with rubbing the back of his head.

Nico jumped in the ring to celebrate with his best friend. "Young boy," Mr. Sandbird said from the outside to get his attention. "While I have to congratulate you for your victory, I'd like to ask you to not use too much kicks as boxe is a punching sport."

"I know, but I have a good variety of moves, you know," Pedro said with a chuckle before turning to Glass Joe and helping him back up. "You did good, pal. Sorta. But don't worry, with training, I'm certain you will get better."

As the medical team carried the French seagull away, the ref came to talk with Pedro. "Would you like to take a break before the next match, sir?"

"Nah; this match barely costed me any energy," Pedro declined.

"In that case, we'll proceed to the next match."

* * *

"Ladies and gentlemen, it is time for the second match! Introducing first, to my left, with a score of 23-13, he is ranked #2 on the Minor Circuit, "The German Steel Machine" VON KAISER!"

The brown macaw who was wearing dark brown boxing gloves, black overalls, and a strange mustache on his beak, was panting before looking seriously at Pedro and saying: "Achtung!" (Attention!)

"And to my right, from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with a score of 1-0, "Red Fist" PEDRO!"

He got cheered loudly once again as he took place before Von Kaiser and the ref called for the mysterious bell, starting the match. After walking in circles for a moment, the German macaw went on the offensive and revealed himself to be more agressive than Glass Joe.

Pedro was surprised and managed to either block or dodge all the attacks before replying with his owns. Von just blocked and twitched his head before going for a left jab right into Pedro's face, making him spit saliva.

"For the love of pastas!" he groaned with rubbing his suffering cheek. "I didn't saw that one coming!"

Von then said a little word in German before going for a right uppercut which Pedro ducked and replied with an uppercut of his own under his beak. Right after that, Von protected himself with his two wings while trembling. He then peaked his head out of his defense and said: "Mommy?"

Pedro didn't understood why he did that, but went for his Dolphin Kick into his face anyway, knocking him to the ground. The ref came to count him down: "1! 2! 3! 4! 5! 6! 7! 8! 9! 10! KO!" the ref screamed, meaning Pedro won the second match.

"Yes! He won again!" Rafael happily said and clapped for his friend.

"Why did Von expose himself like that?" blu asked. "He seemed to be on a roll, but at the last moment, he changed that."

"It's because of a trauma," Mr. Sandbird replied. "Before the WVBA was created, Von Kaiser suffered an emotional trauma as a result of being defeated by children during a training camp, back in his country. This causes him to sometimes leave an opening to his opponents. Which is too bad as this weakness prevents him from getting higher amongst our ranks," Sandbird admitted.

Blu and his friends suddenly felt a bit sorry for Von Kaiser. Even as Pedro was celebrating his second victory in the ring. "Alright, who's next?"

* * *

 **Are you enjoying seeing Pedro boxing so far?**


	47. Pedro in action part 2!

BEFORE THE CHAPTER:

The camera turns on and we see Nico and Pedro sitting on rocks. "Hello, everyone, Nico and Pedro here!" the cardinal happily said with waving his wing. "Before the chapter begins, I'd like to address all the people who find it unrealistic that I like to box. You see, I understand that you all know me as a samba lover, but that doesn't mean I cannot have other passions. The author of this story, for example, likes writing but also making drawings. In my case, it's dancing and boxing. Now that this is out of the way, LET'S START THIS CHAPTER!"

* * *

As Pedro took a break before his next match, all of his friends were relaxing near a tree to discuss. "Who do you think he's gonna face next?" Alex asked.

"It will probably be the number one of the Minor Circuit, what's his name already...Disco Dude?" Apollo asked.

"Disco Kid," Nico corrected with a nod. "But yes, I believe it will be him."

"You know, I never though your friend was that much of a fighter. I always though he was just a party guy," Roberto admitted.

"My friends are full of surprise, bro," Blu said with a cheeky smile to which the others all nodded in agreement.

"Ladies and gentlemen, it is time for the third match!" the ref called, marking the end of the break and making al the birds around come back. "Introducing first, to my left, with a score of 4-12, he is ranked #1 on the Minor Circuit, "Kidquick" DISCO KID!"

The scarlet macaw with an afro cup wearing dark blue boxing gloves and shorts danced to some disco song coming out from somewhere before striking a pose and smiling.

"Hum, okay... And to my right, from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with a score of 1-0, "Red Fist" PEDRO!"

He got cheered loudly once again as he took place before Disco Kid. "Let's go, Pedro!" Rafael shouted while his friends cheered too.

The referee called for the bell (where is she?) and Disco Kid gave a seductive smile at Pedro. the cardinal just looked at him blankly before punching him right in his smile.

"Hey!" he groaned with an insulted look. "How dare you hit me while I show you my seductive smile?! You're gonna pay!" Smirking, he got in a fighting pose. "Here it comes!" he said before swinging a left hook which Pedro easily dodged and replied with a jab.

"Come on, knock the shit out of him!" Alex cheered which earned him a slap behind the head from Dominic.

"Language, young man!" Dominic scolded.

Back in the ring, Pedro easily dodged all of Disco Kid's attacks and replied with his owns. The dancing scarlet macaw was starting to have a lot of marks on his body and panted in exhaustion.

"I don't understand, they nickname me Kidquick because of my great speed and agility! How can you dodge all my attacks?!"

Pedro just shrugged. "Well, maybe you should stop saying: "Here it comes!" before throwing your attack."

"I can't help it; it comes alone," Disco Kid said with shrugging too. "Here it comes!" he said before going for another left hook which Pedro ducked.

"Seriously? DOLPHIN KICK!" Hitting his final attack under Disco Kid's jaw, Pedro sent him spinning all around the ring for many seconds before collapsing, all dizzy.

"Here...it...comes..."

The ref shook his head before starting the count. "1! 2! 3! 4! 5! 6! 7! 8! 9! 10! KO!"

"YES!" Nico beamed as the crowd cheered and clapped for the cardinal underdog. "YOU WON, BRO!"

Pedro proudly lifted his fist in victory with the ref before he went to help the medical team carry Disco Kid away. Mr. Sandbird then walked in front of him with a firm look. "My young friend, I have to congratulate you for winning three matches in a row. However, this was only the easy part of the league. Your next opponent will be one of the three champions: King Hippo!"

Pedro widened his eyes. King Hippo was one of the three champions alongside Mr. Sandbird himself and Don Flamenco. He was also considered to be one of the biggest boxers of the league and in the world. However, he then smirked and smacked his fist into his wing.

"Alright then, bring him on!"

"Huh, I don't think that's a good idea, Pedro. Maybe you should just settle in for today-" Blu started but got interrupted by Nico.

"Stop it, Blu," he said with a smile which surprised the blue macaw. "You don't understand? This is his dream. Ever since he was a chick, he admired WVBA and now, he have the chance to face one of its three champions. This is a golden opportunity for Pedro."

* * *

"Ladies and gentlemen, it is time for the second match! Introducing first, to my right, from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with a score of 3-0, "Red Fist" PEDRO!"

"And to my left, from Hippo Island, South Pacific, with a score of 18-9, he is the Minor Circuit Champion, "The Island King" KING HIPPO!"

And the birds around immediately understood why he was called like that: King Hippo was a giant orange Pheasant with orange, red, and white boxing shorts and pink boxing gloves. He was also wearing a golden crown on top of his head. As he turned around and saw Pedro, he looked at him in surprise and laughed, probably because he doesn't saw him as much of a challenge.

Pedro groaned as he planned to prove him wrong. As soon as the ref called for the bell to start the match, the cardinal charged and delivered a strong swing into the pheasant's stomach. This only made it wobble and the king simply made some hippopotamus noises, looking unimpressed.

"Hit him on the head! On the head!" Nico shouted with jumping up and down.

Nodding, the cardinal went to strike the giant in the face. This made his head turn to the side, but he then simply looked back at him. Pedro's jaw fell down and his eyes were wide open. "Wanna play though? Alright then, time for me to go all out! DOLPHIN KICK!"

Jumping, he hit the kick right into Hippo's stomach which only wobbled a lot once more. Having enough, Hippo went for a raise punch into Pedro which knocked him into the ropes and down on the mat with a loud TUD!

"Pedro!" Rafael shouted as everyone looked in shock.

"1! 2! 3! 4! 5!" the ref counted until Pedro managed to get back up with blood coming out of his nose.

"I...didn't...say my...last...word," Pedro weakly said as he jumped again toward the giant. "Dolphin Kick-"

Hippo interrupted him this time with his strongest attack; the Hippo Squeeze, a two-handed hook. The attack knocked Pedro down even louder than the first time. The cardinal weakly groaned in pain as he laid on the mat.

"Pedro...," Nico mumbled while seeing his best friend struggling to get back up.

He managed to get back up by the count of 8. "I'm...not...done...yet...," he mumbled while staggering and throwing his punches randomly.

Hippo just scoffed and pushed a roar before delivering the ultimate blow to Pedro's already bleeding face, knocking him down on the ground. Since it was the third time he got knocked down in the same round, the ref had no choice but to declare: "TKO!"

King Hippo slammed victoriously on his stomach before his shorts dropped which made him embarrassed (despite the fact that birds usually don't wear clothes). Nico rushed into the ring to help Pedro by putting his wing over his shoulder and carry him outside.

"Pedro, are you alright?" the canary asked in concern.

"Did...I...won?" Pedro asked with blinking his swollen eyes.

Nico shook his head and smiled. "No, but you did an awesome fight, dude. Sort of."

Mr. Sandbird congratulated King Hippo for his victory before walking pass Nico and Pedro without saying anything. However, he suddenly stopped in his track and talked without even turning his head. "You still have a lot of way to go, young one. You're not ready to take on the WVBA for the moment."

Pedro looked at him before putting on a mad look. "It doesn't matter! I'm gonna train hard and then, I'll go find you and beat all the boxers of your league! Including you, Mr. Sandbird!"

The giant blue macaw remained silent and didn't turned to look at him. "...In that case, if you really wanna try the impossible and defeat the strongest boxers in the world, you're gonna have to train VERY hard everyday of your life for many years to come." He then finally decided himself to turn and look at him. "And even then, you'll only have a SLIGHT chance to win."

Pedro just scoffed. "No problem! I will work as hard as necessary, even if it's that have 1% chance. As someone once said, it's about going the distance!"

"Dude, that's a line from Rocky," Nico pointed out.

"Don't ruin the moment!" his cardinal friend mumbled.

This only made Sandbird smile before turning away. "Okay, everyone, we're going back home! Let's go!"

And with that, the WVBA flew away back home while all the tribe birds returned to their activities. Nico and Pedro got joined by their friends. "So you just set yourself a new goal, Pedro?" Dominic asked with crossing his wings.

"Yeah! I wanna become a great boxer and defeat those guys!" He then saw Nico glancing at him. "While still directing our club, our course, he, he. I'm gonna start my training tomorrow!"

"Okay, I can help you with that," Dominic pointed out, being the expert in hard training that he was, and smirked.

"Huh, no thanks; I'll just ask Blu to find him a good guide on the internet," Pedro politely denied.


	48. Three months later

**A wild new chapter! It is time for the adventures of Blu and his friends to start again! Let's go!**

* * *

It has now been three months since the events with the loggers and much had changed in the Amazon rainforest. It had started with when Blu, a spix macaw from Minnesota, Dominic, a swordsman eagle from Russia, and Apollo Bird, a barn owl from Canada, met Jewel, the supposed last female spix macaw on earth. After they all went to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil to be reunited with Jewel's friends, the group got embarked into an adventure across the whole city and made many friends and ennemies along the way.

This continued a few months later, when they discovered that Jewel and her friends' family and tribe were still alive in the Amazon rainforest. Recently, they had defeated a group of loggers who tried to destroy everything and Blu and his friends proved themselves to be worthy of living in the spix macaw tribe, also ending a very long conflict with the scarlet macaw tribe. Also very recently, the tribe received a visit from the WVBA (World Video Boxing Association) which is composed of the best boxers in the world and that happened to be Pedro's idols. He even got a chance to challenge a few of them and defeated three of their boxers before loosing to the champion King Hippo.

Blu also learned that Roberto, Jewel's former boyfriend, was his brother and that he also had three siblings by alliance from drinking a special cup as a kid. Skyler, Aqua, and Lilly. He learned a little about Aqua's whereabout; he was somewhere at the sea. But for now, the spix macaw was relaxing with his girlfriend, Jewel, at the waterfall.

Not too far from there, Dominic was laying on a tree branch, observing the couple with a smile. Three months passed and those two were still at the stage of nuzzling, having dates and kissing each other either on the cheek or the beak. He wondered how long it would take before they go to the...next level. But he could only be glad for his brother-at-arm - or "tovarishch" as he called them.

"DOMINIC!" yelled a voice, startling the eagle as a snowy owl jumped in his face.

Dominic squawked and jumped up, correcting himself and landing on the ground safely. "Long!" the eagle chided before turning to Alex. "What's the idea of jumping on me like that?! I could have accidentally hurt or worse kill you!"

Alex jumped down. "Sorry, Dominic! But Eduardo and Mimi wanted me to warn you that they're gonna have a meeting with the yellow macaw tribe and they would like you to assist to it. Apollo and Roberto will be there too."

Dominic sighed with rubbing his head. "Why do they always want me to attend their meetings? It's not like I'm a members of their council or anything. They should ask this to Blu, Jewel, or any spix macaw around here."

"Well, justly, they also wanted me to go say the same thing to Blu and Jewel," Alex added with a giggle as Dominic groaned and flew away. Alex then went to walk behind Blu and Jewel. "Hey, guys!"

The couple jumped in surprise. "Cheese and sprinkles, Alex! Don't make us jump like that!" Blu exclaimed.

"He, he, Dominic just told me the same thing," the snowy owl kid giggled. "But Eduardo and Mimi asked me to tell you that they want you guys to be present at the meeting with the yellow macaw tribe."

"Is that so?" Jewel asked with a smile. "Alright, tell them we'll be there." Suddenly, her stomach growled. "After stopping by the groove to take a breakfast," she added with a giggle.

Alex nodded before flying away while Blu and Jewel did the same.

* * *

The young snowy owl soon arrived at the tribe's village where all of his friends were gathered. He spotted Apollo Bird chatting with Lazaro and showing him a sword made of stone. "...And now that I learned how to perfectly craft wood, I also managed to find out how to do it with stone," the barn owl said. "Now, I got a sword made of wood and one made of stone."

"Okay, but I don't remember seeing you using a sword, dude," Lazaro pointed out.

"That's not the point, dude; now I can make tools of both wood and stone. If I keep this up, I'll know how to craft crystal, pure rock, gold, etc."

"So you can make a sword of each of those materials?" the puffin asked with crossing his flippers.

"No, you don't understand, Lazaro!" Apollo complained.

"What I understand is that you're wasting your time building weapons while all you need to defeat your opponent is to give them a good kick at the right spot."

"That's very dumb, Lazaro; everyone have its own fighting style and mine relies on using weapons-Oh, hello, Alex," Apollo interrupted himself upon seeing his owl friend arriving.

"Hey, guys. Am I late for the meeting?" he asked.

"The meeting has been cancelled," Eduardo informed him which caused the snowy owl to look at him curiously. "I'm sorry that you left anyway, but the yellow tribe announced us that they had to cancel the meeting because a giant storm is heading toward here."

Alex rose an eye brow. "And where is it coming from?"

"From the Brazil nut groove side and it's coming pretty fast," Roberto answered.

This caused Alex to gasp. "Holy cow! Blu and Jewel are at the groove! They went there to eat before coming here!"

This caused the others to widen their eyes. "But if they don't get to safety; they could get hurt by the storm!" Dominic said with pointing his beak at the sky which already started getting dark with clouds accompanied by a strong wind. "Eduardo! Get everyone to safety; we'll go get Blu and Jewel!" he added to which Eduardo nodded in agreement. "Let's go!"

* * *

Meanwhile, at the grove, Blu and Jewel were eating nuts that Blu took a good amount of time to choose. "Mmmh, this is delicious! I didn't knew you had this thing to pick up fruits, Blu."

Blu chuckled. "When it's to make my wonderful girlfriend happy, I'm ready for anything."

"Awww," Jewel said with giving him a kiss on the cheek. Even after a few months, Blu still felt like the luckiest bird on earth for having such a kind, beautiful, independent girl like Jewel as a girlfriend. Every time he saw her smile, he felt like he could move mountains and break oceans. And he never regretted for one second to have left his old home with Linda to be with her and all of his friends.

SPLASH!

The happy moment got interrupted by a huge water drop falling on top of Blu's head, completely wetting him. "What the cheese?!" he exclaimed with looking at his wet feathers.

Jewel turned her head and saw that it started raining. Really hard. "When did this storm started? I didn't saw it. It looks pretty violent! Blu, we need to go back to the tribe and get to safety!"

Blu nodded and dropped his nut as they tried to take off in the sky, but the violent wind and heavy raindrops pinned them to the jungle floor. "WE CAN'T TAKE OFF! THE WIND IS TOO STRONG!" Blu screamed at Jewel who nodded with her eyes closed to shield them from the temperature.

CRASH!

Blu lifted his head after hearing a lightning noise and saw a pretty strange phenomenon: in the dark sky above them, the dark clouds started forming a circle and thunder came out of it - but not an ordinary thunder, a RED one.

"BLU! JEWEL!" They turned their head to see Dominic, Apollo, Vladimir, Hernandez, Lazaro, Alex, Rafael, Nico, and Pedro arriving by running. "We found you! what a luck! We need to take-WHAT THE HELL IS THAT?!" Vladimir exclaimed upon seeing the phenomenon in the sky above them.

The others looked at it in shock too before Dominic snapped out of it. "QUICK! GET AWAY FROM IT!"

Unfortunately, it was too late as a red thunder dove down right toward them. Apollo pushed a scream and protected himself with his wings "AAAAAAA-"

* * *

"-AAAAAAAH! I DON'T WANNA DIE! THERE IS SO MANY THINGS I HAVE LEFT TO DO! LIKE MASTER THE ART OF CRAFTING, BUILDING THE COOLEST TOOLS IN THE WORLD, GETTING A GIRLFRIEND-"

"Apollo," Alex said with poking at his leg. The barn owl opened his eyes to see the round snowy owl looking at him blankly.

"Huh, I was kidding, of course. I knew everything would be fine and I wouldn't have died with regrets anyway," Apollo affirmed with a fake smile.

"Huh, where are we?" Rafael asked.

Indeed, upon turning his eyes, Apollo realized that they were still in a forest, but it wasn't the Amazon rainforest. It was another one...

* * *

 **Oh my gosh! what was this red thunder? Where our friends landed? Stay stunned for the next chapter to find out ;)**


	49. The forest

**In the previous chapter, everything was going fine in the Amazon until a big storm arrived and sent our heroes into a strange forest.**

* * *

Blu and his friends looked all around at the strange forest they found themselves in. "Huh, do you guys know where we landed?" he asked with scratching his head in confusion.

"Maybe this is another part of the jungle?" Jewel proposed.

"Nope," Dominic said with shaking his head and looking up at the sky. "The climate here is boreal and the trees are thick fir."

"This thunder must have teleported us somewhere by magic," Apollo nervously suggested. "Maybe we landed in Australia."

Blu shook his head. "The weather is too different for the season. I don't know where we are, but we must no longer be in Brazil."

Dominic touched the ground with his wing to try and get an idea of their location, but it was pointless. He then rose his head toward the sky. "I'm gonna go fly up and look at the horizon. This could give us a clue about where we are."

"We're coming with you," Hernandez said and Dominic just nodded before taking off followed by his friends.

Once they were high enough, they could get a pretty good view of the horizon. And it was pretty impressive. The forest they were in was filled with rivers and thick fir trees that cover up the sky when veiwed from above. The sky above them was mixed between the end of the day and the start of the night, meaning that the sun was still visible above a mountain, but the stars were starting showing up.

"...What's this forest?" Vladimir asked in pure confusion. "It doesn't look like anything I've seen in my books."

"Okay, this gotta be just a dream," Pedro said with closing his eyes. "I'm just gonna close my eyes and wake up in my bed after all my boxes fight-"

TUMP!

Before the cardinal could finish his sentence, someone bumped into him, making him loose his balance and almost fall down. "Ouch! Hey, watch out! You're not alone in this..."

He stopped upon seeing the person who bumped into him. It was a male barn owl with white feathers, safe for the ones all over his back, the back of his wings and around his facial disk. His eyes were yellow and he seemed like an adult in his mid-thirties.

"By Glaux, all my apologies," he quickly said before giving an odd look at the group. "Hum, who are you? I don't remember seeing you in the forest before."

"Greetings, my name is Blu," he introduced himself before holding his wing for a wingshake. However, the barn owl just looked curiously at him, as if he never did a wingshake before. "Hum, anyways," Blu continued with taking his wing back, "do you know in which forest we are?"

"Why you are in the Tyto forest of course," the owl replied with a smile. "Oh, I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Noctus."

This earned him a confused look from the whole group. "Tyto forest?" Rafael asked. "Is that in Brazil?"

"No, it is in the owl kingdom that is inhabited by barn owls of all race. It is one of the five Southern Kingdoms, and is also located right by the desert of Kuneer," Noctus explained.

Okay, now the group had more questions than answers. Owl kingdom? Southern Kingdoms? Desert of Kuneer? In which country did they landed? However, before they could throw him a storm of questions, Noctus decided to excuse himself.

"I beg your pardon as I would like nothing more than help you, but I must go search for my sons."

Alex gave him a curious look. "You lost your sons?"

"Yes; my mate and I went hunting, but once we returned to our hollow, our sons were gone. They probably tried to continue their flying lessons after we left. As much as we try, we cannot find them anywhere." The barn owl seemed very concerned.

"Hum, maybe we can help with that?" Alex proposed which earned him looks from his friends. "What? This guy needs help. We can take a few minutes to give him a wing, right?"

Dominic just sighed and turned toward Noctus. "If we help you, will you tell us more about...well everything?"

"I don't know if I can ask this of you," the barn owl said which made Dominic smile.

"You know I'm an eagle, right? Searching is one of my specialties. I'm an hunter after all." He then turned toward his friends before stopping and turning back to Noctus. "But just to be sure, can you tell us your sons' names?"

"Yes; they are called Soren and Kludd," Noctus replied. "Once you find them, search for the biggest hollow tree on the East of the mountain."

Dominic nodded and turned toward the group. "Alright, everyone, let's go!" And with that, they all flew away.

* * *

Unfortunately, after a long time of searching, the group didn't found any trace of two young barn owls anywhere. This forest was huge and the numerous trees and giant stones decorating it were not helping. "That's not good," Blu mumbled as he flew around the forest with his girlfriend beside him. "I'm fearing the worst."

"Think we should try to find Noctus and announce him?" Jewel asked with an unhappy look.

"Yeah, it would be better that way-"

"Guys!" They turned to see Dominic arriving. He seemed in a hurry. "I saw something! Follow me!"

Blu and Jewel exchanged a glance before following their eagle. After they passed above a small hill, he pointed forward toward a rather surprising sight: farther from their position was some kind of owl carrying something in its talons. Wait, it seemed to be...a chick?

"Who's this guy? And what is he doing with this chick?!" Blu asked in surprise. "You think it's his kid?"

"No," Dominic said with shaking his head. "If he was, he wouldn't be crying like this." Blu couldn't hear anything, but it was most likely because Dominic had a better hearing than he.

"We must help him!" Jewel said and was about to go after them, but Dominic stopped her with his wing.

"Wait, Jewel. I want to help him too, but think about it; if this guy's capturing a chick, it's possible he did it with Noctus' kids too."

"What do you want to do then?" Jewel asked with rising an eye brow.

"I want you to go search for the others and tell them about what we found before joining us. Meanwhile, Blu and I will follow this guy to his hideout. It could be there that he's holding Noctus' sons," Dominic explained.

"Hey!" Jewel said with a glare. "Why should it be you two? you think that just because I'm a girl, I cannot defend myself?"

Dominic rolled his eyes. "No, Jewel; it's just because I'm an hunter and you are better at flying than Blu, so you can get go warn the others faster, okay?"

"Hey!" Blu exclaimed with a pointing look at his partner.

"Just telling the truth."

Jewel giggled before giving a kiss on her boyfriend's cheek. "Be careful out there, blueberry," she said before flying in the opposite direction, leaving a red Blu and Dominic alone.

"Let's go, lovehawk," Dominic said with a chuckle before flying after the kidnapper.


	50. A pretty dark discovery

**For those of you who didn't got it in the previous chapter despite it being obvious, yes, Blu and his friends landed in the world of Legend Of The Guardians: The Owls Of Ga'Hoole from Zack Snyder.**

* * *

Blu and Dominic silently flew after the barn owl who kidnapped a young chick through the Tyto forest with Dominic giving a glare at his spix macaw friend every time he made a made flapping and made too much noise. After many minutes of flying, they came out of the forest and entered into a desert-like landscape. It was probably the zone Noctus talked about: the desert of Kubeer or something.

"Man, things got hot!" Blu said with rubbing his sweating forehead because of the heat. "How far is this guy planning on going?"

"I have no idea, but I hope it won't be too far 'cause we're not equipped to make a travel through a desert," Dominic said, his feathers bathing in sweat too.

After what felt like an eternity, the kidnapper finally arrived to noticeable spot. It looked like a palace built into stone with some flames on at a few spots and big red flags decorating the entrance. Upon seeing this and after the kidnapper entered the canyon, the two birds stopped dead in their track.

"What is this place?" Blu asked with his eyes wide open as he though palaces like this only existed in history books. He then shook his head. "but it doesn't matter; we must go save this hatchling from this guy before he can hurt him! And find Noctus' sons too!"

However, Dominic stopped Blu with his wing before he could act. "Don't rush, Blu. We don't know anything about this place; it could be dangerous, filled with traps, hostile birds, or even both!" He then narrowed his eyes. "The best thing to do would be to scout the arena and see if-ARGH!"

In a split-second, Blu saw a bird figure dashing past Dominic and cutting him across the back with its talons, making feathers and blood fly up in the air and sending the eagle collapsing down on the dry ground below. "DOMINIC!" Blu exclaimed and quickly flew down beside his friend. Luckily, the ground wasn't too far and Dominic didn't got injured. "Are you okay?"

"Well, safe for a big bleeding scratch in my back, everything's fine!" Dominic replied with rubbing his bleeding back with his wing before kicking up and angrily taking out his saber. "Alright, where's this ublyudok (bastard) that clawed me in the back...?"

He slowly shut his beak upon seeing that many - MANY - owls surrounded them. Those owls were no ordinary ones like Noctus or Apollo. Their feathers were all black just like the metal helmets they were wearing that had a slit to show their red eyes. And those eyes reflected anything but happiness. The scariest part was that their talons were equipped with metal claws to seemed very sharp (Dominic could confirm it).

"Huh...okay, what do we do now?" Blu asked before turning his head to see Dominic already dropped his sword and rose his wings to surrender.

"We don't really have sixty choices, do we?" he remarked.

* * *

And so, Blu and Dominic got escorted by the dark owls into the canyon which was pretty dark and intimidating looking. "I can't believe it," Blu mumbled as he walked beside Dominic. "I knew we should have gone to my science-fiction convention instead of staying in the jungle like you wanted!"

"Of course, instead, we would have been kidnapped by loosers dressed as Pokemons," Dominic sarcastically replied with rolling his eyes.

Soon, they arrived into a spot of the canyon and brought before two intimidating owls. They were both long-eared owls with one of them having grey feathers with brown streaks and the other being brown with grey streaks. They both had one yellow and one white eye, a strange bone piercing coming out of their nose, and a pretty scary look in their face.

"What do you got there?" the grey one asked the black soldiers.

"Intruders, sublieutenant Jatt and Jutt," the soldier replied. "We found them trying to enter St. Aggies by the canyon."

The grey owl - Jutt - looked at the two birds with an intimidating glance which made Blu tremble while Dominic did not flinch at all. "I don't know where the two of you come from, but here, at St. Aegolius Academy for Orphaned Owls, we do not tolerate intruders and spies!" he said into Dominic's face. "Do you know what fate we reserve for those kinds of birds?"

"Do what you want with us as long as you stop talking in my face with your disgusting breath," Dominic simply replied with wincing because of the bad smell.

This made Jutt widen his eyes with an insulted look. "What?! My bad breath?! How dare you!"

Before he could smash the eagle down with his wing, Jatt putted his own wing before him to make him stop. "Calm down, Jutt; he's a golden eagle. You know how hard it is to find and capture? He's gonna be of a great help around here. As for the other one, I don't know his species, but I'm certain he'll be useful for the Pure Ones and Lord Great Tyto after a night in the Glaucidium."

This caused Blu and Dominic to blink their eyes many times. Pure Ones? Lord Great Tyto? Glaucidium? They never saw a spix macaw before? This was getting stranger by the minutes. Jutt blinked a few times before turning to the prisoners. "Alright then, get them with the other owlets; the night is starting."

And with that, the soldiers and sublieutenant led the two birds to another part of this St. Aggies or they didn't know what prison. Blu gulped as he walked close to his eagle friend. "I don't like where this is going, Dominic."

"Me neither. I'd knock them out with my sword, but they took it away after capturing us. So there's not much we can do," the eagle whispered back before being silence by a soldier's slap.

Soon, they arrived into a deep box canyon which was filled with owlets of all species being guarded by soldiers all around. There was nothing very particular about this place outside of the fact that the sky was open and allowed the full moon to shine on everyone.

"Alright, young owlets, it is time for you to sleep as tomorrow will be a restless day of work for you all," Jatt said. "Rise your head, point it toward the glorious full moon and sleep."

Blu and Dominic were made to stand in line with owlets who were already starting to fall asleep. "Hum, can we have a nest? And also a little milk? I always sleep better with milk," Blu asked, but Dominic quickly shushed him.

"Soren, we must not fall asleep," a little feminine voice whispered beside him. Dominic turned his head to see that beside him was standing a little female elf owl with nut-coloured feathers that were also white starting from the lower part of her body. She had brown spots on her stomach and, like every owl, her eyes were black and yellow with white facial expressions around them. She was pretty cute.

Beside her was a male barn owl with white feathers on his front and light brown on his back, an heart-shaped head and black and yellow eyes. He was taller than the elf owl, but seemed as scared as she was. Dominic noticed that they were having a conversation.

"We must not fall asleep!" the elf owl mumbled. "I think they are trying to moon blink us!"

"Moon blink us? What does that mean?" Dominic asked which made the elf owl notice him and back up in surprise. "Don't be afraid. I'm a good guy. My name is Dominic."

"I-I am Gylfie," the elf owl replied.

"Gylfie?" Blu asked with sudden interest. "That's funny; it's the name of a king in Norse Mythology. It can also mean "Gentle" or "youthful"," he stopped talking as the three others looked blankly at him. "Hum, sorry," he said with rubbing the back of his head. "My name is Blu."

"And I'm Soren," the male barn owl also introduced himself. "What kind of owl are you? And from which kingdom are you coming from?"

"I'm not an owl but a spix macaw," Blu responded. "And I'm from no "kingdom", I'm from Moose Lake, Minnesota."

They were forced to shut up as a patrolling soldier passed by, forcing them to close their eyes and pretending sleep. After inspecting them for a few seconds, he walked away, allowing them to open their eyes again.

"So what's this moon blinking thing you talked about, Gylfie?" Dominic asked the little girl again.

"Sometimes, when owls fall out of energy in the dessert, they collapse and fall asleep under the moon. Upon waking up, they are totally different, as if they forgot who they are. I don't know more," she nervously explained.

"In other words, we must not fall asleep like those guys wants us to, right?" Dominic asked.

Gylfie nodded and then looked up at the sky. "I know those stars. I could take us away from here, but..."

"But what?" Blu asked with rising an eye brow.

"We would need to fly and we don't know."

"What?!" Blu exclaimed before covering his beak with both of his wings. "You guys don't know how to fly? But how's that possible? You look older than me."

"Well, I passed the step of the branches," Soren explained. "But I fell with my brother before we could go any further. That was a mistake."

Dominic widened his eyes as a realization suddenly stroke his head. "Wait, is your father Noctus?"

Soren widened his eyes too and starred at the eagle. "Yes, how do you know?"

"That's a long story, but I'll tell you everything tomorrow. For now, we must focus on staying awake all night long and without getting caught."

"But how are we gonna do that? I'm already starting to feel sleepy," Blu nervously whispered.

"Why don't you explain them what is a video game?" Dominic suggested.

"What's a video game?" Gylfie asked and Blu started telling them everything. Dominic rolled his eyes in amusement as they were sure to not fall asleep tonight...


	51. Pelletorium

**I forgot to mention something in the previous chapter: WE GOT TO OUR 50TH CHAPTER! That's right! And you didn't even saw half of what The Dynamic Adventure's world is made of.**

* * *

After a full night during which Blu explained to his two new friends, Soren and Gylfie, what were video games (even though in the end, they remembered absolutely nothing about his explanations), the sun finally rose to bring dawn and marked the end of the night at St. Aggie's.

The first thing the group of four birds noticed was that the owlets around them were no longer the same; their eyes became hazy white and their faces no longer expressed any form of emotion. "Oh no!" Soren mumbled while shaking his wing before an owlet next to him.

"What's wrong with them?" Blu also whispered with shaking another owlet before they suddenly all started walking back into the canyon, forcing them to follow.

"Soren! Blu! Dominic!" Gylfie mumbled nervously. "Where are they taking us?!"

"Gylfie, we need to pretend to be moon blinked!" Soren mumbled to everyone before walking with a blank look like the owlets. Blu, who was walking beside him, nodded and did the same.

Dominic took a deep breath before also pretending to be moon blinked. However, as he walked forward, he noticed that Gylfie, who was walking beside him, was putting a bit too much into her act by walking in a jerky way with her wings lifted and her face exaggerated.

He leaned toward her. "Gylfie, you're doing a bit too much." This made her blush while smiling nervously before toning down a bit. "Say, do you know where they're taking us and for what?"

"Well, after they tucked Soren and I here, I confronted the leader of their group, Nyra, and she decided that we would be pickers. I don't know what it is, but I don't think it will be fun."

Soon, they arrived in a box canyon like the glaucidium where the owls were dissecting strange alien material. Soren, Gylfie, Blu, and Dominic were made to stand side-by-side amongst the moon blinked owlets, trying their best to not get spotted. The soldiers soon started distributing some brown, frothing balls before them.

Blu looked curiously at the little object. "What's that?"

Soren and Gylfie suddenly frowned after inspecting their own. "Berk! Those are pellets!"

"Pellets?" Dominic asked with a curious look.

"You don't know? It's what owls spit out by their beak after eating to empty their stomach," Soren explained. This caused the macaw and eagle to widen their eyes at the realization.

"In other words, it's like crap, but coming out of the beak," Blu pointed out.

"Blu, please, don't say that," Dominic begged with closing his eyes and clutching his wings. "We're gonna have to peak that. I'm already making a huge effort to not puke."

Luckily, fate decided to be nice with them as the two sublieutenant suddenly asked for everyone's attention. "Look at what Mister 47-2 just found," Jatt said with taking a little shining stone from a pellet between his talons. "You already know everything we find in a pellet; fur, bones, just classic. But the special ingredient which is as rare as precious is that our little fieldmouse ate a fragment of fleck."

Jutt nodded. "And since I am nice, I decided that you," he said with pushing the stone into Soren's beak, making him cough a bit, "would get the honour to be volunteer and go put this one with the last ones." He then gently pushed Soren toward a spot of the canyon box where was stocked a large pile of flecks.

"You're all watching?" Jatt asked.

Soren nervously stepped forward, not knowing what was awaiting him, when Jutt gave him a push in the back. "Come on!"

As Soren got near the pile of flecks, a strange blue aura energy suddenly got hold of the fragment he was holding in his beak as well as his stomach, dragging him forward. This caused his three friends to look in surprise.

"Soren!" Gylfie nervously mumbled.

"What's this thing?" Dominic wondered with sweating.

Soren soon collapsed down and seemed to have an hard time breathing. "What's happening to him?" Blu asked with opening his eyes widely.

Suddenly, a bat that the others failed to notice before jumped down and carefully approached Soren. Was he going to bite him? No, he was swiftly grabbed the fleck in his beak and added it to the big pile before pushing a scream and carried it away with another one, releasing the strange pressure on Soren in the process.

"Soren, what happened?" Gylfie asked her friend after he returned to them.

"Gylfie, what those owls are doing is horrible," Soren mumbled, out of breath. "We must find Kludd and get out of here quick!" Just as Blu and Dominic were going to ask him about his brother's whereabout, a strange male boreal owl with white and red feathers marked like most of the other soldiers in here arrived and looked far from happy.

"What are you two planning exactly?! Huh?!" he asked with a glare.

"Huh... We are moon blinked," Blu replied with a zombie voice and tried to hide his nervosity, making Dominic facewinging himself. If he was moon blinked, he wouldn't even have answered that.

* * *

After getting caught, the four birds got carried away from the pellotorium and into a strange and intimidating hallway. "W-What are you gonna do with us?" Soren nervously asked.

"Advance!" the boreal owl ordered with pushing him forward. Soren then noticed that Gylfie had her eyes wide open and was purring of nervousness.

Soon, they arrived through a barricade into what seemed to be some kind of library. "W-What is this place?" Gylfie nervously asked.

"Advance and stop asking questions!" the boreal owl ordered with pushing Soren and Blu inside.

Gylfie then spotted bones in a corner that looked like remaining of an owl. Could this bird be...?! "Huh, you know, the Pure Ones won't be happy if you don't bring us back to the pelletorium," Gylfie nervously remarked.

"Indeed, and they won't be happy upon finding out what I am gonna do with you," he declared with a glare that caused Gylfie to let out a squeak of terror. Meanwhile, though nervous, Blu got ready to fight back using his plastic body while Dominic glared at the boreal owl. Saber or not, he was not planning on letting this guy hurt his friends. "I'm gonna teach you how to fly."

This declaration earned him confused looks. "Fly?" Soren asked.

The owl suddenly took on a softer look. "You can breath now," he said to Gylfie who let out a relieved sigh, making him chuckle a bit. "Yes, I swore to myself that should anyone be courageous enough to stand up to the Pure Ones, I'll help them. Looks like it will be the four of you. My name is Grimble by the way," he finally introduce himself.

"Ah, that's a relief," Blu said to which Dominic nodded in agreement.

"But, aren't you a-" Soren started.

"A Pure One? No. I hate em. Almost as much as I hate what they've turned me into." Grimble then looked at his feathers with disgust. "My feathers have not always been tainted by those colors. When the Pure Ones invaded my kingdom, I fought valiantly with all my forces. They took away my mate and daughter, promising that if I followed orders, no harm would come to them, and I had been doing their dirty work ever since."

"Man, I'm sorry to hear that," Blu said with rubbing the back of his head in compassion. Grimble then flew up to a perch and looked down at the young birds.

"Have ever tried to fly?" he asked.

"No; I passed the step of the branches," Soren explained as Gylfie also shook her head.

"I learned how to fly around seven years ago," Blu said with a chuckle, feeling a bit ridiculous for learning how to fly so recently.

"I know how to fly since I was a kid," Dominic simply said with crossing his wings.

"Alright, so you two can stay out of this," Grimble said to Blu and Dominic before looking back at Soren and Gylfie. "As for you two, you won't have the chance to easily slide down from a nest here. We're gonna start with what you know, so show me. Come on."

And with that, Soren and Gylfie started flapping their wings to go as high as they could. However, after reaching a bit too high, Gylfie stopped and fell on top of Soren's head before landing on the ground. She then giggled which made the others around laugh as well.

"Alright, enough laughing, you two, restart from where you stopped!" Grimble ordered and Gylfie just let herself fall in tiredness.


	52. The fly home

After a few hours, Grimble taught Soren and Gylfie power skills and pushed them to their limit to perfect them. "You did good, but you most push your wings harder to get faster," Grimble instructed as he flew above the teen owls while Blu and Dominic stood to the sidelines with the former reading a book.

"I can't push my wings strong enough, Grimble. My wings are too short," Gylfie said with looking at her little wings and her round figure was not really helping either.

"Lyze of Kiel's wings were short," Grimble answered with landing before them. "That didn't stop him."

"Lyze of Kiel?" Dominic asked with a curious look.

"It's the hero of my favorite stories!" Soren suddenly said.

Grimble nodded. "And you will all need to fly a long way to get to the Guardians."

This earned him surprised looks from Soren and Gylfie and confused ones from Blu and Dominic. "The Guardians of Ga'Hoole?" Soren asked.

"Guardians of Gaia-what?" Blu asked with putting his book down. "Who are you talking about?"

"The Guardians of Ga'Hoole," Soren said. "My dad always told me their stories; they are the protectors of the Owl Kingdoms and most valiant heroes in all of them!"

"But how are we gonna find them?" Gylfie asked.

"Well, you will need to fly to the sea of Hoolemere where the island is hidden by-"

"...by a large mist that hides it from the eyes of everyone, safe to the ones of those who have a pure and sincere heart," Soren finished, making Grimble nod with a smile.

"Oh, by the way, my eagle friend," Grimble then said and went to pick up something in his material. It was Dominic's saber! "I don't know what this tool is, but you seem very attached to it, judging by the way you protested when those patrols took it away from you."

Dominic took his saber in his wings and then bowed to Grimble. "Thank you so much, Grimble. This saber is no just a toll; it have a special meaning for me. I'll always be grateful to you."

The boreal owl chuckled. "I would have come with you four, but I still hold out the hope of freeing my family."

"Really?" The birds all jumped and turned around to see a group of intruder owls entering the library. There was two Pure One soldiers following a male barn owl who had a small mohawk of feathers on his head and some dark scars on his face. He looked a bit similar to Soren. Leading the three of them was a female barn owl who had pure white feathers and some strange red markings on her face. This face justly reflected an unhappy expression.

"Kludd!" Soren exclaimed while looking behind her. So this guy was his brother?

"Go! Go now!" Grimble said to his four friends who started running away in the opposite direction.

"Get them!" the female owl ordered and the two Pure Ones soldiers charged forward. Grimble got in the way and easily knocked the first one to the side with a wing strike before knocking out the second one by performing a backflip move that slammed his head hard onto the rocky ground. For an old owl, he was pretty strong.

Meanwhile, Soren and Gylfie stopped before the edge of the library's hill which gave an opening to the outside while Blu and Dominic already took off. "Soren, we need to go!" Gylfie said.

He turned back toward the inside of the library where they saw that Grimble managed to take down the female owl and pinned her under his talons while Kludd was still watching. "Wait! Kludd! Come quick!"

"What are you waiting for, boy? You have a chance to return home!" Grimble shouted to Kludd who was still looking hesitantly between his brother and the female owl.

"I'm...I am home!" he suddenly said and screeched at Grimble.

"No...," Soren mumbled with his eyes wide open in shock.

This distraction gave the female enough time to strike Grimble in the eyes and then toss him away with her wing, injuring his wing in the process. "Would you hurt your queen, Grimble?" she asked with getting back up.

"You are not my queen, Nyra!" the boreal owl angrily replied and smashed a nearby candle light to put a wall of fire between them. Unfortunately, Nyra flew through it and into Grimble, making the two of them roll toward Soren and Gylfie.

"WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?! LET'S GO!" Dominic shouted in hurry.

"It's now or never!" Blu added.

Eventually, as Grimble and Nyra got closer, Soren and Gylfie finally found the courage to jump from the hill. While Soren seemed to get well from his lessons, Gylfie was loosing her balance and was about to crash on the ground below. "GYLFIE!" Soren shouted and, just as she was about to fall to her death, he gave her a swing after a slide to help her regain her balance.

Blu pushed a sigh of relief before turning his head and seeing something shocking. Grimble fought Nyra and two Pure One soldiers in mid-air, but ended up sustaining too many injuries which led to Nyra striking him and letting him fall down and crash below to his death!

Blu barely had time to register this before looking up at Nyra and seeing that she gave them a red look - that wasn't a figure of speaking; her eyes got LITERALLY blood red and filled with anger - before flying off toward he with two soldiers. "Holy cheese and sprinkles! We gotta go!" Blu shouted to his friends as they started flying away for their lives.

The four birds flew as fast as they could throughout the fortress, looking for an exit. Dominic was held back a little because of the cut on his back while Soren and Gylfie, being inexperienced, were not going too fast either. Eventually, Soren spotted a light coming from the end of the path they were flying through.

"Guys! I see an exit!" he shouted.

"Where? OUCH!" Gylfie asked before one of the soldiers caught up to her and slashed one of her legs.

"Gylfie!" Soren shouted before Blu turned around and swung his wing before stretching it to punch the soldier right in the face. While it did knock him back, he still felt pain from smashing a metal helmet and had to shake his wing a little because of the pain.

Then, as the attackers were getting near, the four birds arrived at the end of the tunnel which had a little hole from where the light was coming. In a last desperate attempt, the four of them all closed their eyes and dived toward it. By some miracle, they all passed through it, just as the soldiers were close to catch them with their talons.

This made them exit out into the open fresh air outside the canyon. "Come on, guys! Fly faster!" Dominic screamed through the wind as they flew through an haze away from St. Aggie's.

"I can't! I need to rest!" Gylfie panted while flapping her wings in pain.

"Faster! We need to get away from them as fast as possible!" Soren shouted with flapping his wings hard. Eventually, though, he calmed down a bit and turned to look behind him and saw that St. Aggie's was no longer in view but neither were the Pure Ones. "We lost them...," he realized before feeling the wind through his feathers. "Hey, you know what, Gylfie."

"What?"

"We're flying!" he happily said and flew up in the clouds. As she realized it too, Gylfie panted a lot with a smile before going to join her friend and flew with fun through the clouds and into the sunset. Blu and Dominic exchanged a smile as they saw that and were glad for their friends.

"So, is it as good as you imagined it?" Soren asked Gylfie.

"No," she replied with stepping on his wing to gain more momentum and felt the fresh wind in her face. "It's even better!"

The four friends enjoyed flying above the clouds and toward the sunset for a while before getting serious again. "So, what do we do now?" Gylfie asked.

"We're gonna find the Guardians of Ga'Hoole!" Soren declared with determination.

"Wait, guys!" Blu interrupted. "We first need to go back to the Tyto Forest. Our friends are still there and your father is searching for you, Soren." This made the barn owl widen his eyes in surprise.

"We must first find somewhere to stop and rest," Dominic pointed out. "Gylfie has been hurt by one of those guys and, honestly, the cut in my back doesn't tickle either. Let's go!"

* * *

 **Alright, our friends escaped St. Aggie's at the cost of Grimble's life (seriously, this character is so underrated). Now, they have three objectives in sight: finding a spot to rest, returning to their friends and Soren's family, and find the Guardians of Ga'Hoole to stop the Pure Ones. Looks like they have a long way to go.**


	53. Digger and Twilight

**In the previous chapter, our feathered friends escaped St. Aggie's and the Pure ones after Grimble sacrificed his life. they are now on their way to go find the Guardians of Ga'Hoole and also their friends.**

* * *

After a few minutes of flying during which Blu announced Grimble's death, saddening everyone, and also explained how he stretched his wing to save Gylfie (which surprised them as they didn't knew about Magical Fruits and didn't even knew what plastic was supposed to be), our four feathered friends arrived into what seemed to be a little swamp with no visible life in sight. Soren, however, spotted a little moth standing on a leaf.

"Pss, are you guys hungry?" Soren asked his friends.

"Why?" Gylfie asked in confusion.

"Watch," he whispered an swiftly caught the moth in his talons, landing on the ground in the process.

"Hey!" Soren jumped and turned around to see a male burrowing owl with brown and white feathers and yellow eyes coming out from an hole in the ground. "Oh, nice little hunting you should really be proud of you, son," he sarcastically said with stomping on the ground. "Catching a moth that has already been caught."

Soren looked at him in confusion. "Wait, you haven't caught it!"

The burrowing owl humped his chest in indignation. "I was close! We could even say I was this close," he said with showing a little space between two talons. Just then, the moth in question escaped Soren's clutch and flew away which the boys noticed. "Oh, perfect...," the burrowing owl mumbled.

Just then, Gylfie coughed to get their attention and the intruder realized that Soren was accompanied by three friends. "Oh, an ambush! I bet you didn't expected that!" he said and took a pose before suddenly digging into the ground, sending some dirt onto everyone. Dominic received one on his beak and just looked annoyingly before pushing it away with his feather.

"Oookay?" Blu mumbled as he and his two friends joined Soren near the hole.

"I'm sorry, we didn't meant to take your moth," Gylfie nicely apologized.

"It wasn't his moth," Soren argued.

"Yes it was," Digger said from his hole.

"You don't seem to know the rules of hunting, my friend; the one who catches the prey gets to keep it, not matter if someone else was already hunting it before or not-" Dominic explained before being silenced by an annoyed glance from Gylfie.

"We were just looking for a place to hide in rest," she kept explaining.

The burrowing owl then peeked his head out of his hole. "In which order?" he asked with a curious glance.

"What do you mean?" Soren asked.

"Did you need to hide first or rest first?"

"What difference does it make?" Gylfie asked curiously.

The owl suddenly jumped out of his hole and into the birds' face, making them jump in surprise. "Huge! If you need to hide first, I'll tell you're in big trouble," he said with making a head tilt and a funny face with it before swiftly getting behind Soren. "But if resting was on your mind, I'd say your situation isn't that bad."

"He's moving pretty fast," Blu mumbled to Dominic who nodded.

"We're on our way to the Sea of Hoolemere," Soren tried to explain as the burrowing owl kept running around and making funny faces. "We're gonna find the Guardians of Ga'Hoole."

"Really?" the owl asked with a curious look. "Two little owlets like you, an eagle and you, whatever you're supposed to be," he said to Blu who rose an eye brow, "will never reach the sea. There are some really scary beasts out that way."

"Scary beasts?" Blu and Gylfie asked at unison in fear.

"If the hawks don't make a quick lunch of you, then the buzzards will," the owl continued. "And if the buzzards don't get you, the dingoes wait in the trees. And as you fly by, they-"

"Our request remains the same, owl," Soren cut him off. "Do you have a place to rest? My friends are hurt," he said with pointing at Dominic and Gylfie. While the eagle seemed okay, the burrowing owl seemed to feel rather sorry for the little elf owl and sighed.

"Name's Digger," he finally introduced himself before pointing to a nearby tree. "The hollow's this way."

* * *

A few moments later, everyone was welcomed into Digger's nest. Dominic wrapped a special bandage made of leaves around Gylfie's injured leg before, with Soren and Blu's help, applying leeches from the swamp onto his back cut to suck any infection away. It was extremely painful, but he knew that the best antidote always had a terrible taste. After he was done with the leeches, he just applied some fresh water onto it and was good to move.

"Going to the sea, huh?" Digger then asked as he moved some branches to make space for his guests.

"Yeah," Soren replied.

"You know what they call owls who fly towards the sea?" Digger asked with a smile.

"Huh, no," Soren replied.

"Lost!" Digger said, making Blu laugh while his three friends just looked blankly. "It's hilarious, right? I have another one for you: what do you call an owl," he started again before stopping upon seeing someone else enter the hollow. "Twilight! We've got company!"

Just as he said that, a male great gray owl - Twilight probably - entered the hollow with a pink snake in its beak who was protesting. "Put me down this instant! I mean it!" The snake sounded like a female. "This is disrespectful!" she protested before Twilight spat her down in the nest.

"Dinner is served. And she will not stop talking," the great grey owl affirmed. Soren suddenly looked at the pink snake with wide eyes and ran to her.

"Mrs. P! It's me, Soren!" he told her.

"Soren!" the snake named Mrs. P exclaimed and jumped into his wings for an hug. "Oh, it can't be. Every day, I've been looking for you and Kludd, and then this. To be snatched up by this monstrosity," she said with a glare at Twilight.

"Monstro-?" Twilight said in indignation. "The audacity! Digger, who are those tiny owls (Gylfie glared) and why are they talking to dinner?"

"My name is not "dinner." Mrs. P declared and then hissed at him.

"Well, dinner's rather moody, isn't it?" Twilight remarked which made Dominic chuckle a bit.

"Wait. She's not dinner. She's my nursemaid," Soren stopped him.

"I just hate being driven to hiss. So unladylike," Mrs. P remarked with shaking her head.

"Indeed," Twilight said with rolling his eyes.

"Just wait a second," Blu said with rising his wings, staying away from Mrs. P as he was unfamiliar with snakes (and even afraid of them). "She is a snake, right? And you said she is your nursemaid? How is that possible? I though snakes and birds were enemies."

"Not in here," Soren responded. "From where I come, snakes - mostly females - are welcome into owls' nests to keep it clean as well as taking care of young chicks," Soren explained to his blue friend.

Mrs. P then looked oddly at him and Dominic (which is a bit ironic since she was blind). "What species are you two? I didn't saw any owls like you before."

"Oh, I'm not an owl, Mrs.; I'm a spix macaw," Blu explained. He then pointed at Dominic (which didn't changed that much). "And he's a golden eagle."

"Mrs. P," Soren resumed, "These are my new friends. Gylfie, and Digger."

"I'm an elf owl, Mrs," Gylfie said as Mrs. P wrapped some of her body around Gylfie's waist and shoulder.

"Wow, it is the first time I meet one of your kind as well," the lady snake said with a smile.

"And I'm a burrowing owl," Digger added as Mrs. P did the same with him.

"My, you look a lot like most barn owls I know," she commented, making the others chuckle a bit.

"And those are Blu and Dominic," Soren added to which Blu offered a wingshake before taking it back as he remembered that that did not exist in this world, while Dominic just politely waved his wing with a smile. "And Twilight, is it?" Soren added. The great grey owl jumped down with a smile.

"Nice to meet you, dinner. I mean Mrs. P," he corrected himself before Digger jumped beside him.

"Those four are going to the Sea of Hoolemere to find the Guardians."

"Really?" Twilight asked with a surprised smile.

"What?" Mrs. P exclaimed in surprise. "No, Soren. We need to get you home. Your parents are so worried."

"No, you don't understand, Mrs. P. Kludd and I were kidnapped," Soren explained his nursemaid.

"Mercy!" she exclaimed in horror.

"He's still held captive. I have to find the Guardians. They're the only ones that can save him," Soren said with determination.

"Oh, an adventure afoot!" Twilight suddenly exclaimed. "Danger. Intrigue." He then took out a wooden lute. "The stuff of songs."

"Oh no!" Digger whined. "Not the lute."

Twilight started running his talons on the strings of his instrument. "But such things have no effect on me for I am a poet as much as a warrior." He then cleared his throat as Soren, Gylfie, Blu and Dominic exchanged unsure glances. "If you will." He then started singing.

 _"Though his nursemaid tells him no_

 _The boy will not be tamed_

 _He flies off into danger_

 _To be battered, bruised and maimed!"_

He sang so loud that Gylfie flinched a bit. "I wonder who sings the worst; him or Eva?" Blu mumbled to Dominic who just shrugged.

"Just because it's sung doesn't make it a song," Digger remarked with an annoyed look.

"That poem just came to me, if you can believe it," Twilight said with a proud smile.

"I think they can believe it," Digger mumbled with rolling his eyes.

"It's a gift," Twilight said.

"Right, well...," Soren said, unsure, "looks like we've got a long journey, so..." He then turned toward Mrs. P. "Mrs. P? Look, you know it's what Da would want."

"That's just why I'm coming with you," she said with a smile as Dominic took his sword and they were about to leave.

"What? No! Please do not leave us here!" Twilight begged with blocking the way alongside Digger.

"Yes, you're the first new souls we've seen in eight moons," Digger added with a nod.

"If I have to hear any more of his ridiculous owl jokes...," Twilight said in annoyance.

"They're a hoot!" Digger protested.

"They are not."

"Well, if I have to hear him play one more quote-unquote "song", I'm gonna tear my gizzard out!"

"Let's go," Soren mumbled as he started sneaking out toward the exit alongside his friends while the other two were still arguing.

"Please. Please don't go!" Digger asked them. "Do you even know the way to the Sea of Hoolemere?" The group stopped in their tracks upon realizing that they didn't. "Twilight knows the way."

"Of course i know the way," the great grey owl said with a smile. "We are off to the Sea of Hooladance."

"It's Hoolemere," Digger corrected him.

"Hoolemere then," Twilight said while Digger gave a smile mixed between nervousness and excitation.

Dominic looked at his friends and then back at Digger and Twilight with a smile. "Welcome in the group then. Guys, we will go back to the Tyto forest first; our friends are still waiting there. And while we're there, we could also let your family knows about our situation, Soren."

The barn owl nodded. "Alright then, let's go!"

* * *

Some moments after, Mrs. P was laughing as she was installed into Twilight's lute while he flew. she stuck her head out and felt the wind flying through her face.

"Hey, you know, Mrs. P. you might be the first ever snake to fly," Digger remarked as he flew near her.

"You know, I think I am," she replied with another laughter. "And I quite like it too."

Soren looked at her with a smile before looking at the far dawn with a serious look.

* * *

 **Two chapters in one day. Wow, I'm on fire! then again, I'm really happy and excited to rediscover the awesome world of Ga'Hoole!**

 **On another note, I think Mrs. P is an underrated character too. she may not be of big importance in the movie, but she is in the books.**

 **Now, our heroes made new friends. They just have to reunite with the ones that remained in Tyto before settling off to the Sea of Hoolemere and find the Guardians of Ga'Hoole!**


	54. Return to Tyto

**In the previous chapter, our friends met a joking burrowing owl called Digger and a poet-warrior great gray owl named Twilight as well as a snake called Mrs. P who is none other than Soren's nursemaid. They all joined the group who is now on their way back to the Tyto forest to reunite with their friends and visit Soren's family.**

* * *

The trip back to the Tyto forest was pretty long, so Blu and Dominic took this time to explain everything to Digger, Twilight and Mrs. P: how they landed into their world, why Blu was made of plastic, how Dominic became a swordsman, their whole journey from meeting each other and Apollo to getting to Brazil with Jewel and her friends to reuniting with their families in the Amazon. they didn't talked about the boxing competition as they didn't judged it necessary.

"...And you really don't know how you landed in the Tyto forest?" Digger asked.

"Nope. All we know is that there has been a storm with red lightning and boom! we end up in this new world," Blu replied.

"But this is not normal. I never heard about such a phenomenon," Gylfie pointed out.

"Yeah, just like none of you ever heard about a sword, a macaw, potato fries, Brazilians, etc," Dominic sarcastically remarked. "And speaking of which, we're arriving; look!"

Indeed, they arrived into the Tyto forest with its boreal climate and the endless trees, rivers and mountains decorating all the landscape. The group immediately started scanning for any trace of Blu and Dominic's friends. "Remind me how your friends look already?" Soren asked.

"Well," Blu said, "Jewel is like me, but more...feminine; Apollo is a barn owl with clothes (yes, he told them what clothes were); Alex looks like a little white fluffy ball, Lazaro is is small, black, white and orange, Hernandez have a huge beak, Vladimir...well, looks like Dominic but with more muscles, Rafael looks like a combination of Hernandez and Rafael, Pedro is a little red bird with a mohawk and Nico is a little yellow bird with a piece of metal on his head - not like the Pure Ones."

Dominic rolled his eyes before looking ahead and spotted something. "Hey! look!" He pointed toward a red light that was shining off in the sky above a mountain.

"I recognize this!" Blu exclaimed. "It's one of Apollo's flairs!"

"What's a flare?" Gylfie asked curiously.

"I'll explain you that later. Let's go find our friends!" Blu replied and flew faster.

As they got closer to the mountain, the group soon spotted figures standing on top of it and they quickly recognized them. It was their friends! "Guys!" blu shouted to get their attention. They all turned to see them and jumped in joy. Jewel flew up to meet her boyfriend with a hug.

"Blu! You're alright!" she happily beamed with giving him a kiss on the cheek...before suddenly slapping his cheek with her wing.

"Hey! What was that for?" Blu asked with rubbing his cheek.

"For scaring me! Do you know how worried I was? Where did you and Dominic go?" She then noticed the four owls and snake. "And who are those guys? Did they caused you trouble?"

"No, no, no," Blu quickly said with shaking his wings before her. "I'll explain you everything."

* * *

"So those Pure Ones guys caused you a lot of trouble?" Rafael asked to which his friends all nodded.

"Man, yesterday, I though this forest was maybe less dangerous than the Amazon, but now, I think all of the opposite," Pedro remarked with a shiver.

"I think we should get out of here quick," Nico added.

"We can't, guys," Blu declared. "First, because we don't even know how we came here, so how should we know out to leave? And second, because you seem to have forgotten the last part of our story; we must go to the Sea of Hoolemere and find the Guardians."

"Are you serious, Blu?!" Apollo asked with his eyes wide open. "You're really planning on putting the search for our way back home to follow some owls you barely met on a quest to find more owls you're not even sure exist somewhere in the middle of a giant sea?!"

Blu just looked blankly at him. "Huh, yes?"

This answer caused Apollo to fall on his head. He then jumped at Dominic. "Dom, dude, tell me you don't agree with him! Tell some reason into his head!"

The golden eagle responded with a pretty serious glance at his barn owl friend. "Of course I do! New world or not, I can't allow kids to be brainwashed and turned into slaves like this!"

"I agree with them," Vladimir said with a nod. "Doing something like this to innocent kids for superiority ideals is simply disgusting!" he declared as Alex nodded beside him.

"I wanna help them too," Hernandez calmly said as Lazaro jumped on his shoulder.

"Anyone who dares pick up people who can't even fight are gonna have problems with me!" Lazaro angrily declared.

"What do you think, Jewel?" Blu asked his girlfriend. "You wanna come too?"

She just giggled and poked at his beak. "You wouldn't leave me alone in here, Blu. And besides, even someone from a different world would know that hurting innocent children is wrong. So of course I'm in."

Apollo sighed and took his cap off. "Believe me, I have a bad feeling about this." Just then, Digger snatched the cap from his wings. "Hey! That's mine!"

The burrowing owl inspected the alien thing in his beak. "What is this strange thing?"

Apollo took it back. "It's a cap and it's mine, so I'd appreciate if you could avoid stealing it without permission."

Digger than peaked at his backpack. "What's that thing?"

"My backpack."

"And that?"

"My wooden sword"

"And that?"

"My flare gun. Ever since the disappearance of Blu and Dominic, I've been shooting flares in the sky every hour to help them locate us."

"And what's that?"

"My two balls."

He then picked up two meatballs he took home for lunch and packed them in his backpack. **(TROLL!)**

"But before we go, we must stop by me nest and let my parents and sister know about what happened and where Kludd is right now," Soren said. "My tree's not too far from here; let's go."

The other nodded before following the barn owl in the sky. They flew across the beautiful forest while heading toward Soren's nest. Blu and Dominic were exited to see the relief on Noctus' face, when he'll see that they managed to find both of his kids.

"So, what kind of bird are you exactly?" Twilight asked Alex as he flew near him.

"Well I'm a snowy owl, Twilight, right?" he answered.

The great grey owl started laughing, much to his confusion. "Ha, ha, ha! Good one! Now seriously, what are you?"

"Huh, I just told you; I'm a snowy owl," Alex replied again, slightly annoyed.

"Of course, my friend, and I am a caterpillar," Twilight said and laughed again.

"Hey! I'm a snowy owl! Why is it so hard to believe?"

"I've never seen snowy owls with a shape like yours. Even as chicks."

Alex frowned. "I have a malformation. I was born like that." He then tilted his head toward Mrs. P who was peaking out of the lute. "Is he always so mean with different people?"

"He was with me, my little treasure," the lady snake giggled as Alex blushed because of the affectionate nickname she gave him. Not that it charmed him or anything.

Blu chuckled at seeing Alex bonding with his new friends. "Are we there soon, Soren? Soren?" As his barn owl friend didn't answered, Blu turned his head toward him...and saw that his yellow eyes were wide open as he looked forward.

And he immediately got why. Not too far ahead of them was a big tree that was half-burned with flames still shining on its edges and smoke flying off toward the sky. Panicking and repeating: "No!", Soren flew toward the remaining of the nest and looked all around.

"Ma? Da? Eglantine?" That was probably his sister. He kept calling after them before slowly looking at the burned wall of the hollow. He could see some funny-made drawings. He looked at them with sadness on his face. Blu saw it after flying down and going beside him.

"Those are your drawings?" he asked to which Soren slowly nodded.

"I made them with my little sister. Eglantine," he mumbled as Mrs. P slithered beside him while also looking in sadness. "They're based on the Guardians of Ga'Hoole. My Da always told us they're stories." Blu nodded sadly as Soren turned to look at him. "We need to find the Guardians; they are the only ones who can save us."

"We are each other's family now," Gylfie said with a sincere look at the barn owl. "We'll find them together," she said with turning toward Digger and Twilight who both nodded in agreement.

Dominic then putted his wing on Soren's shoulder. "Don't worry, my friend; we will stop the Pure Ones and retrieve your family. I can swear you on my saber."

* * *

 **This chapter was based on a deleted scene from the movie where Soren and his friends return to his home only to find it destroyed. Actually, you can see a preview of it in the movie's trailer. Dunno why they removed it; it would have been great.**


	55. Crows, echidna, and hawk

After leaving Soren's destroyed home of Tyto, the group of birds flew across the country and toward the Sea of Hoolemere for the rest of the night. "Oh, oh, I got another one! Knock-knock!" Digger said.

"Please don't respond," Twilight begged.

"Who's there?" Gylfie answered anyway.

"Don't encourage him!" Twilight begged once again.

"Owl," Digger added.

"Owl who?" Gylfie asked.

"Here it comes," Twilight groaned.

"Ha, that's right: owl's who!" Digger said and his friends chuckled in amusement (even Dominic). "Got it? Owl's woo woo!"

After this pun from Digger, the group decided to settle in on a tree to rest. For owls like Soren, the day was equivalent to night and, for some reasons, Blu and his friends felt tired too. Maybe because of the tiring day they had or because their minds were already adapted to the acting and sleeping times of this world (everything was possible). And so, they settled on a tree's branches to sleep with Soren holding Gylfie and Digger into one wing each, Blu wrapping his wings around Jewel who rested her head on his neck, Dominic laying against the trunk with his wings behind his head, Mrs. P cuddled into a pile of coils not too far, Alex sleeping on Vladimir's tummy, Lazaro on top of Hernandez's head, and Nico and Pedro on Rafael's back. All while Twilight was using his lute to sing a lullaby for them.

 _"As the night falls, serene_

 _We fall asleep, we fall asleep."_

Before he could continue, Soren coughed and gave him a pointing look at Digger who almost woke up, but then sighed peacefully, looking cute as he slept. Gylfie also cutely snuggled herself into Soren's feathers, making the great grey owl smile before resuming:

 _"We continue to fall asleep, we fall asleeeeeep..._

 _FOR DREAMS TO COME ON OOOOON-"_

He got interrupted by Dominic who threw a rock to his face and gave him a glare saying: "Don't make me jump like that!" while Soren rolled his eyes.

 _"We are now asleep, we are now asleeeep,"_ Twilight concluded his song, letting the group fall asleep for good.

* * *

Later on, as night was about to fall and the sun was falling at the horizon, the group resumed their flight and were now passing by a watery region with some high rocks that looked like giant pillars. The sea was probably close now. As they kept flying forward, a crow not too far behind them was cawing out.

"You know, I think that crow is following us," Soren remarked with a suspicious look.

"Yes. I've had my eyes on him for a while now," Twilight responded with a smile.

"Same here," Dominic said, though less enthusiastic.

Suddenly, more and more crows started gathering around them, making Jewel gulp nervously. "Think we should be worried?"

"I have a bad feeling about this," Pedro mumbled while Nico nodded.

"Know what an owl says when he's pecked by a crow?" Digger nervously asked.

"Really, Digger, must you?" Twilight asked in annoyance.

Suddenly, a crow pecked Gylfie's tail, making her exclaim: "Ow!"

"That's right, "Ow!"," Digger said just as he got pecked too.

The crows pecked at the whole group, one after the other. "Ouch!" Alex whined in pain.

"Come back here! I'll make you eat your feathers!" Lazaro angrily shouted after getting pecked in the back, right before Hernandez suffered the same fate. "Don't just stay there, Hernandez, fight back!"

"Hey! Get out of here!" Twilight shouted as he got pecked and got ready to fight back with his lute...just before a crow snatched it from his talons and flew away with it.

"Twilight! Your lute!" Soren shouted with his eyes widen open.

"Oh, let them have it. Good riddance," Digger said with an uninterested look.

Alex then flew beside him. "Digger, don't you forget something?"

The burrowing owl looked curiously at him...before realizing what he meant and widened his eyes. "You don't mean...?!"

"Yes!" Twilight said.

"That's a joke!" Jewel exclaimed.

"Good crap!" Lazaro said with rubbing his forehead.

"MRS. P!"

"Come on!" Dominic said as they all flew after the crows, trying to take Mrs. P (and the lute) back from them. However, not only were they flying fast, but every time a member of the group got near the one holding the lute, he would always throw it to a partner.

"Mrs. P! I'm coming!" Soren shouted as the pink snaked peaked her head out of the lute.

"Soren, look!' she happily said, clearly not realizing that she was getting kidnapped.

Dominic grabbed his sword and swung it at the crows who all dodged him while Blu attempted a few times to grab the lute by stretching his plastic wing in vain. "They're too fast!" he screamed.

"I'll get you closer," Twilight said with turning to Soren. "We're going to lock talons!"

"What?" Soren exclaimed in surprise.

"Trust me! I know what I'm doing!" Twilight assured.

"Yeah, but have you done this before?" Soren asked before Twilight locked his talons with Soren's.

"No, but I've always wanted to try it!" the great grey owl responded which didn't calmed his friend in the slightest. "Hold on!" he screamed before performing a backflip and throwing Soren at full speed, making him soar through the air and knock into the crow holding the lute. As he dropped it, Soren managed to catch the instrument just in time before it could land on top of a pointy rock.

"Get the der'mo (crap) away!" Dominic exclaimed as he landed beside Soren followed by the others, making the crows retreat.

"Oh, Mrs. P. Are you okay?" Soren asked as he looked down at the lute.

The lady snake came out with laughing. "Quite a ride. Let's do it again." This made the others smile and chuckled, glad to see she wasn't harmed.

"Owl, you surely can fly," Twilight complimented Soren which surprised the others as he wasn't the kind to compliment.

"Thank you, Twilight," Soren replied with a sincere smile.

"Well, here we are," Twilight said with pointing at the horizon. The high rock on which they landed had a metal portal behind which was expending a giant endless sea. The sun was shining on its surface, making a beautiful reflect for the group of birds to witness.

"The Sea of Hoolemere," Soren mumbled as he, just like the others, looked at it in awe.

"It's just so big," Gylfie said in amazement.

"Yes, it's a right big puddle there," Digger agreed.

"I just hope it isn't as big as the Pacific Ocean," Vladimir remarked. "I still remember the last time we crossed it," he said to which Dominic nodded.

"I don't know," Twilight said toward Soren. "You really think the Guardians are out there?"

"They have to be," the barn owl replied, his eyes full of hope.

"That's true," Blu added with putting a wing on Soren's shoulder. "If we have the determination to do it, then we will find them!"

"The band!" a voice suddenly said, causing the group to jump in surprise. "finally."

"Who's there?" Dominic asked, his wing on the handle of his saber.

"Your arrival was foretold." The person to talk was none other than an echidna. A strange one that is. He was brown with light blue paint on his face, strange objects decorating his quills, and a staff that Blu though could only be seen in Africa. "'Twas foretold trespassers would land on my shore."

"Look, we mean you no harm," Soren assured.

"Yes. 'Twas foretold as well," the echidna repeated.

"We've flown a long way," Gylfie added.

"Also foretold."

"And we're very tired," Digger said before swiftly dodging a swing from the echidna's staff.

"Foretold! I know all." He then turned toward Soren. "Now, state your desire, owl."

"Well-" Soren was about to talk, but got interrupted by Gylfie.

"Wait. If you really know all, then how come you don't know that?" she asked to which Jewel nodded in agreement.

"Ah! 'Twas foretold there would be one who doubts!" the echidna exclaimed.

Gylfie looked all around, trying to find the words for this. "Is anyone else having trouble with this?"

"Yes, I kind of am," Digger replied.

"This totally doesn't make any sense, Gylfie," Jewel said with her eyes half-closed.

"Da said, "guided by the spines of the echidna," Soren mumbled before turning to the little animal. "Wait! Wait, you're an echidna!"

"I am THE echidna," he corrected. "And it was foretold you would need some help getting here," he said as the crows that previously attacked the group came to perch around the old animal.

"Well, then, I should tell you, we seek the Guardians," Soren continued.

"He should already know that," Gylfie sarcastically remarked.

"I do, doubter. Go on."

"Da said your spines can guide us," Soren continued.

"And they will, the hermit confirmed. Now, to reach the Tree, keep between the Whale's Fin and the Eye of Glaux," he said with pointing at the sky where dark was starting to take place, revealing stars and constellations. Gylfie looked with great interest at those constellations. "Never go outside those stars."

He then turned toward the group. "Now, go! All of you!" The group was about to go...but then stopped. They weren't sure why, but they felt doubt about their chances of overcoming this trial. Even Dominic looked nervously away. They all exchanged glances of concern.

The echidna grunted. "'Twas foretold that the band would hesitate. But that in time would become a family. And a family needs all of its members to play their parts." He started by pointing at Twilight. "The warrior."

"Poet warrior, please. Thank you," the great grey owl corrected.

"Hmm. Fine, strong and noble," the echidna said before switching to Digger. "The tracker, sturdy and faithful." This made the burrowing smile a little.

"The navigator, who doubts," he said to Gylfie who looked away, insulted.

He then turned to Vladimir. "The right wing who will never let his leader down." The golden eagle knew that it was entirely true.

"The big brother, silent and hit hard," he said to Hernandez who just looked at him with saying anything.

"The little brother, energetic and kicks hard," was his description of Lazaro.

"Totally mer," the puffin said with a confident smile and rubbed his nose with his fin.

The echidna then turned to Alex. "The doctor who will always do his best to help his friends."

The snowy owl grinned. "I'm not charmed at all!"

"The trio who will make sure the family's bond remains intact," he said to Rafael, Nico and Pedro who all exchanged bump-fists with smiles.

"The shining phoenix who will bring light in dark times," he said to Jewel who gave a cheeky smile and giggle. Gylfie felt slightly jealous that she got a better description simply because she was beautiful.

Next was Apollo. "The crafter who's knowledge will come in handy a lot." Apollo tried to look confident, but also looked a bit nervous.

He then turned to Dominic. "The swordsman who will defend his brothers and sisters' dreams even at the cost of his own life."

"The dreamer who will always search to become stronger," he said to Blu who just gave him a deep look. It was true that Blu was a big dreamer and always searched to make his dreams come true.

"The leader, whose gizzard is strong," he said to Soren. "And finally, of course, the heart," he finished with Mrs. P who looked charmed. However, he stopped and gave a second look. "Wait. Are you a snake?"

"Yes, I am," she confirmed which made the echidna groan and walk away. Mrs. P looked insulted.

"You've all come this far, each protecting the other. so go. Look at the sky and fly."

Soon, confidence returned amongst the birds. "Yes," Dominic said with a smirk. "If we all do it together, there's no doubt that we will..."

The others looked curiously at the golden eagle who interrupted his sentence to look away. "We will what?" Digger asked with wiggling his wing before Dominic. "He-ho! Dominic!"

"W-What's this?" the golden eagle asked with pointing to the side of the rock they were currently standing on. To their surprise, they saw what seemed to be a craft floating toward them - it had a strange design. The boat resembled a coffin and had candles lit on the edges that burned with green fire. The ship was only big enough for one person. At the center was a mast that resembled a large crucifix with black sails and a seat.

On this last one was sitting a sinister figure. As the boat got closer, they saw that this figure was a tall-looking hawk with dark brown feathers. His attire consisted of a wide-brimmed black hat decorated with a large plume, and a long, open black coat, giving him the look of a Spanish swordsman. He also wore a pendant shaped like a cross on his neck.

"This attire...," Dominic mumbled as he trembled in what seemed to be...nervosity? "It can't be!"

"You know this guy, Dom?" Blu asked curiously.

"...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...It's Dracule "Hawkeye" Yun, the strongest swordsman in the world!"

* * *

 **Unlike Grimble and Mrs. P who I found are underrated LOTG characters, I'm not very fond of the Echidna. Seriously, the only reason I remember his name is because he's named after his species. But seriously, does every movie need a racist African stereotype?**


	56. Dominic vs Hawkeye

"C-Come again?!" Apollo asked in complete nervousness. Dominic was starring at the intruder with wide eyes while gulping nervously.

"Dominic? Who's that?" Blu asked his friend.

"The man I've been looking for," the golden eagle replied. "Dracule "Hawkeye" Yun!"

"Hawkeye Yun...," Blu repeated.

Dominic nodded without looking away. "The strongest swordsman in the world..."

Twilight gave him a curious look. "Are you certain? He sure looks like an ordinary bird to me... Well, safe for the look and all."

Suddenly, the hawk stood up from his boat and jumped all the way up to the shore the others were standing on, surprising them that he had such strong legs. Digger was the most surprised of the group. His simple presence was enough to make everyone nervous and Gylfie even started trembling nervously, like she did back at St. Aggie's.

Now that he was closer, the group could see that he had what seemed to be a short black beard and mustache that pointed upwards around his beak and that his eyes were exactly like that of an hawk - deep yellow-orange. He was also carrying a strange cross-shaped black sword on his back. A smirk formed on Dominic's beak. "I'd never though I'd be able to see him so soon...It's finally...time to fulfill my dream...," he mumbled with a wing on the handle of his saber.

However, the hawk ignored the band and simply walked over to the echidna who, unlike them, didn't seemed intimidated. "'Twas foretold that you would come to see me again, Hawkeye," he said, as if talking to an old friend.

"Then you know why I'm here," the hawk said in a deep voice before taking out a bottle. "This hydromel you gave taste particularly horrible. I came here to give it back to you," he said with gently putting the bottle down before the echidna.

"Hey!" Hawkeye stopped and calmly turned around to see Dominic glaring at him. "You're Dracule "Hawkeye" Yun, right?"

The hawk simply looked at him with his intimidating eyes. "...Yes."

Dominic kept smirking. "I've come out to the world to see you!"

Hawkeye just lowered his eyes. "What's your goal?"

"To become the strongest!" the golden eagle declared with confidence.

A little smirk formed on Hawkeye's beak. "Hmph... How foolish..."

Dominic finally took out his saber and pointed it at the hawk. "Hawkeye! My name is Yusef "Dominic" Saklov! And I challenge you to a duel!"

"What?!" Soren exclaimed in shock as everyone else were pretty surprised too. "Dominic, we don't have time! We must go-" He got interrupted by Blu who putted a wing on his shoulder.

"Don't try to hold him back, Soren; it's his dream to fight this guy."

"Duel?" Hawkeye asked. "Such a pitiful weakling." He suddenly jumped all the way to another high rock top. Probably was it to avoid getting the others into their duel. Dominic understood it too and flew up to join him. "If you really were a fine swordsman, you should've been able to judge the difference in strengths without drawing out your saber." He then looked up at Dominic. "Challenging me... Are you that brave? Or simply reckless?"

"This is for my own ambition!" Dominic responded with taking his fighting stance. "And for a promise I made to my friends."

"No one can win against Dominic!" Lazaro declared with optimism.

"Yeah! He's the best!" Alex agreed.

Hawkeye suddenly took the cross necklace around his neck and removed the tip of it which revealed a tiny, little knife. "Hey now, what's the meaning of this?" Dominic asked curiously.

"I'm unlike those idiots who use their all to hunt rabbits," Hawkeye replied. "Though you seem famous enough to be called a swordsman, this world is in major part weak. Unfortunately, I'm carrying nothing smaller than this."

Dominic didn't really understood, but then glared at his opponent. "Stop mocking me!" He then charged at full speed. "I DIDN'T CAME TO PLAY!"

"You're but someone who has yet to experience the real world," Hawkeye calmly said, even though the golden eagle was charging at him.

"EAGLE CUT!" Dominic shouted with swinging his sword at full strength toward Hawkeye...who easily blocked the blade with the tip of his little knife. "Wh...What?!" Dominic said in shock and horror.

"Dominic!" Blu gasped.

"H-He blocked him!" Alex exclaimed in horror.

"But that's impossible!" Vladimir mumbled while looking with wide eyes. "I've seen Yusef take down some of the best soldiers in our country with this attack! What in the world happened?!"

Meanwhile, Dominic groaned a she kept pushing his sword against Hawkeye's knife. "I can't...move it! What happened? Nobody ever dodged this technique before, but just with his toy, he..." He then looked at Hawkeye who just seemed bored. "Is this really happening? Is a strength like his really that far away? No, impossible!"

Jumping backward, Dominic charged again and swung his saber at full speed. Hawkeye just easily blocked all of his attacks with his knife (and as if that wasn't already insulting enough, he did it with just one wing), no matter how hard Dominic tried. Eventually, Hawkeye kicked the golden eagle to the edge of the rock they were on.

"This can't be happening, Dominic!" Hernandez suddenly exclaimed. "Please! Fight seriously!"

"Dominic!" Alex exclaimed in horror.

Dominic panted as he stood back up. "It can't possibly be that far away!" he said with looking at Hawkeye who was still uninterested and then charged once more. Swinging his saber at full speed, Hawkeye just blocked him over and over again - though this time, he had to step back due to his opponent's aggressiveness. However, not matter his bigger strength and speed, he just couldn't touch Hawkeye.

"Such unrestrained skill," the hawk simply mumbled.

Pushing a scream, Dominic smashed his sword against Hawkeye's knife, causing a little gust of wind to fly around. He then resumed his quick attacks, but fatigue started showing-off in his face.

"I didn't come all this way to lose against a toy-like thing!"

He then pushed another scream and went for another attack, but this time Hawkeye just stepped to the side, dodging him, and gave him a strike to the back of his head with his wing, making him gasp as the air was knocked out of his throat.

"Dominic!" everyone exclaimed in panic.

The golden eagle weakly looked up at the hawk while standing on his knees and panting in pain and fatigue. "If I could just defeat this man..."

He then stood up and weakly walked to Hawkeye before swinging his saber once again, but the hawk simply stepped to the side, letting Dominic collapse on his back. The two swordsmen then exchanged a glance.

"What's your goal?" Hawkeye asked once again. "Why do you seek the ultimate power, you weakling?"

"Dominic's a weakling you say?" Vladimir asked, his face burning with anger. "You damn bastard!"

Lazaro jumped beside him. "I'll teach you one thing or two!" They then jumped, ready to go at Dominic's help. However, Blu stretched his wings to grab them back.

"Stop! Vladimir! Lazaro! Don't interfere! Just hang on!" Blu ordered while holding back the two birds who wanted to go help their coach.

"Blu...?" Apollo mumbled.

Dominic then weakly got back up, still panting. "I can't afford to lose!" With those determined words, Hawkeye couldn't help but look at him with vague interest. Dominic then rose his saber again and charged it with energy. "ENERGY SLASH!"

He charged once again at Hawkeye who simply rose his knife...and stabbed it directly into his chest! everyone (including Blu) looked in horror as blood slowly flowed down from the knife and onto the rocky ground and Dominic remained motionless for many seconds.

"Do you wish to have this go through your heart?" Hawkeye calmly asked. "Why don't you step back?"

"I don't know," Dominic replied as blood started coming out of his beak. "I'm not sure why myself. But if I were to take even one step back, I believe that all the promises I made to my friends and to myself will all disappear forever."

Hawkeye frowned at those words. "Yes, and that's called "loosing."

Dominic just chuckled. "That's exactly why I can't step back."

"Even if it means death?" Hawkeye curiously asked.

"Death may be better!" the golden eagle replied with narrowing his eyes at the hawk.

Hawkeye slightly widened his eyes. "What a strong will! Preferring death over defeat." He then removed his knife from Dominic's bleeding chest. He then slowly stepped back and putted his knife back around his neck. "Kid, tell me your name again!"

The golden eagle rose his saber once more and glared at his opponent. "Yusef "Dominic" Saklov!"

"I'll remember that!" Hawkeye said with taking his giant black, cross-shaped sword in his wing. "It's been a while since I've seen such a strong will. As a reward, I will use my Black Sword, the strongest sword in the world, to end your life."

A smirk formed on Dominic's beak. "I appreciate your offer."

"That's enough!" Twilight shouted. "Stop! You'll get killed!"

However, Dominic once again charged his sword with energy. "ENERGY SLASH!" Both he and Hawkeye charged and swung their respective sword as they met past before remaining motionless for a moment...

...

...

...

...

...

...SPLASH!

A jet of blood erupted from Dominic's torso and he collapsed down on the ground. "I...lost..."

"DOMINIC!" Blu shouted at the top of his lungs at seeing his right wing and first ever friend collapsing down in blood.

"DOMINIC!" Apollo also screamed, feeling the exact same thing as Blu. This last one justly narrowed his eyes at Hawkeye.

"Damn! Damn! DAMN IT!" he screamed with flying at full speed and stretching his wing for a punch which Hawkeye easily dodged before Blu landed on the ground beside him.

"Yusef!" Vladimir shouted as he, Lazaro, and Hernandez rushed to his side.

"Bastard!" Blu angrily said with glaring at Hawkeye.

"You're the young swordsman's friend?" he asked. "Thank you for watching over him. Rest assure, the eagle's still alive."

"Brother! Say something!" Vladimir said while holding Dominic in his wings as Apollo rushed at them with his first aid kit.

Hawkeye turned toward the fallen eagle. "It's still too early for you to die. My name is Dracule "Hawkeye" Yun! Find your true self, true world, become stronger! No matter how long it will take, I will await you in my strongest form!" He then lifted his sword. "Surpass this sword! Surpass me! Yusef "Dominic" Saklov!"

Lazaro gave a few slaps to Dominic's face. "Dude! Come on! Say something!"

Hawkeye then turned and landed his glance onto Blu. "Kid, what is YOUR goal?"

"Becoming the strongest bird in the world," Blu simply replied.

A smirk formed on Hawkeye's beak. "That's a difficult path, harder than surpassing me."

"Yeah, but that's my goal and I'll do everything to reach it," Blu said with a shrug.

"He's alive!" Lazaro shouted to get everyone's attention.

"He was just unconscious," Apollo said with a smile after he was done wrapping bandages around Dominic's torso.

Suddenly, the golden eagle slowly rose his saber in the air, having never dropped it even after getting deadly injured. "Blu! Can you hear me?" he asked.

"Yeah!" Blu responded.

Dominic panted before continuing. "Sorry for worrying you. If I don't become the strongest swordsman in the world, you'd be in a dilemma, right?" He marked a pause to cough some blood. "I...I will never...I WILL NEVER LOOSE AGAIN! Until I defeat Hawkeye, I will never lose a duel again! I make you this promise! STRONGEST HERO!"

This declaration caused both Hawkeye and Blu to smile. "I believe you, STRONGEST SWORDSMAN!" Blu replied.

"Good team," Hawkeye remarked before jumping down on his boat. "Hope we meet again." As he started floating away with his boat, he turned toward Blu. "By the way, your group is from the human world, right?"

"Yeah," Blu replied.

"If you wanna go back to your home, in one week, get back to the spot where you were upon entering this world. Until then, goodbye," he said and finally drove away.

* * *

A few moments later, after Hawkeye was completely gone, Dominic managed to stand up after Apollo and Alex attended to his wounds.

"You sure you can stand, dude?" Hernandez asked to which Dominic weakly nodded.

"You were pretty courageous for going one-on-one with such a strong bird, my friend," Twilight complimented him. "But you shouldn't make too big promises as it can be easy to let go of them."

Dominic gave him a determined glare. "I'm not planning on letting this one down." He then turned toward Blu. "Right, moy brat (my brother)?"

Blu smiled and nodded. "Wanna rest for a while before going?"

Dominic shook his head. "Nah; I'll be fine. I already made you waste enough time with Hawkeye. We gotta find the Guardians now."

"Wait," Vladimir suddenly said and used his powers to take a giant rock out of the ground and putted it in the middle of the group. "Before we go, I think we should have a little launching ceremony to mark the importance of our voyage. Like the echidna said, we are a family and we all know our roles. now, let's all share our dreams and ambitions."

The others all agreed as that sounded good. Vladimir was the first one to put his foot on the rock. "So what I want is to become as strong and admirable as Yusef!"

Soren was the next one to put his foot on the rock. "I wanna find the Guardians of Ga'Hoole and become one of them!"

Next was Blu. "I wanna become the strongest bird in the world!"

Dominic. "I'm gonna become the greatest swordsman in the world and defeat Hawkeye!"

Gylfie. "I wanna become a great navigator!"

Digger. "And me, a great tracker!"

Twilight. "I'm gonna make the most beautiful and sensational songs in all the Owl Kingdoms!" This statement made Digger roll his eyes.

Jewel. "I'm gonna fight for freedom!"

Lazaro. "I'm gonna prove that the small ones are the toughest!"

Hernandez. "I'm gonna stay with Lazaro!"

"Dude, you're ruining the mod!"

Alex. "I'm gonna become strong and make Yukio proud of me!"

Apollo hesitated. "I-I'm..." He then decided to put his foot with the others. "I'm gonna become a great crafter - the best in the world!"

The group of friends looked at each other with smiles before taking off through the portal and toward the Sea of Hoolemere. "Remember," the echidna called, "when your wings are weak, your spirits done, and you've flown as far as you can, you're halfway there!"

"What did he say?" Gylfie curiously asked.

"We're halfway there!" Digger replied. "Oh yeah! Woo-hoo! This is gonna be a breeze!"

* * *

 **Man, I enjoyed so much writing this chapter! The final part is to remind you that the band is more than just a band - they're a family!**

 **Also, don't forget one crucial element of The Dynamic Adventure: dreams are what drive this story all the way - it's what makes this adventure dynamic! And for all of you who though Dominic was overpowered, sorry, but as you saw in this chapter, he's far from being the strongest in this world.**

 **And honestly, Apollo's hesitation before putting on his foot still gets to me. From the start he's never had ambitious goals like the others and you can tell he feels kind of different because of it. He hesitates at first but the confidence in his voice afterwards shows that he trusts the others to not judge him for his goal. My friends give him a lot of shit for being annoying, which is true at times, but I will always love Apollo for this line.**


	57. Through the blizzard

**Quick note: I forgot to add Rafael, Nico and Pedro's dreams in the previous chapter's ceremony (I donT' stop forgetting they're here for some reason). So, for Pedro, it's to become a great boxer, and for Nico and Rafael...I don't really know XD**

 **Previously, in The Dynamic Adventure: Dominic clashed with the world's strongest swordsman, Hawkeye, and got easily defeated. However, instead of breaking the band's moral, it gave them a new determination. After a touching ceremony during which they all shared their dreams, the group of birds take off into the Sea of Hoolemere and toward the Great Tree.**

* * *

Remember when Digger said that their fly to the Great Tree would be a breeze? Well, it really was - LITERALLY. They got lost into a giant blizzard that was disorientating them and freezing their feathers.

"You had to open your beak!" Dominic sarcastically called at the burrowing owl.

"We're lost! I can't find my bearings!" Gylfie screamed through the strong wind.

"We have to find the island!" Twilight added.

"Darn!" Lazaro groaned as he shivered in coldness. "I'm a summer bird! Why did I have to go through a blizzard?!" He then looked at Alex who didn't seemed very affected. "How can you not freeze to death? You're the smallest of our group - after Gylfie!"

"I'm a snowy owl, duh," Alex replied with an obvious look.

"That's not good! We're lost in the mist!" blu screamed while trying to stay near Jewel who wasn't used to fly in this kind of climate.

"We're in the mist. The Tree must be on the other side. I can feel it in my gizzard!" Soren shouted to encourage everyone.

"Your gizzard?" Digger asked with a desperate tone through the wind. "Does anyone else have any more solid information about how much further it is?"

Twilight then noticed that Digger's flying was irregular. "Digger, why are you flying like that?"

"Flying like what?" the burrowing owl responded. "You know how I fly."

"It's not that!"

Gylfie then flew next to him. "Digger! Your wings!"

Upon turning his head, the burrowing owl realized that indeed his wings were starting to get covered by a ice layer because of the cold wind. Soon, he was unable to move his wings at all. "I think...," he said before turning to his friends. "Goodbye." And he fell down.

"Digger..." Soren mumbled with his eyes wide open.

"DIGGER!" everyone screamed at unison in shock before diving down after the burrowing owl.

Soren dived at full speed, but seemed unable to catch up with his friend through the blizzard. Upon exiting it, he managed to stop just in time before he could touch the surface of the cold sea. He felt a huge pain in his heart as he realized this could only mean one thing.

"Soren!" Lazaro screamed as he arrived beside the barn owl. "Where's Digger?!"

Soren just slowly looked at him with tears in his eyes. "He...He...I didn't got to him in time..."

Lazaro gasped before putting on a glare. "Don't panic! I'll get into the water and try to get him back up! Puffins like me can swim and endure low temperature-" he started, but interrupted himself upon seeing something very surprising.

An owl flew up above a wave passing by. It was a snowy owl with pure white feathers with a few black spots and she (yes, they noticed it was a female) was taller than the two of them. However, her most notable attribute was that she was wearing a golden helmet on her head along with a pair of golden battle claws. And justly, she was carrying none other than Digger into these last ones, the burrowing owl giving them a weak smile as the duo looked in awe.

"Huh, are we making the same dream?" Lazaro mumbled to Soren who was still looking in awe at the female snowy owl. This last one soon stopped before the duo.

"Can you fly with me?" she asked with a soft voice.

"There are...There are sixteen of us," Soren managed to respond.

"Yes. We know," the snowy owl said with a beautiful smile before turning around and flying away.

Lazaro pushed a scream to alert the others which worked as they soon joined them. Needless to say they too were shocked to see the female snowy owl with a golden helmet and battle claws who led them out of the mist and into a warmer atmosphere where they could see the sun and the sky again. Before long, they arrived by a tree on a small island on which was installed a gong which a bird justly made ring. Probably to alert their arrival.

After they flew past it, a giant portal similar to the one they saw at the echidna's shore located between two high rocks came into view. The whole group - mostly Blu and Soren - was amazed during the whole trip. And yet, that wasn't even the best to see.

After a few more seconds of flying, they could see a giant, majestic tree standing high in front of them with the sun shining right behind it. They eventually landed on a little platform where a few owls came down to check on Digger whom the others had completely forgot almost froze to death.

But right now, the group was too busy admiring the place where they arrived. Owls were flying and walking together around the tree which was decorated with beautiful banners and full of machines that were either to make fire, carry food, or a lot of other things.

"Soren," Blu mumbled to his barn owl friend, "Is this...?"

"...Yes. There's no doubt." Soren turned to look at Blu with a smile. "This is the Great Tree!" Soon, his smile turned upside down as he remembered something. "Digger!"

They rushed at the burrowing owl who was still pale and shivering from the near-death experience he just had. A short-eared owl was about to embark him to go somewhere. "I-Is he gonna be okay?" Blu asked in concern.

"Do not worry," the female snowy owl who saved him assured. "The matron is going to take care of him. And you all look like you could use some medical attention too," she said with giving a particular looking at Dominic's bandaged body.

"I appreciate your concern, but I'll be fine. You're the Guardians, right? We must warn you about," Dominic said before suddenly coughing in falling as Vladimir caught him just in time. The golden eagle realized that by flying through a blizzard with all these wounds, he pushed himself to the limit.

"You should really rest a bit, Yusef. We'll follow her to the infirmary," Vladimir said with pointing toward the short-eared owl.

"I'll go there too," Twilight said. "I won't leave Digger alone." This made the burrowing owl smile to see that the great grey owl still cared about him, even after he insulted his way of singing.

"Guys," Lazaro suddenly spoke, "if you don't mind, I'll go with them to the infirmary too." He then rubbed his nose in a macho way. "No that I feel guilty for almost failing to save Digger, but I just want to be sure nothing goes wrong."

"Yeah," Hernandez mumbled with rolling his eyes. "In that case, I come with you too."

And with that, they all followed the short-eared owl (the matron) to the tree's infirmary. The snowy owl then turned toward those who remained. "Your eagle friend said you wanted to warn us about something?"

It then all came back to the group's head. "Yes! It's very important! The whole Owl Kingdom is in danger!" Soren said.

The snowy owl then narrowed her eyes. "Alright, then. I'll see with my mate if we can arrange a meeting with the parliament."


	58. Seeking the truth

Digger groaned as he slowly opened his eyes. His body was still cold, but he felt himself being surrounded by something warm. Upon giving a good look, he saw that he was laying in a nest inside some kind of infirmary with sheets of warm moss wrapped all over him. Twilight, Lazaro, Hernandez, Mrs. P and Vladimir were there as well - though the later was standing beside a nest on which Dominic was sleeping out of exhaustion and with his wounds being attended to again.

"I-I'm alive?" the burrowing owl mumbled with his trembling beak.

"Digger!" Twilight exclaimed in relief. "Good Glaux, you scared me out there! I tough you were gone for good."

"W-Where are we?"

"We're in a infirmary, but not any infirmary; it's the Great Tree's one," Hernandez announced with a smile.

This made Digger widen his eyes in surprise. "R-Really?!"

"Yup," Lazaro said with a smile. "We accomplished our mission, amigo." He then took a cool look. "Not that I ever doubted we'd do it or anything."

The others chuckled at this. Digger then noticed something. "Hey, where are the others?"

Just then, Alex entered the infirmary. "They're talking with the Guardians' parliament. They are giving them all the infos about St. Aggie's, the Pure Ones and all."

"Really?" Twilight asked. "How do you know that?"

"They didn't allowed me in because I'm a kid," he said with an insulted look. "But I can tell you that there's a huge crowd at the parliament's room entrance."

* * *

Meanwhile, in the parliament room Alex mentioned, the meeting was still going on. This room was circle shaped with torches on the walls, light coming out from holes in the roof and perch for many birds. While Blu, Soren, Jewel, Gylfie, Rafael, Nico and Pedro were perched in the middle of the room, the members of the parliament were all standing on the other side, discussing about the infos Soren just gave them.

"I'm concerned about this fleck material of which they speak," said Bubo, a great horned owl with brown feathers which had unusually bright streaks of orange and red. "It could be a weapon. Could be a new shield or armor."

"Having examined them, Your Majesty," said Barran, the female snowy owl who saved Digger and was also revealed to be the queen of the Great Tree, "they do show signs of the trials they described." The bird she talked to was a male snowy owl named Boron who was none other than the king of Ga'Hoole and Barran's mate.

"It beggars belief to think that these brave owlets would fly here by themselves to spin a fairy tail," said Strix Struma, a female short-eared owl who was medium-sized with a rounded head, and tiny ear tufts that were difficult to see. She was heavily streaked with dark eye patches and a whitish face. "Does my Lord Allomere feel otherwise?" she asked in the direction of the named Allomere.

This last one was a male great grey owl similar to Twilight but with much more grey features and a bigger mustache. "Oh, good Glaux." He turned toward the king. "Boron, Your Majesty, if I understand this correctly, Metal Beak is not a myth, he's building a slave army of moon-blinked owlets and is planning to conquer the world with magical pellet debris."

Well, yeah, for short, that was pretty much this.

"Without intending any disrespect, and particularly to my little friends, who have been through so much, such a story simply stretches plausibility too far."

Without really knowing why, Blu didn't really liked this owl and felt a bit of arrogance in him. With a look, he could tell his friends were thinking exactly the same thing. He would have wanted to argue, but in a new world and in front of such important persons, he though it was better to shut his beak.

They then heard a laughter followed by a coughing from an elderly whiskered screech owl who was busy scratching his...parts with his beak. This seemed to annoy Allomere.

"Does that notion strike Ezylryb as amusing?" he asked.

"What cheek!" the whiskered screech owl now revealed to be named Ezylryb said with turning around to revealed a pretty damaged face, including a scar across his left eye, which reflected annoyance. "What's amusing to me is that you would cover yourself by besmirching these fliers."

A smirk formed on Allomere's beak. "Perhaps my good fellow Ezylryb wishes us to race back to war."

"No, no," Ezylryb groaned with an annoyed look.

"Perhaps he'd write a poem about it from his hollow, while the rest of us-Well, while the rest of us had our talons deformed as well," he said, referring to the fact that Ezylryb had a deformed talon; the band just noticed it. "But I say caution when the losses could be so many."

Ezylryb suddenly flew off his perch and in Allomere's face. "I would never counsel rushing blindly into war, but for a cause such as the boy described, for a violation of peace so blatant, so powerful, of course I'd fight!" he declared. "What other course to take? If you think I'm a coward, or I'd simply urge others on, I'll fight you right now. Boron, you can judge the winner."

However, before they could brawl, Boron banged a gavel to stop the fight. "Mildly owls. We are trying to seek the truth."

"The truth?" Soren suddenly said, getting everyone's attention. "I told you the truth. The Pure Ones exist. They've kidnapped me and dozens of of owlets from our hollows. They want to enslave us all and rule our world without pity." Blu noticed that the parliament's looks on Soren softened because of his sincerity. "Yes, the only proof I have are my words. But words were the only proof I ever had that you were real. And still, I believed."

Blu then decided to stand up for his friend. "Please, you gotta believe him!"

Ezylryb then turned toward the king and queen. "And you would argue with that?"

The king marked a pause before pushing a sigh. "I will not argue with it."

"Your Majesty," Allomere said, "my search and rescue chaw is scheduled to leave on a routine survey during the next full moon. Perhaps we could-"

"No," Boron cut him off. "You shall leave immediately. Take your best owls with you, Allomere. And be thorough." He then banged his gavel, ending the meeting.

* * *

A few minutes after, Allomere took off with two owls and flew away from the tree with them. Blu and his friends watched from the parliament's room entrance. "We did it, Soren!" Gylfie said with a big smile.

"Daddy and the others won't believe us, when we'll return home!" Jewel added in excitation.

They then saw Ezylryb landing not too far. "Oh, to be young birds with a taste for adventure arriving to the Tree for the first time." He turned toward them. "Well done to hold your own in there. Some more nice strong gizzards. The Tree always needs them." And with that, he flew away.

"He knows we don't have gizzards, right?" Blu asked, referring to he, Jewel and every non-owl of his friends.

"He is one strange owl," Soren remarked with interest for the old man.

"I think he might be missing a few talons," Gylfie remarked.

"And a good bath." Everyone jumped in surprise as an intruder arrived beside them. It was a female short-eared owl who looked a bit like Strix Struma, but way more younger (and a bit cuter too). "Gross old owl." she then looked at the birds. "You'll want to stay out of his chaw."

"Chaw?" Gylfie asked with a curious look at the short-eared owl.

"I'll tell you on the way to dinner," she replied. "You're already late," she said before taking off and flying down.

The friends exchanged a brief glance before flying down after her. On their way down, there was owls hooting and chattering everywhere. they eventually landed on the ground and behind the short-eared owl who started walking and talking.

"Now, Matron's instructed me to give you lot of rundown on the way we do things here." As she talked, Soren almost got hit by an owl who flew by and then spotted some owls doing a singing choir. "During your basic training-"

"Wait, wait, wait. Basic training?" Blu asked.

"You don't just become a Guardian overnight," the short-eared owl continued. "It takes years. Years." As she talked, Gylfie got stopped by a group of owls carrying something who greeted her and she returned the politesse. "And only our best are chosen to be-"

"Wait. Who are you?" Gylfie cut her off.

"Are you going to keep interrupting me?" she replied with a glare, which earned her a glance mixed between confusion and insulting from the elf owl. "Now, if, however unlikely, you do have talent, you'll be tapped, or selected, for a specialized chaw, or squadron," she kept explaining. As she did so, Soren's friends noticed that their barn owl friend looked at their host with particular interest.

"There's navigation, healing, search and rescue," she kept talking as the others followed her. As they did so, Jewel noticed that Gylfie showed what seemed to jealousy, "blacksmithing, weather interpretation, colliering. I expect to be placed in the navigation chaw myself."

Then, as Soren caught up with her, she finally turned around. "Name's Otulissa, by the way," she said with a friendly (and also charming) smile.

"I'm-I'm Soren. Heh," he introduced himself with a nervous laughter. Gylfie gave a scoff and shook her head in annoyance at Jewel who just giggled as Blu was acting the exact same way, when they met for the first time. Rafael, Nico and Pedro even exchanged accomplice smiles in their back.

"I believe your friends are in there," Otulissa said with pointing her wing toward a group of birds who were currently having dinner. And they saw their friends with them.

"Digger! Hi!" Gylfie said upon seeing their burrowing owl friend alive and eating a whole bowl of something by himself. This made Blu and Soren exchange amused smiles before advancing.

"How's the food, Digger?" Blu asked.

The burrowing owl turned around to reveal he was chewing on multiple caterpillars at once. He quickly swallowed before answering: "It's de-li-cious! Want some, Blu?"

But the spix macaw politely shook his wings. "No thanks, I'm a very distinguished bird who likes to eat civil food-" He stopped upon seeing that Alex and Dominic already started eating the caterpillars as well.

"What?" Alex asked innocently. "I found it taste awesome!" he said with his beak full.

"Figures," Blu mumbled before turning toward Dominic. "Hey, Dom, you're alright!"

The golden eagle swallowed a caterpillar before smiling. "Yup. Those owls have some awesome medicine," he said to which Alex nodded in agreement.

"You know about our Guardian training starting tomorrow?" Blu asked.

"Yeah. Unfortunately, I won't be able to participate as the matron insisted on me resting for a full week. And trust me, she wasn't kidding," Dominic said with an unusually serious look.

"Yeah, but you can't really blame her; you did push your body to its limit after all," Alex remarked. He then turned toward Soren. "Say, Soren, who was that girl you talked with on your way here? Is she your new girlfriend?"

This question caused Soren to blush, Gylfie to roll her eyes annoyingly, and Blu and Jewel to chuckle. "What?! No, no! Her name's Otulissa! We just met"

Alex scratched the side of his head innocently. "Ah? Strange: Blu reacted the exact same way, when I asked about him and Jewel." This made Soren blush and the spix macaws laughing even more. Digger then talked, but his beak was full. "What do you say?"

"He said "good," but he thinks it'll go better with a little music," Twilight said, causing Digger to spit everything out in one shot. "And this looks like a descent crowd," the great grey owl said before starting playing his lute, catching the attention of the other owls who were having dinner.

"He's actually pretty good, you know," Gylfie remarked to her burrowing owl friend.

"Oh, I guess. If you like that sort of things," he responded before plunging into his caterpillars again, making his friends laugh.

* * *

 **Alright, our friends managed to find the Guardians and to convince them to get on the Pure Ones case. Their training is gonna start next chapter!**


	59. Training with the Guardians

The next day, King Boron asked for Blu and his friends to show them how things worked at the Great Tree. "Here at the Great Tree," he said with pointing at a board behind him on which were drawn different categories, "every owl trains in different skills we call "chaws." You'll study tracking, navigation, combat. But maybe you're a blacksmith."

And so, the training for our heroes started. Apollo met with Bubo, the Blacksmithing Chaw ryb (or teacher as it meant), who showed him the way to blacksmith Ga'Hoolian helmets and this interested the barn owl a lot.

"Incredible!" he mumbled as the great horned owl was wearing protection goggles while smashing his hammer on a red iron bar. "I never heard about such technique to craft-I mean blacksmith metal."

"It's because Ga'Hoole is the most advanced in terms of weaponry and tools blacksmithing. There is also some advances in the country of Silverveil, but that's another story," Bubo explained.

"Could you teach me the art of blacksmithing?" Apollo asked with a begging look.

Bubo removed his goggles and looked at the barn owl. "It is my duty as the ryb, but I'm willing to teach you in extra details under one condition. You are a crafter - it is the term you use in your world, right?" Apollo nodded. "Your technology seems pretty interesting to me too. I would like it, if you could tell me more about the way of crafting and in exchange, I'll teach you the art of blacksmithing."

Apollo smiled and took out his slingshot. "Alright, you got yourself a deal. I'm gonna start by showing you my first ever creation..."

* * *

Later on, at the feet of the three, Digger was passing a special training with Dewlap, a female burrowing owl and the Ga'Hoology - the art of taking care of the Great Tree - ryb. She looked a bit like Digger, but had more distinguishable facial marks.

"Let's go!" she said after releasing a little crab underground.

Digger charged and smirked as he suddenly started digging into the ground, sending dirt into the face of Otulissa who has been watching closely while his friends saw it coming and stepped back. Digger grabbed the crab in his beak and turned around victoriously.

However, the little creature suddenly pinched his beak, casing him to let go and drop him as he sneaked behind him. As Digger searched for the crab, this last one took the opportunity to pinch him right in the parts (ouch!) causing him to shout in pain as the others laughed in amusement, safe for Dewlap who rolled her eyes in annoyance.

* * *

After Digger's accident, the group of birds followed Otulissa to a dark room in the tree where she activated a mechanism that showed a map of constellations on the roof with a light. It was absolutely beautiful. So much in fact that Jewel noticed Gylfie looking at it with wide eyes, absorbing every little detail of it.

Not too long after, Soren trained in fighting with Strix Struma, who revealed herself to be the Navigation Chaw's ryb. Both owls had two wooden staff in their talons and swung them at each other. Soren held well on his own, but that was only because the more experienced Struma was holding back. Dominic was watching the whole action from a branch, taking notes in advance before his injuries would heal.

Meanwhile, Alex was at the infirmary with a book of Ga'Hoolian medicine and many tools which he was currently using to create his own medicine. The matron, a female snowy owl, was observing his work with attention.

"Quite a fascinating mixture you're making," she remarked. "Quite original, and yet so superbly logical." This caused Alex to slightly look at her with a blush and a grin. "Wherever did you learn such exquisite medicinal skill?"

"Alex is a doctor from France; it's a country in our world," Blu responded as he was there too.

"A doctor from a new world's country!" the matron exclaimed. "Ho-ho! So they must be ahead of us! I've been a matron for many full moons now, and I had no idea such medical techniques existed!" Alex was getting redder and redder in the face. "My, this is truly exquisite. You're so young and you learn way faster than any owl I know!"

A giant smirk suddenly formed on Alex's beak and he tried to cover himself with his wings. "Stop it! That doesn't make me happy at all!"

* * *

That night, Soren, Gylfie, Blu and Jewel built special lamps made of leaves and sent them floating in the air toward the sea. They joined tens of other lamps which shined through the most around the island. The four birds looked at this show in awe with Jewel resting her head on Blu's neck.

The next day, as the group was joking around the weaponry, Soren stopped to see Ezylryb smelling the warm air of a pile of burning coal. He suddenly shot his eyes open toward the young barn owl.

"Fire, boy. It's the lifeblood of the Tree. There's nothing more dangerous. Hm?" he said with giving an odd look at Soren.

* * *

After this strange encounter, Strix Struma was ready to take on Twilight, Vladimir and Hernandez all at once...and to everyone's surprise, she actually defeated them all.

"Size is not everything, young birds. The key to victory is experience which you clearly lack." The big boys all nodded before walking away. She then pointed a wing at Lazaro. "It's your turn, young one."

The puffin widened his eyes in shock. This was going to be anything but fun.

After that, Queen Barran gave a flying lesson to the owls alongside Blu who was still a bit inexperienced as he recently learned how to fly. "Feel the air!" she ordered. "Follow me," she instructed before diving down. Blu and Soren exchanged a smile as they learned new flying maneuvers.

After a long time of flying, they landed at the perch where they friends waited for them. "Good work, my young friends. If you keep it up like this, you will become Guardians in no time," Queen Barran complimented with a smile before walking away.

The feathered friends all exchanged smiles of proudness at all the progress they made.


	60. Blu vs Shard

After a few days, Blu's group made a lot of progress in their training with the Guardians of Ga'Hoole. They were currently at the cantina as morning was slowly rising up and eating a breakfast consisting of dry caterpillars and tea. As everyone was chatting about today's training and the fact that Dominic was now cleared to train too, Blu spotted Ezylryb a little farther.

He was talking with a group of four birds; there was a male barn owl wearing a bronze helmet and battle claws, a spotted owl with dark brown feathers with white spots, a male bald eagle who had a white head, a black body, and golden eyes, beak and talons, and a male great horned owl with grey feathers. After a while, the group flew away, leaving Ezylryb to fly away.

"...So you created new candies, Alex?" Jewel asked.

"Yeah; two of them! This world have super cool ingredients and plants I can't find back home!" the snowy owl responded in happiness.

"You know what bothers me?" Lazaro asked. "Those owls are still looking at us as if we are aliens. Yet we did told them what species we are and the fact that Alex was born with this form!"

"Calm down, Lazaro; they just need time to get used to new species," Gylfie told him.

"They should have already got used to it! Right, Blu? Blu?" The puffin turned his attention to Blu who realized he was talking to him.

"Oh, sorry, Lazaro! I was just distracted; Ezylryb just talked with a group of birds and it seemed like something very important," Blu quickly explained.

Jewel then gave a curious look. "Huh, what this group including a barn owl, a spotted owl, a bald eagle and a great horned owl?"

Blu nodded. "Yes, how did you guess?"

She pointed behind him. Blu curiously turned around and saw in surprise the four birds standing before him, making him jump. "Good lord! You scarred me!"

The barn owl looked at him seriously. "Are you Blu?" he asked to which the macaw responded with a nod. "Ezylryb asked me to train you for today. So I'll ask you to follow me."

Blu gave him a curious look. "Train me? In what?"

A smirk formed on the owl's beak. "Fighting.

* * *

Meanwhile, at the Tree's library, Soren was busy reading a book all by himself as he wasn't very hungry. It was a book about his favorite story; the one his father always used to tell him. Ezylryb suddenly flew in and perched himself on the book.

"Doing some early morning reading, heh?" he asked with giving an amused look at Soren.

"Yeah. It's the Battle of the Ice Claws. This is my Da's favorite story," Soren explained. "He used to tell us this story all the time.

"Well, your Da had good taste in authors," Ezylryb said with a chuckle. "You enjoying that?" he asked and started using his beak to scratch the back of his leg again.

"Honestly, it's not like how my Da told it," Soren admitted.

"No? How did he told it?" Ezylryb curiously asked.

"Well, with him, it sounded so...heroic. You know, like a great victory. But in these chronicles, the battle sounds like..."

"...Hell," Ezylryb completed to which Soren nodded. "Come on, boy. It's the first light. It's gonna be a big day, tomorrow. I'm going to teach you how to really fly," he declared with taking a bite from a dried caterpillar inside the book.

* * *

Outside the Tree and onto a set of rocks that surrounded the island, the mysterious barn owl and his three friends got ready to train Blu. "Huh, I didn't got your name, did I?" the macaw nervously asked.

"My name is Shard," the barn owl responded with putting his helmet on. "Those are my wingmen, Parzival (the spotted owl), Streak (the eagle), and Uriah (the great horned owl)."

"You are friends of Ezylryb?" Blu curiously asked.

"Well, actually, Shard and I are students of Lord Allomere and recently took on the task of missions for the Great Tree. But yeah, I guess you can say that," the spotted owl, Parzival, responded.

"As you can see, my wingman Parzival got a taste for sarcasm," Shard annoyingly said. "But we recently came back from a mission in the desert of Kuneer that has been assigned to us by Ezylryb. He's gonna inform the parliament about what happened. But in the mean time, he wants me to train you in the art of fighting as he thinks you still lack the skills."

"Hey!" Blu exclaimed with an insulted look. "I'm perfectly capable of fighting! I did it many times!"

A smirk formed on Shard's beak. "We'll see about that. Take off!"

Shard took off in the air and Blu flew after him. Understanding it was the start of the fight, Blu swung his wing at the barn owl for a punch. However, this last one swiftly avoided it and, with a smirk, clawed his talons over his wing, leaving some not too deep, but still hurting scars. Blu grunted in pain as he was weak against cutting objects. But at least he could still fly.

"He really though such a blank attack would reach me?" Shard asked, not impressed.

"That was only the beginning!" Blu said with shaking the pain away and swung his feet for a sweep which Shard ducked. "Darn, he's agile!" the macaw though.

Not giving up, Blu sent a Wing Gatling which Shard surprisingly managed to dodge as well. "My turn!" he shouted with charging into Blu with a violent headbutt into the stomach, the metal helmet causing twice the damage. He then gave him one strike after the other until Blu was sent crashing onto the not too far ground.

"Cheese and sprinkles!" Blu groaned in pain while looking up at the barn owl.

"Ezylryb was right; you don't have that much experience in combat. You still have a lot of work to do before participating in a war, my friend."

"That's not true!" Blu protested. "I already fought before in many battles! It's just you who's too strong for me!"

Shard narrowed his eyes down at Blu. "Because you really think it will be easier in a true war? Don't get wrong idea; I'm far from being the strongest bird you'll find out there. To give you a taste of the real world, I'm gonna show you the power of my battle claws. FIRE CLAWS!"

As he screamed that, his battle claws suddenly took fire, much to the surprise of Blu. "H-How did you do that?!"

"Allow me to explain," Parzival said from the sidelines which made Blu turn toward him. "At the Great Tree, every Guardian have a set of battle claws with a special power. In Shard's case, he can turn them on fire for a short period of time after giving ten consecutive strikes."

Blu widened his eyes. He was weak against both cutting and fire, but with the two combined, it was guarantee to hurt. However, he then looked back at Shard with determination. "It doesn't matter! Super battle claws or not, I'm still planning on becoming the strongest bird in the world!"

Shard narrowed his eyes...before suddenly putting the fire off, much to Blu's confusion. "Alright then. Go catch some rest; we'll continue your training later."

* * *

 **For those of you who didn't know, Shard and his friends are from the LOTG video game. I'm planning on including some of the game's content in this storyline. Also, the fire claws did is also from the game where Shard's talons get on fire if you perform a ten hit combo.**

 **Except that, I hope you enjoy this story. And trust me, the best is yet to come!**


	61. The truth about Shard and Ezylryb

The next day, Ezylryb took Sore and his friends (including Otulissa) out of the Tree and into a giant storm for their flying lesson. The rain was falling so hard and the wind was so strong that it unbalanced the birds.

"Yes! Feel the cuts in the rain!" Ezylryb screamed at the group through the wind and thunder. "A scoffer! A swands! A baggy wrinkle!"

"Baggy wrinkle?" Otulissa asked. "He could have at least given us a vocabulary list!"

"I'll take that in note once we're back inside!" Apollo said.

"This is the way to learn!" Ezylryb shouted with a laughter.

"Yeah, this is exactly how I want to learn: in a maelstrom!" Digger sarcastically replied.

"And me who though flying through a whole sea would make everything easier," Dominic mumbled to himself.

Ezylryb then explained the way weather worked around, but the wind was so strong that the others didn't really heard him. Soon, the screeched owl saw something in the storm and smirked. "Ah-ah! You see that one? Soren! See it; it's there! Go for it!"

As he said this, Soren indeed saw what seemed to be a tunnel into the giant raindrops of the storm. He wasted no time flying into it. "Use your gizzard, boy! _Fly inside_!" Ezylryb screamed.

And then, using his gizzard, Soren shot his eyes open and felt...completely different. He had no words to describe this sensation. He felt as if the world was going in slow motion all around him. He could see the thunder and thousands of raindrops falling all around him before colliding with his face. He was feeling so...alive!

 **(Seriously, I don't know how to describe this sequence: it's just so amazing!)**

Soren opened his eyes after what felt like an eternity (but it was actually a few seconds) to see that he was flying right toward Twilight. Gasping and coming back to his senses, he tried to change his trajectory, but was too late and collided into the great grey owl, losing his balance and falling toward the sea.

"SOREN!" his friends all screamed in horror at seeing him going toward his death. Luckily, Ezylryb managed to dive and catch him just in time before he could go for a splash.

"Owl! Come to my hollow! I have to talk to you!" the screech owl instructed before flying away and back to the Tree.

"Soren!" Blu called as he and the others joined their friend. "What was that? What just happened in this storm?"

Soren just looked away before slowly turning to his macaw friend. "Honestly...I'm not sure, Blu!"

* * *

Some time after the storm accident, Soren and Blu, who wanted to talk with Ezylryb too, were standing in the screech owl's hollow as he was using old battle claws to move burning coals in a bowl.

"I...I don't know what happen," Soren trembly said. Ezylryb tossed his claws away and went to a book. "We flew a great way out here and it was nothing like this."

"You've got no reason to worry, boy," Ezylryb responded while writing in his book. "I confess; I guided you out there in that twister on purpose. I wanted to test your gizzard. And you were exemplary."

"Exemplary?!" Soren asked with a confused look. No, no, no, I almost got my wings ripped off. My head was saying to do one thing and my gizzard was saying to do another."

"And you trusted your head. That's when you failed," Ezylryb simply said while still writing.

"Hum, Ezylryb?" Blu cautiously joined in the conversation. "I wanted to ask you something. It's about your friend you sent to train me...Shard, right?"

"Aw, yes," the screech owl said without turning to look at the spix macaw. "I hope he didn't went too rough with you."

"No he didn't. But what I meant to say is that...I found him a bit strange."

"Strange how?" Soren asked his friend.

"Well, I don't know, he seems pretty serious and unhappy, unlike most of the other Guardians of the Great Tree. I'd even go as far as saying that he's...angry," Blu tried to explain.

Ezylryb then sighed and finally turned toward the macaw. "To understand he's personality, boy, I'm gonna have to go back to many years before..."

FLASHBACK

 _"In the ancient Perrock monastery, hidden away from the cycles of strife and conflict, the Glauxian monks honored the owl god Glaux through study and quiet contemplation._

 _Since the war against Surtr and his Pure Ones many years ago, the monks have maintained a a constant vigil across the land. Forever watching for anything that may threaten, their life and tranquility._

 _On this day, it was the job of a young acolyte named Grettir to take his place at the lookout post. As Grettir kept watch, an unsettling feeling began to well inside his gizzard. He could sense something was wrong._

 _Suddenly, without warning or sound, the Hagsfiends attacked._

IN REALITY

"Who are the Hagsfiends?" Blu curiously asked.

"Hagsfiends were dark creatures of nachtmagen that were also known as crowls: birds with features belonging to both crows and owls. They were able to wield the foul powers of nachtmagen, or evil magic, and were most formidable enemies to the noble and valiant owls of their time," Ezylryb explained before resuming his story.

BACK TO FLASHBACK

 _"The hideous creatures stormed into the monastery, ruthlessly eliminating every soul in their path. With the cries of his brethren echoing through the hollows, Grettir valiantly tried to save them, but it was too late..._

 _The monastery was lost._

 _Managing to escape, Grettir was plagued with feelings of guilt and confusion. How could he have missed the invaders? Rumors began to spread about his negligence, with many branding him a coward and a traitor._

 _Unable to bare the shame, Grettir isolated himself from the world, wandering alone in search for some inner peace._

 _Finding a second chance at life and a means to move forward from his past, Grettir stopped his solitary wandering to settle down and start a family with his mate, Lygeia._

 _Unfortunately, this time of joy was to be short-lived._

 _On a fateful night, as Grettir and Lygeia's first born emerged from its egg, a group of vicious owls raided their hollow and the two parents fell before them. Only the timely arrival of a Guardian chaw prevented the hatchling from suffering their fate._

 _The Guardians swiftly carried the hatchling to the safety of the Ga'Hoole tree and affectionately named him Shard due to a piece of eggshell they found clinging to his downy coat._

 _Many moons later, Shard studied hard to become a Guardian himself, but Grettir's legacy, however, had left a stain upon his son."_

FLASHBACK END

Both Blu and Soren looked at Ezylryb with wide eyes. "Man, what a sad story," blu mumbled.

"So this is why he's so serious? And angry?" Soren asked.

"Yes," Ezylryb confirmed. "He wants to regain his family's honor and prove his worth to everyone. Allomere was the one to train both he and PArzival, but they never got along. After your arrival and warning of the Pure Ones, I gave them many secret missions to prove they had my trust. They went to the desert of Kuneer, the Tyto forest, and even the Glauxian retreat I mentionned sooner. They gave him his father's battle claws there," the screech owl explained before stamping a red logo at the end of his book.

Soren looked oddly at it. "Wait, is it your logo?"

"What? This?" Ezylryb asked with pointing at it. "Yes."

"So, you wrote the Battle Of The Ice Claws," the barn owl noticed.

"I-I think so," the screech owl oddly responded. "Well, actually, yes, I did," he said with closing his book and taking it before flying to a perch.

"You were there?" Soren asked.

"Yes."

"What? As a scribe?"

"Hum, no," Ezylryb said with classing his new book amongst many other ones. "As a soldier. As the, I guess you could say, leader of all the soldiers."

Soren's eyes suddenly widened as he seemed to have realized something. "You are Lyze of Kiel," he mumbled, earning a confused look from Blu.

"Lyze of Kiel?"

Ezylryb flew over to a little telescope and looked into it. "Hum, yes."

"You are Lyze of Kiel."

"Yes, don't wear it out," Ezylryb responded with looking away from his telescope.

"But...," Soren's eyes slowly drifted down to Ezylryb's battle claws as Blu still didn't understood anything.

"That old thing? It's only good for gathering coal now."

Why they call you Ezylryb?" Soren slowly asked.

"Every owl at the Tree knows who I am," the screech owl responded. "My days as Lyze are well behind me. And that battle is a distant memory. Except, strangely enough, for young owls like you."

He finally flew away from his telescope and back into his books. "Why didn't you tell me?" Soren asked.

"What difference does it make, how I call myself?" he asked back with turning toward the barn owl.

"'Cause Lyze of Kiel was my hero," Soren finally revealed.

"Yes, well, guess it must be hard to meet your hero and see he's real and not a myth," Ezylryb said with turning a candlelight off with his talons.

"It's just...It's just," Soren nervously mumbled before the screech owl turned to him with a serious look.

"What did you expect? Some tyto alba with gleaming armor and battle claws and the moon rising behind him? Well, this," he said with pointing a talon at his damaged face, "is what you look like when you fought in an actual battle. It's not glorious, it's not beautiful, it's not even heroic; it's merely doing what's right. And doing it again and again. Even if someday you look like this."

Suddenly, they heard the sound of the gong at the island's entrance. "Something's happening," Ezylryb said as Blu and Soren turned around.

* * *

 **If the scene with the slow motion through the storm was my favorite one, Ezylryb's speech of vigilantism is my second one.**

 **First of all, I like how Ezylryb i** **s trying to deny while also being honest about being Lyze of Kiel. Second, if you read the** **Book of Lyze, and know everything Ezylryb's been through,...his speech makes a lot more sense. It gives me the chill. Honestly, I didn't though an animated movie with talking owls could get so deep into the reality of war.**


	62. To harms

After the gong was heard ringing, Blu and Soren quickly flew over at the perch which served as the Tree's entrance landing. there, they saw many owls gathered and talking among themselves. They came across Otulissa through the crowd.

"What's going on?" Soren asked.

"Lord Allomere has returned," she responded. "He rescued two owlets from the Beaks. And he looks injured." Just as she said that, they saw the great grey owl walking past them in a limp way. "You know," she added toward Soren with a soft look, "I didn't really believed what you said."

"Oh, I'm not mad at you," Soren assured. "Honestly, I wouldn't have believed it either." As he said that, he and Otulissa looked at each other with shy smiles and blushed a bit. This made Blu smile a bit as he knew those looks; they were the same as the ones he and Jewel exchanged before becoming a couple.

"Soren!" They all turned to see Mrs. P rushing at them urgently. "It's Eglantine!"

At those words, Soren's eyes suddenly shot open in shock and horror. "...Eglantine?!" He suddenly ran through the crowd. "Let me through! Let me through!" he shouted until he reached the center where was a buck into which were laying two owlets. One of them was a little tyto with white feathers...as white as her hollowed eyes.

Soren just glanced at her with his jaw dropped and his eyes on the verge of tears. "Who's she?" Blu mumbled as he arrived beside her.

"...My little sister," Soren replied with whipping his tears away and looked at Queen Barran who arrived on the scene. "T-Think you can help her?"

"We will do our best, Soren," she responded as the buck was picked up and carried to the infirmary.

"Eglantine...," Soren mumbled with tears coming out again as Blu came beside him and wrapped his wings for a comforting hug.

* * *

Soon after, Allomere met with the parliament. Dominic managed to sneak in close enough to hear their conversation.

"We were outnumbered," Allomere said. "I was only wounded, thank Glaux. But the others..." He marked a pause, making the others understand what it meant.

"Can you estimate the number of enslaved owlets, Allomere?" Strix Struma asked, a lot of compassion in her voice.

"More than I witnessed. There may well be many more."

"And you believe this is part of a larger plan?" King Boron asked.

"It is certain," Allomere responded before giving the most serious of looks. "Now Majesty, this is not time for laugh matters."

King Boron looked down for a second before talking. "Bubo, sharpen the battle claws." The great horned owl nodded with a sigh. "To harms."

Allomere gave a serious smile. "To harms, " he repeated.

And so, Bubo and the others blacksmith prepared the battle claws and helmets for every Guardian of the Great Tree. Even King Boron and Queen Barran putted on their golden helmet and claws. Dominic wasted no time sharing the news with his group.

Blu widened his eyes in surprise. "So all the Guardians are really going to war?!"

"Yup," Dominic nodded. "They're all going to the Beaks to stop the Pure Ones once and for all."

"That's great news!" Gylfie said in relief. "We came here to warn them and now they take action. Right, Soren? Soren?" The elf owl suddenly realized that her barn owl friend was nowhere to be seen.

Just then, Apollo returned. "You don't know about Soren? He asked Ezylryb to bring him to the Beaks, but he refused, saying that he would get killed in less than a minute. Instead, he sent him to his little sister at the infirmary. I just come back from helping Bubo with the battle claws."

"Poor Soren," Blu mumbled before flying off to go see his friend. Jewel was about to follow, but Dominic stopped her with his wing.

"No, Jewel; I doubt Soren wants us to overcrowd his sister's room right now."

* * *

Some time after the Guardians left, Blu was sitting at the infirmary with Soren and Mrs. P, looking over the unconscious Eglantine who was still laying in the nest with her eyes pure white. The barn owl was resting his forehead on her head.

"Eg...If I could, I would take your place... Yes, I wish I was the one laying there..."

"Oh, Soren," Mrs. P mumbled, on the verge of tears too.

"If I could, I would take your place. Because that way, you could see this place from your own eyes. Everything Da told us, it was true. The Great Tree, the Guardians, even Lyze of Kiel, everything is true!" As Soren cried, Blu came and gently patted him on the shoulder for comfort.

"Soren...," a weak voice mumbled.

This caused Soren's eyes to open widely. "Eg?"

"You said...I would be Lyze...next time," the young owlet who recovered her normal yellow tired eyes mumbled.

A huge smile formed on Soren'S beak and Mrs. P's face and they affectionately nuzzled her in relief. "Eglantine!" Soren shouted in pure happiness as his little sister was okay.

"Soren. Mrs. P. We're not home?" Eglantine weakly asked as Blu was looking at the family reunion with a smile of joy.

"No; we're at the Great Tree! This is Ga'Hoole!" Soren happily said with pointing at all around them.

"Huh? No, impossible," Eglantine weakly said as Mrs. P started gently caressing her head with her tail. "Kludd is-"

"No, Kludd was wrong," Soren cut him off. "Da was right. He was right from the beginning!"

"No, you didn't understand," Eglantine corrected. "Kludd is with them, Soren. He's one of them."

This caused an awkward silence to fall in the infirmary as the three adults looked at the owlet with wide eyes. "What? No, no, no; your mind is just hazed." Soren shoved it off. "But luckily, Allomere saved your life."

"I wasn't saved, Soren; Kludd gave me to the owl who carried me all the way here," the young girl denied.

"No! That's impossible," Soren refused to believe with a serious look. "Because it would mean that...Allomere is...a traitor..." Soren looked down seriously before suddenly widening his eyes seriously.

"Soren?" Blu asked with looking cautiously at his friend. He suddenly grabbed him by the wing and ran out of the infirmary.

"It's a trap! We must get the others!"

 **(I'd like to take the opportunity to make a little commentary about this scene: As touching as it was, I don't understand why Soren didn't asked Eglantine what happened to her. In such a situation, it should be one of the first things to ask, right?)**

* * *

A few moments later, everyone was gathered in a hollow. "What?!" Rafael exclaimed in shock. "So Allomere is gonna lead the Guardians into a trap?!"

"That bastard!" Dominic growled with hardening his fist. "I knew something was wrong with him!"

"We must do something!" Twilight said with determination. "If all the Guardians get killed, we won't stand a chance to stop the Pure Ones!"

Dominic then turned toward Gylfie. "Gylfie, you studied the constellations, right? Think you can lead us to the Beaks?"

"Huh, yes, I think," the elf owl nervously answered. "But what do you want us to do, once we get there?"

"It's simple!" Vladimir Pedro answered. "We free our friends and kick those evil owls' butt away! POP!" he said with kicking an invisible butt.

"Yes! Let's go!" Lazaro said with throwing a flipper in the air and heading toward the hollow's exit.

"Are you completely out of your mind?!"

Everyone froze and slowly turned toward Apollo who screamed and had his legs trembling with some sweat on his face.

"You guys don't seem to understand what we're talking about here! It's not one of those little brawls we took part of in the past: we're talking about getting into a REAL war! A war where people die and were our enemies will be merciless and try to kill us at any cost! And you, you just want to jump into this as if it was a walk in the park?! You realize what you're saying?!"

Lazaro was about to reply...but for the first time, he couldn't deny that his barn owl friend was right. The whole group exchanged looks of concern. Apollo was right; they never put their lives on the line like the Guardians were doing right now.

SLAM!

Dominic suddenly slammed the sheath of his saber on the ground to get everyone's attention. "I know you guys are all scared! Trust me; Vladimir and I know perfectly how it feels like. But there's one reality you must know: we all end up putting our lives on the line one day or the other. The only differences are the ones who do it on purpose and those who don't. And now is the perfect time to put our lives on the line. 'Cause if we don't, the Guardians will be killed which will result in the Owl Kingdom loosing its freedom and even more innocent to get killed. And everything we went through - Grimble's sacrifice, our escape from St. Aggie's, our long fly to the Great Tree which almost resulted in the death of Digger, our training - all that will have been vain.

And today's the perfect moment to risk our lives. I cannot force you to do it as your lives belong only to you, but if we are to risk our lives, keep in mind that it will be for our lives, that of the others, our freedom, and most of all, our dreams. I will go; are you ready to go with me?"

He held his wing forward, waiting for the others to join. They all exchanged looks...before Blu putted his wing over Dominic's. Soon, one-by-one, all the others joined their wings as well, all ready to fight for their dreams. This caused Dominic to smile widely before turning to Blu.

"Lead our way, Strongest Bird In The World," he said, making Blu smile too.

"Wait," Apollo called before reaching into his backpack and taking out...four sets of battle claws? "While training with Bubo, I worked with him to craft battle claws for all four of you, Soren, Gylfie, Twilight and Digger," he said with giving them their new weapons.

"Wow! Impressive!" Twilight said with putting them on. They were emerald in color with some golden edges.

"I called it Diamond Dash as its surface is similar to that of shining diamonds," Apollo explained. He then turned toward Digger whose battle claws were in silver. "Yours are called Swift Steel because of the material we used to make them, Digger."

"Nice," the burrowing owl said with making some moves with his battle claws.

Apollo then looked at Gylfie whose battle claws were pink/purple in color. "Yours are called Valor Rose, Gylfie, as I modeled them to look like a special type of flower found only in the desert of Kuneer where you're from."

"Thank you, they are very beautiful indeed," the elf owl said with a smile, though not very comfortable wearing these for the first time.

Finally, Soren's battle claws were ruby in color with the edges being golden. "And finally, Soren, your battle claws are called Golden Heart because I wanted them to have a memorable name and also because I sincerely think your heart is golden," Apollo explained.

"Well thanks, Apollo," Soren said, blushing a bit for the compliment while looking at his new weapons.

"You'll have the chance to put them in action very soon," Blu said. "For now, let's get to the Beaks before it's too late." He then turned toward Gylfie. "Gylfie, as our navigator, we let you open the way."

The elf owl nodded and lead the group outside the nest and out of the island. "We must follow the Whale's Fin! It's where they would have gone!"

And with that, our heroes flew toward the call to harms...

* * *

 **Man, you don't know how much fun I had writing this chapter. The great battle starts next chapter.**

 **Also, today was my last day of school: I'M SUMMER VACATIONS! This means I can now focus full time on this story.**

 **Finally, Soren and his friends' battle claws are based on the ones you can purchase in the game. If you wanna know which powers it will give our friends, you'll have to read the next chapter ;)**

 **I wanna dedicate to our fellow author Arlene The Scarlet Macaw who had to leave the Rio fandom for personal reasons. We'll all miss you :,(**


	63. To the Beaks!

BEFORE WE FOLLOW THE STORY, LET'S GO BACK IN TIME AND SEE A LITTLE EVEN THAT HAPPENED BEFORE BLU AND HIS FRIENDS' DEPARTURE:

When Shard returned from his mission to the Glauxian monks retreat, he discovered that all the Guardians had taken up arms. And there, within Ezylryb's hollow, a note from the old screech owl left him with a fateful choice:

"Dear Shard, it has come to this... War. The others Guardians and I have rushed into the heart of the darkness, to make our stand against this Pure One threat. My gizzard stirs. I do not know what we will find there and I fear for the worst.

There is no doubt that we will need you and the knowledge you have gained from your journeys. Join us when you are ready, for we'll need every battle claw we can muster."

Shard felt frustrated at being left behind and he became doubly so when he saw Soren and his comrades fly off to find the Guardians. Following them seemed the only option. And so it was that they found themselves headed towards the baleful land of rocky spires known as the Beaks...

END OF FLASHBACK

* * *

As the group of birds flew across the sea and arrived on the lifeless landscape of the Beaks with nothing more than dead trees, a few rivers, and giant sharp rocks, they could spot smoke flying off toward the sky on the distance, right before the burning blaze-colored sky which also affected the moon with its color.

Eventually, Dominic turned his head. "It's good, guys! You can show yourself now!"

And so, Shard, Parzival, Streak and Uriah all flew next to the group. "How did you know we were following you?" Shard asked.

"I heard you shouting in anger, back in your hollow. I knew you and your friends wouldn't just stay behind and let this battle slip by," the eagle responded with a smile before looking ahead seriously. "And with reason; I gotta feeling that this battle will be very intense."

"Shard." The barn owl turned around to see a look of concern on his spotted owl friend's (Parzival) face. "I don't know if we'll survive this, but I want you to know something: As we've journeyed through the kingdoms, you have continued to prove your mettle as a Guardian again and again. The battle in the Beaks will truly test us, Shard. I will proudly fight by your side...my friend."

 **(I know it may not be that touching in this story, considering that we've barely seen Shard's group so far, but if you play the game, it makes this scene really deep)**

Shard just looked at his friend while trying to keep his emotion inside. He soon turned back toward their destination. "Thanks, Parzival. But don't get emotional yet; if we are this survive this battle, we all need to stay focused!"

"Yes, chief!" Streak said with a smile.

Digger soon turned his head down toward something. "I see something." The thing he saw was a Pure One's helmet laying behind a rock with some feathers around it. Probably did they belong to its owner before getting taken down by the Guardians.

"Good! It means we're on the right track!" Dominic said, using his hunting knowledge.

"You should look at that smog," Soren remarked with looking ahead of them where a huge cloud of smog was flying to the sky with a blaze light shining behind the mountain. Probably because of a fire. And the air was getting hot too.

As they kept flying, Gylfie soon spotted something. "Soren! Look!" She pointed her head toward a strange blue glooming light coming from behind a mountain.

Blu realized something. "Hey, that light is pretty familiar, don't you think?"

As they arrived over the mountain, the group decided to hide on the platforms instead of flying ahead and risking getting spotted. After walking for a moment, they peaked out of their hiding spot to see a rather horrifying scene.

All the Guardians (except for the traitor Allomere) were caught in a trap of blue light that was preventing them from flying, they were pinned to the rocky ground. The source of this trap came from three pillars located in a triangle shaped that were holding metal spheres filled with familiar blue crystals.

"Flecks!" Blu silently exclaimed. "The little pellet debris that almost caused Soren to pass out back at St. Aggie's!"

"Poo! (Crap!) We're too late!" Dominic exclaimed with slamming his wing on the rock.

"Well we can't just leave them down there twitching in pain!" Twilight exclaimed. "Can we?"

"No, you don't understand!" Gylfie exclaimed. "When we were at St. Aggie's, we saw what those things can do to one owl. They do something terrible to your gizzard. Isn't that right, Soren?" Soren?" She then saw that her friend was not listening but looked all around them with a calculating air on his face.

His friends all looked at him curiously before Digger spotted something on the distance. "Huh, guys? We got bats in there," he said with pointing to a giant cloud of bats coming out from a giant rock that seemed to serve as the headquarters for the Pure Ones. And there was many of them. Like A LOT!

"No worry; I can take down a hundred of those bloodsuckers," Twilight declared.

"H-How about a thousand?" Digger asked, seeing more and more bats coming out.

"Well we won't find out by sitting on our tails! Come on!" Twilight exclaimed and was about jump into action, only to be stopped by Gylfie who rose her wings.

"Wait! Just wait."

Then, they noticed Soren looking at the forest fire nearby, the trap, and a sort of tea pot hanging from a little perch above them. "Yes..."

"Soren, what is it?" Twilight asked.

"The flames. That's it." He then turned toward his friends. "I think I see a way to free the Guardians! But for that, I'll need your help, Blu."

"No, Soren, you can't fly into fire," Gylfie tried to convince him.

Soren putted his wings on his little friend's shoulders. "Listen, Gylfie, I have to trust my gizzard." He then turned toward the others. "Guys, can you take care of the bats?"

"We'll buy you as much as we can," Dominic said with taking out his saber. "But hurry and be careful." And with that, everyone except Blu and Soren flew down toward the zone where the Guardians were trapped.

Soren flew up to the tea pot and tried to untie it. "Come on, Blu! We must start by taking this pot off!"

Blu looked curiously, but still went to help his friend. "You really think it's the right time for tea?"

"No; I have another idea!"

* * *

As the group flew down, Dominic couldn't help but look at the suffering Guardians, wanting to help them. "Can't we just go break those traps ourselves? We don't have gizzard!" Lazaro asked.

"We can't, Lazaro!" Apollo responded. "I looked at those traps and they are made of valerian steel! It's very solid and the only thing that could destroy them is fire! Bubo taught me all of that in blacksmithing lessons!"

The group then arrived on the zone between the trapped Guardians and where the bats were coming from. "Here we make our stand! The only thing we can do is prevent those bats from reaching the Guardians as long as we can until Blu and Soren destroy this trap," Dominic said with holding his saber in both wings, ready for battle.

Jewel grabbed her staff. She had trained hard with it during her time in the Amazon; surely she could beat some bats with it. Gylfie, Digger and Twilight were pretty nervous (well, maybe not Twilight) as this was their first war, but they ready to do it for Soren and for their own dreams. And they had their new battle claws for it.

"I have a bad feeling about this," Apollo mumbled with taking out his slingshot. Despite standing, his legs were trembling out of nervousness, regardless of his effort to hide it.

Alex was pretty nervous too, but refused to stand down as Yukio would never be proud of him should he give up now. For Vladimir, Hernandez and Lazaro, no need to doubt; they were all ready to get into action.

Shard turned toward his companions. "Ready for the battle, guys?" His question was answered by nods from his comrades.

As the bats were closing in, Dominic noticed that at the palace hole from where all the bats were coming from was a perch on which were standing two owls. One of them was Nyra, the white barn owl whom he remembered murdered Grimble and the other one beside her was a strange barn owl with completely black feathers and wearing a metal helmet - not like the Guardians'; this one was different. There was also four birds alongside them.

There was the traitor Allomere without his helmet, a strange vulture-like creature wearing battle claws, an helmet with a giant blue crystal on her forehead, and another one on her chest, a bat who was taller than the other ones, and...Kludd! Soren's brother!

Pushing a groan, Dominic silently swore to himself that he would personally avenge Grimble's death and save his family. But for now, he had to focus on the thousands of bats heading toward his group.

"LET'S BEAT THEM ALL!"

Right after Dominic shot that, Pedro jumped and knocked out bat away with a right swing to the jaw. Nico and Rafael followed by throwing his bottle cap at one bat's head and sting another one in the wing with its fork respectively.

Vladimir used his rock power to take out a giant stone from the ground and tossed it right into at least ten bats at once. Hernandez was the next to attack by summoning his red and black armor on his right wing and sending a huge energy blast that knocked all the bats in its path.

"HERNANDEZ! THROW ME!" Lazaro screamed while running before his pelican pal grabbed him by the wings and swung a few times before throwing him. This allowed the puffin to spin super quick and kick down many bats on the way.

"My turn! MUSCLE CANDY!" Alex said and ate a candy that made his wings, torso and legs become super muscled (it's not a new candy he created; I just never showcased it before). The snowy owl then charged into action by knocking all the bats he met with his strong wings.

Apollo managed to put his fear aside and shoot peppers ammos in the bats' face with his slingshot. Meanwhile, Twilight looked down at his battle claws before smiling.

"My friends, I just found out the power of my battle claws!" He then gently brought them toward the wires of his lute. "Resound, Diamond Dash!"After screaming this, he ran his battle claws on his lute's wires which caused a special sound to fly into the bats' ears and make them screech before collapsing, uncounscious.

"I found out mine too!" Digger said in excitation. "Run, Swift Steel!" As he screamed that, his battle claws started shining before some kind of metal bow appeared on his left battle claw. He used his right one to stretch the wire which created a silver energy arrow which he shot into a bat's face. "Bet ya didn't expected that!"

Gylfie was the next one to discover her battle claws' power. She slowly rose them forward. "Dance, Valor Rose!" Suddenly, sand minerals started coming out from the ground and gathered around her battle claws to form giant ones in sand. The elf owl then used those big sand battle claws to cut down many bats at once.

"FIRE TALONS!" Shard, having already delivered ten strikes in a row, activated his battle claws power and putted them on fire to both cut and burn the bats. His three wingmen were right behind him, taking of the other bats around and making sure no one would take down their chief.

Jewel was swiftly swinging her wooden stick around to knock down all the bats that got near her. Beautiful and dangerous as she said. Finally, Dominic was cutting down each and every one of those bloosuckers that came near him, well determined to not let one of them slip through their defense and get to the helpless Guardians.

"We can hold them back for now!" Dominic though while seeing all the bats easily falling before them. He then looked up at the sky. "We're counting on you, Blu and Soren..."


	64. The four captains enter in action

**The battle of the Beaks started in the previous chapter! Dominic and the others must hold their ground and protect the Guardians until Blu and Soren destroy the trap!**

* * *

Despite their numbers and ardor, the bats couldn't get to the Guardians as Dominic and the others were too strong for them to break through. Metal Beak groaned. "Those darn birds are preventing our bat soldiers from advancing!"

"Do not worry, my love," Nyra said with a smirk before looking down at the four birds underneath them. "Allomere! Chief Bat! Hagsfiend Queen! Kludd! It is time for you to enter in action!"

The four of them nodded at the evil queen before taking off the palace and toward the fighting zone. The traitor was the first one to activate his power. "Cut, Silver Axe!" As he screamed this, a pretty big silver colored battle axe appeared in his battle claws.

He then looked at all the opposers and randomly picked one to target before swinging his axe which sent a pretty big cutting wind slash. And his target was...Digger.

"Oh yes!" the burrowing owl beamed after taking another bat down with a shot from his new silver bow. "Bet you didn't expected...huh?" He stopped showing-off and barely had time to react before receiving the wind slash right into his torso, cutting him there and sending a big jet of blood flying in the air.

"DIGGER!" Twilight, Gylfie, Dominic, Jewel and Alex all screamed in horror as their burrowing owl friend collapsed on the rocky ground. Twilight immediately rushed at his friend's side.

At the same time, Shard turned his head to look up at Allomere in surprise. "Allomere?!" He then narrowed his eyes at his former mentor. "A traitor filthier than racdrops!"

"Oh! Such untoward speech!" Allomere exclaimed, faking an insulted air. "Grettir would not be proud."

Shard suddenly widened his eyes in surprise at the mention of his father's name. "What do you know about my father? Talk!"

"Oh, we were well acquainted." He then narrowed his eyes at the barn owl. "At Perrock!" Shard gasped and widened his eyes once again as he understood what the great grey owl meant. "Surprised? I thought with all of your snooping you would have guessed by now..."

Shard then narrowed his eyes at him. "You murdered them all! My father! My mother!"

"In any event, the Pure Ones will soon emerge victorious and Grettir's bloodline will be silenced forever. Just as he was." The great grey owl smirked and then flew away.

Shard gave a piercing glare filled with nothing but anger and pushed a scream of rage before racing at full speed after his parents' murderer. "SHARD! WAIT!" Parzival screamed and was about to fly after his friend.

"Wait!" Dominic stopped the spotted owl with a wing. "I'll go help him! You guys stay here and keep prevent the bats from advancing!" And with that, he flew after Shard and Allomere, hoping to help his barn owl friend.

Meanwhile, Twilight was still holding his hurt friend while Gylfie looked at him in concern. "Digger! Digger! Are you alright?" Twilight asked while trying to hold back the bleeding with his wing.

Apollo tossed his medical kit from his backpack to them before resuming shooting at the bats with his slingshot. "Guys! Use this! Before he dies!"

Unfortunately, as he turned his back for a second, this gave a chance to the Hagsfiend Queen to dive and stab her talons directly into his lower abdomen. The barn owl widened his eyes at her and coughed as the sharp talons penetrated his abdomen.

"Apollo!" Alex screamed in shock as he saw that, right after knocking many bats down with his canonball candy and returned to normal. "NOOOOOO!" the snowy owl screamed and flew quickly toward the evil bird who just hurt his friend.

However, as he was about to strike her, she swiftly turned around and planted her wing into his belly, stopping dead on his track. "Fleck beam!" Before Alex could react, a light blue beam was shot out of her wing and right through his stomach and gizzard, causing him to cough saliva and collapse as his eyes turned white. Apollo collapsed as well while clutching in pain.

"ALEX! APOLLO!" Lazaro screamed in horror at seeing his two friends falling before the new enemies that entered on the scene. He then heard a piercing screech and barely had time to turn around before the Bat Chief arrived and planted his fangs right into the puffin's shoulder, making him scream loudly in pain.

"LAZARO!" Hernandez screamed in horror of seeing his best friend getting attacked like that. As the Bat Chief dug his fangs deeper, Lazaro groaned before putting on an angry face and grabbing both parts of his jaw with his flippers and force it open with his raw strength.

He then jumped away from the big bat as his shoulder was bleeding on both his back and torso. "Lazaro! Are you alright?!" Hernandez asked as he rushed at his friend.

"Well, I almost got my shoulder ripped off, but except that, I'm good," the puffin responded despite being in visible pain. He then narrowed his eyes at the bat who smirked while licking the blood off his fangs. "I WILL KICK YOUR BUTT FOR THAT! COME ON, HERNANDEZ!"

* * *

Meanwhile, back to Shard, he kept flying after Allomere as the great grey owl flew down into a huge cave which had enough space for a fight and a pond underneath them. He smirked and slowly turned toward the barn owl who finally caught up to him.

"This is the perfect place for us to have our final battle," Allomere remarked.

"It is the perfect place for me to cut you down to pieces without any of your "friends" to interfere!" Shard replied.

Allomere just chuckled and summoned his silver axe once again. "As if...my student!"

Pushing a battle cry, Shard dashed forward and clawed at Allomere over and over again. The great grey owl blocked all of his attacks with his axe and eventually swung it at him for counter-attack. Shard managed to duck it and tried to claw his former mentor in the face, only for him to dodge as well.

Eventually, the great grey owl grabbed Shard by the talons and threw him toward the rocky wall of the cave. Shard slammed his feet into the wall and pushed himself to get a huge momentum and headbutt Allomere right in the beak, making him spit some blood.

"You're gonna regret that!"

* * *

 **Hey, guys. Sorry this chapter was so short, but I promise you the next one will be longer.**

 **In the next chapter: Blu and Soren finally gets the tea pot off and must hurry with Soren's plan while their friends fight off the captains.**


	65. Dominic & Shard vs Allomere

By the time Dominic arrived into the cave he saw Shard entering, he could see that the fight had already started. Both Shard and Allomere were flying in the middle of this large cave, the former having some bruises and cuts with blood on his feathers. Allomere too had a few scratches, but Shard clearly got the worst of it.

"This is a waste of time, Shard! I'm the one who taught you everything you know! i know every one of your tricks!" Allomere then rose his axe toward the barn owl. "It is not too late to join us, Shard! Metal Beak will have a place for you in his army - probably alongside me and the other captains!"

Dominic decided to charge at this moment, taking out his saber and swinging it at the great grey owl. However, he saw his attack and blocked him with his axe at the last second. "Are you done licking his butt?" Dominic sarcastically asked.

"Dominic?!" Shard said in surprise before narrowing his eyes. "What are you doing here? Stay out of this! It's my fight!"

"Don't play the though bird, Shard!" Dominic replied without getting his eyes away from his opponent. "I promise to leave you a piece of him, when I defeat him."

"Humph, when you defeat me, huh?" Allomere mumbled with lack of interest. "This might throw cold water on that enthusiasm of yours, but ever since I discovered my battle claws' power, I never met any weapon that could overpower my axe. No weapon can destroy mine," he said with pushing Dominic back.

"Ah, I get the picture," Dominic said with rising his saber toward the great grey owl. "But you can store all those old tales away in an album. I don't know how many birds using weapons you've fought in the past, but we've never met before, so..."

Allomere just narrowed his eyes at Dominic. "Your tongue as is sharp as your blade." He then charged at the golden eagle who just smirked.

"Thanks, big grey."

Allomere then swung his axe at Dominic who blocked it with his saber. As both parties were pushing against the other's weapon, they also glanced into each other's eyes. "We will see how long you last," Allomere said.

"No, how long YOU last!" Dominic replied before pushing his opponent back and then found himself avoiding more and more axe swings. Eventually, he blocked Allomere's axe with his saber, holding it with both wings.

"It's heavy!" the golden eagle though before headbutting the great grey owl who responded with yet another axe swing which forced him to throw his head backward and performing a moonsault. He then swung it again to send a cutting wind slash that Dominic dodged, letting him go cut down a stone pillar. "Glad I wasn't at that pillar's place!"

He then flew above Allomere, landing behind him, and both birds turned around to collide their respective weapon at the same time. Pushing a growl, the two of them kept swinging their axe/saber at each other, dodging or blocking the other's attacks. This all ended when Dominic managed to land a kick into the grey owl's stomach, making him spit saliva, and slammed the flat side of his saber into his face to knock him back.

"All right, time to go all out!" Dominic then took a special pose and rose his saber. "TIGER SLASH!" Charging at full speed, he passed over Allomere and landed a cut into his shoulder, sending blood flying in the air and making him collapse in pain.

"And that's not all! ENERGY SLASH!" Charging his saber with energy, Dominic then shot an energy slash to made impact right into Allomere's face and caused a little energy explosion. After landing on the ground, Dominic panted in exhaustion and whipped sweat from his forehead after the short but intense duel he just had.

"Hey!" He turned his head to see shard looking at him. "You said you would let me finish him!"

"Sorry, but as you could see, I had no choice but to go all out if I wanted to win," Dominic responded and was about to put his saber away.

"Because you really think it is over?"

Widening his eyes and freezing on the spot, the golden eagle slowly turned around and was surprised to see the great grey owl still standing. Though he had a clear mark from the Energy Slash in the form of an horizontal scar across the middle of his face which was bleeding a bit. And he looked far from happy.

"It's a little shocking that it didn't cut your head off. Looks like I claimed victory too soon," Dominic remarked and took his saber out again. "This is also the first time my opponent is still standing when I though my attacks were solid."

"Dominic," Shard suddenly called. "Please, reassure me, that wasn't the best attack you could do, right?"

The golden eagle just looked at him with a nervous smirk. "Trust me, Shard, I would like to tell you it was not."

"I told you; no weapon can overpower me!" Allomere shouted before flying right at Dominic and swinging his axe which the golden eagle managed to barely dodge.

"This axe's really solid!" Dominic though with blocking the axe with his saber. "I can never break it with my saber!"

Just then, the great grey owl pushed him back with his huge strength and then shot a bigger Wind Slash which Dominic dodged. However, this time, it left a cut on his cheek which started to bleed. Also, the attack collided with the wall of the cave, making it tremble a bit.

Allomere then appeared before Dominic with surprising speed. "There's also one detail you forgot that I did not: you didn't entirely recovered from your wounds!"

And with that, he delivered a strong blow into the golden eagle's torso with his talons, making him spit saliva as he felt a jolt of pain from where Hawkeye cut him, a few days prior, and was sent crashing into a stone. He felt his bones cracking as he hit the ground with a loud thud. Clutching in pain (without letting go of his saber), he coughed a little more saliva.

"When it comes to training, I've done it more than anyone else," he though. "I've also been in many difficult situations that had me on the brink. Then...Then what is it that I lack?!"

"I have enough playing." Allomere slowly rose his axe again, ready to finish the eagle for good. "Goodbye!"

"FIRE TALONS!"

Just as Allomere lowered his axe, Shard jumped in time to block it with his burning claws. This caused the two birds to look at the barn owl in surprise. "Shard! I told you that I could take him one-on-one!" Dominic protested.

"And I have two reasons for not obeying you," Shard responded without turning to look at the golden eagle. "First, I want to avenge my family! And second, like it or not, but I cannot allow one of my friends to be killed simply for their pride! That's exactly what I did with Parzival."

This caused Dominic to look at him in amazement while Allomere just smirked. "Fire Talons, heh? I remember when you used them for the first time. I was the one who helped you master them, remember?" He then pushed Shard back with his axe. "However, its big default is that you can only activate it after landing ten strikes in a row and only for a short period of time."

"In that case, you know that I cannot waste any time!" Shard then charged forward and claws his burning talons at Allomere's axe, sending sparks flying in the air.

"Sparks?! Just how hard is he striking with those claws?!" Dominic wondered as he watched the fight.

The two owls exchanged attack after attack for many seconds, Shard unleashing all his anger into his , Allomere actually managed to hit him in the side with the flat side of his axe. Shard groaned in pain, but managed to perform a dive behind his former mentor and clawed him in the back, leaving burning cuts.

Allomere pushed a big groan of pain before putting on a glare filled of anger and swiftly turned around to swing his axe, managing to leave a not too deep cut across Shard's torso, sending blood flying in the air. The barn owl groaned because of the pain.

"What a momentary misjudgment invites is...death!" Allomere declared before slashing his axe across Shard's torso once again, this time deeper and sending his blood flying even more before kicking him into the cave's wall and making him land hard on the ground with a loud thud.

Allomere slowly walked toward the fallen Guardian who was twitching in pain and bleeding a lot. "I expected a lot more from you, my student. I trained you so that you would become a great asset for the Pure Ones. But you had to end up disappointing me. Just like your father did."

The great grey owl then slowly rose his battle axe, ready to finish Shard off once and for all...

CLANG!

Allomere looked in utter surprise as Dominic somehow managed to find the strength to get in the way and block his axe with his saber despite being hurt and his wounds re-opened and bleeding over his feathers.

"You're the most sticking bird I have ever met, little eagle! And I though Shard was the only one like this!" Allomere remarked with narrowing his eyes at the eagle before him.

"It's very simple...," Dominic mumbled with his head lowered. "A few days ago, before we came tour the Great Tree, those wounds were given to me by a very special hawk. The strongest swordsman in the world. I'm gonna meet him again, someday. And until our paths cross again..." He shot his head up with a glare full of determination. "...NOT EVEN DEATH WILL STOP ME!"

Allomere just scoffed and stepped back, ready to attack again. "SHARD! LEND ME YOUR BATTLE CLAWS!" Dominic ordered.

"DIE!" Allomere screamed as he lifted his axe once again.

Shard jumped beside his eagle and friend and joined his Fire Talons to Dominic's saber to fight off Allomere, giving him an hard time with the two of them. They clashed their weapons with his battle axe, sending sparks flying all around.

"Hey, Dominic!" Shard called to him while pressing on his attacks. "I know that you like to lead your duels on your own, but we both want a piece of him and it seems we cannot overpower him on our own! You don't mind joining forces with an ally to finish your duels?"

Dominic just smirked. "Not at all! If my ally have a justifiable reason to join in the duel, then I have to accept the help! It's what my father taught me!"

Eventually, Shard managed to land a burning cut on Allomere's leg, giving an opening to Dominic. "Flowing Wolf's Blade!" Dominic shouted before dashing past Allomere and swinging his saber in the process. A few seconds later, a jet of blood came out from the grunting grey owl's torso.

With the great grey owl weakened before them, the two birds were ready to finish it once and for all. "For my parents you murdered!"

"For my dream and the promise I made to my friends!"

SLASH!

Allomere pushed one last groan as his blood was sent flying in the air in bigger quantity. The great grey owl then dropped his battle axe and fell down into the cave's pond of water with a big SPLASH! It was finally over.

"We...did it...," Shard panted as his Fire Talons finally went off. "I avenged...my family..." He suddenly coughed as the adrenaline wore off and the pain from his wounds was getting felt. He sat down against the wall and clutched in pain.

"Shard," Dominic said with putting his saber away. "Are you alright-Ow!" He too sat down as the pain from his re-opened wounds was getting felt. "Darn it! It was fun to play the though bird against him, but now, I can feel it pass!"

Shard gave a faint chuckle. "So you admit you're not as though as you claim it, right?"

Dominic smirked and chuckled back. "Shut up! You're more beaten up than I! And since I saved your life, you own me a drink, once we go back to the Great Tree."

"All drinks are free, you idiot."

* * *

 **Man! I gotta say it was the fight I had to put the most work on so far! But I hope you enjoyed it.**

 **Shard avenged his parents and Dominic held on his promise to win his duels until the day he meets with Hawkeye once again. And they also killed the traitor Allomere. But unfortunately, their injuries won't allow them to go back to help the others.**


	66. Fighting the captains off

**In the previous chapter, we saw Dominic and Shard take on Allomere. Now, it's time to go see Lazaro and Hernandez vs Bat Chief!**

* * *

"Well this is pretty crappy!" Lazaro grunted in pain. Since the fight started, the Bat Chief revealed himself to be pretty though and the puffin and pelican sustained more bites from him during the fight. "But I'm not planning on giving up anytime soon!"

The little puffin then pushed a battle cry and charged at the Bat Chief once again. "Lazaro, wait!" Hernandez tried to call but his friend attacked anyway.

Pushing a battle cry, Lazaro performed a swing with his leg at the Bat Chief. However, the bigger bird just gave a strong flap with his wings which sent the small puffin flying back and crash into a stone.

"Lazaro!" Hernandez exclaimed in shock before glaring at the bat. "You're gonna regret that!" The pelican then charged at his turn and used the armor on his right wing to send a big energy blast just like Dominic taught him to do. Unfortunately, the Bat Chief revealed himself to be faster and easily ducked the attack before using a blade on his wing to cut Hernandez's leg, making him fall on one knee and groan in pain.

The pelican pushed a swear in his head as he was now covered in blood. The Bat Chief flew up in the air and started diving down toward his down opponent, his fangs out, ready to finish him off. However, as he was just a few meters away from reaching his prey, Lazaro suddenly jumped in the way with a mad glare and delivered a strong kick across the bat's face, making him spit saliva and sending him fly away. He landed on Hernandez's back afterwards.

"You got soft, big guy!" he remarked while panting, his feathers covered in blood too. "At this rate, we will get our asses handed to us by this crazy bat!"

Hernandez looked up at his comrade on his back. "Do you have any idea of how we could win this?"

A smirk formed on the puffin's beak. "Actually, I might have one. You see, ever since we started training under Dominic's guidance, we got used to fight on our own unlike back in Mexico, when we always picked up our brawls together." Hernandez nodded, seeing his point. "It's simple; I'm super quick, but I'm not strong enough to take on this bat. You are strong enough, but too slow to touch him. We must attack together; it's our only hope of surviving this fight! COME ON!"

Lazaro still on his back, Hernandez charged toward the Bat Chief and shot another energy blast with his armored wing which he once again dodged and charged for the offensive once again. However, this time, he was stopped from biting Hernandez by Lazaro who pushed him back with both of his legs.

He then jumped and seemed about to clash with the Bat Chief who smirked and got ready to flap his wings. However, at the last second, the puffin smirked and moved out of the way, revealing Hernandez charging for his own attack. The Bat Chief widened his eyes in shock but before he could do anything, Hernandez punched his armored wing right into his stomach, almost piercing through. The Chief Bat spat a lot of blood and was sent crashing hard onto the ground.

"Time to finish this! Push me up, Hernandez!" Lazaro ordered as he ran toward his friend, jumped in his wings and then got pushed up really high in the air where he performed many 450s and started diving down toward the laying Bat Chief. As he got closer, he then lifted his leg and smashed it down right onto the back of the bat's neck, causing a big CRACK! to be heard.

Following this combo, Lazaro performed a backflip and panted before looking up and seeing that the Bat Chief was laying limp and lifeless on the rocky ground. He was dead as Lazaro broke his neck. They had won.

"Yes!" Lazaro exclaimed in joy with rising his flippers. "Nothing can stop the awesome dynamic power of Lazaro and Hernandez combined!"

"Yeah...," Hernandez simply said with a blank, tired look. This caused Lazaro to slap him on the beak.

"SHOW MORE ENTHUSIASM, YOU MORON!"

* * *

 **You know what? This chapter is pretty short so far, so we have time to also see the next fight.**

* * *

"This is not good!" Jewel said as she smacked another bat away with her staff. "We won't be able to hold them back for very long!"

"Courage, hotwing! Blu and Soren will be done soon! I think," Pedro said with jabbing a bat in the face.

Unknown to them, the Hagsfiend Queen glared at the remaining birds blocking the bats' path with a killer's glare. "I shall kill each and everyone of you in the name of the great Metal Beak and the glorious Union of-"

She never got to finish her sentence as she sensed something coming at her and lowered her head just in time to dodge a mallet's swing from none other than Apollo. However, his moment of energy rush got cut short as the crystal in the queen's helmet made him feel strange in his gizzard and had to fly back.

"Just what kind of crystal is in her head anyway?" he mumbled to himself.

Just then, the Hagsfiend Queen was knocked back by none other than Alex who took the shape of a balloon with his Balloon Candy. He then returned to his normal form and panted. "I'm not done yet either!" the snowy owl kid declared with a look of determination.

Apollo suddenly let out a big sigh. "Okay, Alex, you handle the rest. Will you mind to let me gather my strength again?"

This question caused Alex to turn around and look at him with wide eyes. "YOU JUST SAID YOU WOULD BACK ME UP, DUMBASS!"

Apollo then got face-to-face with the kid. "Listen! What the hell is that crow/owl thing?! How can I fight against this freak?! I'm just an owl! you get that?!" he shouted in Alex's face.

The snowy owl just glared madly at him. "I'm an owl too!"

"No idiot, you're a round bird with white feathers!"

"Well at least I don't dress like some ridiculous human!"

The Hagsfiend Queen just looked at them arguing with a blank look. "They really think it is the right place and time to fight like this?" Groaning, she grabbed and shot some fleck debris at the two owls.

Luckily, they saw it coming and moved out of the way at the last second, still getting little cuts in the process. "What was that?" Apollo asked with rubbing his cut a bit.

"I don't know, but it hurts," Alex responded with shaking the cut on his wing a bit.

The Hagsfiend Queen facewinged herself. "They still don't understand that those are fleck debris? Even after all those attacks? What a bunch of idiots!" She then rose her wing toward them. "FLECK BEAM!"

As the glowing blue beam was shot out of her wing, the two owls shouted in fear and started running as the crow/owl creature kept shooting over and over again at them. "Don't let her touch you with this attack! It will destroy your gizzard!" Alex screamed while running.

As the Hagsfiend Queen was getting closer and closer to them, Alex decided to take a risk and took a candy out of his side bag. "Clone Candy!" After eating it, two more Alexes appeared and ran all around, confusing the creature.

"What?! What in Hagsmire's name is this magic?!" she asked in shock.

"It's no magic!" the three Alexes said at unison as they flew all around the queen. "It's just a special candy to allows me to make two temporary clones of myself! If you know what a clone is!" they chuckled and made funny faces to further confuse her.

The hagsfiend groaned in anger and shot beam after beam until she managed to touch two out of the three snowy owls which made them disappear. She smirked down at the helpless kid before her. "You really though you could defeat me with such a ridiculous trick?"

Alex just answered with a smug. "No; I just though I could distract you long enough."

He then gave a pointing look to the side and the Hagsfiend Queen looked to see Apollo aiming at her with his slingshot. Before she could react, the barn owl shot his ammo right in her face, releasing the pepper powder and making her cough and cry from her eyes.

"This is my chance! Apollo Home Run!" the barn owl exclaimed as he grabbed his mallet and flew toward the queen, ready to smash her with it. However, just as he was getting near her, she managed to rub the powder off and glared at him. Fear took control of him and he stopped dead in his track. "Huh..."

The Hagsfiend Queen jus scoffed and swung her claws across the barn owl's torso, sending his blood flying in the air and making him collapse in pain. "If you are to feel fear to the point of being unable to move, then you have nothing to do on a battlefield, pathetic owl!"

As she rose her claws to finish him off, Alex suddenly charged head first into her beak to make her step back and bleed a bit. She whipped it away with her beak and glared at the owl kid who returned to gesture.

"You won't touch my friend! Got it?!"

The hagsfiend just looked down at the kid trying to block her path with a blank look. "I don't understand why you missed your chance to run away and save your life simply to protect that coward of an owl. And honestly, I'm not even sure I want to know why."

Alex grunted at her. "Apollo...Apollo's not a coward! I will not let you mock him!"

"Stupid kid!" the queen simply mumbled before throwing more fleck debris at the little snowy owl.

"Now!" Alex though before taking out a pink candy that looked like a gum from his bag and putted it into his beak. He quickly chewed on it before blowing out a bubble gum which he grabbed with his wing and took out of his wing and before him. "Bubble Gum Shield!"

The Hagsfiend Queen looked at it in surprise as her fleck debris bounced on the shield and flew right back into her helmet, destroying her crystal. This caused her to groan and throw her helmet away to reveal her disfigured face. She then smirked at Alex. "Not bad, kid. Got any more tricks in reserve?"

"Oh yes!" Alex responded with a smirk before taking out another new candy from bag. This one was red with the drawing of a brown reindeer on it. "This is my best candy and the most recent one I created." He then ate it. "REINDEER CANDY!"

Alex then started a pretty surprising transformation: growing up in size, his wings and feet turned into hooves, his feathers became fur, black horns formed on his head, and his beak became a muzzle with a red nose. For short, he looked like a snowy reindeer. Like the candy's name suggested it.

"W-What is this?! W-Who are you?!" The Hagsfiend Queen asked with her eyes wide open and a trembling voice.

"As a kid, my friend, Yukio, used to tell me the story of Santa Claus, a nice human who brings gift to all the good people on earth during Christmas, and Rudolph, a reindeer who got rejected by his pack from having a red nose. Just like I was from my flock because I have a round body. So I decided to take inspiration from Rudolph to create my best candy ever! LOOK!"

Running on his four hooves at incredible speed, Alex headbutted her really hard, breaking her wing in the process. He then grabbed her with one horn and span around before throwing her in the air and, since she could not fly, landed hard on the ground with a thud. She groaned in pain before getting back up and glaring at the reindeer.

"You will pay for that!" She charged the fleck crystal on her chest, probably preparing another attack.

Alex got ready to counter her next attack...when Apollo suddenly jumped up on his back, much to his surprise. "Apollo?! You're okay?"

"Close your eyes, Alex!" the barn owl said as he rose his flare gun. The two friends closed their eyes in time as Apollo shot a flare with a big red light that lasted many seconds.

Once the light passed, they opened their eyes again and saw the Hagsfiend Queen screaming while holding her wings on her eyes in pain. Apollo's trick worked. The barn owl then putted his gun away and took out some kind of sledgehammer out of his backpack.

"Alright, let's finish this together, Alex!"

The reindeer nodded and charged toward the blinded creature while rising his two forehooves together. "ROSE HOOVES!" He charged his hooves with energy with made some flower petals appear around them and slammed them directly into the queen's chest, leaving a mark and sending her flying at full speed toward Apollo who was ready with his sledgehammer.

"APOLLO HOMERUN!" Swinging his sledgehammer with all of his strength, he slammed it directly into the hagsfiend's face, making her skull crack and then land on the ground, lifeless. With her skull destroyed, there was no way she could have survived. Alex and Apollo had won.

"Yes! Victory for the great Apollo Bird!" the barn exclaimed with rising his wings in victory...before collapsing on his back, the fatigue of the prolonged fight catching up to him.

Meanwhile, Alex returned to his normal form. "Apollo! Are you okay?" he asked with running to his friend, only to collapse on this last one's tummy as he too got hit by fatigue, both from the fight and the catch that he modified his metabolism with his new candy.

"A-Alex? You're alright?" Apollo asked.

"Yeah, just...tired. What's this sledgehammer? I've never seen you with it before."

Apollo smiled with rising his weapon as high as he could. "I made it with Bubo. During the lessons he gave me, he taught me to craft valerian steel and I used some to create my very own weapon. And you, how did you turned into a reindeer?"

Alex gave a sweet smile. "Well, it was one of the new candies I made alongside the Gum Shield. I told you and the others during dinner. The Great Tree is full of interesting ingredient.

Apollo smiled and showed his thumb feather up while Alex smiled and did the victory sign with his wing...before they both fell asleep.


	67. Fly inside!

**In the previous chapter, Lazaro and Hernandez took the Bat Chief down while Alex and Apollo defeated the Hagsfiend Queen. Now, we're going back to Blu and Soren!**

* * *

As the battle was raging on, Blu and Soren were still struggling to break the tea pot free from the rocky perch. "Come on, Blu! Try harder!" Soren groaned while still clawing at the thigh ropes.

"Hey, I'm made of plastic; not blades!" Blu defended himself while still clawing his talons too.

After a long struggle, the ropes finally broke and Soren took the pot off into his talons. "Excellent! Wait for me on top of the mountain; I'll be right back!" the barn owl instructed to which Blu nodded before taking off toward the burning forest not too far.

As he flew, Soren looked at the trap section and saw that his friends were still fighting off the seemingly endless waves of bats. He also noticed that many of his friends like Dominic and Shard were missing and that Digger was injured with bandages around his torso. They won't be able to hold for long.

However, he couldn't focus on that for the moment. Shaking those thoughts out of his head, he flew faster toward the burning forest which made the air hotter around him and barely able to breathe. As he was about to do the craziest thing of his life, the young barn owl remembered what Ezylryb told him in the storm:

 _"Use your gizzard, boy! Fly inside!"_

Trusting his gizzard, Soren allowed himself to dive down into the flames below. A falling tree almost hit him, but missed only by a few millimeters. Just like in the storm of the other night, Soren could see everything move slowly around him. He could practically see the flames to his side spin to form a wave. Completely giving himself up to his gizzard, he closed his eyes, feeling the angry fire warming his feathers.

Once he felt the tea pot he was carrying catching the fire he needed, he opened his eyes once again and managed to dive up to the skies just as the fire wave closer itself on him, almost burning him alive. He then arrived on top of the stone mountain with the blaze moon shining behind him from where he could see the whole triangle trap holding the Guardians down.

 **(Seriously, this scene is just so amazing! I get shivers from it every time. And with "The Host Of Seraphim" playing in it, OMG!)**

His part of the job being done, Soren took a deep breath of the once again breathable air and then dropped the fire pot below.

"Blu! Now!"

On command, the spix macaw dashed out from behind the mountain's wall and caught the fire pot (which burned his talons a bit, but he quickly brushed it off) before diving down toward one of the trap's three pillars. the plan was that since he wasn't an owl and by definition had no gizzard, he could enter the trap's zone without getting affected by it.

So, he dived down into the glowing blue zone which didn't affected him at all and then shot his plastic foot backward before pushing a battle cry and throwing the fire pot right onto the trap, causing a fire explosion. Blu then flew up and watched as the pillar melted and then broke down, causing the other two to close themselves and the flecks to stop making effect.

The trap was broken.

"Blu!" Soren shouted with a smile as he joined his macaw friend.

"We did it! We broke the trap!" Blu happily beamed before the two flew down to join the Guardians.

Meanwhile, their friends also saw the trap falling which meant their mission was a success. They all beamed in joy too.

"They did it! I knew Blu wouldn't fail!" Jewel happily said.

"That's my boy alright!" Rafael nodded in joy too.

Blu and Soren landed near Ezylryb and helped him back up. "Ezylryb, is everything alright?!" Soren asked out of concern for his mentor.

"Yes," he said with a somewhat weak smile. "That was exemplary. What you two did. But we're not finished yet." Blu and Soren nodded, knowing the fight wasn't over yet; they still had to take down the Pure Ones.

The rest of the group arrived with Gylfie taking one of the bats who got too close down with her sand talons. "Come on!" she shouted in a challenging tone as Jewel joined her friend by smashing another bat with her staff.

"I bet you didn't expected this!" Digger added with swiftly hitting his talons on the ground to shoot little rocks to bats, making them flee.

Nico and Pedro arrived and threw his bottle cap to one bat's face and jabbed another one respectively. "You don't touch superstars, crazy bats!" Pedro said like a rapper.

Twilight also landed with his huge size being enough to make the bats run away in fear. He laughed. "Good job, my friends!"

Rafael also arrived alongside Parzival, Streak and Uriah to take down some bats with his fork before rushing to Blu and Soren. "Boys! You did it! Your plan worked!"

"Yeah." Blu chuckled as his old toucan friend rubbed his hair before noticing something. "Rafael, where are the others? Dominic, Apollo, Shard, where are they?"

Rafael's happy face turned upside down. "We got attacked by a group of super strong birds. Dominic and Shard went after one, Lazaro and Hernandez went to fight another, and Alex and Apollo took care of the third."

The moment of joy was suddenly cut by a big scream: "PURE ONES! ATTACK! KILL THEM ALL BEFORE THEY CAN RECOVER!"

Everyone turned toward the palace and saw in shock that tens of Pure One soldiers flew down in their direction with none other than Nyra (with her eyes red of rage, just like at St. Aggie's) at their head. "Hu-ho, I think I shouted victory too fast," Pedro remarked.

"No kidding!" Nico responded before looking at one of the Guardians. "Can you stand?"

"Yes; we should be able to fight now!" he responded.

All the Guardians stood up, the effects of the trap fading and ready to fight. "Guardians!" King Boron suddenly called. "We most impose our oath! To battle!"

The Guardians, including Queen Barran, Bubo, Strix Struma, and Dewlap, all took off toward battle with their king. Blu and his friends were about to follow, but Ezylryb stopped them with his wing.

"I need you to stay here with your friends."

"What?" Blu asked with a risen eye brow.

"To protect these owlets," he said with pointing at the moon blinked owlets in the middle of the zone which the others failed to notice before. The screech owl then turned toward Shard's team. "Parzival! Streak! Uriah! Go out there and try to find Shard and the others!"

"Yes, Ezylryb!" the spotted owl nodded before taking off alongside his two comrades while Ezylryb went after his fellow Guardians toward battle.

"Of course! Leave your best players on the bench, dude!" Pedro sarcastically said before noticing a detail. "Hey! Where's Twilight?" The others noticed that indeed, their great grey owl friend was missing. Pedro eventually spotted him flying with the Guardians. "Hey! Why does HE have the right to fight while we stay behind?!"

After many seconds, both the Guardians and Pure Ones collided, starting the bloody battle that was bound to happen sooner or later. Blood and feathers were sent flying everywhere as the fight raged on. From where they were standing, the kids could see Nyra the evil queen taking three Guardians down in a row with furry.

They also saw Twilight taking down two Pure Ones with his lute (they realized it was Jatt and Jutt from St. Aggie's) before the King Boron alongside Strix Struma and Bubo performed a dive attack on a group of Pure Ones. Struma then briefly fought one of the Pure Ones with her dual blades before taking him down with a slash across the chest.

"Come on, guys! You can do it!" Nico tried to cheer them on with Vladimir nodding before Soren saw something and widened his eyes.

"...Kludd?!"

* * *

 **Two chapters in one day! I'm on fire!**

 **But seriously, I don't understand why they allowed Twilight - a guy armed with some banjo - to fight but not the kids with actual powers and weapons who just saved their lives. Bah, MOVIE LOGIC!**


	68. We are Guardians!

Through the battle that was raging on in the Beaks, Soren saw his brother, Kludd, flying among the other fighting owls. Forgetting the orders Ezylryb gave him, the young barn owl took off toward his brother, leaving his friends behind.

"Soren!" Gylfie screamed and was about to fly after him, only to be stopped by Jewel who grabbed her wing.

"No, Gylfie! You'll only get in his way!" she said as her little friend looked in concern.

Soren flew through the battlefield, avoiding many struggling Guardians and Pure Ones in his track, until he got near his brother. "KLUDD!"

To his surprise, instead of stopping, his big brother charged at him, grabbed his talons, and swayed him down into the burning forest. The air became barely breathable again as he crashed stomach first onto a weak branch which made him cough a bit. He then stood up and looked around to see he was alone in the forest. Or so he thought.

"Hello, brother!"

Soren barely had time to register this before he received a smash in the back which sent him crash into a rotten tree and fall stomach first onto a branch once again. Everything was hurting; his back, stomach, head. He weakly stood up on the branch, looking all around for where his brother could be.

"Your precious Guardians are finished, Soren!"

He once again failed to react in time and felt a violent smash across his face which made him fall on his stomach - again. He had to cough a little blood.

"The Pure Ones will triumph and tytos will take their rightful place as rulers of the Owls Kingdom!" Soren panted and closed his eyes, trying to sense from where his brother would attack next. "Oh, it's gonna be glorious!"

He once charged flew down to attack, but this time, Soren sensed him coming and smashed him right in the face with his wing, causing him to loose balance and go down crashing into a burned trunk. Shaking the pain off his wing, he then flew down to go join his brother laying down on the burned ground and glaring at him.

"Glorious?! No: the Pure Ones are monsters! You saw what they were doing?! Moon blinking little owlets and turning them into salves!"

"You're just weak, Soren!" Kludd simply spat in disgust. "You're still living in your dreams!" He once again tried to attack his brother who swiftly dodged and then turned to glare at him in a fighting position.

"No, my dreams are what make me strong, Kludd. They led me to the Guardians," Soren tried to explain.

His brother replied with a simple mean laughter. "Don't bad there won't be any remaining Guardian after today!" He once again went on the attack, but Soren jumped up, letting him claw the burned trunk which made him groan in pain.

He then jumped right on top of the said trunk and looked down at his brother on the verge of tears. "I don't understand. How could you join the Pure Ones after what they did to us?! After they kidnapped us! Destroyed our home! And how could you do this to Eglantine?!" he shouted, the tears finally coming out of his eyes.

"WHAT THEY DID TO US?!" Kludd suddenly shot back, his eyes burning with rage. "They believe in me! Like no one else ever has! More than my own parents did! They always loved you and Eglantine way more simply because you two had dreams while I didn't! That's unfair! Do you know how painful it is to feel neglected like that?! Of course not! Because you always got the most love out of this family! The Pure Ones are my REAL family!" he screamed, tears of rage coming out of his burning eyes too.

"Kludd...?!" Soren said with his eyes wide open and his voice trembling. However, before he could try to talk reason into his brother, this last one charged right into him, causing them to fall down the broken tree and down toward strong flames that would surely kill them.

As they fell, Soren managed to grab a small and weak branch with his talons while grabbed his brother's foot with his other ones. But in the process, Kludd smashed his back hard on the trunk, making a cracking sound being heard, probably his wing. Soren found himself holding on the branch to keep his brother and himself from falling to their death below.

"Soren! My wing's broken! Help!" Kludd begged while visibly in pain.

"Hold on! I'll get you back up!" Soren screamed and tried with all of his strength to bring his brother up to save both of them. But there was no visible escape for them as he couldn't get back up and save him simultaneously.

As Soren kept struggling in vain, Kludd suddenly gave him a sorry look. "Soren...little brother...I'm sorry for everything...for Eglantine..."

"What are you talking about?!"

Kludd managed to form a little smile on his beak as the tears came out of his eyes. "Goodbye..."

Before Soren could say anything else, his brother suddenly let go of him, allowing his body to fall down the broken tree and disappear into the flames below. To his death.

"KLUDD!" Soren screamed in horror and held his wing toward where his brother disappeared even though deep inside, he knew it was too late. No owl alive could have survived such an infernal spot. He had to accept the terrible reality; Kludd, his brother he knew since the day he was born, was dead. "No...," he mumbled with shaking his head and releasing a lot of warm tears.

Seconds seemed to be hours for the young barn owl as he just stood there, looking down in the flames where his brother disappeared. Eventually, he was grabbed from behind by the shoulder and dragged back up to the trunk of the broken tree. Somehow, he didn't felt happy at all from seeing who saved him.

"Soren!" Blu said, feeling relieved to see his friend was okay outside of the few burning marks on his stomach and the smacking trace on his cheek...which was also soaked in tears. "You're alive! Can I know why you flew away like that?! And why did you came back here?" However, he got no response from his owl friend. "Soren?"

Soren slowly looked at him with his wet yellow eyes. "K-Kludd...," he mumbled with pointing a wing toward the lower part of the broken tree where was the fire wall into which Kludd fell. After a few seconds, he widened his eyes as everything became clear to him.

"Oh my gosh, Soren! I'm so sorry!" He then putted his wings on his shoulders to make him look at his hazel eyes. "But listen to me now! Look!" He pointed at the palace where he could see some birds fighting inside. "Ezylryb went in there to fight Metal Beak by himself! I don't know how their duel turned, but I saw Nyra flying in there recently! If they take him two-on-one, he has no chance of winning!" Soren just looked at him with tears in his eyes. "Listen, you might have lost your brother, but if we don't do anything, your hero and mentor will die too! And I can't save him by myself! Please! I need your help!"

Soren just looked at his macaw friend and knew he was right. So, whipping his tears away with his wing, he nodded with a look of determination and the two birds flew out of the burning forest and toward the palace.

As the duo passed through the battlefield, Blu couldn't help but ask something that concerned him a lot: "Say, Soren, do you know how we should take Metal Beak and Nyra down? I mean, if they're the leaders of the Pure Ones, then they must be pretty strong right?"

Soren just looked down with a nervous look. "Honestly, I don't know, Blu. Guess we will found out once in there."

Once the two birds arrived into the palace, the first thing they saw was that Ezylryb was pinned down on the middle of a rock platform by Metal Beak alongside his mate Nyra with his talons risen, ready to finish the screech owl once and for all.

"NO!" Soren wasted no time charging head first right into Metal Beak, knocking him off his mentor before he could kill him off. Blu followed by throwing his wings backward and smashing into Nyra's stomach with a Power Slam, making her spit saliva and knock her far away.

"Are you okay?" he then asked with getting near the poor Ezylryb who was badly beaten and covered of blood.

"I've been better," he groaned before seeing something. "Soren!"

Blu turned to see Metal Beak slashing his battle claws across Soren's face, leaving a cut on his cheek and making him groan. He wasted no time rushing at his friend's side and then took a pose as Metal Beak glared at them.

"We won't let you hurt another soul!" Soren declared with whipping the blood on his cheek away.

"Oh, you're not letting me!" the Great Tyto chuckled while glaring at them. "What a pity to waste such a strong, young and confident tyto."

"No! Soren!" Ezylryb weakly called.

"Oh, you know this sad old owl?" Metal Beak asked.

"He's my teacher. My hero," Soren replied while narrowing his eyes at the sooty owl.

"Well your hero will teach you one last lesson about Pure Ones' strength. By letting you see him die!"

"NO!" Soren shouted and ran forward to claw Metal Beak who swiftly dodged him. "You already killed my brother and moon blinked my sister! I won't let you hurt anyone else I love!"

"Your brother? Kludd?" Metal Beak asked with a curious look. "He died you say? Too bad; he had a lot of potential and I had great plans for him."

Blu pushed a groan and shot his plastic wing forward in a fist to smash him in the face...which was a bad idea as he forgot he was wearing a metal helmet and felt a jolt of pain in his wing.

"Cheese and sprinkles! It's the second time that happens to me!" Blu groaned while shaking the pain off his wing.

"So what we told me was true," the Great Tyto said with rubbing his beak. "You truly are a bird with special powers."

"Yeah!" Blu said before throwing more punches at the evil owl who just dodged. "But it has nothing to do with my species; I'm a spix macaw from Moose Lake, Minnesota! If I am made of plastic, it's only because I ate a Magical Fruit!"

"A Magical Fruit?"

"I don't see the point of explaining you everything as I'm gonna kick your feathered butt right now! FIST STORM!" Blu pushed a battle cry as he sent his fists quickly like a gatling at Metal Beak who either dodged or blocked them.

Eventually, the sooty owl grabbed Blu's wing and dragged him in his direction before swiftly clawing him across the side as he passed by. Blu pushed a groan of pain and held his bleeding side with his two wings. Soren then rushed at his friend's help by jumping on Metal Beak's back and biting his shoulder. However, the Great Tyto used his bigger size to his advantage and grabbed the young barn owl before flipping over his shoulder and slammed him hard on the rocky ground.

He lifted his talons to kill Soren who managed to roll out of the way just in time and then pecked Metal Beak's leg to cause some damage. The Great Tyto groaned before grabbing Soren by the throat and then glared deadly into his eyes before smashing him multiple times in the stomach with his wing, knocking the wind out of him.

Blu managed to recover from his side wound just in time to help his friend by hitting Metal Beak in the stomach with a Power Slam which knocked him back and made him let go of Soren. "POWER SLAM!" He tried to follow with a second one, but Metal Beak saw him coming this time and interrupted him with an headbutt to his beak which caused twice more damage because of his metal helmet. Blu stepped back in pain and held his nose that started bleeding with his wings.

"This is not good!" he said with a funny voice because of his filled nose. "He's kicking our butts and I'm not even sure we used half the energy he has! Any idea?!"

Suddenly, Blu saw a little light and turned his head to see in surprise that Soren's battle claws which got conceived by Apollo were glowing. "It is time for me to use my battle claws for the first time!" He then rose his wings and gave a look of determination. "Shine, Golden Heart!"

This caused a pretty big light to explode, forcing Blu, Metal Beak and Ezylryb to cover their eyes. Once the light calmed down, Blu slowly re-opened them right before widening them in surprise as Soren completely changed.

He was now wearing a Guardian helmet with the same design as his battle claws along with what looked like a Karate jacket on his back that too was ruby in color with golden rims. But the most notable part was the ruby/golden saber that he was now holding in his talons and the renewed determination shining into his yellow eyes.

"S-Soren?!" Blu exclaimed in surprised and amazement. "That's your battle claws' power?!" he asked to which his friend just responded with a nod, not letting go of his focused look.

Metal Beak looked with wide eyes too. "What a power! And it is the first time he is using it?! Impossible!"

However, he suddenly felt something cold being pressed at his neck and realized in a matter of seconds that Soren was standing before him, the tip of his blade pressed against Metal Beak's neck. This made his eyes open wider than they already were and froze on the spot.

"W-When did you moved?! I didn't saw anything!"

"It's the power of Golden Heart; increasing my speed and giving my this new weapon," Soren simply replied before slowly backing away from the Great Tyto.

Metal Beak just glanced at him before narrowing his eyes into a glare. "IT'S IMPOSSIBLE!" Rising his talons, he charged at the young tyto and tried to claw him, only for him to easily dodge all his attacks with his new speed.

"Why don't you use your battle claws power?" Soren asked while still dodging the attacks.

Metal Beak groaned. "I don't have any! Until today, I only needed my raw strength to win my fights and conquer kingdoms!"

Eventually, Soren found himself back to a rock wall with nowhere to back up now. As Metal Beak was getting close to him, he knew the next attack would decide the winner. He had to strike him down. So, thinking about all the wrongs that happened because of the sooted owl - the destruction of his home, the pain of his little sister, the lost of his brother - Soren held his sword up and pushed it forward.

SLASH!

Blood was sent flying in the air. Blu, Ezylryb and Nyra, who had recovered from the previous one's attack, all gasped with wide eyes as Metal Beak pushed one last strange noise before collapsing on his back. In the process, it revealed Soren was holding his sword forward and the blade was covered of blood. All the others realized what it meant.

Metal Beak, the Great Tyto, leader of the Pure Ones, was dead.

Soren panted in exhaustion and turned his head to see Nyra on an upper rock glaring at him with hate before flying away. "PURE ONES! FALL BACK! TO ME!" The evil queen then flew out of the palace followed by the remaining Pure Ones that didn't fell in battle yet.

Soren would have flew after them, but just then, his Golden Heart power ended, making him return to normal, and he felt a great exhaustion hit him as his body still had to get used to his new power. Blu then flew down to his friend and looked at him with concern.

"Soren? Are you alright?" However, the barn owl just looked at Metal Beak's corpse and fallen metal helmet, laying not too far from him. Probably was he still swallowing what just happened.

Blu then turned and saw Gylfie, Twilight and Digger landing alongside Jewel, Rafael, Nico and Pedro. All of them looked tired from the battle they just had, but they were all safe and that's what mattered. Soren gently turned around and looked at his friends. He could tell they were all glad that he was safe and sound.

Jewel rushed to hug Blu without saying a word. She didn't had to. He already knew how she felt and returned the hug. Soon, they got joined by Ezylryb and Parzival's group and he looked at his student.

"Soren," he softly said. "You did what was right. And you did it well." The barn owl slowly turned to look at his mentor. "It looks like we will have to remake the chronicles, hum?"

Right after he said that, Gylfie went to hug her friend's tummy, surprising him a bit. Soon, Digger and Twilight joined in the hug as well, the great grey owl wrapping his big wings around his family. Soren realized that he may have lost his brother, but he still had one big family and that was a good reason to keep going on. He wrapped his wings around Gylfie to return the hug.

Blu smiled as this was very touching before hearing a flapping sound and turned around to see a barn owl joining them. "Shard!" Blu exclaimed.

As soon as the tired barn owl landed, Parzival, Streak and Uriah all rushed to him. "Shard! Are you okay?!" Parzival asked in concern for his chief.

Shard lowered his head. "Allomere is dead. Justice has been served..." He then rose his head again. "I used to think honor and justice were ideals worth fighting for...but they didn't bring me peace..."

"Ah, but they are worth fighting for," Ezylryb suddenly joined in the conversation. "But only for what they give...for what they protect."

"Like truth and fellowship?" Shard guessed.

Ezylryb smiled at the barn owl. "Spoken like a true Guardian."

This caused Shard to smile as well, feeling a huge weight being removed from his heart. "So that's it? The Pure Ones are gone?" he asked with looking at Metal Beak's corpse.

"Defeated perhaps...but not gone," Ezylryb answered. "It's more than we can hope that such intolerance will stay buried forever."

"Shard," Perzival suddenly said to get his chief's attention and rubbed the back of his head. "There's something I want to tell you... About how I said that you were worthless like your father back in class..."

Shard just blinked his eyes. "What? You're still stuck on that? Seriously, you need to learn to let that kind of stuff go, Parzival!" he said with a chuckle to his wingman, causing both he and the two others to smile as well.

Blu suddenly remembered something. "Shard! Are my friends okay?"

Shard looked at the spix macaw with a smile. "Yes; they all won their fight. Dominic helped me take down Allomere. He's currently getting carried by our special medical team with Vladimir at his side. Lazaro and Hernandez managed to take down the Bat Chief; Strix Struma found them and carried them to safety - though Lazaro affirmed he could walk alone. As for Alex and Apollo, they defeated the Hagsfiend Queen; Bubo picked up his student to congratulate him while Queen Barran picked up little Alex. She too congratulated him and even gave him a kiss on the forehead, though he affirmed that didn't made him happy at all."

A huge smile formed on Blu's beak. He knew he could have faith in his friends and that they wouldn't let him down.

"The owlets of St. Aegolius still await us," Ezylryb said. "Let's go, Guardians."

* * *

 **Man, that was probably the longest chapter I've written for this story so far, but I'm happy with the result.**

 **Before you tell me, I know Soren does not defeat Metal Beak like that, but it's my story and I can add some twists if I want. Also, the dialogue between Shard and Ezylryb is taken from the game, but I added the one with Parzival as I found it to add more heart to their relationship. I'm a bit sad there wasn't anything like this at the end of the game.**

 **Also, you'll notice that the fight between Soren and Kludd as well as the latter's demise are different from the movie. That's an idea based on a rp I made with one of my friends and I found pretty more logical than in the movie.**

 **Except that, I hope you enjoyed it :)**


	69. Season 3 ending

**Okay guys, this is the final chapter of the Ga'Hoole story arc. It was the longest one for this story so far. I hope it was good enough.**

* * *

 _"As it was in the old ages, so it was in the now. The Guardians upheld their oath."_

The Guardians flew all the way from the Beaks back to the Great Tree with the owlets. On the way, they passed by the Sea of Hoolemere's entrance where the echidna saw them from below. "I foretold you so!" he screamed, making Blu and his friends roll their eyes.

 _"They made strong the weak. They remade the broken. And when the sun shone again that morning, all could see that they had vanquished the evil."_

Everyone soon arrived at the Great Tree where tens of owls waited for them and cheered as their heroes returned with the moon-blinked owlets. The heroes received cheers, compliments, hugs, everything. Blu just waved nervously as he wasn't used to receive such positive reception.

"Soren!" Blu turned to see Eglantine, now fully recovered, run and jump to hug her big brother. She was soon followed by Mrs. P as well as Soren'S parents, Noctus and his mom (he didn't knew her name), who all joined in the hug.

"We're so proud of you!" Soren's mom said with hugging her son.

"Da! Your stories! They're real!" Soren happily said with looking at his father.

"You made them real, Soren," Noctus responded with a proud smile.

Blu saw the family reunion and smiled in joy for his friend. He perfectly understood how he was feeling; it was the same thing as when he reunited with his brother, a few months ago. But then, he turned his head to see Dominic talking with two female boreal owls, an adult and a kid. He quickly understood that it was none other than Grimble's mate and daughter.

Upon getting closer, he could hear their conversation: "...So, in a sense, he saved all of your kingdom. You should be proud of him," Dominic finished as Grimble's mate and daughter let out tears of sadness and joy while hugging each other.

* * *

Later on, that very same day, the whole parliament agreed to hold a ceremony to make Blu and his friends (or the Band, as they were called) official Guardians of the Great Tree. In the parliament's room, all the non-Guardian owls were standing on perch to watch as the Guardians were standing in line, bowing down in respect as the Band passed. Even Ezylryb addressed a smile to Soren and Shard, his disciples.

 _"With peace restored, it was a time for celebrations and recognition! But as a small band of birds that fate and a storm had blow into the Tree now stood before the king and queen as young Guardians!"_

The Band eventually arrived before King Boron and Queen Barran who gave them their Guardian helmets (safe for Shard's group as well as Soren who already had theirs) and bowed in respect. This caused the crowd to cheer loudly. Nico and Pedro exchanged a bump-fist as Rafael whipped a tear of joy away. Hernandez gave a polite smile while Lazaro patted a blushing Alex on the back. Shard looked up at the sky, feeling all proud of having re-established his father's honor before looking back at his three friends, Parzival, Streak and Uriah who all smiled at their chief. Blu even received a kiss on the cheek from Jewel, making him blush harder than he already was. As for Dominic, he took his saber in wing and planted it on the ground while bowing in respect which Vladimir imitated. Apollo, meanwhile, was fighting hard to keep his tears of joy inside.

Soren then turned around to see Otulissa giggle in the crowd, happy for him, his little sister cheering happily for him, and his parents hugging out of proudness. He already told them about Kludd's death and it made them a lot sad, but they were also very happy that he accomplished his dream of becoming a Guardian.

 _"Ready finally! With all their heart to take that ancient oath to make those who are broken, to make strong the weak, and without hesitation, vanquish the evil. For as we know, Nyra escaped. And Kludd...Kludd was never found..."_

* * *

"Should I stop?"

A few days already passed and the celebrations lasted all along with the Band having a lot of fun between their lessons. Right now, they were at the kids' hollow, telling their story to a bunch of owlets. However, as Hawkeye instructed them, they were going to leave the Great Tree that very day and return to the Tyto Forest where he said the path back to their world would open again.

"What? Please, don't stop!" one of the owlets who was wearing a Guardian helmet of leaves begged Soren.

"I don't wanna give anyone daymares," Soren responded as he was standing before them with his friends by his sides.

"Come on, there must be more. There must be!" the owlet insisted.

Just then, Ezylryb entered with a laugh. "Listen to them, Soren, they want more stories, hum?" he said with teasingly giving a look to the owlet in question. He then turned toward the Band. "It is soon time for your departure. Did you say your goodbyes to everyone?"

"Yes," Blu answered. "The King and Queen thanked us again for everything we did and wished us good luck. The Queen even gave a kiss on Alex's forehead," he said which caused Alex to hide his face with his wings and blush.

"I said goodbye to Bubo; he said he was gonna miss me...and that's reciprocal," Apollo said and looked down with a tear in his eye.

"Strix Struma recommended me to learn to fight with many swords simultaneously," Dominic remarked.

"Are you planning to follow her advice?" Vladimir asked him.

"Of course," he responded with a smile.

Ezylryb chuckled. "Well then, I wish you to make a safe travel back to where you are from. And Blu, you said you wanted to become the strongest bird in the world, right?" he asked to which the blue macaw nodded. "That's a pretty difficult goal, but with hard work and determination, I'm sure you can accomplish your dream. Be careful, youngling."

He then walked out of the hollow as Blu turned toward the outside that gave view on the sea. Smiling, he flew out, followed by his friends, including Soren and the others. As the flew above the sea, they all exchanged looks.

"You'll be coming back soon, right?" Digger asked.

"I don't know, but we'll be back one day for sure; your world is so fascinating and I want to learn more about blacksmithing!" Apollo responded.

"And I want to study your medicine and create more new candies!" Alex added. "And Twilight, keep making awesome songs, okay?"

"You can be sure of that, my young friend," the great gray owl said with a smile.

"Glaux help me!" Digger groaned in annoyance.

"Goodbye, Gylfie. Stay cool while I'm away, okay?" Jewel told her elf owl friend.

"Cool? What does that mean?' she asked with a curious look. This caused Jewel to giggle as she forgot that the owls of this world didn't knew about the expressions of her own.

Blu and Soren were flying close to each other at the head of the group. "You are going to come back someday, right?" he asked his friend.

"Of course. And when that day comes, you'll see that I will be different from what I am right now. In the mean time, master your battle claws power and follow your dream of being a Guardian, okay?" Blu responded with a smile which his barn owl friend shared.

After they were half-way toward the sea, Soren, Gylfie, Digger and Twilight turned around back to the land while their friends flew toward the sea. It didn't took very long for the magical island of Ga'Hoole to become a mere blur behind them. The flock was hit by a wave of nostalgia and sadness, but still had hope of returning some day...

...

...

...

...

...

"HOLY CRAP!"

Everybody jumped as Blu turned toward Rafael. "What is it, Rafael?!"

"I completely forgot!" the toucan said in panic. "Eva! I've been absent for two weeks! She's gonna kill me!"

"You just have to explain her why we were away," Dominic suggested.

"Of course, I will tell her that I got transported into a magical world filled with owls at war that spit poo out of their beak and are still at medieval time and that I participated in stopping an army of evil owls that worked with bats and some crow/owl hybrid monsters. That's perfectly credible!" Rafael sarcastically said.

"...It's true that when you say it like that," Blu said with a chuckle.

* * *

 **And so ends the third story arc of this story; the Ga'Hoole Arc!**

 **I'm sorry for you fanboys probably wanted to see the other characters battle claws' powers, but that will be for another time. And it will give me an excuse to come back to this world in a future story arc :)**

 **Anyway, this story arc was fun to write. And I'm gonna reassure you; the end isn't for anytime soon as I still have plenty of ideas to keep it going on that I could continue for two years!**

 **I hope to see you all when "The Dynamic Adventure" continues...**


	70. Monkey brains

**Hey, guys! I haven't updated this chapter for a few days because I had to write for my wrestling federation UCW.**

 **On another note, Ricardo The Black Hawk has returned with a remake for his original Rio The Darkness Saga! I'm so excited! Go check it out!**

 **Back to the story, here's a little update on what happened after Blu's group returned to the Amazon rainforest and to their friends: initially, they didn't believed their story, but after seeing their battle scars (specially Dominic's) along with Apollo's new mallet and Blu's Guardian helmet which he decided to bring, they all believed him.**

 **Rafael, Nico and Pedro returned to Rio where Eva gave a good scolding to our favorite toucan. Luckily, he just had to remind their encounter at the carnival and kiss her to be forgiven. Nico and Pedro returned to work at their club while Pedro also focused on his boxing training. Blu and his friends also learned that Polie, Adam, Star and Alicia left for the United States where Polie joined a team of soccer birds that participates in international competitions.**

 **But for now, we'll leave Blu and co. to recover from their adventure in Ga'Hoole and return to our ninja birds, shall we?**

* * *

Night time fell upon the noisy city of New York where all the humans and birds never slept. This reality was particularly true for a group of birds living in the sewers. Down in the Ninja Birds' lair, siblings Skyler and Sparky were about to clash in a sparring match in the dojo.

"Ready to get your feathered butt kicked, sista?" Sparky asked with spinning his nunchucks.

Sky just smirked. "I found you're underestimating me a little too much, little bro."

Charging forward, she swung her bo staff at Sparky who swiftly dodged and fought back with his nunchucks which Sky had no problem blocking and dodging. Barely after ten seconds of fighting, Sky grabbed Sparky by the wing and performed a Seoi-Nage (a judo protection move that consists of grabbing the opponent's arm and making him flip over the shoulder). However, Sparky immediately got back up with a backflip and spin kicked the back of his sister's leg to make her fall on her back before pinning her down.

"Gotcha!" he said with a triumphant smile before getting off his sister and offering his wing.

Sky smiled and accepted his help to get back up. "Countering my Seoi-Nage with a backflip was pretty clever, bro."

"Yeah, I can come up with pretty awesome idea when I want to," the elf owl showed-off with tapping the side of his head.

"Yeah, which is pretty rare," Sky said with a smug, making her brother looking insulted. Just then, she heard her radio ringing and took it out in her wing. "It's Tiny," she remarked before taking the call. "Hello?"

"Skyler?" Tiny said on the other end.

"Yes, it's me. What's up?"

"To be honest, I'm a bit worried. Have you watched the news recently? I just found out that a renowned scientist called Dr. Alfonso have been missing," the little green bird explained.

"Really? But why does it worry you so much?" Sky asked curiously.

"Well, believe it or not, but he actually live close to my house. I though we could go take a look and see if we can find any clues of where he left," Tiny suggested. "He might have been captured by Dexter and those evil ninjas."

"That's possible," Sky said with rubbing her chin. "Alright, I'm coming; see you in a few minutes," she said before putting her radio away.

"So you're going on a research mission, he? Want me to come with you?" Sparky who listened to their conversation asked.

"Nah; I'm sure Tiny and I can do it alone. It's just a little research mission after all," Sky denied. "I'll contact you with my radio, if things go wrong."

* * *

Skyler left the lair and went back up to the surface. Before heading to Tiny's home, she decided to stop at a shop and steal a little box of octopus meatballs from a human as it would be good to eat a little with her friend. Once she arrived by the roofs at Tiny's house, she carefully knocked at her window with her beak.

Tiny soon opened the window and smiled upon seeing her elf owl friend. "Sky!" she said with hugging her friend.

Sky smiled and returned the gesture. "Hey, little Tiny. I brought some octopus meatballs from a restaurant. Is that okay with you?"

Tiny broke from the hug. "Sorry, but I ate barely twenty minutes ago. And besides, I don't know if it's a good idea to eat before making some sport."

"True," Sky said with putting the box down. "But I don't know if we can call a research mission sport. Anyway, can you lead us to where this Dr. Alfonso lives?"

Tiny nodded and flew off as Sky ran from roof to roof after her. After a few minutes, they reached the roof of the apartment where the Dr. Alfonso lived, according to Tiny. Sky gave a look by the window of the doc's room as she was standing on a terrace, but it was too dark to see anything.

"You sure he lives here?" she asked her little green friend.

"That's what they said on TV," Tiny responded. "Think we should go get a look inside?"

"That was exactly what I had in mind," Sky responded with a smirk before taking out some tools from her belt and worked on opening the door. Once it was done, the two girls entered the room...and gasped upon seeing that the place was a complete ruin with destroyed wooden furnitures and items scattered all around.

"Huh... Your doctor didn't liked to make some cleaning once in a while?" Sky asked to Tiny.

"I don't think it's Alfonso who left his apartment like that," Tiny responded. "It looks more like someone came and tried to steal something. Or maybe they even attacked him at his home!"

"If that's the case, then we'll find it out. Let's search for clues," Sky said and walked in one part of the apart while Tiny walked in another.

The two girls searched all the apartment, but didn't found any clues of who did this. However, thanks to her ninja training, Skyler could definitely tell that it was someone who came and destroyed everything as there was brawling traces all around.

Sky gently ran her wing over the ground. Something was bothering her; it couldn't have been the black ninjas whom she and her siblings faced many times as there wasn't any trace of katana, shurikens or any other ninja weapons.

The little elf owl suddenly stopped any move as she heard stepping noises behind her. Someone was slowly walking toward her, probably trying not to get spotted. but Sky heard her. Deciding to be smarter, she waited for the intruder to get close enough to her before swiftly swinging her bo staff after spinning around.

However, the dark figure grabbed her staff and, with tremendous strength, swung her all around until she let go of her weapon and was sent crashing into the wall. She then felt the intruder grab her by the neck and lift her off the ground.

However, through the pain, she opened one eye to realize the intruder was not holding her with his hand. He was simply holding it in her direction, but not directly touching her. As if he was some kind of...telekinesis. What the hell?!

"STOP!" shouted tiny who just entered the room, probably alerted by the sound of the fight. "Please!"

The figure looked into Tiny,s direction before stepping into the window's light to reveal itself. It was some kind of monkey who looked closer to a gorilla in term of species, though more slender. However, his most notable features was the purple metal helmet on his head, bracelets on his wrists, and belt around his waist. He had yellow eyes that were glaring at Skyler.

"W-Who are you?" Tiny asked nervously while helping Skyler back up.

The monkey narrowed his eyes at the girls. "I am the doctor Alfonso. Well, I was."

"You're Dr. Alfonso?!" Tiny exclaimed in surprise. "B-But that's impossible; I saw the doctor on tv and he was a human. Not a monkey."

The monkey took out an empty needle from somewhere. "Yes, I was a human. But a few days ago, those ninjas threatened to come take my best creation from me, should I refuse to work for them. Instead of risking that, I injected it within myself. This is why I become and won these telekinetic powers."

He rose his hand forward and a destroyed flower pot suddenly rose from the floor beside the girls. "Wow! This is very impressive!" Sky exclaimed.

"Say, aren't you with those ninja birds?" Alfonso asked little Sky with narrowing his eyes at her.

"No, doctor; I'm their enemy. My siblings and I try to protect the city from them. you can trust me," Sky assured with getting back up and taking her bo staff back.

"Yes, I saw that. If you were one of them, you wouldn't be accompanied by a helpless girl and your dress is different," Alfonso said.

"Hey! Who said I was helpless?" Tiny asked with an offended look.

"Sorry, young girl, but that's kinda evident," the monkey said with rising his hands in surrender.

"The ninjas could return; you should follow me to my lair. You'll be safe there," Sky offered.

"I cannot accept," Alfonso politely denied. "I move better alone. And I have things to do. But if you want to contact me, I can give you my phone number."

Sky nodded and gave the monkey doc the number of her radio before leaving the apart alongside Tiny.

* * *

 **Okay, I admit, this chapter didn't had much action as it was made only to introduce the character of Alfonso. but I promise you there will be more action in the next chapter. Swore on my white feathers :)**


	71. Darkness on the Edge of Town

_"My name is Skyler, and right now I'm learning just how long I can hold my breath. That vibrocannon is seriously messing up the East River, if this keeps up, the whole South Street Seaport could go crumbling into the water. I'd be fascinated by the technology, if I wasn't otherwise occupied."_

* * *

In the sewers underneath the city of New York, Sparky was rolling at full speed on his orange skateboard through the circle-shaped sewer hallway. "Watch out!" he shouted. "Make some space for the driving master, undisputed skateboard god!" he screamed with performing all king of flips.

Kowalski followed behind on his red roller skates (don't ask me how a bird can wear them; use your imagination). "You say! That's just a joke! You can't do half of what I can! WOO-HOO!" he beamed while performing spinning patterns through the circle hallway.

They were soon followed by Skyler who rolled on a modified bicycle to fit her size and Lilly on her special scooter that could roll fast. The four siblings soon arrived back into their lair and performed all kinds of flips and maneuvers which annoyed Master Yoshi who tried to relax by eating muffins with some tea on the couch.

As he took the remote and turned the TV on, the lights suddenly went off, causing a rumbling noise and groans of pain to be heard in the dark. "Congrats for the electric installation, sista," Sparky sarcastically said.

"It has nothing to do with my installation!" Sy protested. "Maybe it's a blackout."

"Maybe, but right now, you're walking on my back."

Luckily, Master Yoshi turned a candle light on to reveal the four siblings in a pile as they crashed into each other. "Uh, keep that flame away from Sparky! He scarfed down a whole chili pizza for dinner," Lilly warned.

"Apparently, we are facing a blackout," Master Yoshi pointed out. "You shall find it's origin and try to reestablish the power."

"We're on it, Sensei! Let's go!" Sparky said with putting his skateboard under his wing and running toward the exit. He was followed by Kowalski who putted his skates' rollers away, Lilly who folded her scoot before putting it on her belt, and Sky who did the same with her bicycle before tying it to her back.

"And be quick. I would not want to miss my favorite show," Master Yoshi said before his kids left the lair.

* * *

A few moments later, the four ninjas arrived on top of a water tank to get a better view of their district which was completely dark. "If you want my opinion, I don't think Master Yoshi wanted us to search so far," Lilly remarked.

"We're never too conscientious. Specially if it's a chance for us to explore the city," Kowalski said.

"The major part of the city is plunged into dark," Sky remarked with a wing on her chin. "It must be the distribution network that's out."

"That's rather strange; we should see the lights from the emergency intervention services," Lilly pointed out.

"You're right, but we don't see anything, it's completely dark," Kowalski agreed with his sister.

"In that case, we only have one thing left to do! follow me!" Sparky beamed with a smile.

The four ninja birds went down the roof and in front of a museum with their extreme sports to have some fun. Lilly, however, was skeptical about this.

"Huh, guys, you sure this is a good idea? Someone could spot us."

"No; that's justly the point," Kowalski said with putting his wing on his sister's shoulder. "Nobody can see us. It's too dark, Lilly."

"Wait, wait. Think about for a moment," Sparky suddenly said as an idea crossed his mind. "It could be the only chance for us to go make extreme sports in the city streets!"

Sky giggled before seeing something that caused her happy face to go upside down. "Hey, look up there!"

She pointed at the wall of the museum where two ninja birds like the ones they fought a few times in the past were climbing up a rope tied to the roof top.

"Hey, we already met those clown before, didn't we?" Sparky asked.

"Yes and they give us a lot of work to do. They even attacked Dr. Alfonso," Sky said with a nod.

"It's time for a little payback!" Kowalski said with a smirk and took his two sais out.

* * *

Inside the Metropolitan Museum of Art where were displayed tens of artifacts from the old China age, the four ninja birds followed the black ninjas as they approached a sword locked inside a display case. This strange sword was a pure white katana with the collar being golden with the shape of three dragon claws.

One of the two ninjas used a special tool to make a circle-shaped opening in the glass while the second one putted on a special metal glove on his wing and was about to pick the sword up. Knowing it was time to interfere, Lilly tossed a shuriken past the ninja's face to stop him in his track.

"The souvenir shop is at the ground floor," she sarcastically said as the ninjas spotted them. "And be careful; they hold a grudge against thieves. And believed it or not, but so do we."

One ninja took out a katana while the other one tried to grab the sword again, only to be stopped by another shuriken, this time from Kowalski. "Now before you try to make off with the goods, ya might wanna consider a few things. One, you're outnumbered. Two, don't let the pretty faces fool ya, we're tougher than we look," he said with cracking his knuckles.

Just as he said that, more black ninjas jumped out of nowhere and surrounded the group. "And three, we're about to get our butts seriously hammered!" sparky nervously finished.

The fight started as one of the ninjas attacked Lilly with a staff which she broke in two with a swift move from her katanas. The ninja looked blankly at his broken weapon before two blades came out from each tip, making Lilly realize it wasn't over yet. The ninja attacked again, but Lilly broke the blades from his pieces of staff again with her katanas and kicked him into another ninja.

"Woo! Luckily my swords are solid!"

Meanwhile, Kowalski used his roller skaters to dodge a katana swing from a black ninja who accidentally cut a Chinese vase in the process. "Watch out! Everything you break, you'll have to pay for it!" Kowalski said before skating away again. "And speaking of paying for broken pieces!" he added with spin kicking the ninja away.

On Sky's side, the elf owl was facing a ninja with a spear. She took out her bicycle and drive right into the ninja who was sent crashing into a samurai armor before taking out her bo staff and holding it straight to charge into a ninja like an horse rider and knock him into a Chinese vase which broke upon impact.

Meanwhile, Sparky was driving his skateboard and knocked one ninja into two others to cause a domino effect. "Woo-hoo! It's like bowling!" Suddenly, a chain got wrapped around his wing and he was dragged toward a ninja who looked to cut him with a kurasigama scythe. "Hey! I got the same one!" Sparky said before sending his skateboard into the ninja's stomach to make him clutch down in pain.

He then ripped the ninja's outfit at the level of his chest where a strange red symbol was marked. "A good trophy for a good winner."

"A little help wouldn't bother me!" Lilly called as she was having an hard time fighting off three ninjas with katanas around her.

"WE'RE COMING!" her three siblings shouted as they were about to charge into the ninjas. however, these last ones jumped out of the way, the siblings crash into Lilly and knock themselves to the ground.

"That's not really it," Sparky groaned while laying on his stomach. "I gotta a feeling we'll have to work harder at training."

Meanwhile, the black ninjas started retreating with the one holding the metal glove grabbing the mysterious sword and flee with it. However, the four stopped him before he could get away.

"Put this sword down, and we won't hurt you, pal!" Kowalski said with holding his wing toward the ninja.

However, this last one lifted the sword which suddenly started glowing a strange light and electricity around the blade. He suddenly pointed it at the four confused siblings who were sent flying backward by a sudden shockwave coming out of the blade. This allowed the black ninja to escape the museum with the sword.

"Can someone explain me what just happened?" Sparky asked after getting back up and dusting himself off.

"You saw that sword? What was it anyway?" Sky asked as Kowalski gave her his wing to help her back up.

"I don't know, but let's get out of here quick!" Lilly ordered as the police sirens could be heard from outside and the siblings all left.

* * *

 **What was that mysterious sword which knocked our heroes with a shockwave? Why does these black ninjas want it so much? Stay stunned to find out.**

 **Also, I forgot to mention it, but the last chapter for this story's 70th. Man, I wrote so much in so little time. I'm gonna celebrate this with a good beer! Just kiddin' I don't drink alcohol.**


	72. Darkness on the Edge of Town part 2

After the battle at the museum, the four ninja birds returned to their lair and explained him everything before Sparky gave him the piece of cloth he took from the ninja bird with the red symbol.

"What does the symbol mean, Master Yoshi?" Lilly asked.

The old falcon grunted with looking at the symbol in his wings. "Trouble."

"You know something about these ninjas? Where do they come from? Who do they work for?" Kowalski asked.

"And what do they want with a magic sword?" Sparky asked at his turn.

"Nope, not magic. Probably more like a self-perpetuating oscillation frequency generator," Sky pointed out with a wing on her chin.

"Uh...in English, Einstein?" Sparky innocently asked.

"It packs a shockwave that will knock you flat on your feathered butt," Sky explained clearly for her younger brother.

"We gotta go after those creeps!" Kowalski said with taking out his sais.

"No," Master Yoshi stopped him. "A wise ninja does not seek out an enemy he does not fully understand."

"But Sensei, Bushido demands that we fight for honor and justice and-" Lilly tried to explain.

"Bushido also demands that that you honor your master's wishes. I will meditate upon this matter further. Goodnight." And with that, the old master retreated into his room to meditate.

"Aww, under-grounded again!" Sparky groaned.

Sky then rubbed her chin and snapped her feathers before walking away. "Can we know where you're going, Einstein?" Kowalski asked his sister as they all followed her to her workshop.

"There's many way to learn about your enemy," the elf owl said as she started pressing on her computer's keyboard's buttons, making researches...

* * *

Meanwhile, far from there, in the mysterious crow master's dojo, this last one was about to make a special training. Taking his white robes off, four of his black ninjas bowed before him before one of them took out his katana and jumped to attack.

The master easily kicked him away in one move before the second one swung a kusarigama chain which he dodged by performing many cartwheels. The three ninjas then attacked him together, only to be knocked down by a swift jump spin kick to their head. He scoffed a bit before sensing his disciple Dragon Face arriving.

"Dragon Face. Just a moment, please," he said with a wing in his direction. The four black ninjas attacked together again, but got putted down one by one by the master's powerful kicks. With all of them laying down and groaning in pain, the master went to pick up his robes and put them back on before walking over to Dragon Face. "I hope you are bringing good news."

The giant kneeled before his master and held something covered by a sheet. the master removed it to reveal the strange sword his ninjas stole from the museum.

"The Sword of Tengu," he said with taking the sword in his wings. "She didn't lose any of her powers even after all those years. Extraordinary." He looked at the blade which started shining a bit. "She is also capable of localizing the other objects with so particularly origins. Yes, this sword will allow me to put my hand on something I have been searching for so long," he said with admiring the sword under all its angles before giving it back to Dragon Face. "Give it to Tech Division and tell them to start the second part of the operations."

* * *

Meanwhile, back at the lair, Sparky was sitting on the living room's couch, reading a comic book and eating a bag of potato chips. "I wonder what Master Yoshi's doing. He didn't came out of his room for a full day."

"It's because of that symbol," Lilly said with practicing Judo moves. "As soon as he saw it, he became obsessed with it."

Kowalski was training with a punching dummy which he smashed impatiently. "Enough of this waiting around! I say we head top-side, kick ninja butt, take ninja names, and find out the whole ninja story for ourselves!" He kicked the off the head of the dummy in anger and it landed in Sparky's bag of chips.

"Woah, remind never to get on your bad side, dude," Sparky exclaimed in surprise.

"Too late," Kowalski sarcastically said and headed toward the exit, only for Lilly to get in his way.

"Not so fast, Kowalski. Nobody will leave this sewer, got it?"

"Hey, guys, come quick," Sky suddenly called from her computer. "I hacked the computer system of the electricity company and, apparently, there's another blackout in the south of the harbor."

Her three siblings came behind her. "I smell like a bad odor and it has nothing to do with us," Kowalski remarked.

He, Sparky and Sky then got up and started heading toward the exit. "Hey! Where are you going? Master Yoshi strictly forbid us to-"

"To provok the ninjas, but he didn't said anything about stopping our research for the blackout," Kowalski interrupted her.

"This is good; I have one or two new tools I wanna try. Let's go," Sky excitedly said.

Lilly pushed a big sigh of exasperation. "It's though being a leader. Hey, wait for me!" she said and rushed after her siblings, not knowing that her master watched her leaving.

* * *

Later on, the four siblings arrived on the top of a bridge where they got a good view upon the South Street Seaport and the river.

"All the sector is plunged into obscurity, exactly like yesterday," Kowalski remarked.

"Only this time, I came equipped," Skyler said with taking night googles out of a sports bag she brought. She gave them to Sparky who putted them on and smiled.

"Whoa! Cool! Everything's green! Like turtles!"

Sky giggled before taking the goggles off her brother's eyes. "It allows to see in the night, Sparky," she said with putting the goggles on and looking around.

"And how are we gonna watch all over the sector?" Lilly asked.

"Don't worry; I'm also equipped for that." The elf owl winked and took out a backpack which she putted on her back before opening it to reveal a red wind-glider. "I've been wanting to try my wind-glider for a while now."

"What, you never tried it before?" Lilly asked in surprise.

"Dude, how do you want her to fly in a sewer?" Sparky asked with a chuckle.

"We stay in contact by our radiophones. And don't worry, I took great care of the aero dynamics. Let's go!" she shouted before running off the edge of the bridge's top and flew down above the river and above the bridge and honking cars.

Lilly soon took out her radiophone and called her sister. "Sky! Do you hear me?"

"Everything's alright! No problem," she answered before dodging one of the bridge's pillars with a swift barrel roll. "Okay, maybe I did some miscalculations, but everything's alright!"

She flew above the river and soon saw something with her night goggles. "Huh? Something strange is happening on the south river."

"What's happening?" Lilly asked.

"I gotta a feeling they are searching something underwater!"

"Who are you talking about?"

Sky zoomed her night googles and saw a canon-like device that was using the sword as a power source and sending big vibrations down in the river. "About our dear ninja friends. I spotted the sword: she is connected to a big canon that is shooting vibrations. I'm currently above the passageway number sixteen."

"We're coming!" Lilly said and started heading toward Sky's location alongside Kowalski and Sparky.

"I'm gonna try to get closer-AAAAAH!" Sky shouted as she got too close to the vibrations beam and lost control of her wind-glider and started falling down toward a nearby warehouse. "HELP! HELP! I'M LOOSING ALTITUDE!" She ended crashing right into the river as her siblings arrived at the port.

"Sky! Can you hear me? Say something, sista," Lilly begged in panic.

Luckily, Sky suddenly broke through the water and back to the surface. "Man, that water stinks! And this is from a bird who lives in a sewer."

Lilly, Kowalski and Sparky smiled, happy to their sister was alright. "Yes!"

The three ran along the port and soon, the canon came into view. "I saw the canon," Lilly said on the radio. "I can only see two guys around. This means the others are hiding somewhere."

As if on cue, more black ninjas suddenly jumped out of boats all around and blocked the way. "You know that I hate when you're right," Sparky remarked.

"LET'S KICK THEIR FEATHERED BUTTS!" the three said at unison with taking out their weapons and jumping into action.

Meanwhile, Skyler finally managed to swim back on the port and shook the water off her feathers. however, even before she could catch her breath, two black ninjas jumped down from a boat, forcing her to swing her bo staff at them to knock them away. She then jumped up on said boat to meet with more black ninjas and see her siblings also on it.

As the birds fought, the black ninja technicians swept the river bottom with the beam, revealing the bottom ground. "Okay, we found what we were searching. Send the helicopter," one of the technicians instructed.

"Come on, cowards! come and get me!" Sparky dared until he backed away into a wall and found himself trapped with the three ninjas. "Okay, I was just kidding."

However, the three ninjas rose their katanas, ready to attack, when a sheet f the boat fell right on them. Sparky looked up to see his sister Lilly standing on the mat with a smile and winked at him. He showed his thumb feather as a thank you.

Meanwhile, an helicopter driven by the black ninjas arrived above the exposed water spot and released a crane to grab what looked like an old armor covered of algaes.

At the same time, the four ninjas birds ended up winning their fight against the black ninjas. "It looks like our teamwork became more effective," Lilly remarked with a smile.

"Yeah, but it's no time to rest yet," Sky said and turned toward the helicopter. "This helicopter model is very interesting."

They then saw the armor being brought up in the vehicle. "It went to fish something! but what?" Sparky asked.

"I don't know, but I have a bad feeling about this," Kowalski remarked.

The four siblings jumped down the boat and ran toward the vibrations canon which suddenly stopped shooting, allowing the river to return to normal. As they were about to leave with their stuff, Lilly suddenly arrived there by the ladder.

"Excuse-me sirs, but we need to have a little discussion about your steals."

The two technicians panicked and tried to leave from another edge, but Sky jumped from there and blocked the escape. "You shouldn't play with such toys; it's dangerous."

Kowalski and Sparky blocked the other sides and the technicians found themselves trapped. One of them took out a little pistol from its pack and shot at Sparky who ducked before Lilly came to kick him in the face, making him fall and causing the laser to accidentally cut the canon's control panel.

The building on which the canon was standing started trembling and the two technicians looked at the broken panel. "It's in overheat! I can't control it any longer!"

"It doesn't matter; we're saved!" the other one said as the helicopter returned and came low enough for the ninjas to grab on it before flying away.

"They're escaping!" Kowalski shouted before loosing his balance as the vibrations canon was shaking hard and moving alone.

"I think we might have a bigger problem! Look!" Sky said and pointed her wing as the vibrations beam reached the port and started destroying it as well as the city's ground behind it.

"That's what we call having bad vibrations!" Sparky screamed.

"It's no time for jokes, Sparky!" Kowalski responded.

Lilly then turned toward Sky. "Sky! Think you can stop this machine?!"

"Well, I should be able to disconnect the sword from the generator!" Sky answered as she jumped on top of the canon. "But if I change the wires alimenting the terminal, then I could-"

"Aww, please!" Lilly cut her off. "It's an emergency! We need to get this machine away from the city and fast!" Sparky and Kowalski nodded before following their sister to try and push the canon in another direction.

"Police! Don't move and stay where you are!" Kowalski turned his head to see a police helicopter arrive in their direction.

"Quick, Sky! Otherwise, we'll become the first birds to get arrested by the police!" Kowalski called.

"Almost there, almost there!" Sky said as she pulled a red wire away, causing the canon to spin out of control, making Sky fall and knock her siblings down.

"We need to stop this machine and quick!" Lilly screamed and then spotted a crowbar laying near her. Grabbing it, she crawled near the canon and stabbed her item right into the machine's foot, making it stop spinning.

Sky tried to take this opportunity to take the sword out, only to shock her wing and yelp in pain. "Use this!" Lilly said with throwing the metal glove used by the technicians at her sister.

She quickly putted it on and carefully picked up the sword, putting it out of the machine and finally making the vibrations canon stop. However, it continued shaking hard.

"Don't stay here! It's too dangerous!" Sky screamed and the four siblings jumped off the platform and ran away as the pillars collapsed, sending the machine to fall into the river and explode with a huge splash.

"Wow! That was a true light show!" Sparky said before turning toward the helicopter that was coming in their direction.

"And that's another show," Lilly remarked before running away alongside her siblings before the humans could find them.

* * *

A few moments later, the four siblings returned down to their lair and showed the Sword of Tengu to their master. Using the metal glove, he looked at the sword from every angle.

"According to its form, this sword has been made in Japan during the 18th century," he analyzed. "But the blade's metal is leaving me perplex. there is no doubt that it is more than a beautiful item." He careful putted it down on a table. "We need to make sure it doesn't fall into bad hands."

* * *

Meanwhile, at the dojo, the master was sitting while glaring unhappily at the two technician birds. "This has lasted for so long you can not imagine. During all this time, my enemies managed to escape my talons." He then turned toward the metal armor covered of algae in a display case. "Today, I finally found a proof of their presence in this city, but you see, this costed me the precious Sword of Tengu and it makes me lose my temper!" he growled with slamming his wing on the table between him and the technicians.

"But Master, we have a good reason. It was because of those enemies, they came out of nowhere," one of the technicians tried to explain.

The master then took a paper from a table which was the same photo Dr. Dexter gave him and showed a red light image of the four ninja birds. "Is it them?"

"Yes, Master," the technicians said at unison after looking at it.

"It will be all for now, sirs," the master said and the two technicians bowed before walking toward the exit...only for Dragon Face to grab them from behind and carry them away. "The fate I reserve for those creatures will be merciless...," he mumbled with taking his Tekkō-kagi and stabbing it into the image...

* * *

 **I'd like to take this opportunity to announce that today is my 20th birthday! I already lived 1/5 of my life. Man, I'm feeling old! I'm gonna celebrate my birthday by watching all my favorite movies (including Rio) and take time to swallow that I'm no longer as old as I used to be.**


	73. The way of invisibility

_"Ever see one of those old movies where the private eye wakes up after being knocked out cold? He always says the same thing: "Hu, where am I?" Okay, so it's not exactly original, but it's true, I have no idea where I am. Is this an operating room? Torture chamber? TV game show? Last thing I remember, I was bapping a bunch of street thugs with Ryker."_

* * *

At the master crow's dojo, this last one was sitting behind his desk as Dragon Face looked at the photos of the four ninjas birds. "Ninjas, he? More like thugs who think they are warriors," he growled with folding the papers in his big wing.

He then heard a chuckling noise before Dr. Dexter came out from behind and took the papers from his wing. A noticeable change in his appearance was that he was now wearing a black band over his left eye which got cut off as a punishment for his previous failure.

"What is this? A field recognition or a sci-fi image?" he asked with looking at the image before the crow slapped it out of his hands.

"Imbecile! It is this sci-fi that destroyed your pathetic Biters, Dr. Dexter!" He then dashed before Dragon Face. "And it is this sci-fi that defeated your Foot soldiers! Those masked ninjas are way too skilled to be mere street thugs."

"Maybe they are working for your enemies," Dragon Face suggested.

"Or probably for a top secret governmental operation," Dr. Dexter suggested at his turn.

The crow suddenly grabbed him by the collar and lifted him off the ground. "I have no interest for your hypotheses!" he shouted before tossing the human away. "I want clear and precise answers!" He then went to sit back behind his desk. "You two are gonna work together! Find those ninjas! Pierce all their secrets! And if necessary, eliminate them all!"

* * *

Meanwhile, down in the sewers, Master Yoshi turned the lights off as he and his four children were standing in balance over sticks of bamboo.

"My child, tonight's training will bent toward two essential disciplines: the balance and the way of invisibility."

In the dark, Sparky tilted his head toward Skyler. "Say, can you turn the lights back on?" However, before he could, he received a stick slap on his wing from his sensei.

"Sparky, know that the art of invisibility is bond to the art of being quiet! I hope you will remember, if you don't wish to eat my staff!" he warned before jumping off from one bamboo stick to another one.

There, he tried to spin kick Lilly who jumped to dodge him. Sky jumped for a dive kick her sensei ducked, letting her land in balance on another stick before Kowalski did the same thing and got the exact same result. Sparky made sure no looked at him before swing his kurasigama chain at the light switch to turn the lights back on.

"I see you!" he shouted at Master Yoshi before blocking this last one who swung his staff at him. In the process, the elf owl lost his balance and fell from the bamboo stick, managing to grab the middle part of it in time before he could touch the ground. "Can I have some points for my creative mind?" he innocently asked.

"A creative mind must be balanced by a disciplined body. We must learn stillness and alertness. For they are the only defense against the unexpected," he said before turning the lights off once again.

Just then, the door of the elevator leading up to the abandoned garage opened and some bird came out, walking blindly in the dark.

"Huh, is someone there?" he asked before accidentally bumping into the bamboo sticks which created a domino effect, making all the sticks collapse along with the five bird son it.

Master Yoshi groaned in pain on the ground before turning to glare at the intruder and swiftly jumped on him before pinning him to the floor with his staff. However, after getting up, Lilly had the chance to get a better look on the intruder and realized that it was someone she knew: Ryker!

"Master Yoshi! Wait! He's a friend!" Lilly exclaimed with rushing at him as Sparky went to turn the lights back on.

"It's the guy I told you about, Ryker," Sky said. "It's the crazy-Hu, street fighter Kowalski met."

"I though it would be a good idea to give him access to our lair. For emergencies or materials," Kowalski explained as Master Yoshi carefully removed his stick from the burrowing owl's throat.

"Please forgive my rash actions," Master Yoshi apologized with a bow as Kowalski helped Ryker back up.

"No problemo," the burrowing owl assured with rising his hockey mask to reveal his face.

"Although next time, you would be wise to heed the ancient Japanese proverb: Phone first," the master said with narrowing his eyes at the guest and walking away.

Ryker then exchanged a chuckle with Kowalski before looking at his lair in awe. "Wow! Kowalski, that's an awesome house you got there!"

"You didn't come all the way down here for the nickel tour. What's the 4-1-1 streetside?" Kowalski asked his owl friend.

"Graffiti. It's everywhere. All over town," Ryker responded with a serious look.

Sparky and Skyler exchanged a little glance. "And I think I speak for everyone in the room when I say, duh," Sparky said.

"We're New Yorkers, Ryker. We've seen graffiti before," Sky remarked with a wing on her hip.

"Uh-uh, not this kind." The burrowing owl took out a picture of a red graffiti in a street which was a drawing of a spear skewering four birds. "I think someone's trying to send you a message."

The four ninja birds looked at the drawing with their eyes wide open. "Wow! This symbol vaguely reminds me of something," Sparky remarked with scratching the side of his head.

"Are all the tags like this one?" Lilly asked.

"Some are more sophisticated," Ryker said before looking up and gasped as he saw the Sword of Tengu in a corner. "Hey! What's this sword?! She looks like the one on the graffiti."

The burrowing owl then walked past his friends and toward the sword with a smile. "Ryker! Wait!" Sky called, but it was too late as the burrowing owl grabbed the sword's handle in his gloves wing. This caused him to receive a thunder-shock and be sent flying back into a book shelf. Sky rubbed her forehead in exasperation. "Can you remind me who got the idea of inviting this guy here?"

The four ninja birds and Master Yoshi went to help Ryker back up once again. "Thank you for the informations, young Ryker, but now, we need to continue our training," Master Yoshi politely said and started dragging the street fighter toward the exit.

"Hey, wait!" he said with breaking out of his grasp. "Wait, don't you guys wanna put the smackdown on the scum who did this?"

"Well, yeah. But it smells way too much like a setup," Sparky admitted which was odd as he wasn't the most thinking one of the group.

"Someone's just trying to get under our feathers. Why should we stoop to their level?" Sky asked with a wing on her hip.

"But this is a matter of honor! What about all that bushidoodoo stuff you guys always talk about?" Ryker insisted with taking out one of the wooden baseball bats in his sports bag.

"That's Bushido, which has nothing to do with payback for a bunch of nasty wall doodles," Lilly pointed out at her friend.

"Sorry, Ryker, but just this time, I have to agree with my siblings," Kowalski said with a little nod.

"I don't understand you," Ryker said before spotting the lair's living room and putting his bat away. "Hey!" he exclaimed before running and jump to sit down on the couch before grabbing a piece of pizza from an open box and the remote. "Let's zap a bit."

"Make yourself at home," Sky sarcastically said as he started changing the channels and eating the piece of pizza.

* * *

One hour later, Sparky decided to sit and watch TV with Ryker. There was only one piece of pizza left and Ryker took it before the elf owl could. He swallowed it in three bites before noticing a box containing many DVDs beside the couch and decided to start digging into it.

"It's starting getting late," Lilly remarked with a yawn as she came to turn the TV off.

"Those are the only DVDs you have?!" Ryker asked with a dumbfounded look at his friends.

"Yes, but you know, I have an idea," Sparky said with picking up the box and giving them to the burrowing owl. "You can burrow them and bring them back later."

"no need; I'll watch them here," Ryker said and walked over to the living room's computer and pressed on the EJECT button from a DVD player. However, it didn't worked, even after many attempts. "Are you gonna obey?!" Ryker impatiently asked before slamming his strong foot on top of the player, breaking it in two. "Oh, I think it's broken."

"Don't worry; I'll fix it tomorrow morning," Sky said in annoyance from her workshop.

"And what are you working on?" Ryker asked as he came behind the elf owl to try and see what she was building.

"Huh, something boring. I assure you it's of no importance," the elf owl said with trying to cover her work with her wings.

"Okay," the burrowing owl then turned toward Kowalski which was jabbing at a punching bag. "Hey, Kowalski! Come and fight!" Ryker shouted with jumping on his barn owl friend and tackled him to the ground which started a lousy struggle between the two.

This all ended when Master Yoshi firmly slammed his staff into the ground to get everyone's attention. "Kowalski! I always discouraged your adventures to the surface, but right now, I think it would be wise to bring your friend take a lot of fresh air up there."

"I totally agree! Let's go!" Kowalski said with getting back up and ran toward the elevator with Ryker beside him.

"And that's how they defeated The Thing that Wouldn't Leave!" Sparky sarcastically said which made his siblings laugh.

* * *

 **Okay, I know there wasn't much action in this chapter, safe if you count Ryker's turbulent arrival in the lair, but I promise there will be more in the next one.**

 **BTW, thanks to everyone for the birthday wishes :)**


	74. The way of invisibility part 2

Kowalski and Ryker were jumping from roof-to-roof in the city and in the middle of the night, throwing insults at each other.

"Big owl!" Ryker shouted at Kowalski.

"Big pickle!" he replied.

"...Paint spray!"

Kowalski stopped running and looked curiously at Ryker. "Paint spray? What kind of insult is that?"

"No, listen!"

As Ryker said that, Kowalski listened well and could indeed hear what sounded like someone using paint spray down in the street below. Upon looking down, they saw some Red Dragon thugs spraying graffiti with the same theme as the ones Ryker took in photo with purple paint. Realizing that they were the responsible ones, the two owls nodded at each other before jumping down in the alley, immediately catching the three thugs' attention.

"We are this city's cleaners and we came to do our job by taking you down!" Kowalski declared with narrowing his eyes at the thugs.

One of them attacked him with a chain, but he easily kicked him away while Ryker was taking on the second one. This last one was using two baseball bats like Ryker's, but smaller.

"Hey, you're stealing my style!" he remarked before clashing his own bat against the thug's.

The third thug went to hide behind a trash can and called someone on his phone. "We got one of them." That was all he could say before Kowalski grabbed him by the collar and tossed him head first into the alley's wall, knocking him out cold. At the same time, Ryker knocked the bats off the thug's hands and swung his own bat into his stomach, making him clutch down in pain.

"Piece of cake!" Ryker said with a proud smile behind his hockey mask.

"Don't celebrate too soon; the guy called for some backup on his phone," Kowalski deadpanned and pointed toward the roof of a building. "And here they come."

Two black ninjas jumped down from the roof. however, these two were different from the others as their attire was dark blue with black protections, two katanas tied to their back and some orange googles on their eyes.

"Whoa! Those guys doesn't look like regular ninjas!" Ryker remarked.

"Neither am I," Kowalski responded with taking his fighting stance just like his partner.

They then rushed toward the new ninjas who suddenly pressed on something on their chest and faded into nothingness. This caused both owls to widen their eyes in surprise.

"Huh? Where did they go?" Kowalski asked with looking all around. However, the two friends suddenly received a punch out of nowhere in the face which knocked them back into the alley's wall. Kowalski groaned as he got up in a sitting position. "They must have some kinda...whadaya call it...cloaking device."

"Cloaking device"? What are they, Klingons?" Ryker sarcastically asked.

"It's no time to make Star Trek reference."

Step sounds could then be heard and Kowalski saw invisible feet step into a small water puddle, leaving water marks afterwards. However, before he could react, he was suddenly lifted in a bear hug position with a great force tightening around his waist.

Ryker saw this and was about to help his friend, when he spotted the paint spray cans on the ground. He quickly grabbed them and shot purple spray so that the ninja holding Kowalski was now visible. He then grabbed his hockey stick from his bag and swiftly swung it at the ninja's face, snapping a piece of his orange google down and making him stumble back so that he let go of Kowalski.

However, the ninja was not defeated yet and stepped angrily toward Ryker who swung his hockey stick at him again. This time, the ninja rose his wing to block his stick which broke in two upon impact, much to the burrowing owl's shock. He then grabbed him by the collar and swung before tossing him hard into the trash cans.

The two ninjas then returned visible before grabbing the two unconscious owls and drag them away. "We captured the target."

"What should we do with the other one with an hockey mask?"

Just as the ninja asked that, the three Red Dragon thugs got back up. "Don't worry; we'll take care of him," the one who previously used a phone, now holding a crowbar, said.

The ninjas nodded and carried Kowalski away as the three thugs surrounded the unconscious Ryker. "Payback time!" They rose their weapons, ready to beat the helpless burrowing owl down.

This last one suddenly shot his eyes up and grabbed his paint spray can before swiftly shooting their content into the thugs' face, blinding them. This buy him enough time to run away and go alert the others. On his way, he spotted the orange google he knocked from the ninja and decided to grab it as it could be useful for Sky.

* * *

Some time after, Kowalski groaned as he regained consciousness and slowly opened his eyes. He had to blink his eyes a few times as a strong light was blinding him. He tried to cover his eyes with his wing, but found out he couldn't move them. Same for pretty much the rest of his body.

"W-Where am I?" he mumbled. Suddenly, he felt something metallic cold poke at his body, making him giggle. "Hey! Stop! I ate getting fiddled!" By the time he said that, his eyes got adjusted to the light and he saw that he was in some kind of dark room, strapped in a I position on a metal board with a light over him.

"This is some nice steel." Kowalski turned his head to see none other than Dragon Face standing beside him while holding one of his sais in his wing and looking at it with interest. "How about you tell me who gave them to you?"

"Yo mama!" Kowalski spat in his face.

Dragon Face didn't took the insult well and threw both sais on either sides of Kowalski's face. "Excuse-me, but I didn't hear your answer correctly," the giant said with pulling the two weapons off and throwing them back on a table alongside Kowalski's radiophone. Dragon Face justly picked this one up in his big wing and crushed it with his strength. "You should know that I get easily irritated."

Kowalski then noticed the red dragon tattoo on his left wing. "Nice tattoo. Is it a red dragon or just a big chicken?"

Dragon Face suddenly grabbed Kowalski's head in his big wing and got face-to-face with him. "Let 's continue with the next question: what kind of ninja are you exactly supposed to be?"

* * *

Meanwhile, back at the lair, Master Yoshi kept training his kids in the way of invisibility, when Ryker entered by the elevator door, holding his ribs in pain. As he stumbled forward, he once again accidentally knocked the bamboo sticks down, causing another domino effect and once again making the ninjas fall down with them.

"Is it gonna become an habit?!" Sparky asked in annoyance as he turned the lights back on.

Lilly and Sky then quickly got their burrowing owl friend back up by grabbing his wings. "Ryker? What happened?" Lilly asked him.

"And where is Kowalski?" Master Yoshi asked with an eye brow.

"The invisible ninjas took him," Ryker weakly answered with lifting his hockey mask.

"Invisible ninjas, huh? This story wouldn't involve Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny, by any chance?" Sparky asked with a little chuckle.

"I've got a proof!" Ryker angrily said and took the orange google out of his sports bag.

Sky took it and brought it to her workshop so that she could study it in closer details. "Oh, a highly sophisticated optical device."

Lilly used her radiophone to call her brother but didn't got any answer. "Kowalski doesn't answer his cell."

BANG!

Everybody turned as Ryker suddenly grabbed a stool and tossed it at the wall, making it break into pieces. "This is all my fault!" he growled in frustration.

"Calm down; I equipped every one of our radiophones with tracking chips," Sky said before looking down at her GPS screen...only to see nothing. "That's interesting, I can't find any signal."

This made Ryker groan even more and kick the living room's couch away. "We'll never find him!" he shouted and flipped a table over.

"Maybe I could make some modifications so that we could find those invisible ninjas," Sky mumbled as Ryker smashed a wooden chair down.

"Be quick, sista, or all our furnitures will be gone," Sparky urged his sister.

* * *

Meanwhile, back to Kowalski, the barn owl was still refusing to give clear answers to the impatient Dragon Face. "I gotta tell you you seriously start to get me pumped up! I'm gonna ask you one last time: who are you working for? For how long have you been in this city? And what are your technological level?"

"City? Technology?" Kowalski asked with a confused glance. "I think you confused me with someone else, dude."

Dragon Face angrily slammed his wing on the board Kowalski was tied to. "ARE YOU GONNA ANSWER?!"

"Speaking of which, who are YOU working for?" Kowalski asked, but this was actually a distraction to try and slip his wing free from the loose strap.

Dragon Face suddenly grabbed a working buzzsaw and got it dangerously close to Kowalski's face, making him flinch. "I'm leave you one last chance; either you talk or you let your DNA talk for you," he threatened with a smirk.

Just then, Kowalski slipped his wing free and smashed Dragon Face in the stomach before grabbing the buzzsaw and slamming the flat side of it in Dragon Face's faces (Lol, it sounds funny said like that). The barn owl then used the buzzsaw to cut the other straps on his body off, getting free.

He then wasted no time running at the dark room's door...only to find out he was on a boat. "What the heck?! Well, luckily Master Yoshi taught me how to swim," he said before jumping overboard and into the city's river. He swam all the way to the city's port and started walking away...not realizing that water footprints were following him.

* * *

Back to the lair, Sky finally received a signal on her GPS screen. "Hey! I got a signal! It's Kowalski!" Sky announced with a smile of relief.

"Really? YES!" Ryker beamed and accidentally knocked the desk light with his hockey stick by throwing his wings in the air.

"This guy is bad news even when the news are good," Sparky sarcastically said to which Lilly nodded in agreement.

"It's weak, but at least, we can follow his position," Sky remarked with a smile before looking seriously as something else appeared on her screen. "Wait a minute. There's more signals!"

"It must those of the invisible ninjas!" Lilly realized with her eyes wide open.

"Kowalski must not even know he's being followed," Master Yoshi said with rubbing his beak.

"We'd better find Kow quick before he brings back some seriously unwanted houseguests!" Lilly declared.

"Yeah, we've already got one of those," Sparky said with giving a pointing look toward Ryker.

"But about that, how are we gonna fight something we can't see?" the burrowing owl asked.

"I got something for that," Sky said and took out the night googles she used for the port mission. "You just have to put on those goggles to detect their heat. After all, invisible or not, a body still emanate heat, right?" she said with giving googles to Ryker while putting on her own.

She gave two more to Lilly and Sparky who putted them on. Ryker putted his googles over his hockey mask which Sparky noticed. "Hey, you know you look cool like that?"

* * *

Moments later, Sparky and Ryker took the Feather Plane to search on the surface while Lilly and Skyler took the hovercraft to search through the sewers. The elf owl soon received something on her GPS.

"Hey! I found Kowalski; he's at the canal where all the sewer's pipes are connected!" she informed at the back of the hovercraft.

Lilly nodded and turned the vehicle toward the given location. As they arrived at the entrance to the canal, they left the hovercraft and looked down at the middle's platform where Kowalski was walking alone. Thanks to their night vision goggles, they spotted many figures following him from behind.

"I can see a few crazy guys who deserve a good correction with my googles," Sky informed her sister.

"Let's go then!" Lilly said as she took out her katanas and jumped down alongside her younger sister.

Kowalski looked up and saw them. "Hey, guys!" However, he then realized they were diving in his direction. "Wait! What are you doing?!"

The two sisters then kicked the invisible ninjas and started fighting them, causing their brother to look at them in confusion. "Huh, are you okay?"

"Have you already forgot about the invisible ninjas?" Sky asked before she and Lilly got kicked back by the eight invisible ninjas.

Just then, Sparky and Ryker arrived on the scene by a pipe. "By the way, did I forgot to mention they are stronger than normal ninjas?" Ryker innocently asked.

"That would have been a useful information," Lilly sarcastically responded before kicking up.

Ryker took out his hockey stick and swinging it into some dirt on the ground to send it over the ninjas, making them now visible for Kowalski. "That's better!" he said with a smirk and took out his sais.

"I also wanna try something new," Sky said as she took some kind of metal turtle shell tied to her belt and putted it down before taking out a NES remote. Pressing on some buttons, the shell turned into none other than Metal Turtle, the robotic turtle Sky made some time ago. "Come on, Metal Turtle; let's kick their invisible butts!"

The fight started and...let's just say that the invisible ninjas all ended down in the spinning water below in a matter of seconds. "That was awesome!" Ryker said with a smile as he putted his baseball bat away and lifted his hockey mask and night vision googles.

"Yeah, Master Yoshi's training with the way of invisibility payed after all," Sparky said with giving a wink.

"Phew, I'm dead," Ryker sighed with rubbing his forehead. "It would be better if I spent night with you tonight."

This caused all four siblings to widen their eyes in horror. "No!" Lilly quickly said before shaking her head. "I mean, there's nothing better than sleeping in your own bed at home, right?"

"We'll follow you back home. 'Cause you got a home, right?" Sky added.

"We'll put you to bed and even tell you a story," Sparky nodded before helping his siblings carrying the burrowing owl away.

* * *

Some time after, at the dojo on top of the city.

"Another operation marred by the sickening stench of defeat! No doubt you are both well aware of my extremely limited tolerance of failure!" the master crow shouted in anger at Dragon Face and Dr. Dexter who were nervously standing side-by-side.

"It was his fault! This bumbling oaf let the creature escape!" Dr. Dexter defended himself by pointing at a very unhappy Dragon Face.

The master grabbed him by the collar and lifted him to his face. The plan was sound, and yet your creations failed to, as you put it, "deliver the goods."

Two invisible ninjas suddenly grabbed him by the shoulders and carried the doctor away. "Wait! Were are you taking me? Get your hands off me! I made you! I am your creator!"

The master then turned toward Dragon Face. "What did you learn from your interrogatory?"

"I beat down many people during my life, and I can assure these birds are not working for your enemies. They never even heard about them," the giant answered.

The master nodded and turned his head. "In that case, maybe they'll be useful for the day I'll have to face them."

* * *

Meanwhile, somewhere we don't know.

"Masters, this is unfortunately true; the enemy learned about our presence in this town."

"And what about the four mysterious ninjas?"

"They remain unknown, a lack of information."

"In that case, learn more about them. And if they are no threat, let them be. But if they work for our enemy, take necessary measures to neutralize them."

"As you wish, masters."

"We are counting on you, Bishop..."

* * *

 **Another cliffhanger. I'm really good at making those.**

 **Anyways, thanks for the feedback to all my friends who read this and I sure hope you're enjoying this story.**


	75. Fallen Angel

_"My name is Ryker and you could say I'm having the worst day of my life...and yet, it's just about to get worst."_

* * *

One night, a group of Red Dragons are about to rob a store. In the group is a young girl, Angel who is trying to prove herself worthy of being made a Red Dragon. The leader of the group turned toward her and smiled.

"We're gonna make some groceries. Think you have enough guts to be one of us?"

Angel is a little raven small in size with black feathers safe for her head ones which were painted in purple and she was wearing bandages of the same color on her legs.

"You can count on that," she said with grabbing a brick in her wings and tossing it at the store's window, breaking it to shards.

This allowed the group of Red Dragons to get in and start stealing electronic equipment. The leader even destroyed the cash register and took all the money out into a bag.

"Good work, kid," he said with turning to Angel as the others started leaving with the stolen stuff. "Another trial, and we'll accept you as a Red dragon," he said with giving her the bag of cash.

The group exited by the back door which led into an alley. The leader gestured the others to exit the alley, just before receiving a kick behind the head that sent him fly into his partners.

"See guys, you never know what kinda fun you're gonna find on the ol' nightly training run," Sparky said with an excited smile as he was spinning his nunchucks.

"Now class, who can tell me what he did wrong?" Lilly asked her friends about the Red Dragon as she took out her katanas.

"You mean besides being a badly-dressed, law-breaking, good-for-nothin', low-life street punk?" Kowalski asked aggressively.

Let's say the leader didn't took those insults too well as he got back up and rubbed the back of his head. "Red Dragons, attack!" he screamed with pointing at the four ninja birds and Ryker.

The gang went on the attack as the leader returned into the store. Ryker went first by swinging his hockey stick into the face of a Red Dragon, knocking him to the ground. "When are you gonna understand that yellow is better than red?" Sparky asked with amusement as he and Lilly dive kicked two more Red Dragons down.

"Did you just insult me?" Kowalski sarcastically asked after split kicking two thugs at once.

Seeing her friends getting their feathered butt kicked, Angel grabbed her bag of money and ran away in the other side of the alley.

"There's one running away!" Sky remarked.

"Don't worry; she won't go far!" Kowalski said before elbowing another thug in the stomach.

Angel ran at full speed in hopes of escaping with the money. She took one glance behind to see no one was following her. However, it was all it took for her to bump into a wall and fall on her butt. Upon looking up, she saw this wall was none other than a burrowing owl wearing an hockey mask and stick.

"Already leaving?" he asked before taking a good look at her and widened his eyes. "Angel?!"

One of the Red Dragon thugs suddenly jumped from the side and tackled Ryker to the ground. Using his street fight knowledge, he easily knocked him off with a back elbow to the face. However, this allowed Angel to take the money and run away.

The young raven arrived at a wire fence which she started to climb up. However, Ryker managed to catch up to her and grabbed her foot. "Let me go!" she shouted with kicking at the burrowing owl.

"Angel, wait!" Ryker said with lifting his hockey mask to reveal who he was. "Look! It's me, Ryker!"

Angel looked at her friend in surprise. "Ryker?!" She jumped down in front of her friend. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm here to prevent you from making the biggest mistake of your life," the burrowing owl firmly said with crossing his wings.

"What? You're talking about the Red Dragon gang?" Angel asked and giggled a bit. "Stop it; I'm part of their group. They're my family."

"But you have a REAL family at home," Ryker said with a look of compassion.

"I didn't asked for your opinion. If I become a Red Dragon, it's my business, got it?" she rudely shot back.

Having enough of her game, Ryker took out his hockey stick and placed the tip of it on the money bag Angel stole. "But if you're breaking the law, it concerns me too."

Angel quickly took it back. "Then why are you not wearing any symbol or outfit?"

"And you, you're not wearing a dragon," Ryker replied with putting his hockey stick away. "So you better stop while you can."

"I won't stop anything. tonight was my first trial and tomorrow is my initiation trial. After that, they'll allow me to wear the Red Dragon symbol," Angel said with crossing her wings.

"This symbol could cost you a lot. you have no idea of the trouble you're getting into," Ryker kept trying to convince her.

"Maybe you're right..." Angel suddenly turned around and swiftly smashed the bag of money into Ryker's stomach, knocking the wind out of him and making him clutch down in pain. "...But I don't need to be taken care of!"

And with that, she ran over the fence and away from the alley with the money. Just after that, the four ninja birds arrived to see their owl friend laying down.

"What happened, Ryker? And who was that girl?" Kowalski asked with helping his friend back up.

"Her name's Angel. She lives in the same district as me. I promised her grandmother to keep an eye on her and make sure she stay out of trouble," Ryker explained with rubbing his still hurting tummy.

"Is she with the Red Dragons?" Lilly asked.

"Not if I can stop her!" Ryker declared with a determined look.

* * *

The following night, Ryker putted on a bird-sized jacket and followed two Red Dragons as they headed toward what seemed like a fight club. They passed by a big raven to whom they did a gesture with their wings which was probably their secret code to be allowed access inside. Stepping forward, Ryker did the same sign with his wing which the guard approved and allowed him inside.

The fight club was filled with Red Dragon birds screaming with enthusiasm around an octagon-shaped ring with a weak light shining from above it. One big Red Dragon was squashing smaller and weaker Dragons with a 2x4 as the crowd cheered loudly for him.

"Do you think this contender deserves to be a Red Dragon?" a voice over a microphone asked to which the audience answered positively, making Ryker shake his head in annoyance. "Now, let's welcome the next contender! Small but little, here is ANGEL!"

This caused Ryker to gasp with his eyes wide open and ran closer to the ring. And it was just in time to see the young raven girl jump inside with two other Red Dragons. The fight started as the two Dragons threw blows at the little girl who easily dodged and replied with swift, strong kicks to their beak, knocking them back.

As she was busy blocking one of the thugs' attacks, the second one slipped behind her with a crowbar which he rose, ready to strike the little raven in the back. "Okay, enough playing!" Ryker said and putted on his hockey mask along with taking out his baseball bat which he both hid in his jacket.

He then rushed into the ring and hit the thug with his bat to save Angel just in time. The raven noticed this and kicked the thug she was fighting away before turning toward the burrowing owl.

"What the heck are you doing here?!" she asked.

"Your new family was about to knock you out!" he sarcastically answered.

All the Red Dragons around shouted in anger at the intrusion and started entering the ring, surrounding the two birds.

"We must get out of here. Quick, Angel-" Ryker said right before receiving a violent punch in the stomach that knocked him far in the ring and made him spit saliva behind his mask. He then got his head grabbed and lifted in the air.

"He-he, hello, Ryker." The burrowing owl immediately recognized this voice: Dragon Face! "I was very excited to see you again," he said with an evil laughter as he glared at the burrowing owl with a smirk.

Okay, things really turned bad for him.

"You really think I don't know you're hiding behind this mask, Ryker? I got eyes and ears all over the city. I know everything. I specially know that you disrespected the Red Dragon!" he growled before single-handly throwing the burrowing owl into the ropes which made him bounce and land hard into the ring.

In a act of desperation, Ryker grabbed his baseball bat and charged at Dragon Face who simply grabbed his weapon in his big wing and kicked him back. He then snapped the wooden bat in two with his bare wings, making the Red Dragons around cheer with enthusiasm.

Angel saw this with a look of terror and decided to run away. "Lock this trash away; we'll play with him latter," Dragon Face instructed with walking away from the defeated Ryker.

* * *

 **Hu-oh, looks like Ryker's in trouble! Let's pray that Angel will help him to get out of this mess.**

 **BTW, I'd like to take the chance to point out this story reached 90 reviews. Thank you so much to all of you who took time to read and review this story! I promise I'll keep giving my best to entertain you :)**


	76. Fallen Angel part 2

Down into the sewer's lair, Sky was busy fixing a few modifications into the Feather Plane's motor with her tools. Sparky arrived beside her and looked at the work she was doing.

"Whatcha doin', sista?" he asked.

"I'm installing a remote system on the Feather Plane," Sky replied with lifting her security googles and started using her screwdriver.

"Whoa, too cool!" Sparky said and was about to touch the motor, only to get his wing slapped away by Skyler.

"Don't touch anything; this is very advanced technology. By pressing the right button, the Feather Plane will come directly to my remote."

As Sky explained all that, Sparky noticed a Wii remote on Sky's work table and picked it up. "This is the remote?"

"Yes, but I still gotta make some adjusting, so-" Sky started, but got cut off as the Feather Plane suddenly turned on and she turned toward Sparky with a curious glare.

"Huh, I guess you were about to tell me not to press that button?" he supposed with an innocent smile as he showed the Wii remote.

His sister jumped out of the way just in time before the Feather Plane started driving alone, destroying almost everything in the lair and missing to squash Master Yoshi, Lilly and Kowalski from little bit. Sky managed to make it stop with the modified Wii remote just in time.

"Skyler," Master Yoshi said as he calmly walked over her, " your Feather Plane is a marvel of engineering, a true testament to your incredible mechanical skills...and I never want to see it in our home ever again!" he said with an angry glare.

Sparky laughed nervously as Sky angrily slapped him across the face. "Ouch!"

* * *

Back to Ryker, the burrowing owl was trapped inside a cage at the back of the fight club with chains holding his wings to the wall. No matter how much he tried to push it off the wall with his powerful legs, he couldn't break free.

"You're just a bunch of cowards!" he angrily screamed. "You'll need more than stupid chains to hold me down!"

He then heard a familiar chuckling noise as Dragon Face returned. "You can talk. Did I ever told you how much I had, when I burned the orphanage where you got raised?" he asked with a mocking smirk.

"At least I had friends and a big family," Ryker spat back with a mocking smirk of his own.

Dragon Face didn't liked this answer and slipped his big wing through the bars to grab the burrowing owl by the neck. "Enjoy the time you have left, Ryker," he said with a deep voice before dropping him to the ground. "Tonight, I organized a little tournament between the Red Dragons. And you're the first reward. The winner will have the chance to make sure you'll never be a trouble to us...definitely."

The big crow then walked away as Ryker angrily groaned and kept trying to break free from his chains. His attempt got interrupted by a noise coming from the ceiling, catching his attention. A few seconds after, a piece of the ceiling fell and out of it came none other than Angel.

"Angel?!" he exclaimed in surprise as the young raven looked around to make sure no one was watching.

"I'm sorry, Ryker; it wasn't supposed to happen like this," Angel apologized and took a pick to pick the cage's lock. "I'm gonna get you out of this." However, after many vain attempt, she gave up and threw the pick away. "That's useless; this lock is too solid."

Ryker got as close to her as his chains allowed with a calm look. "It's okay, Angel. Don't worry."

"But we need to do something!" she nervously said.

"Listen, I got friends that can help us. Go to the old garage at Westman & Co. Ask for Kowalski and be quick," Kowalski instructed the young raven who nodded and ran back to the way she came from.

* * *

Later, as night started falling upon the city, Angel arrived at the garage Ryker told us to go and rushed at the opening where she slammed her wings.

"Kowalski? Kowalski! Help!" she called but got no answer. this made her put a wing on her hip and the other on her chin. "I don't understand. I'm at the place he told me to go.

Just as she said that, the garage's gate opened and out of it came none other than the four ninja birds. Kowalski stepped forward and looked down at her with a smile. "Wanted to see me?"

* * *

A few moments later, everyone was in the Feather Plane driven by Skyler en route to help Ryker.

"Okay, I knew Ryker hung out with some weird dudes, but you guys are off the charts," Angel commented at the four ninja birds.

"There's no way in hell I'm going in there with us!" Kowalski groaned as he struggled into the ridiculous gangster clothes Angel gave him so that he could blend in with the Red Dragons. "Don't tell me birds really dress like this!"

"It's not that bad; it's like a mix between king of hip hop and retreated boxer," Sparky tried to cheer his brother up.

"In that case, you won't have any problem putting this on," Angel said with giving Sparky identical clothes. This made the elf owl gulp nervously.

A few moments after, the group arrived at their destination and parked the Feather plane somewhere it would not be seen before Angel led the ninjas toward the fight club.

"Don't be afraid; just do like me," she instructed and walked past the guard with doing the secret symbol with her wing. The four others did the same and were all allowed to enter the fight club.

Once inside, they looked with impressed looks at all the Red Dragons who looked angrier than ever before. "Yeesh, it's like we walked into an ugly convention," Sparky whispered to his siblings.

"Hey, then you must feel right at home, Sparky," kowalski replied with a chuckle.

"Shut up."

"Are you two done yet?" Sky seriously asked. "We need to try to blend in," she said with crossing her wings and trying to look though. Her siblings imitated her.

"You really wanna look like a Red Dragon? Try getting your butt kicked by a Ninja Bird," Kowalski dryly commented.

"I'm down with that," Sparky agreed and exchanged a bump-fist with his brother.

Lilly then stepped in front of everyone. "Okay, listen to me, there's an exit there and another one this side. And guards all over the perimeter. All armed. Think we can get out of this without starting a brawl?" Her siblings answered with blank looks. "Yeah, kinda expected it."

Suddenly, a steel cage got lowered around the ring and a spotlight got positioned over none other than Dragon Face who was standing in the middle of it with a microphone.

"Tonight, the winners of the steel cage match will have the great honnor of getting the Red Dragons rid of one of their biggest enemies!" he announced as Ryker suddenly got lowered in the cage on a spread eagle that held him down with straps.

"Bunch of cowards!" Kowalski angrily growled and took out his sais. "If you really wanna fight, I'm right here!"

However, Lilly stopped him with her wing. "Calm down, Kowalski! We need to keep our cover!"

Back in the cage, Dragon Face putted Ryker's hockey mask back on this last one's face before exiting the cage. "So? Who's ready to fight and get his chance at giving a good correction to the Red Dragons' enemy?" the announcer asked over the speakers.

Many Dragons entered the cage as Ryker was lifted back to the ceiling. "How are we gonna get him down from there?" Sky asked with a wing on her chin.

"I know how to reach the gateways," Angel informed.

"Go with her, but be silent and act softly, okay?" Lilly instructed Sky and Sparky.

"What are you guys gonna do?" Sparky asked.

"We're gonna make sure the spotlight stays on the ring. Go," Lilly instructed and Angel, Sky and Sparky left as she and Kowalski entered the cage and the ring.

"This will never work," Kowalski mumbled.

"Got a better idea to win time?" Lilly replied. "And besides, you got a serious need for training," she remarked before entering the ring, making her brother look in confusion and insult.

"We're gonna take care of you two first!" one Red Dragon said as he and the others glared at the two new birds.

Meanwhile, up on the gateways, Sky and Sparky discreetly took out their weapons as they approached the Red Dragons charged of the lights. "Okay, we need to find a way to get rid of them without drawing attention," Sky mumbled.

"Any ideas?" Sparky asked his sister.

"Hmmm, yes! Even a good one," Sky said with a smirk.

She whispered a bit and then, Angel headed toward the two thugs. "Hey guys! Look!" she said to get their attention before grabbing a light projector and turned it on to blind them off. This allowed Sky to knock one of them out with her bo staff while Sparky took care of the other one with his nunchucks.

"Hurry up; your friends won't last long!" Angel said.

"Huh, I think they're making just fine," Sky remarked with pointing below them in the ring where Lilly and Kowalski were standing in the middle of many beaten Red Dragons. But there was still more coming.

"That's nice of you to come, Angel," Ryker remarked as they approached him. "And you didn't come alone."

"Hey, what are friends for?" Sky asked with a wink before pulling the switch down to low him down just enough for them to untie him from his spread eagle. they then helped him sitting down and remove his hockey mask.

"By the way, we brought you a little gift," Sparky said with taking out a new wooden baseball bat and handed it to the burrowing owl who looked at it in awe.

"You take me by the feelings," he said with a tear of joy.

Back down to the ring, Lilly and Kowalski were still dominating the Red Dragons, but started getting tired.

"Jeez, I can barely move in this stuff. What is the deal with humans and clothes?" Lilly asked with struggling in her clothes.

"You ever seen a human in his skivvies? Trust me, it ain't a pretty sight," Kowalski assured his sister with kicking another Dragon away.

Suddenly, another Red Dragon grabbed him by the collar and spun him around...before he ended slipping out of his clothes which surprised the thug. By the time Kowalski got back up, he realized too late that everyone could now see who he was.

"Hey! It's one of them Kung Fu avians!" one of the thugs exclaimed.

"Oh no!" Dragon Face groaned as he watched.

Back in the cage, Kowalski groaned in anger. "Ninja Birds! Nin-ja Bir-ds! Don't any of ya lame-brains know a ninja when you see one?" he sarcastically asked.

"Huh, Kowalski, I think now's not the time to give them a lesson," Lilly nervously remarked as Dragon Face walked over to the cage and literally ripped the entrance door off its hinges before throwing it away and entering the ring.

Kowalski gulped before getting in front of the big crow. "You!" this last one growled and threw a punch at the barn owl who blocked.

"What's wrong, big black? Still mad at me for leaving without answering your dumb questions?"

Dragon Face answered by grabbing his shoulders and slamming him hard into the cage and getting into his face. "No! You still didn't got it?! I let you go on purpose so that you would lead us to your lair!"

Lilly suddenly jumped on his shoulders. "Sorry to interrupted your reunion!" she said despite clearly being not sorry and slammed her wings against his ears to stun him long enough for her and Kowalski to take some distance.

Outside, the Red Dragons decided to attack by grabbing weapons and rushing toward the cage. However, Sky and Sparky removed their costumes and jumped down from the gateways to block their way.

"Sorry, but the cage is full! Come back another time!" Sparky said with humor.

The thugs angrily groaned before attacking...and getting their butts kicked by the two ninja birds. Back in the cage, Kowalski delivered many kicks to Dragon Face's torso which barely made him react.

"Please, be a nice big guy and fall!" Kowalski asked before Dragon Face interrupted his attacks with a slap that knocked him back into the cage.

Before he could attack her brother again, Lilly saw the cage's door up the cage and dive kicked the wall to make it fall right on top of Dragon Face. Unfortunately, the giant didn't stay down for long and tossed the door back at the spix macaw who received it right in the face, causing her to collapse and start bleeding from the nose.

"He's though!" she though with whipping the blood away with her wing.

"I think our siblings need help!" Sky said from outside the cage as she and Sparky then jumped up the cage's wall and double dive kicked the giant together, knocking him hard into the cage's wall.

"I think he still wanna play!" Sparky remarked.

Dragon Face angrily got back and suddenly used his huge strength to grab the cage's wall and actually managed to rip it off and make the whole cage collapse onto all of them. The four ninja birds groaned in pain as they were pinned underneath the cage walls.

As Lilly struggled to break free, Dragon Face walked behind her and took her katanas off her sheaths, rising them and ready to kill her with her own weapons. However, before he could act, he felt someone poke him in the back and turned just in time to receive a bat smash in the face, knocking him down and making him drop the swords.

Kowalski smiled at his friend and showed his thumb feather before seeing that all the thugs started walking toward them with their weapons. Sky smirked at them.

"Too bad for you; I got exactly what we need!" she said with taking out her Wii remote and pressed the A button. A few seconds latter, the Feather Plane came crashing through the club's gate, forcing the thugs to move out of the way.

"That's cool to see this vehicle destroy someone else's lair!" Kowalski remarked before everyone jumped inside.

Ryker, however, walked over to the unconscious Dragon Face with an angry glare. "That's for my friends!" he said with rising his baseball bat, only for Angel to stop him. "What are you doing, Angel?"

"I'm preventing you from making the biggest mistake of your life!" she said with a serious look.

Ryker's angry turned into an amused one as she used his own words against him. "Well, thank you, Angel."

"Hey, what are friends for?" she said with a smile before they jumped into the Feather Plane as Sky started driving away.

* * *

Not too long after, they parked into Ryker's district so that this last one could lead Angel back to her grandmother. The four ninja birds hid behind a spot as the burrowing owl led the young raven to an apart window and pecked at it.

An elder raven opened and looked in joy. "Angel!"

"Grandma!" the raven beamed and hugged her grandmother.

Ryker found this cute and smiled. "I held my promise."

"Oh, thank you so much for bringing me back my little Angel, Ryker," the grandma said with hugging the burrowing owl. "Now come on; I just finished an apple pie and I insist that you take a piece," she said with dragging him in the house.

"Pie?!" Sparky exclaimed in surprise. "Yo Ryke, hows about introducing grandma to your friends?"

"Forget it Sparky, we're ninjas. We stick to the shadows," Kowalski deadpanned his brother.

"The unsung heroes of the urban jungle."

"The silent protectors of the way of Bushido."

"But I wanted pie...," sparky whined as his siblings laughed of good heart.

* * *

 **Poor Sparky; he wanted pie XD**


	77. Garbageman

_"Here's another fine mess we've gotten ourselves into...literally. This has been one strange night, believe me, but no matter how weird it's been up 'til now, we never expected this..."_

* * *

It was night time in the city of New York and a couple of homeless humans were going through the garbage looking for bottles to turn in for money as well as other valuables. "Bingo!" one of them exclaimed with taking out a pretty good looking bottle of milk.

"Hey! Careful there! Remember that every bottle is important," his partner said.

"I never broke any," he defended himself.

"Are you kidding? You're the one to break the most of them."

The homeless guy chuckled and putted the bottle away in his jacket's pocket. "Yes, that's true. Well, I think we're done with this trash can. Let's go back home."

And with that, the two men started walking away from the alley. What they didn't notice was that a garbage truck was silently following them. As the two homeless guys opened a dumpster into another alley, the truck rolled forward and turned on red lights at them, causing them to notice the truck.

It started driving dangerously toward them. The duo started running away for their lives, but the alley they were in was revealed to be a dead end. They were trapped! The truck stopped as their back was against the wall.

"W-What do you want from us?!" one of the homeless guys asked while covering his face with one hand because of the red light.

Two robotic claws suddenly came out of the truck's back and started heading toward them. "No! Not that! PLEASE!"

* * *

The next night, the four ninja birds visited some homeless people to see if they could take things for their lair. While the others were searching, Sparky was having a lot of fun, using his skateboard to drive on piles of garbage and perform flips and figures.

"I'M THE KING OF EXTREME SENSATIONS!" he happily beamed.

Meanwhile, his three siblings were picking items from the garbage and gathered them in a grocery cart. Kowalski shook his head at his brother before putting his wing somewhere and getting gross red sauce on his wing.

"Eww! Who would want of such a sauce?" he said with shaking the sauce off his wing.

"As long as it can go in our lair, I'm in," Sky responded with a smile.

"Yes, but he could help us instead of goofing around," Kowalski said with pointing a thumb feather in Sparky's direction.

"Honestly bro, would you rather have an happy Sparky or a grumpy Sparky?" Sky asked with an amused smile. Kowalski just sighed as he knew his sister was right.

The four siblings then walked over to a group of homeless humans sitting around a campfire to keep them warm in the cold night. "Thanks again for the cart. That's nice," Sky thanked them.

 **(Yes, Sky and her siblings know to talk to humans as Master Yoshi was originally a human himself)**

"I sure hope you have found what you searched for amongst those angelic rebus, my friends," said an elder human named the Professor. He had tan skin with short grey hair and was wearing old, dirty pants and vest as well as a red scarf around his neck to keep himself warm.

"Yup, Professor," Sky responded.

"Them guys in the big bird costumes are back," some homeless guy whispered to his friend.

"Yup."

"Ya ever wonder why they dress up like that?"

"Nope."

"Here's what we found for you," the Professor said as he picked up a little bag and took a computer cartridge out of it and gave it to Skyler. "As well as this, my friend," he added with giving Sparky a comic book almost in perfect condition. "You told me you're collecting them right?"

"Yes. Thanks, Professor," Sparky said with a big smile as he looked at his new comic book.

Sky then walked to the Feather Plane and opened a compartment on the side from where she picked up a few sheets and clothes. "We brought you blankets and warm clothes. they are used, but at least they'll keep you warm for the night," the little elf owl explained with giving the stock to the Professor.

"In the end, one's rebus are others' joy. but you know, there's a theory saying that everything can be recycled," the old man said with a smile.

"Another one of his theories," another homeless guy sighed. "His fifth one today."

"The Big Bang Theory says that every matter exploded once before exploding over and over again, and that since the very beginning. Even our own molecules are being recycled" the Professor explained the bird with passion. Sparky silently exchanged a shrug with Kowalski.

"Understood something?"

"Nope.

"I just finished reading a book about the Big Bang. I could bring it to you one of those days," Sky proposed.

"That would be very nice of you, Skyler," the Professor said and shook the elf owl's wing.

"Is it me or there's less people than usual?" Kowalski asked, noticing that detail.

"Yeah; there's some people we didn't saw for a while. But what's mostly strange is that their stuff is still there," one of the homeless guys responded.

"I've got a theory on that subject," the Professor said again, making his friends sigh in annoyance. "There's a rumor going on saying that a terrifying being is capturing people in darkness. His name is mumbled in the night. We call him...Garbageman!"

The four ninja birds just looked blankly at him...before bursting out in laughters. "I almost believed it! Garbageman!" Kowalski said and whipped a tear away while walking back to the Feather Plane.

"Don't hesitate to tell us if someone else disappears, Professor," Sky said and shook hands (or wing) with the human again.

And so, the four ninja birds drove away in their sheltered van. "That was majorly creepy. You think any of its true?" Sparky asked while reading his new comic book from his seat.

"Hey, whatever it is, if the Professor is worried, we should take it seriously," Sky remarked while driving.

"Seriously, huh? Guess that leaves Sparky out," Kowalski said with a smirk.

"What?" the elf owl asked with a glare above his comic book.

* * *

The night after, Sky returned to the discharge where the homeless people lived using the Viper Driver. However, much to her surprise, there wasn't anybody and the place was pretty much ruined with the fences around destroyed.

"What happened in here?" the elf owl mumbled to herself. "Professor? Are you here?" she received no answer and decided to take her flashlight to search for him instead. "Professor?"

The elf owl soon stopped upon noticing a strange liquid on the ground. Kneeling down, she passed her wing feathers on it and smelled the strange mixture.

"This is of high quality."

Standing up, she walked over to the broken fence and noticed wheel marks on the ground.

"Wow! Those are big wheel marks. Better call the others.

After making her call, Sky was soon joined by her three siblings to whom she showed the crime scene.

"All I can say is that they have been taken by something big and monstrous," Sky said with a wing on her chin.

"I sure hope they're okay," Sparky said as he came out of the Feather Plane.

"Skyler, could you make some research on the internet about police's reports?" Lilly asked her sister while inspecting the traces on the floor.

"I could, but there won't be any report about the homeless people. no one cares about them," Sky answered with looking down, a bit of bitterness in her look.

"And meanwhile, our friends are getting captured!" Kowalski said with hardening his fists.

"We need to hit the streets," Lilly declared with confidence.

"It's trench coat wearing time!" Sparky happily beamed which earned him looks from his siblings. "Eheheh...," he chuckled nervously.

* * *

And so, wearing trench coats, the ninja birds hit the streets to question other homeless. Eventually, they returned to the lair and share the informations they learned.

"So, did you found something?" Lilly asked Sky who was currently tapping on her computer's keyboard.

"Well, believe it or not, but every person we talked to knows someone who disappeared. I putted a point on all of them," she said and clicked a few times with her computer mouse before showing a map image of the sector to her siblings.

"Hey, it looks like it happens all across the docks," Sparky remarked.

"Well then, we're going there!" Lilly declared.

* * *

 **I just want to let you guys know that the reason I didn't wrote for a few days was because my shoulders were hurting me to hell. So much I couldn't focus on writing. I went to see a chiro who fixed me luckily.**


	78. Garbageman part 2

**Jay & Ria from SammfeatBlueheart**

 **Enric from Enricthepenguin82**

 **Ed from Riocraft**

 **Maria from AlexHawk99**

 **Chuva from Navel-HMO**

 **Helios from RingOfFireXL200**

 **Firebird from Candlegirl**

 **Aidan and Yuriko from Aidan-Gull**

 **Kahili & Bado from BerrieBlossom**

 **Kell from SkyB20**

 **Shenzi from BrainxBat**

 **Duke from Superduke1000**

* * *

The four ninja birds went to the city's docks and hide in a spot inside the Feather Plane while Sparky putted on his trench coat and positioned himself beside a fire to serve as a bait.

"Can someone explain me why I'm always the one doing the bait? Specially when we're chasing sharks?" he asked with a mix of nervosity and annoyance.

"Crybaby," Kowalski commented from the Feather Plane. "I almost want him to get bitten."

"But nothing's happening," Lilly remarked. "Maybe we should come back tomorrow."

Sky nodded and turned back to her computer. "Come back, Sparky. We're done for tonight."

"Aww, finally," Sparky sighed and was about to walk away...when a big noise caught his attention. Turning around, he saw a big black garbage truck shining red lights driving right in his direction. "Uh, guys? The shark is here! And he's humming the theme from Jaws!"

"Charge!" Lilly ordered Kowalski who pushed the Feather Plane's pedal and charged just in time for Sparky to jump in by the open door. they then engaged a car chase with the garbage truck following them from behind.

"A garbage truck?! Yeah, I can tell from the smell!" Kowalski remarked while driving.

"It must be the Garbageman driving it, don't you think? It seems logical!" Sparky remarked while removing his trench coat.

Kowalski just drove at full speed before abruptly brake to let the garbage truck drive past them. "Looks like he wants to play with us," Sky remarked.

"Let's not disappoint him," Lilly said with locking her belt up.

Kowalski pushed the pedal again and charged at full speed after the garbage truck who was rolling pretty fast too. the back of the truck suddenly opened and revealed a little canon that suddenly shot fire right at them.

"Holy cow!" Sparky shouted with covering himself with his wings. Luckily, the Feather Plane escaped with no bad damage. "Huh, sorry for screaming like that," he apologized with lowering his wings and looking at Kowalski who just shook his head.

They soon managed to catch up with the truck and were now rolling beside it. The side wall of the truck suddenly opened and a buzzsaw came out of it. It started cutting out a slit into the Feather Plane's wall and through Sky's panel, forcing her to jump out of her seat.

Kowalski had no choice but to slow down to avoid getting the van-truck cut in half. "I don't know about you, but I think this starts getting too far!" He pressed on the board's buttons to open their rocket turbo which turned on and propelled them so fast they collided into the truck's back. He briefly lost control before regaining its balance.

"Nice one, Kow!" sparky beamed.

"And that wasn't all!" the barn owl declared with a smirk.

"May I?" Sky politely asked.

"Please," Kowalski politely answered and allowed his sister to press the button that brought out their rocket launcher and shot their missiles.

They all made impact with the garbage truck and exploded. "Bullseye!" Sparky beamed in joy...just before the smoke faded to reveal the truck somehow managed to get touched and wasn't damaged at all. "...Okay, looks like we need bigger missiles."

As if that wasn't surprising enough, the truck took out a tube from where it shot the same strange liquid Sky found at the discharge. "Hold on!" Kowalski ordered as he rolled on the liquid and started loosing control of the van.

"Oh! If you don't remember what I ate last night, I think you'll found out soon!" Sparky moaned as he started feeling sick from the van spinning so much.

The garbage truck then broke through another fence while Kowalski lost control of the Feather Plane and was heading right into the river. "Watch out!" Sky called and pressed on a board's button which shot an harpon from the back of the truck. It was sent flying into one of the dock's buildings and prevented them from falling in the river with only to front of their vehicle touching the water's surface.

They took this chance to exit by the back exit of the van. Sparky was the first to spot the garbage truck. "Hey! Look!"

The truck surprisingly rolled all the way to the dock's end and jumped down in the river, causing a giant splash of water. the four ninja birds ran and saw it disappear underneath the water. This made them cheer in joy as they thought the driver simply gave up because they were too strong.

"Ninja Birds! Ninja Birds! What you get is what you see!" Sparky beamed in joy while performing a victory dance.

"You know seriously, you're only embarrassing yourself," Kowalski said with rubbing his forehead out of despair.

They all watched at the edge of the dock as the truck faded below the water. "Alright, now let's see what will come out of this," Lilly said and waited to see the driver come out.

"Whoever it is, I'm waiting for him," Kowalski declared with taking out his sais. However, much to his surprise, the truck's red light could be seen shining underwater once again. "Wait, what the...?"

As if that wasn't surprising enough that the truck could still work underwater, they could see it drive away from them and toward a landfill island not too far from the docks.

* * *

Since they couldn't follow the garbage truck, the four ninja birds returned to the lair and Sky, once again, made researches about the island they saw on her computer.

"Apparently, it would seem this island constitues the biggest discharge not only for the city but also for the whole region," she explained while sitting in front of her computer.

"Biggest doesn't necessarily means better," Lilly remarked with a little snarl.

"Come on, think a little, Lilly. What could they do? They're in the middle of the city's port," Kowalski told his sister with crossing his wings.

"If it brings as much as Sky told us, then it's very simple," Lilly answered. "Some payoff to the right persons and they can do as they please. It's better to go give it a look."

"Something stinks on that island, and it ain't the garbage!" Sparky said with an Arnold Schwarzenegger voice.

"Yeah! Keep trying Sparky, someday you'll get a winner," Kowalski sarcastically said with patting his brother's shoulder before running to the lair's exit.

"Hey c'mon, that was pretty good!"

* * *

Moments after, the four ninja birds arrived at the sewer's exit which gave them a good view on the island in question. "Pretty calm," Sky remarked.

"Yup, very calm - I'd even say too much," Lilly said as she narrowed her eyes toward the island. It was in moments like this that she wished to have learned how to fly.

"That's not fair; even Lilly knows how to be cool by moment," Sparky mumbled with a pout.

"Enough, let's go," Lilly ordered before plunging in the water followed by her three siblings and started swimming toward the island. Luckily, they trained enough to be capable of holding their breath underwater for very long.

By the time they arrived at the island's feet, the quartet carefully peaked their heads out to see if it was clear. Once they were sure it was, they came out of the water and started walking on the land of garbage which smelled so bad they risked nausea. They started running in a sneaky fashion across the land, careful to not be stopped by the Garbageman or whoever was driving this truck.

Sparky ended up stepping on a strange orange, sticky liquid. "Beuark! I'm not even sure I wanna know what this is supposed to be!" he said with shaking it off his foot.

"Stay focused, Sparky!" Kowalski ordered with turning his head.

There was suddenly a phare light passing by and, by reflex, the four ninja birds jumped to hide behind whatever cover they could find. The light came from a yellow jeep driven by three humans who seemed to be guarding the sector. once they were out of sight, the siblings started climbing up the island's high wall in hopes of getting a good view of the area. Upon reaching the top of the wall, they got a good sight on a pretty horrible view.

The center of the island looked like a detention prison with enslaved homeless people sorting through garbage, even some in chains. Whenever one of them fell out of the work, some humans dressed in yellow with gaz masks would use teaser sticks to electrocute them and get them back to work.

Kowalski clutched his fists at this sight. "Just saying this makes me go mad!" he said with taking his sais and was about jump in action, only to be stopped by Lilly.

Suddenly, they took notice of a strange orange liquid (probably the same kind Sparky stepped on) puddle in the middle of the prison. To their surprise, the garbage truck they chased came out from it and rolled out before the back opened and released more homeless people.

"Enough!" Kowalski shouted and wanted to attack, only for Lilly to hold him back again.

"Calm down, Kow! look!"

The garbage truck's front opened and a rather strange creature came out of it. It was some kind of Caucasian man who was morbidly obese and filthy (his smell could be sensed even from such a distance). He was driving in some kind of high-tech mecha-like wheelchair that had two sets of robotic claws. He rose his fat arms and laughed out loud.

"I think THAT is the most gross thing I've ever seen!" Sparky mumbled.

"Just for this time, I have to agree with you, Sparky," Kowalski mumbled while covering his nose.

The big guy turned on his wheelchair speakers so that everyone could hear him. "Garbage is power!"

"If that's true, then this guy's Superman," Sparky mumbled with a chuckle.

The gross man then started talking to all the enslaved homeless people gathered before him. "Before I brought you to this island, you were nothing but human garbage. No home, no purpose, no value. But now, I have recycled you, given you work sifting through the refuse that this city stupidly squanders to build my fortune. Behold the birth of my empire invisible to the outside world until it is too late!

After his speech was done, someone stood up amongst the kneeling saves. to the ninjas' surprise, it was none other than the Professor. "I'd rather be a free man living on the street, than a slave in your stinking empire!"

"How dare you!" the Garbageman shouted in offense. "Guards! Silence this insolent trash!"

As he ordered that, one of his guards shocked the Professor from behind, making him collapse in pain. "Okay, that's enough! We won't endure this any more time!" Kowalski declared as his siblings also took out their weapons and finally jumped in the action along with him.

The guards noticed their presence too late and got knocked down by strong kicks from the little ninjas. "CAWABUNGA!" Sparky shouted as he double kicked two guards at once. Lilly then ran at the slaves and cut their chains with her katanas. They all cheered before running and easily overwhelming the guards who either fell or tried to run away out of fear.

"Professor!" Sky said as she rushed at the old man's side. "Are you okay?"

He sighed and looked at the little elf owl with a smile. "I've never felt so good."

"Look; it seems like your friends took over the guards," she said with pointing behind him at the guards who ran away in fear with the former slaves after them.

"Indeed. May I ask a favor from you? Could you make me the pleasure of kicking this disgusting man's butt for me?" the Professor asked with pointing at the Garbageman.

"With pleasure!" Sky responded as her three siblings joined her side and all ran together toward the Garbageman.

"So you send those abominations to destroy me?! I will beat them all!" he spat in a pretty gross way.

"It's garbage day, big smelly ball! Looks like it's time to take out the trash!" Sparky declared with a smirk.

"What?" the Garbageman asked with an eyebrow.

"Well, it was just a pun," Sparky said with a shrug.

"Wait 'till I squash you like a pancake!" the Garbageman said and threw metal claws toward the elf owl who jumped back to dodge it.

Lilly then charged forward and swung her katanas against the metal claws. However, the Garbageman managed to slap her away with his machine and started rolling away from them before pressing a button on his panel and shot little missiles at the ninja birds. They all managed to dodge them, avoiding hat could have been serious damage.

"Stay away!" he said with pressing another button which made coming out a tube which shot gaz that made the ninjas loose their balance. Sky quickly threw her bo staff right into the tube and, with the cumulating gaz, it ended up exploding and covering the Garbageman with essence.

"You'll pay for that!" he growled with pressing another button that activated flamethrowers at the front of his machine.

"I say we finish this!" Kowalski growled in anger with dodging the flames.

"Good idea. So that you can go take a shower!" Sparky said with a chuckle.

"You morons!" the Garbageman shouted to get their attention back. "I'm gonna recycle all of you! You'll all become my slaves!"

"Hey Garbagebrain, if you fight as bad as you smell we are in trouble," Sparky said with a smirk as he chased after him.

"I TOLD YOU TO SHUT UP!" Garbageman said and tried to grab Sparky with his metal claws, but the elf owl jumped past him.

"Whoa in case you guys forget what we had for dinner, I think I'm about to remind you," Sparky said as he gagged because of the smell.

Sparky, Kowalski and Lilly all ran in the opposite direction and found themselves trapped on the edge of a garbage cliff with the river below. The Garbageman closed in on them.

"Don't even try to run!" he threatened, not realizing that Sky sneaked behind his machine and opened the back of it to sabotage the machine. By the time he realized her presence, she was already done. "Hey! What are you doing?!"

"Oh, just taking out the garbage," she replied with a smile and connected two wires which made the machine roll forward alone. Her siblings moved out of the way as the Garbageman rolled off the cliff and screamed as he fell down in the river below, fading underwater.

"Pff, it already smells better," the elf owl remarked as she putted her bo staff away.

"I don't think he knows how to swim," Lilly remarked with looking down at the river. "Let's go!"

they all jumped down in the river to try and save the Garbageman before he would drown. However, upon reaching the underwater ground, they found his wheelchair, but no sign of him. Confused, they swam back up.

"No signs of him," Lilly mumbled.

"He probably escaped," Sky suggested.

* * *

And so, with the Garbageman defeated, the four ninja birds called a small boat to come and take the homeless people back to the city. "What is going on, Professor?" Sky asked the old man as they stood at the edge of the island.

"We decided to remain here," he said with pointing at himself and some of his friends who didn't joined on the boat. "We have a refuge and food here. Garbageman was right on one thing: people throw away a lot of things that are useful for us."

"Be careful from now on. That gross guy is capable of coming back," Kowalski pointed out.

"No, there's gotta be a better movie reference for this," Sparky said with tapping his chin.

"Stop saying that; it makes more wrong than good," Kowalski said with putting a wing around his brother and walking away, leaving their homeless friends on their new home...


	79. Blood Talon Strikes

_"In our ninja training, Master Yoshi is constantly telling us that when given two choices, always choose the harder path. But somehow, when you're a teenage ninja bird, the harder path always seems to choose you."_

* * *

The four ninja birds were training in a big sparing match down in their lair. Lilly blocked Kowalski's sais with her katanas, only to receive a boot which knocked her back.

"You know what I like about handling of weapons, guys? Weapons of course," Kowalski declared with a grin.

Sparky suddenly jumped past him, grabbing his sais with his nunchucks in the process, and tossed him forward. "Too bad you only have those little toothpicks while I have my nunchucks!"

Sky took this chance to slip his legs and make him fall down with her bo staff. "Sorry to ruin your mood, but the bo staff is way more useful, bro!" she said with a smirk and span her staff.

"Enough playing! Put your toys away and leave place to the katanas - the only weapons worthy of a ninja!" Lilly jumped and managed to disarm her three siblings all by herself with her katanas - yes, even Kowalski.

"See? what I told ya? There's nothing like katanas to cut through competition," the female spix macaw said with a proud smile and took a pose with her two swords.

"Thanks for the demo, Lilly," Sky said while rubbing her head in pain.

Kowalski just scoffed. "You were just lucky!"

"I can't say the same; my skull will remember this butt-whooping, that's for sure," Sparky said with a chuckle.

"It was a good fight, Lilly." This last one turned around to see Master Yoshi arriving with his stick. The four siblings immediately got in rank side-by-side.

"Thank you, Master Yoshi," Lilly said with a bow.

"You won, but do you actually know why?" the old master asked, no trace of joy in his voice.

"Well," the spix macaw started with rising up and showing her swords, "the superiority of my swords seems evident. I read somewhere that Master Musashi said that katanas' blades were enclosing the spirit of steel. That they were leading the warrior possessing them to victory, and I have to admit that it is the feeling it gives me."

"We say a lot of things, but there's very little truth in all of that," Master Yoshi said with a super serious look, surprising Lilly.

"When Master Yoshi take this look, it's about to get bad," Kowalski mumbled to his siblings.

"Someone will get a scolding," Sky added to which Sparky nodded with a chuckle.

"Sparky! Do you think I am funny?!" Master Yoshi suddenly called, causing the elf owl to freeze on the spot.

"Uh, yeah. I mean sometimes. There was that time you told that joke about the ox and the sparrow...it wasn't really a joke, but it was funny and-" Sky interrupted her brother by hitting an elbow into his wing. "I mean, no, Master Yoshi."

The old flacon just sighed in exasperation and then walked in Lilly's direction. "Lilly!" He putted his stick aside. "Attack me with your katanas!"

At this order, the three others stepped away to give them some space. "B-But Master Yoshi, I-"

"Attack!"

Obeying her master's wishes, Lilly charged forward and swung her katana at the falcon...who swiftly caught the blade between his wings. Everyone was shocked by this counter that came out of nowhere.

"This is the all powerful weapon you talked about earlier?" Yoshi asked with an eye brow. "It seems like it can't take down an old tired falcon like me. Try again, but this time with both."

Lilly took out her second katana and swung both of them at her master who simply grabbed his stick in one wing and blocked all her attacks with ease. He even managed to knock her swords off with only one wing and hold it at her throat.

"In the hands of a true ninjitsu master, anything can be a deadly weapon. Remember, a weapon is only as good as the arm that wields it, Lilly. Until you have learned this lesson, you have learned nothing," the master sternly said.

Lilly looked down in defeat while her siblings felt a bit sad for her.

* * *

After this hard lesson, Lilly went up to the surface to cool down a bit. She groaned in frustration while looking down at a pile of journal papers on the roof she was currently standing on.

"I don't see what's Master Yoshi's point!" she said with taking out her two katanas. "He says I didn't learned anything, yet I fight better than ever!" she said with kicking the papers in the air and swiftly cut them to little pieces with her swords. "I don't understand what he expects from me!" She then bit her lower beak as she looked the little pieces of paper slowly falling down on the floor. "He doesn't understand what those katanas mean to me..."

She suddenly felt something coming at her and rose her wing just in time to catch an arrow that was about to pierce her skull. She gave a quick look in the direction it came from before noticing a paper was tied to the arrow. She untied it to read it.

"Okay, it's not your regular mail. I guess Sparky would call it, "Airmail," she though with a chuckle. She then started reading the message:

 _"Ninja, if you are reading those words, it means you have passed your first trial successfully. I call to your sens of honor to meet me. If, just like I think, you follow the Bushido way, you will come, and alone..."_

The location of the meeting was written on the bottom of the paper. "It's barely two step away from here," she mumbled to herself. Deciding to accept the invitation, Lilly jumped down in the streets and silently walked toward the location written on the message.

This location was an old warehouse with no one around. The young spix macaw made sure nobody was following her before opening the door and entering inside. The inside of the warehouse looked like a dojo with carpets on the floor and sheets on the walls with the Foot symbol. Lilly slowly walked in, staying on her guards as she expected Foots to jump on her at any moment.

"Someone's there? Hello!" she called and her calls were answered by ninja Foots coming out from the shadows around the room. Of course! It was a trap.

As the ninjas surrounded her, Lilly took out her katanas, ready to fight them. Three jumped in her direction, but she ducked them with a roll and knocked them all with one jump spin kick to the face. She broke the next ones' swords with her way strong katanas and putted them down with violent attacks. In barely a few seconds, they were all laying down in pain.

She then heard a clapping noise coming from the shadows and turned to see a figure in white robes. "that was impressive - very impressive, bravo. My men told me you are strong, but they were far from the truth from what I just saw." The figure stepped out of the shadows and revealed itself to be a crow with white robes. "I am Hiromu Osaki, eight son of the Osaki family. And who are you?"

Seeing he didn't seemed dangerous, Lilly putted her katanas away, but stayed on guard. "My name is Lilly."

"Lilly then, I have to recognize you are extraordinary," the crow continued as he walked past his guest. "But I did not make you come here to flatter your ego. There are important things that I wish to speak with you."

"So, if I understand correctly, you are the one who sent me this," Lilly said with taking out the message.

"Yes, indeed. It was becoming urgent for us to meet," the master said with turning around. "There are things you must absolutely learn, Lilly."

"You can say that. And how about you start by telling me about those ninjas - YOUR ninjas who are after us for months now."

"It is justly for that that I wish for us to talk. We are fighting ones against the others while we should join forces and fight side-by-side to defeat our REAL enemy."

Lilly crossed her wings. "By this time, I got enough scars to know you're our only real enemy," she remarked with narrowing her eyes at him.

"Hmm, I perfectly understand. You are in no position to understand the situation for now. But you are currently in the middle of a battle over your head with consequences you cannot estimate. But you should know that there is a force, an evil and corrupted power roaming around at this very moment I am talking with you. She is carefully unleashing its tentacles around us and act in our backs. It is an organization trying to access power through crime but also by political manipulation and corruption on a world scale."

"Really?!" Lilly asked with widening her eyes in surprise.

Osaki nodded. "unfortunately, there is no one to stop this organisation from progressing around the globe." He then turned toward the Foot symbol. "No one except me and my humble ninja army. We are the only ones standing up against them. Just like my master and his master before him, I spent all my life fighting so that good could triumph against evil."

He then stepped toward Lilly. "I was hoping you would find in the deepest parts of your heart a reason to join my, Lilly, to fight against those evil forces. We could join forces."

Lilly sighed and rubbed her forehead. "Listen, Osaki, I am-"

"I am not asking you make a decision right now of course," the crow cut her off. "Take your time. Think about all I told you and come back to give me your answer tomorrow night."

Lilly bowed to him and turned around to walk over to the exit.

"Wait," the master called her again. "I just have one more thing to tell you." He then clapped his wings twice and a Foot ninja came with a black and red katana resting on a pillow. He gave it to the master who turned toward Lilly. "This sword has been in my family for more than three hundred years now. She has been crafted during the sixteenth century by a ninja master called Toshi Kurahara. And we said that in order to create this sword, Toshi Kurahara-"

"Toshi Kurahara made the steel melt more than seven hundred times to...to rid it from its impurity," Lilly finished the sentence in awe.

"Hmm, you truly impress me, Lilly." He then handed her the katana. "Take it; it is yours."

"But I can't-"

"I give it to you," Osaki insisted and gave her the sword. "Take it. Consider this like a friendly gift from my sincerity." The crow then bowed in respect and stepped back into the shadows, leaving Lilly to look down at her new sword...

* * *

 **Wow! Master Osaki is different from the way we saw him before. Was his offer sincere and everything he told Lilly about this "evil organization" true? You'll know this in the next chapter.**


	80. Blood Talon Strikes part 2

**This is the 80th chapter! We gotta celebrate every little victory ;)**

* * *

After her encounter with Hiromu Osaki, Lilly left the warehouse with her new katana and started running away on the roofs. Unknown to her, twi figure were watching her. One of them was an African-American human with cocoa black skin and long dark hair tied in braids that reached his shoulders. He was wearing black sunglasses that were hiding his eyes and his attire consisted of a black metal outfit and a red cape tied around his neck.

"Look; he's leaving the building," he mumbled to his partner who looked pretty much like him, but was bald and had pale white skin. "We need to inform the council immediately."

His partner nodded and turned some kind of watch on his wrist on which activated a screen with three figures in it. "What is it?"

"One of the ninja birds, Lilly, just talked with Osaki. We don't know what came out of this encounter," the black human explained.

"Let us know if the ninja birds are planning to join with Osaki in which case we'll have to exterminate them," the council said before the screen turned off.

* * *

Meanwhile, back to Lilly, she returned on the roof where she received the message and looked down at her new black and red katana. "This sword is very gorgeous..."

"Huh, Lilly?" The spix macaw jumped and turned to see her three siblings jumping out of nowhere. D-Did they followed her and saw her encounter with Osaki? "You're gonna need to give us some explanations."

"And nice paper trick; you'll now be capable of opening your "airmail" by yourself," Kowalski sarcastically remarked.

"This is not what you think!" Lilly tried to explain. "I was invited to join-"

"To join the enemy side!" Kowalski finished her sentence and narrowed his eyes at his sister.

"No! I mean, yes in a sens, but there's something new, guys. They are not our enemies - well, I think there's no reason. You should have heard Master Osaki-"

"Master Osaki?!" Kowalski cut her off again with a look of surprise. "Can we know what you're doing, Lilly?!" he asked with grabbing his sister's shoulder.

"I though we already had a master," Sky said with her wings on her hips. "Master Yoshi, remember?"

"Wait, I'll remind you; he's very generous, around taller than us, and you want us to give up on him?!" Sparky asked with a sarcastic tone.

"Nobody's gonna give up on nobody, Sparky!" Lilly affirmed with looking down at her new sword. "I'm talking about joining other ninja with hopes of defeating the REAL forces of evil." She then turned back toward her siblings. "Sparky, you're the first one who said we should make good all around us and serve a right cause. Well, I think I've found this right cause."

Sparky just looked at his sister before rubbing the back of his head. "I don't know what to tell you, Lilly."

"I think there's some kind of machine that has taken control over your brain in there," Kowalski said as he stepped forward and snapped the katana off Lilly's wings. "You're completely crazy!"

"No wait!" Lilly exclaimed as she grabbed her brother by the waist. "Give it back, Kowalski!"

However, the barn owl just shoved her away. "You just have to ask your new friend to give you a new one!"

Lilly suddenly glared at her brother in anger. "Give. It. BACK!" She charged and tackled him to the ground to start a struggle between the two of them.

"Gee, a fight between Lilly and Kow?!" Sparky said with his eyes wide open.

"Oh, I didn't see that coming," Sky said with sarcasm.

As the siblings struggled while holding on the katana, Lilly pushed a scream and used her legs to push her brother away and over the roof's edge, sending him down. Only after kicking up did she realize what she did and dropped the sword to look over the edge.

"Oh no! KOWALSKI!"

Sparky and Sky joined as well and were relieved to see that their brother managed to plant his sai in the building's wall just in time to stop his fall. "And you who said katanas were the best ninja weapons!" the barn owl remarked with a chuckle before jumping back up on the roof.

"I'm the biggest idiot of all time. You could have been hurt, Kow," Lilly said with a sorry look.

"I think that's clear; you're really the queen of idiots, but you need more to hurt me, sista," he said with nudging his sister, making her smile that he didn't held a grudge against her.

"What are you planning to do now, sister?" Sky asked as she gave Lilly her sword back.

"What I should have done from the very beginning. I'm gonna go tell everything to Master Yoshi."

* * *

And so, the four siblings returned down to their home so that Lilly could explain everything to Master Yoshi. The old falcon was currently looking down at the black and red katana Lilly gave him in his wings. He sighed before looking up at his four kneeling kids.

"My children, I must admit that I hoped this day would never come." He then showed the piece of Foot ninja with the Foot symbol Sparky took the other night. "Those individuals, I know them. I knew they would come back one day. This is the symbol of the Foot ninjas. Their leader is none other than Hiromu Osaki. But he has another name: Blood Talon."

"I talked a lot to you about my master. It is great time I tell you all the truth about him. As you know, my master was a great ninja that knew perfectly his art. He was probably one of the greatest ninja of all time. I was his student during that time. I learned the ninjitsu from my master during many happy years. We were a family..."

"But our lives had fell for the worst, the night Blood Talon charged his Foot ninjas to challenge my master. He fought with honor, but the Foots did all the opposite. They ended up overpowering him. I was forced to hide and it was then that Blood Talon made his entry."

"They accused my master of working for the enemy and tortured him to get informations. They didn't left him any moment to rest and he pronounced only one phrase: "He who lives without honor, will end without honor." It was then that they decided to finish him off."

"I tried to save my master, but my efforts remained vain. Running out of my dojo, I heard Blood Talon forbidding me from my master forever. Some time after, I found you, my children, and you know the aftermath."

"I never told you all this because I didn't want your training to be tainted by the poison of hatred. I did not want you to feel the sorrow that is still in my heart. But, now, you need to know who Osaki, Blood Talon, really is. He serves no great purpose, he fights no great evil. He is great evil. Any endeavor he undertakes, he does for his own selfish gain."

"Damn it, I'm really a living idiot!" Lilly groaned in shame and hitting the ground with her wing.

"Hey, don't worry, we already knew it," Sparky said with nudging his sister.

"This guy played you a good trick and you didn't saw it coming," Sky added with a giggle.

"What are we supposed to do now?" Kowalski asked with crossing his wings.

"Osaki wants an answer, so we're gonna give him one!" Lilly defiantly declared with slamming her fist into her wing. "Ninja bird's way, of course."

The four of them then bowed to their master who returned the gesture.

* * *

The four siblings wasted no time going back on the roof where Lilly received her message, ready to greet Osaki. They were not very surprised upon seeing many Foot ninjas jumping from out of nowhere on the roof.

As her siblings took out their weapons, Lilly stepped forward and lifted her red and black katana. "You guys can tell your boss that my answer is no! And give him that back!" She threw the saber on the other end of the roof, much to the Foots' surprise. She then took out her REAL katanas. "Let's dance."

The Foots charged and the battle was engaged. Kowalski blocked two katanas before kicking their owners away. Sparky laughed as he swiftly used his nunchucks to knock the ninjas' weapons away before smashing and kicking them down.

He then kneeled down which allowed Skyler to use his back and jump high enough before swinging her bo staff and taking down eight ninjas in one swing. As for Lilly, she destroyed the Foots' swords with her owns and easily knocked them away with her raw strength.

"Little lesson; it's not the weapon that makes the warrior, but the warrior using it that makes the difference," Lilly said before putting her katanas away. "Good job guys."

"Well, that was pretty easy in the end," Sky happily said before exchanging a high-five with Lilly.

However, the victory was short-lived as the door leading to the rooftop suddenly exploded into shards and out of it came none other than Dragon Face.

"Not him again!" Sky groaned.

"We defeated him once, so we can very well do it again," Lilly said with narrowing her eyes toward the big bird.

"Absolutely!" Kowalski agreed.

"It has been a long time that I wanted to take my revenge!" Dragon Face declared with a glare as he cracked his wings.

"Well try, if you got the guts!" Lilly taunted him.

As the dark sky unleashed a lightning above them, Dragon Face pushed a battle cry and charged toward the ninja birds, punching Sky away with a surprising speed. Kowalski launched many attacks which the big bird dodged and kicked him away before Lilly went for a dive kick from behind, only to get her foot caught and be thrown away. Sparky was the last one to attack and got lifted and thrown away like a wrestler, landing hard on the ground which was wet from the starting rain.

Kowalski quickly recovered and angrily jumped on Dragon Face's back to catch him in a sleeper hold. Unfortunately, Dragon Face used his biggest size to his advantage to throw him overshoulder. He then grabbed him by the wing and slammed him repeatedly on the floor (like Hulk did with Loki) before rising him, ready to give the finishing blow.

However, Lilly saw this and pushed a battle cry before violently pushing the giant away with a dive kick. Dragon Face groaned in anger before spotting the red and black katana Lilly tossed away and picked it up before removing the sheath, exposing the silver blade which got soared by the rain and reflected the lightning's light.

Dragon Face charged with the sword in his big wings and engaged a sword duel against Lilly. Due to his bigger strength, Lilly was forced to step back and stay on the offensive until she saw an opening and jumped past the big bird to deliver a strong kick in his back that made him stumble.

The victory was short-lived however as he suddenly turned around and knocked Lilly's swords out of her wings and into the rain water. "Lilly!" Kowalski shouted in horror as he tried to stand up.

Dragon Face smirked and rose the katana, ready to finish the spix macaw once and for all. However, this last one gave a deadly glare and kicked him hard in the face before he could attack and followed with many violent kicks to his face, making him stumble back. By the time she was done, the giant bird was sent through the roof's window glasses and fell all the way down to the warehouse's floor with a loud thud. Lilly panted and looked down to see him laying on his back, blood on his face and the sword beside him.

The young spix macaw then turned around as her siblings joined her. "I've gotta feeling we're gonna sleep well tonight," Sparky remarked with a chuckle.

"It was no routine walk for sure," Sky agreed with rubbing her back in pain.

"Here, you dropped these," Kowalski said with giving his sister her katanas back.

"Thanks, Kow," she thanked him and putted her two swords back into their sheaths. "Come on guys, let's go home," she said and started walking away before stopping dead in her tracks and widening her eyes. "Are you flocking kidding me?!"

More Foot ninjas jumped onto the rooftop. Realizing that the fight was not over yet, the four siblings took out their weapons once again. However, instead of attacking, the black ninjas simply stepped aside as a figure slowly stepped forward.

"What the...?!"

This intruder was some kind of bird wearing a metal samurai armor with claws on its wrists level. "Those who are not with me are against me! And I crush anyone who stands against me!" he declared with narrowing his red eyes visible behind his metal helmet.

As the lightning stroke once again, the four siblings realized who this was.

"...Blood Talon!"


	81. Blood Talon Strikes part 3

_"Well, it took me awhile, but I managed to see Hiromu Osaki for who he really is, Blood Talon. Of course, to get to this point, we had to fight a bunch of Foot ninjas, which wasn't easy. Then, we had to go up against Dragon Face again, definitely not easy. But the real nightmare is about to begin; now, we have to face Blood Talon, and something tells me, this is really not going to be easy..."_

* * *

Lightning was still exploding across the dark sky as the four ninja birds were standing still under the rain on one side of the rooftop while Blood Talon and his Foot ninjas were glaring at them from the other.

"Play time is over, my friends! Enough with this mascarade!" Blood Talon said with removing his metal helmet, revealing none other than Hiromu Osaki. "You see me as I truly am. Unfortunately, it will be the last you will ever see." He showed a smirk before putting his helmet back on. "Be ready to face your destiny!"

Sky gulped a bit nervously. "Say, you really got funny friends, Lilly."

"Yeah, but you gotta admit he's gotta pretty cool look!" Sparky said with an amused smile.

"Yeah, but something tell me he didn't made himself good for the occasion," Kowalski remarked and lifted his sais.

"Guys...I think we're about to have the fight of our lives," Lilly nervously said barely louder than a whisper.

"Foot ninjas, ATTACK!" Blood Talon ordered and all the Foots charged for the attack.

"Here we go!" Lilly said as she and her siblings also charged into battle.

The spix macaw kicked two Foots away while Sky whacked her bo staff behind one's head. Kowalski blocked another one's katana with his sais before kicking him away and Sparky easily defeated many ones with his nunchucks.

Unfortunately, this was the moment Blood Talon chose to cowardly attack the young elf owl with a dive kick in the back, knocking him down in the water. He then turned his attention to Lilly and kicked her hard in the face while she was distracted by the Foots.

Luckily, she managed to regain her balance and whipped some blood from her nose. However, the armored samurai jumped away from her and behind Sky who noticed his presence too late before he grabbed her bo staff and tossed her away, letting her land hard on her back with a cry of pain.

She then looked in horror as a Foot was about to slash her with his katana. Kowalski jumped in time to block him with his sais. "You should watch your back better, Skyler!"

"Well that's why you're here, right?" she asked with a smile before rolling away as Kowalski pushed the katana off his opponent's wings and sent it flying into an electric transformer which created a short-circuit and made it explode. this created a fire on the roof in spite of the rain.

Despite this, the siblings kept fighting with Lilly and Kowalski standing side-by-side as the fire extended all around them and Blood Talon, trapping them together. The duo glared at the samurai who jumped - a move they decided to follow.

Unfortunately, Blood Talon kicked the two of them in mid-air with both feet, knocking them to the ground again. The siblings coughed as the heat of the flames was making the air hard to breathe. Refusing to give up, Kowalski kicked up and attacked again, only to be easily kicked away with Lilly getting the same fate seconds after.

However, for the young spix macaw, she hit the edge of the rooftop and accidentally dropped her katanas which fell below. Lilly groaned in pain from the impact before Foot ninjas arrived and got her back up while holding her wings and legs back. To her horror Blood Talon stepped out of the flames and toward her like a demon.

He laughed evilly and rose his blades. "I am going to take care of you first!"

However, before he could, the flames damaged the roof which started crumbling down. This caused the Foots to let of Lilly who started stepping back and had to jump off the roof to avoid getting caught by the flames. She quickly regretted doing that as she landed on a car window with a loud thud and then fell on the street's ground, clutching her wing in pain. It wasn't broken, but it was hurting like hell.

Sky had to jump from the roof too, but she didn't landed as hard as her sister - she just hurt her thigh at worse. And Kowalski did best, landing in a dumpster. Sky rubbed her head in pain and waited for her dizzy vision to get back to normal before seeing Sparky trapped under a piece of the brick building on his leg.

She rubbed her head a little more before walking over to him. "Every excuse is good to take a nap with you."

"You don't understand; I wanted to return in the fight, but the building started dropping pieces at me!" Sparky defended himself.

"I'll get you out," Sky said and used her bo staff to lift the piece of ruble off her brother's leg, allowing him to get out.

"Thanks, but I think I broke my ankle," the male elf owl said with rubbing his foot in pain.

Sky just scoffed and took her brother's wing to carry him away. "You're just too soft, bro." They walked away from the falling building. However, a stepping noise caused them to stop walking and slowly turn around in surprise.

"Hu-ho...," Sparky mumbled.

"Is this a joke?!" Sky added in horror.

The reason was that out of the burning building walked none other than Blood Talon himself, no signs of wound at all on him.

"Please, tell me I'm dreaming, Sky!"

"I'd like to, bro!"

Foot ninjas suddenly gathered before their master who started giving his orders: "Find the ninjas! They cannot have gone far! they must not escape us!" They could suddenly hear the sound of police sirens. "Ah! Foot ninjas, spread! Come find me once you'll have found them! I want to get rid of them myself!"

And with that, Blood Talon and the Foots all ran away from the burning building as the police and firemen arrived on the scene.

Back to Lilly, she had to hide behind the car on which she crashed as two Foots passed by. "I have to find the others and quick." Luckily, her katanas landed nearby and she picked them up before walking away and started searching for her siblings while also being careful to not get spotted by the enemy.

* * *

Meanwhile, Kowalski carefully peaked out of the dumpster he was hiding in to see some Foots running around. "I don't know if that's them, but I totally hate that smell." He spat in disgust before sneaking out of the dumpster and whipped a banana peel off his shoulder.

* * *

Back to Sparky and Skyler, the sister kept carrying her brother as they walked. "Sky, we need to go back there," Sparky insisted.

"I know, Spark, but you're in no condition to fight with them. Let's take care of your ankle first and search for the others after," Sky instructed before hiding as Foots passed by.

Soon, the duo arrived into an alley and hide behind some dumpster.

"Let's rest for a bit," Sky said with carefully putting her brother down. However, even before they could sit down, she spotted blood Talon with two Foots at the other side of the alley. "Crap, Blood Talon!"

"And he brought some friends: look!" Sparky said and pointed at the entrance they came from where more Foots blocked the way.

The two siblings exchanged nervous glances as they were trapped...before noticing an emergency staircase above them. Sky quickly jumped up with her brother on her back to grab the ladder and climbed up before any of the Foots could see them. The elf owls let out sighs of relief before sneaking into the building by a window.

This led them into a strange bathroom. "My ankle's hurting like hell!" Sparky complained in pain as he sat on the bathtub. "You should leave me here; I'll just slow you down, sista."

"Would you stop making a scene? You just need a good bandage," Sky answered and climbed up to the bathroom's armory to see all kinds of medocs...but no bandages. Rubbing her chin, Sky turned around and spotted some underwear matching perfectly Sparky's size hanging on a clothesline above the tub.

Snapping her feathers, she picked one in her wings and started wrapping it around Sparky's ankle. "While you're doin' that, I'll just brush my long flowing locks," Sparky remarked with a chuckle.

Sky looked up with an amused smile. "Nice."

Suddenly the door opened and a little human girl entered. She seemed pretty confused to see two birds dressed like ninjas using underwear like bandages. Trying to find a solution, Skyler let out a little chirp.

"Aww, you're adorable," she said with a smile and went to pat Sparky's headfeathers while stroking Sky's stomach. Sparky smiled as this felt good while Sky giggled a bit because of the ticklish sensation.

* * *

Meanwhile, two Foot ninjas arrived into a dead-end alley. One of them sniffed the air. "Something around here really stinks," he remarked.

"Don't look at me," his partner said with looking away.

Just then, Kowalski jumped from the shadows behind them and knocked them out. "I don't smell that bad...do I?" he asked with sniffing his wingpits.

Someone suddenly grabbed him from behind and dragged him back in the shadows. The barn owl struggled and ended up breaking free. He grabbed his sais and got ready to fight...before seeing his attacker was a familiar falcon.

"Master Yoshi?!" he exclaimed before his master shushed him with a feather in front of his beak. "We have been separated!" he said in a whisper.

"Follow me. We must find them."

* * *

Lilly was not as lucky as her brother. Trapped in a alley, she got cornered by many Foot ninjas who were all ready to take her down. As they slowly approached like sharks, she lifted her swords, ready to make her last stand.

Suddenly, a figure jumped down in the middle of the ninjas. To Lilly's surprise, it was a male human who smirked before taking out a katana from his jacket. However, it was no regular katana; this one had a blade that was seemingly made of energy.

* * *

Back to Skyler and Sparky who were now walking in the middle of a parking zone, the sister stopped as she saw two figures in the shadow. She carefully made her brother sit down against the wall before taking out her bo staff, ready to fight.

However, her fear faded upon seeing those figures were Kowalski and Master Yoshi. "My gosh! I'm glad to see you!" she happily beamed with putting her staff down.

"We can hear you kilometers away," Kowalski sarcastically pointed out before turning his attention to Sparky. "Sparky, you okay?"

"I dunno if I can make it," the elf owl weakly said. "Kow, is that you? The lights, the lights are turning out! It's all going dark! Tell Kow...tell Kow..."

"I'm right here, Sparky. I-I-I'm right here next to ya!" the barn owl said with putting a wing in concern for his brother on his shoulder.

"You tell Kow, he's always been...a big cheese head!" Sparky suddenly said with an amused smile as he showed it was all a joke. "Syc! I can't believe you fell for that! Oh, oh the lights are going out! Ahaha!"

Kowalski angrily slammed his fist into his wing with a glare. "I'll turn out your lights for real, wise guy!"

However, Master Yoshi stopped him before he could kill his little brother. "Kowalski! Sparky! Silence. If we managed to hear you, then our enemies too. We need to move fast."

"We just have to leave Sparky here," Kowalski said with a smirk, earning him a glare from his little brother.

"Crap! I didn't took the Feather Plane's remote," Sky grumbled while searching all over herself.

"Here, Master Yoshi said with taking the Wii remote out of his vest. "I though it would be wise to take it before coming here. And I don't really know how it works," he admitted.

"You're a genius, sensei! You really though about everything!" Sky happily said with picking her remote.

However, the joy was short-lived as the group spotted Foot ninjas jumping out of nowhere and surrounding them. "Call the Feather Plane; I am going to fight them myself!" Master Yoshi ordered as he slowly stepped toward the Foots...

* * *

 **Oh yeah! We're finally gonna see Master Yoshi in action for the very first time! (not counting the training)**


	82. Blood Talon Strikes part 4

As Skyler took her customized Wii remote, Master Yoshi jumped into action by immediately kicking two Foots away. As for those who used weapons, he blocked them with his staff and then used it to knock them out cold.

"Here we go!" Sky said as she pressed on the A button of her remote.

Even before the Feather Plane could arrive, Master Yoshi managed to take down all of the Foots who were now laying on the ground in pain. "Wow! Master Yoshi! You sure know how to fight!" Kowalski beamed in awe.

* * *

Back in the alley, Lilly looked in pure surprise as the human intruder managed to easily take down all the Foots with his energy katana in mere seconds. He then turned his weapon off and putted it away before turning his attention to Lilly and walking toward her.

"Okay, that's new," she mumbled with rising her katanas, ready to defend herself. "Who are you?"

"My name is Bishop. And I am...a Guardian. I cannot tell you anything more," the human blankly replied.

"That doesn't help me a lot."

"I am really sorry, but for now, I cannot reveal you anything. I can only say that you are in the middle of a battle more important than you can imagine."

"Hiromu Osaki told me the exact same thing," Lilly pointed out, still suspicious.

"I know. It's one of the very few true things Blood Talon told you. But there's something you need to know: by refusing Blood Talon's offer, you won an ally in your fight," the mysterious human named Bishop said and held his hand toward Lilly for her to shake it.

Lilly didn't understood this mysterious being a lot, but he saved her, so he probably truly was an ally. Putting her katanas away, she reached her wing to shake his hand despite the difference in size. Just after they let go of each other, a light turned on in the dark alley and Lilly was relieved to see it was the Feather Plane.

Sky walked out of it alongside her siblings and Master Yoshi. "Enough, sensei, you didn't stopped telling me how to drive!" Sky protested. She then looked toward her sister with a smile. "Getting you somewhere, Lilly?"

"Sure," her sister replied with a smile. "But first, I'd like to present you my new-" She interrupted herself upon seeing Bishop disappeared. She looked all around but didn't saw any trace of him. "What the...?! What a mysterious guy..."

* * *

Moments later, the family was reunited inside the Feather Plane. "I'm really glad you're okay, sista!" Sparky beamed while sitting down because of his ankle.

"We were so worried for you," Sky added with a hug to her older sister.

"Yes, I was worried too," Master Yoshi said in a firmer tone. He then slapped all four of his kids across the face, making them groan in pain.

"Hey! What was that for?!" Kowalski asked while rubbing his cheek in pain.

"For being so stupid!" The old falcon rose his stick toward his children. "You should have never tried to fight Blood Talon by yourself! He is way too strong for you!"

"You're telling me. I've got bruises that have got bruises," Sky said with rubbing parts of her body in pain.

"And did you see the way Blood Talon walked right through that fire," Lilly added.

"Yeah, he's like the Talonnator or something!" Sparky said with mimicking Arnold Schwarzenegger.

"Okay enough with the pop culture jokes, Sparky!" Sky scolded him with a stern glare.

"You have brought the wolf out of his lair," Master Yoshi continued. "He will never stop chasing for us."

"What should we do then, sensei?" Lilly asked.

The old falcon looked down for a few seconds before looking up again. "We let him find us."

"But, how do we let him find us? " Sky asked with a curious look.

The old falcon sat down. "Sit still."

" I dunno, Master Yoshi. Sitting still isn't one of our strong points," Sparky pointed out which earned him a glare from his master, making him gulp nervously. "Right, sitting still it is. I like sitting still. Sitting still is good." His siblings rolled their eyes before sitting down as well.

* * *

The group of ninjas waited for a while into the Feather Plane until they spotted Blood Talon's group coming their way. Seeing their chance, they sneaked back onto the closest rooftop and waited to be discovered. As planned, the Foot and their master jumped up on the roof and glared at the four ninja birds.

"They came to take a good beating," Kowalski mumbled under Blood Talon's glare and cracked his wings.

Lilly nodded and the four siblings took out their weapons as Blood Talon ordered his Foot ninjas to attack. Both sides charged into action and started the brawl.

"Remember, my kids, even the mighty oak bends before the raging storm winds," Master Yoshi told his children through their earphones.

"Huh?" Sparky innocently asked.

Yoshi facewinged himself and sighed. "Be careful and do not become overconfident!"

"Okay!" Kowalski replied as he aggressively took down many Foots all by himself. Lilly walked up on many Foots' shoulders, kicking them down in the process, ending her combo with a double dive kick into two Foots.

Sparky blocked a Foot's staff with his nunchucks and then kicked him in the guts. This was a mistake as his ankle didn't completely healed and a jolt of pain rushed through his whole foot. As another Foot approached, the elf owl did the dumb mistake of using his bad foot to kick him away again, hurting himself even more in the process.

As he jumped on one foot while holding his bad one, Blood Talon suddenly kicked him away violently. Not too far from there, Sky easily knocked one Foot away after the other with her bo staff. Blood Talon saw this and jumped behind her, ready to cut her down with his blades.

"NO!" Kowalski suddenly arrived and kicked Blood Talon in the back, saving his little sister. This caused the samurai to growl angrily.

"KILL THEM ALL!"

Many Foots started throwing a storm of shurikens at Lilly who swung her katanas to block them all before attacking her all at once with their katanas. Lilly somehow managed to block them all with her two swords before kicking them all away with her raw strength.

Skyler was still fighting on her own, blocking the Foots' weapons with her bo staff. "Hold your staff higher, Skyler! And bend your left leg to get a better support point!" Master Yoshi screamed at her up from a water tank.

"First he tell me how to drive and now, how to fight!" the elf owl annoyingly though.

Then, to her horror, Blood Talon arrived in front of her and, before he could do anything, delivered many punches and palm strikes to knocked her beside Sparky at the feet of the water tank. She groaned in pain while laying down, her face covered of blood.

Lilly saw this and angrily groaned as she kicked a Foot away before Blood Talon jumped beside her. He rose his claws, ready to take her down...only to get blocked by familiar sais.

"NO!" Kowalski screamed as he blocked the samurai with his weapons. "YOU WON'T TOUCH MY SISTER! YOU HEAR ME?!"

However, Blood Talon simply punched him hard in the stomach, making him spit saliva, and then kicked him away next to his injured siblings too. Lilly angrily knocked out the remaining Foots before charging at Blood Talon. The samurai scoffed and simply smashed her across the face to send her flying next to her three siblings. Upon colliding into the water tank's foot, she dropped her katanas and coughed some blood.

The four of them weakly looked up in fear as the evil crow slowly made his way toward them and rose his claws, ready to finish them once and for all. "None of you will leave this roof alive!"

"NOOOO!"

CLANG!

To everyone's surprise, Master Yoshi jumped in action and blocked Talon's claws with his stick. "You destroyed my family once. I will not allow that to happen again!"

The samurai's look of surprise soon turned into a deadly glare. "No human or birds can defeat me!"

"So you think!" Master Yoshi said and swiftly pushed the claws away before striking Talon in the back, making him groan in pain.

He then jumped beside the tank's feet and dared the samurai to attack him. Falling into the trap, he pushed a battle cry and charged, swinging his fists at the falcon who simply dodged or blocked with his stick. Unknown to him, he accidentally cut one of the tank's feet during the struggle. Master Yoshi smirked and made he repeated the same mistake with the other feet.

It was only upon seeing the tank trembling and loosing its balance that Blood Talon stopped attacking and realized his mistake. "This is for my master!" Yoshi said and kicked the last foot before the water tank collapsed over Blood Talon who screamed before fading in the water. In the process, the wave also whipped all the Foots off the roof as the four ninja birds reached a higher spot to be safe.

The kids then joined Master Yoshi on the edge of the wet roof to see down in the wet street below many defeated Foots as well as the rubles of the tank which crushed Blood Talon. The leader of the Foot clan was defeated.

"Master Yoshi...," Lilly mumbled with an expression mixed with sadness and joy.

"Is everything alright?" Sparky asked in concern.

The old falcon just sighed before turning to his kids with a smile. "Come. We have defeated Blood Talon. Let's return home and rest a bit."

"Good idea, master," Sky said as they started walking away.

"I gotta admit: I never wanted to go back home that much," Lilly recognized with a smile.

* * *

 **Our friends defeated Blood Talon and the Foots! Hurray! I sure hope you enjoyed the four ninja birds' adventures as it is there that it all ends for them...**

 **JUST KIDDING!**

* * *

A few days after defeating Blood Talon, the four ninja birds were relaxing in their lair down in the sewers with Lilly and Kowalski training together, Sparky chilling in front of the TVs with some pizza, and Skyler doing some project in her workshop.

They all stopped upon hearing stepping noises and seeing a figure - which was clearly not Master Yoshi - arriving at the lair's entrance. "Hey! Who are you?!" Lilly asked as she and her siblings jumped with their weapons up, ready to fight the intruder.

"Well, you sure the same tone you had as a kid, Lilly..."

This caused the four siblings to look in confusion before Lilly and Skyler widened their eyes in surprise. "It can't be..."

* * *

 **I know, I'm cruel to end this arc in a cliffhanger, but trust, it's only to set the table up for the next arc. And if it can make you happy, we'll return to Blu and his friends for this arc. Stay stunned until then, Rio lovers ;)**


	83. Season 4 kick-off

**Okay guy, it's time to officially kick off this story's fourth season. Before we do, a shoot out to all my friends have have been reading, reviewing, and overall enjoying this story to whom I promise I'll keep give my best! And I have reached the line of 200 reviews! Man, if I keep this up, I'll probably beat my best record which is of 257 reviews with "Armageddon".**

* * *

It was early morning in the jungle. Jewel was sleeping peacefully when Blu gently nudged her until she woke up.

"Good morning, my pearl of the forest," he whispered with a smile.

"Morning, Blu." She yawned, slightly surprised that her boyfriend woke up first. "What's gotten you up so early?"

"I went to get this," Blu said with a smile before dropping a pair of Brazil nuts in the nest. "Breakfast in bed."

"Well, well," Jewel said with a smile. "What's the occasion?"

"Do I need an occasion to spoil my wonderful girlfriend?"

"Good point," Jewel said with a nod. "But still, you didn't had to get up this early and go at the grove just for me."

"But I did it anyway," Blu chuckled. "There's nothing I won't do to bring a smile on that beautiful face."

"And that's exactly why I love you." Jewel affectionately nuzzled him. "You're the best, my little blueberry." Blu blushed and nuzzled her back. It was hard to believe they had been together for a full year already. To him, it felt like they met in Minnesota yesterday. "I must be the luckiest girl in the world to have such a kind, caring and thoughtful mate like you."

"I feel the same way," Blu said with a charming smile. "Not many bird can get a beautiful, kindhearted wife like you."

"In that case, we're both lucky," Jewel said and pulled her lover in a warm kiss which they both enjoyed. It lasted for a full minute before they broke it and started eating their breakfast.

Blu held Jewel while they enjoyed their breakfast, glad to be her in that beautiful morning. His girlfriend leaned against him, enjoying his warm feathers and neither of them could imagine anything better than this very moment.

"So good...," Jewel sighed after she was done eating her nut.

"You know it: only the best for you," Blu said as he wrapped his wings around her.

"I wasn't talking about the nut," Jewel said with a grin as she snuggled against Blu.

"Me neither," Blu chuckled, pulling her closer.

They kept hugging and snuggling for a while before breaking it up. "So what do you wanna do today?" Jewel asked her lover.

"Well, I was going to suggest visiting our friends, but I forgot Polie, Adam, Alicia, Star and Brooke left for the United States," Blu admitted with rubbing the back of his head.

"Well, what do you say we go make a little turn at the waterfall and enjoy the view then?" Jewel suggested. "That would be so romantic."

Blu smiled and kissed the top of her head. "Anything to please you, my love."

And with that, the two lovebirds flew out of their new nest which they built shortly after returning from their journey in the Kingdom of Owls. Blu has kept his Guardian helmet, and left it in a corner of his hollow which Jewel also did. And his friends too, he though.

The macaw couple flew across the spix macaw tribe's territory as wild life was slowly starting to wake up all around them. They greeted a few fellow birds on the way before finally arriving at the ever so wonderful waterfall of the tribe. The sun was slowly rising to reflect its sunray over the thousands of drops which created a rainbow reflection. Luckily for them, there wasn't any bird around safe for old Kenny at his eternal bar, as it was still very soon.

"Wanna take a bath in the lake?" Jewel playfully asked her boyfriend.

This caused him to get extremely red in the face. Blu really loved Jewel and couldn't resist her natural beauty...but he wasn't exactly used to take baths with girls. Not even with Linda. After all, he wasn't a pervert like Polie.

"Huh...," he nervously stuttered.

Jewel giggled as he made his cherry-looking face again and took him by the wing. "Come on." She dragged him over to the lake and slowly dragged him into the water, carefully as she knew how chilly he was despite being from frozen hell.

And then, Jewel splashed water all over herself. She gently rubbed the fresh water on her whole body while giving a sneaky look into Blu's direction to see him looking at her with his jaw at his chest level and his eyes round like eggs. Deciding to tease him a little more, she smiled to herself and slowly turned her body toward him while rubbing her head feathers and arching her back forward, giving him a good view over her whole body.

Blu was in a trance-like state as he couldn't take his eyes off his beloved girlfriend. The water was flowing over her feather with grace as the sun was shining its pure light on her already lovable figure and the wild wind was slowly flying through her head feathers which created a whistling sound that went perfectly along the forest melody.

He came back to reality only after she walked over to him to start rubbing the water over his own feathers.

"Not cleaning yourself, birdy boy! In that case, I'll do it for you." She couldn't help but enjoy rubbing Blu's body as his training with her father and the Guardians made him slightly more muscled. Sure, he wasn't shaped like most of the tribe's members yet, but there was progress and she liked it.

Blu was tempted to make her stop as he was feeling nervous, but knew this would only cause a needless awkward. And it was actually enjoyable as her soft wings rubbed his whole body in agreeable fashion. Eventually, she arrived in his face and planted her emerald eyes into his hazel ones with the most seductive she could show.

Blu got lost into the depths of her beautiful eyes and instinctively putted his wings on her hips as she wrapped her owns around his neck and putted him into a deep, passionate kiss. They locked beaks and battle their tongues one against the other. Blu never though exchanging mouth germs would be so pleasant. He would have loved it to last forever, but had to break contact and allow the air to come back in his lungs. Which didn't stopped them from nuzzling each other with all their love.

"Hey guys!"

The couple jumped in surprise and broke away from each other before turning to see a familiar snowy owl standing on the lake's chore. "Alex! What are you doing here?! Can't you see we're having an intimate moment?!" Jewel shouted with a blush as she covered herself with her wings.

The little kid just scratched the side of his head curiously. "What are you talking about? I've already seen birds cleaning themselves in the past."

"Yes, but-" Blu was about to explain him, but realized the kid was just too young to understand. "Whatever, what did you came here for?"

Alex rose his eyes as if trying to remember his answer. Then, it clicked. "Oh yes! There are strangers who entered the tribe and Eduardo stopped them. He wanted me to warn you; Dominic are already on the scene. Come, quick!" he said and started flying away.

Blu and Jewel exchanged a curious look. It wasn't usual for unknown faces to cross the tribe's territory, so why did Jewel's father required everyone's presence? The couple decided they would ask him once on the scene.

"Alex! Wait for us!" Jewel called as she quickly shook the water off her feathers and flew after the kid, followed by her boyfriend.

* * *

After a few minutes of flying, the three birds arrived at the scene and Alex perched on a nearby branch. "Look," he said with pointing at the middle of the open arena where Eduardo, Mimi, and many other spix macaws as well as Dominic were looking at figures. But Blu couldn't get a good view on them.

"Just wait a sec," Blu told his girlfriend before flying down and making his way over to Dominic. "Dominic, what's happening?"

The golden eagle turned around toward his friend. "Ah, you finally came, Blu. There's three strange birds and they say they came to find "someone."

"Really?" Blu then turned his attention forward and started fighting his way through the macaws and toward the center of all this attention. "Let me pass! Let me pass!"

After the young spix macaw managed to break through everyone, he got to see a pretty strange sight. Eduardo was standing there, looking at something with his eyes wide open and his jaw trembling. It was almost as if he saw some kind of ghost.

"Eduardo? What's wrong?" Blu asked before looking in the same direction as him and realized that those three strange birds Alex mentioned were indeed strange.

There was two spix macaws - a male and a female - and a little elf owl, like Gylfie. And she looked a lot like her with her honey-colored feathers and golden beak and feet. However, unlike Gylfie, she had brown eyes instead of yellow. She had a brown belt tied around her waist which was holding a bo staff and some kind of metal turtle shell. Her head feathers were curved to cover her left eye and she was also wearing a black bandana around them.

The female spix macaw was around Blu's age and had rather human features. Light blue feathers with black talons and beak, her head feathers were tied into a ponytail by a purple band and she was wearing the same bandana as the elf owl around her eyes, only hers was purple. She also had a brown belt tied around her waist and shoulders which held two katanas in a X shaped on her back. And Blu who thought Dominic was the only bird using swords. Additional clothes included brown gloves on her wings and bandages on her feet.

As for the male macaw, he was slim with a relatively tall height. His feathers were dark blue, a bit like Blu's, and to his back was tied by a rope some kind of jitte sword with the blade being round with one "branch" and the handle being covered of red bandages. However, this mysterious guy's most noticeable feature was the white and black-spotted winter hat with hear flaps he was wearing on top of his head.

"W-Who are you guys?" Blu asked while looking at the three strange birds. But much to his confusion, they all looked at him with big interest in their eyes, running their eyes from his head to his toes. "Hum, what's wrong?" he asked with stepping back, slightly uncomfortable.

"H-Hario?"

Blu froze on the spot and his glance slowly lowered down to the elf owl who just spoke. "H-How do you know my real name?!"

Tears started forming in the elf owl's eyelids. "I-It's me...Skyler..."

"I'm Lilly, remember?" the female macaw said.

"Dude," the male macaw said with a pretty big smile on his dark beak, "Don't tell me you already forgot about your old bro, Aqua..."


	84. Story of a pirate

Roberto quickly flew to the scene after being alerted by one of Eduardo's men and landed beside his boss. "Eddie, I came as fast as I could. What's wrong?"

It was then that he noticed his little brother standing in the middle of the scene, looking in awe at three new faces. However, upon giving them a good look, he quickly realized that he actually knew who those guys were.

"LILLY?! SKYLER?! AQUA?!" he exclaimed as he rushed at them with a look that clearly meant he couldn't believe it.

"Huh? Oh, Rob," Aqua said with turning his head toward his brother-in-law (sort of) with a smile. "You're there too. Glad to see you're still in good shape."

Suddenly, Blu caught him into a big hug, tears of joy forming into his eyelids. "I can't believe you guys are back!" The surprise quickly left Aqua who then smiled and hugged his bro back. Lilly and Skyler joined in the hug as well, all of them having tears of joy from being reunited after so long. It was a touching scene for everyone watching.

Jewel smiled as her boyfriend got reunited with her siblings. Sure, he reunited with his biological brother months ago, but still that didn't make it less touching. Roberto, Dominic, Eduardo, and all the other spix macaws also smiled in joy.

After what felt like an eternity but was actually one minute, the four birds broke the hug and whipped their tears away. "Guys, where have you been during all that time? And why are you dressed like that?" Blu asked, eager to learn where his three siblings went after the smugglers' attack on their home.

"That's a long story," Aqua said with a chuckle. "Can we sit around something to drink to talk about it; I'm kinda thirsty."

* * *

And so, everyone went at the place that served to host the return part for Blu and his friends. While Eduardo spread the news that Blu's friends were back, Dominic went to get the rest of his students while the newly reunited siblings sat around a table with many wooden bottles of drinks from Kenny. And Aqua seemed to enjoy them all.

"This is delicious!" the hatted macaw sighed after he swallowed many sips of the same bottle at once. "My compliments to your friend who made this."

"So you became alcoholic after we got separated?" Lilly remarked while leaning back on a nearby tree trunk. She and Sky putted their weapons aside for the moment.

"Oh, I became a lot of things since the last time you saw me," the macaw chuckled and took another sip. "Speaking of which, how about we finally catch up with what we did after that day? Let's start with you, Hario."

And so, it was with joy that Blu told everything to his long-lost siblings, starting with how he was now used to be called Blu and not Hario anymore. He then told them his whole story from how he was found and taken care of by Linda in Minnesota to his journey to Rio, how he fell in love with Jewel, his trip to the Amazon rainforest, and his adventure in the Kingdom of Owls which ended up with him and his friends becoming Guardians. Lilly and Skyler enjoyed his cute moments with Jewel while Aqua preferred the action scenes.

"Wow! All I can say is that you have changed so much since that day, bro," Lilly said with happily patting her brother's shoulder.

"And you still wanna see the world after that?" Sky asked.

"Yeah, but I also have a second objective; I wanna become the strongest bird in the world and make sure what happened to us will never happen to anyone else," Blu declared with all his confidence. This made the three others smile at seeing their bro didn't changed too much.

Lilly and Skyler were the next ones to talk and told their bros how they remained together after their capture and ended up in New York City where they met their two new brothers, Sparky and Kowalski, and became ninjas through their sensei and father's, Master Yoshi, training. They even mentioned how they recently defeated Blood Talon and his Foot Clan.

Blu was really amazed at everything his sisters went through. "But how did you find out I was here?"

"It's because of Aqua," Lilly said with pointing a thumb feather toward him. "He came to our lair in the sewers a few days ago and announced us he knew where to find you. We accepted to come, but our sensei and two brothers remained home to protect the city."

This caused all the looks to turn toward Aqua as they wanted answers. "And you? What did you do since we got captured?" Sky asked.

Aqua finished swallowing his sip and sighed before talking: "To make it short, I went on the craziest adventure of my life. The humans who captured me sold me to some fishermen who were also smugglers. I lived on a boat for many days until THAT day came."

"I was sleeping in peace inside my cage when all of sudden, BOOM! We get attacked by pirate birds from out of nowhere. The humans all get defeated and I get brought onto the pirate birds' ship to meet their captain. He decides to give me a chance to join his crew and makes me pass a series of test. I hope you believe me when I talk about pirate birds."

Skyler giggled. "Honestly, after everything we went through, there's little that can surprise us in this world," she said to which Blu and Lilly nodded in agreement.

"Very well then. And so, I succeed the tests and receive three gifts from my captain. First, this beautiful hat," he said with putting proud emphasis on his winter hat. "Second, this super jitte sword," he said with taking out his weapon for everyone to see it. "And last but not the least, a Magical Fruit for me to eat and gain powers."

This caused Blu to widen his eyes in surprise. "You ate a Magical Fruit?! Like me?!" Aqua nodded a yes in response. "That's cool! What are your powers?"

"Oh boy, well, actually, my power's pretty complex. You see, its primary use is to create a "room" in the shape of a spherical bubble of a size and at the position of my choice. Maintaining the Room will slowly fatigue me (the bigger the room the greater the drawback), but anyone inside is at my mercy. Once someone is inside one of my rooms, I can amputate my target by slicing him up without actually harming him."

"They remain conscious but are left with their body parts scattered. But it doesn't stop there; I can also move people and items inside my rooms." It was only then that he realized his siblings and their friends were giving him odd looks, probably not understanding this power very well. He sighed. "Okay, I suppose a demon is better than a long explanation."

He rose his wing and suddenly created some kind of sphere room all around the four of them. He then looked in Blu's direction and snapped his feathers. To everyone's horror and shock, his right wing suddenly got cut off his off and floated away from him. Upon realizing it, he started panicking.

"OH MY GOD! MY WING! MY WING! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?! YOU CUT MY...wing?" In his panic, Blu realized that he could still move his dismembered wing, control his feathers and all.

"See?" Aqua asked with a smile. "I told you; I can amputate any part of the body, but the target keeps control over it." He then made a move with his wings and brought Blu's wing back to his place and then made the sphere disappear. Blu made some moves with his wing just to be sure it was completely back.

Roberto came and wrapped a wing around Aqua'a shoulders. "Well, with Blu's plastic powers and my poison body, it makes three of us," he said with making some purple poison flow out from his wing. Aqua moved a bit back to avoid getting it on him.

"That's a pretty cool weapon you have there," Dominic remarked. "What do you say you and I do a little fight for fun?"

This surprised everyone that their eagle friend challenged Blu's newfound brother into a fight just like this. However, said brother just chuckled a bit. "We can if you want, but first, there's something important I must tell you," he said with a suddenly serious look.

The others exchanged glances at his sudden change of emotion. "What is it, Aqua?" Sky asked.

The macaw putted his empty bottle away before talking. "Well, believe it or not, but I come back from another world - I don't mean from another planet or anything. It's a bit complicated. You see, there's an another reality within our own world which you can enter and leave by entering a certain area."

"Yeah, I remember Hawkeye mentioning something like that, back in Ga'Hoole," Dominic remarked.

This caused Aqua to address him a surprised look. "You met Dracule "Hawkeye" Yun? One of the Warlords and strongest swordsman in the world? Wow! I didn't though he'd be interested in coming to the Human World."

"No; we met him in the Kingdom of Owls," Blu remarked. "He's the one who told us how to come back here."

"Really? Oh, that's odd from him. But back to the main topic, the world we are currently in is the Human World. I come from another one called the New World. And this one is dominated by the sea; 80% of water and only 20% of land. In this world, pirates like me and my crew aspire to freedom and finding the world's biggest treasures while also fighting the world government that are charged to fight the pirates and keep the population safe: the Naval Forces."

"We are currently in the Golden Age of Pirates, an era that has been started more than twenty years ago by none other than the King of Pirates himself, Archibald Beak. This bird has gathered the biggest treasures in the world into one treasure which he called "Treasure Planet". Before dying, he said those last words: "My treasure, it is for you to take, if you want it. Go find the Treasure Planet. I left it somewhere in this world."

"Those words caused all the pirates in the world to go adventure in the world in hopes of finding this treasure for the captain who'll find it will become the new King of Pirates."

Everyone looked at Aqua with looks of interest and surprise against such a big story. "That sounds great!" Blu exclaimed. "And you want to find this treasure, right?"

Aqua shook his head. "No. I want my own captain, Urax The Destroyer, to find it. I'm certain he'll make a great king just like Archibald Beak was. We're currently traveling across the New World, searching for the Treasure Planet."

"I'm a bit confused," Lazaro said. "If your captain is after this treasure, then why did you came back into our world. Your guy, Archibald something, didn't left it here, did he?"

"Not exactly. You see, while I'm one of Urax's commanders, I spend most of my time scooting the seas alone with my own boat. but the thing is that it gets pretty boring. So I decided to come here and look for my old siblings in hopes of convincing you to come with me." He got up and putted a wing on Blu's shoulders. "So what do you say? Wanna come to the New World with me and search for the Treasure Planet? We'll all be together, like in the good old days."

Blu, Lilly and Skyler gave him surprised looks. The story he just told them was pretty...strange and hard to believe. Then again, a lot of strange things happened in their lives and their brother probably wouldn't lie to them.

"You want us to come with you in search for the Treasure Planet?" Sky asked.

"Yeah. Think about it: we always talked about it as kids, and now, fifteen years later, we are finally reunited. We are old and strong enough to go after our dreams. Hario, you still want to see the world and become strong right? Well, the New World is huge - so much that we didn't even discovered half of yet as of now. And there's plenty of strong people waiting us there, from the Naval Forces to the other pirates who want to find the Treasure Planet. Lilly, Sky, you girls wanted to become great ninjas right? Well, the New World is the perfect place for you. As for me, I want to become a great pirate, and I'm already on my way to become one. So what do you say? Wanna come with me to go accomplish our dreams?"

Blu smiled in excitation at the idea of going on an adventure with his siblings, just like they wanted as kids...when his look slowly turned toward Jewel. His excited face turned upside down. "I don't know, Aqua. I mean, I WOULD like to come with you, don't get me wrong, but I have friends here and-"

"Blu!" Jewel suddenly cut him off, causing everyone to look at her. She looked at him with the most firm, serious look she ever showed. "I forbid you to deprive yourself of going to fulfill your dreams simply because of me!"

"B-But...," Blu nervously mumbled toward his mate.

"There's no but, Blu. If you don't want to leave me, then I'll come with you too, it's as simple as that."

This statement caused Blu to widen his eyes at his girlfriend's determination. Of course, he wanted to go with his siblings, but he didn't wanted to put his beloved Jewel in danger just for that. Then again, it wasn't like she was weak. "Y-You sure about that? I mean, the New World sounds pretty dangerous from what Aqua said."

Jewel took Blu's wings in hers and smiled at him. "As long as I'm with you, that's all that matters, my little blueberry." She then kissed his cheek, charming everyone who watched.

"I come too!"

Everybody turned toward Dominic who had his wings crossed with an excited look.

"If this New World you talked about is really where the legendary Hawkeye is from, then it must the perfect place for me to become stronger and defeat him one day. And besides, I made a promise to Blu which I'm planning to hold."

"Dominic...," Blu mumbled with a smile at his most loyal friend of all time.

The golden eagle just smiled before turning toward his four students. "You guys come too, otherwise I'll make you go through the hardest training of your life." The looks of horror on the four birds' face clearly meant he didn't had to say anything else to convince them. "And you too, Apollo!"

"What?! Why me?!" the barn owl asked on the defensive.

"Because I know you too have ambitions and goals, but you lack the guts to affirm yourself. So I'm giving you the kick to the butt you need."

Aqua chuckled before turning to the girls. "What about you? You're in too?"

"I don't know; Master Yoshi will be worried, if we don't come back," Lilly admitted.

"You don't have to make the whole journey with us; you can just come back after the first island if you want," Aqua explained.

The sisters looked at each other and back at Aqua with smiles. "Okay, I guess it wouldn't be a problem in that case," Sky remarked.

Aqua smiled before going to pick four coconut shells and filled them with the exact same drink the four siblings shared all those years ago. "It's settled then! We are going to the New World and find the Treasure Planet!"

The four siblings beamed before knocking their drinks together in the air.


	85. Off to the New World

**Yo guys! You won't believe what happen to me in the last three days. I went to the dentist to get my wisdom teeth removed which left me with scars in my mouth. Because of them, I got an hard time eating and drinking.**

 **As if that wasn't bad enough, the very next morning, I woke up with a nausea so strong that I puked four times in less than two hours. Because of this, I had to spend an entire day on a hospital bed to get three different pharmaceuticals that I couldn't swallow injected into my veins. One for my mouth scars, one for my nausea, and one to keep my hydrated.**

 **My problems didn't stopped there as my mom saw red spots on my body that meant I was making an allergic reaction to the pharmaceuticals. Thank you mom for staying at my side instead of going to work. Had she not realized it, my throat or eyes could have gotten swollen or something worse.**

 **So they changed the product and fed me with little soft food that I could easily swallow (and it was surprisingly tasty). They allowed me to leave toward 6:00 a.m. Unfortunately, my nausea remained for two more days and my scars still don't allow me to eat anything too hard. Because of that, I spent the last two days sitting in my living room, watching Dreamworks' Trollhunters and Marvel's The Punisher. Both shows were pretty good (eat that, you guys who think Guillermo Del Toro cannot make a good show!).**

 **But now, I'm feeling way better and I'm ready to keep on with this story!**

* * *

After his touching reunion with his three siblings Lilly, Skyler and Aqua, Blu and his friends followed the latter as he led them outside the Amazon and toward the coast of the island. Apparently, there was something "super amazing" that he wanted to show them before going to the New World. They soon landed near a beach which was hidden to them by big trees.

"So? What was this amazing thing you wanted to show us, Aqua?" Jewel asked her boyfriend's brother.

This last one just smiled and stepped forward, placing a wing on one of the big leaves. "My friends, I present to you the Polar Tang!" He moved the leaves out of the way to reveal the beautiful beach with sand and the sea behind it. However, the most noticeable detail was a giant submarine that was yellow and made of metal. The upper decks were made of wood, though, and there was two tall masts on both the front and back levels. Circular windows lined the craft, and there was some kind of black pirate logo drawn on the side.

The birds looked at the submarine in awe. "T-T-THIS IS AMAZING!" Apollo beamed with admiration in his eyes. "You're the one who built this?! It's a pure wonder! I though it was impossible for a bird to create any kind of boat let alone a vehicle!"

Aqua chuckled because of Apollo's enthusiasm. "Indeed. There's a lot of good ship crafters across the vast sea of the New World. The Polar Tang has been built by crafters from Water 7 and I'm very pleased with the result."

"And why do you need a boat?" Hernandez asked. "Can't birds fly in the New World?"

"Sure they can, but try to fly across a full ocean for days without any land to stop and rest. You'd be in a pretty sticky situation," the macaw chuckled before flying up on the deck. "Now get all on board; we're gonna drive up to the New World."

Alex and Lazaro immediately jumped on board, excited to go on new adventures. Dominic, Vladimir, Hernandez, and Jewel followed after, having a bit less enthusiasm than their two little friends. Blu, Lilly and Skyler were about to follow, when Roberto held his little brother back by the shoulder.

"What is it, Rob?" Blu curiously asked.

"Listen Hario, I'd like nothing more than coming with you, but someone needs to stay and protect our tribe. And besides, it's your dream." Roberto gave a smile at his little brother. "I think we both know you no longer need me to protect you from the world. You're strong and have the will to follow your own path, am I right?"

Blu just looked at his big brother with no emotion..before showing an optimistic smile. "What? It is not clear since the moment I defeated those loggers, months ago? Listen, Rob, I appreciate your concern, but like I told you many times, I'm planning on becoming the strongest bird in the world to protect all the people around me. And to do so, I need to go face the world out there. But don't worry; I won't be alone. Dominic, Jewel and all the others will be there to make sure I don't do anything stupid."

Roberto couldn't help but show a big smile at how mature his little brother became. He soon wrapped his wings around him for a thigh hug, as if it was the last time they would ever see each other. Maybe it was. Blu was a bit surprised, but soon returned the gesture.

"Are you two done with the crying down there?" The two brothers broke from the hug to see Aqua looking down at them from the decks with a look located somewhere between amusement and sympathy. "Trust me, that's very cute and all, but I'd like to reach Begin Town before nightfall, if you don't mind."

Roberto nodded and patted his brother's head. "You should go start your adventure now."

Blu gave him one last smile before flying up to go join his friends on the decks. "And please, don't forget to leave our message to Master Yoshi!" Sky called at Eduardo who just left after saying goodbye to his daughter.

"Don't worry! I won't!" the old bird answered before hugging his little sister who still couldn't believe his little niece was leaving for an alien world.

With everyone on board, Aqua entered the submarine which soon started vibrating, meaning the machines were on. A few seconds after that, the vehicle started moving away from the beach and toward the sea. Blu and his friends stood on the edge of the deck to see their friends on the beach slowly getting farther and farther while waving their wings and shouting stuff. they all returned the gesture. As exciting as this adventure sounded, the group couldn't deny they were feeling a bit sad to leave their home.

Aqua soon came out of the submarine and joined his new crew. "Alright, guys, we're heading toward the New World's entry. We should be there in a few moments."

"Huh, but where's your entry?" Vladimir asked with looking all around them. "There's nothing around here except the sea and this big rock in the middle of nowhere."

Indeed, there was a big portal-shaped rock pointing at the sky on their road. Strangely, they seemed to be aiming straight toward it. "It's because it's there we're going for," Aqua declared with a smile and his wings crossed.

"What?" Lilly asked with looking at him, her eye brow risen.

Aqua just smiled. "This is the entry to the New World."

Everybody gave him surprised look. As the submarine slowly went across the portal, the group indeed felt strange, like a change in the atmosphere all around them. Though it quickly faded after a few seconds. The submarine came out of the portal and they were now out on the open blue sea under the bright sky and fresh new wind flying across their feathers.

"My friends," Aqua said as he stood on the edge front of the deck, "welcome to the New World!"


	86. Begin Town

**In the previous chapter, our group of feathered friends entered the New World with the Polar Tang. Now, they are heading toward the first part of their adventure!**

* * *

Two hours have passed since Blu's group entered the New World on Aqua's Polar Tang submarine. The captain made a little tourism turn of his submarine, showing them the board deck, supply stock room, kitchen, eating room, bathroom, machines room, all inside the submarine. Needless to say Apollo was in hysterical from start to finish.

"Not that I'm bored, but are we arriving somewhere soon? It's been two hours," Dominic asked after everyone returned on the decks.

Aqua chuckled a bit. "If your patience is so small, you're gonna find this journey long. Sometimes, navigating from one island to the other can take days. But don't worry; we should reach Begin Town in little time now."

"Begin Town?" Lazaro asked with a curious look. "What's that name?"

"It's a town located on the Polestar Islands," Aqua started explaining. "It is named like this for two reasons. First, because the town is filled with shops where pirate crews usually goes to fill up their supply stocks before entering the New World's endless line of islands in search for the Treasure Planet. And speaking of which, the second reason is that the great Archibald Beak was justly born on this very island. He grew up there before taking off to the sea and starting his legendary journey leading to the creation of the Treasure Planet. For short, this is where everything began." The spix macaw then turned his attention toward the direction they were heading in. "And speaking of which."

Everybody looked in the same direction as him and saw that they were getting close to an island. "We're arrived!" Alex beamed in excitation as he jumped on the deck's security barricade.

The submarine soon accosted the town's port where many other boats were also present. Blu got the chance to get a good look at the town. If he was to describe it, he'd say it looked like the capital of Florence in term of architecture with the streets being busy with birds of all kinds and colors walking all around, sometimes stopping at shops or talking with other birds.

"Wow! This place is huge!" Blu exclaimed as he looked all around after jumping down from the submarine with his friends following him.

"This place is filled with pirates looking to travel across the New World. Here, we are sure to find everything we need for the journey," Aqua explained with a wing on his hip.

"Good, I could make a few groceries here. Like filling up my ammo stock for example," Apollo said.

"There seems to be a lot of quality food around here," Lazaro said with looking at street market which was selling fried fishes. "I wouldn't be against having good meals for a long journey, don't you agree, Hernandez?" His pelican friend nodded with a little smile.

"There is something I'd like to buy too," Dominic suddenly said with a thinking look.

"What is it?" Jewel asked curiously.

"Two more sabers," he replied. "I'm gonna try to master the three sword style in order to become better in battle."

"Why's that?" Vladimir asked. "I don't see how fighting with three swords instead of one will make you stronger."

The golden eagle turned toward his friend and showed his saber. "It's very simple, Vladimir. I already learned everything I could do with only one saber. But even that, that's still not enough to beat Hawkeye. If I want to win against him someday, I need to upgrade my arsenal. My father told me only the most skilled ones can fight with three swords. And that's exactly what I'm gonna do."

"Okay then," Aqua said with taking a few little bags from underneath his hat. "I'm gonna give each you 200 coins - that's the New World's money - and you're gonna go buy what you need. Meanwhile, I'll tie the Polar Tang to the dock and go buy my own stuff after. Let's all meet here in one hour."

He gave one bag of coins to Dominic. "You want to buy swords, Dom? Go to the Arms Shop. It's somewhere on the main street. You cannot miss it."

The next one he gave was to Lazaro and Hernandez. "Go to the west side of town. This is where the food market is located. You can buy all the food you want there."

He then turned toward Alex and also gave him a bag. "You're a doc, right? Follow the main street and turn to the fifth corridor on the left. There, you'll find a shop with many tools, pharmaceuticals, and upgrades to help on the journey."

He gave one to Apollo too. "If you wanna buy ammo and tools to craft, there's a good shop for that at the end of the main street."

Before long, everyone had a little bag of 200 coins. "Alright. Let's get all around and return in one hour," Blu said before walking away with his two sisters and girlfriend following him. He didn't wanted to go anywhere in particular, but doing some tourism couldn't hurt.

"One last thing guys!" Aqua called after them. "If you see birds equipped with weapons and wearing white jackets with blue crosses, be careful! They are with the Naval Forces!"

* * *

The four birds walked amongst the small crowd along the docks. "So, where do you guys wanna go?" Jewel asked.

"We should have asked Aqua if there was a theater out here," Sky remarked with a giggle as she toyed with her bo staff a bit.

"I know!" Blu said. "How about we go to the town center and get the best view of this city? I'm sure it would be beautiful!"

"Sounds good. but first, we need to know how to get there," Lilly pointed out with rubbing her chin. "We should ask someone to know the way."

Just then, some action happened not too far. A little pink bird girl was running with ice cream in her wings when she bumped into a taller bird and splashed her sweetmeat over this person's legs. Upon looking up, the girl saw that it was a strange bird. He looked like a tall spix macaw with his feathers going from yellow by the bottom to lime green to the top. His talons were black, just like the strange gaz mask he was wearing over his beak. Just like Dominic, he had a sword tied to his back, except this one had a black blade and even had a second one curving on the back bottom, working as a backup blade. And the collar was on the sides in circular shape with the biohazard logo in greenish yellow. He was also wearing an open white vest with a blue cross on the back of it.

This probably meant he was with the Naval Forces. Breathing deeply in his mask, he slowly glanced down at the little girl who looked terrified by his appearance. The strange bird slowly reached his greenish wing down...to pat the girl on the head and kneeled next to her.

"Sorry, looks like my feathers ate your ice cream." He then reached into his vest to take out a coin which he gave to the little girl. "Here, it should be enough to buy a new cone."

"Wow, he's pretty nice," Jewel remarked as the little girl thanked the bird and walked away. "I kinda though he was going to eat her."

"You must never judge by the appearances. It's one of the fundamentals of the ninja way," Lilly pointed out to which Sky nodded in agreement.

"Let's ask him for direction," Blu said and walked over to the masked bird. "Excuse-me, sir."

He slowly turned to glance down at Blu with his lime green eyes. "Yes?"

"Hum, would you by any chance know in which direction is this city's main place?"

The strange bird just looked at Blu for a few seconds before a strange greenish yellow smoke came out of his mask and started floating away in the streets. "Follow this smoke beam. It will lead you to where you want."

Blu was a bit taken aback by this strange phenomenon. How could this guy create steam? But then again, Blu saw a lot of strange things like this. Maybe he just ate a Magical Fruit or something. "Okay, thanks a lot, sir."

And with that, the four birds followed the smoke beam, walking away from the masked bird. This last one just looked at them before a NF soldier came to him with doing a military greet. "Colonel Toxic! We got a transmission for you coming from the HQ!"

He slowly turned to look at him. "Okay, I'm coming..."


	87. Dominic's new swords

The strange masked bird known as Colonel Toxic entered the building which served as Begin Town's Naval Forces' base. He quickly made his way to his desk where a little phone was ringing. Taking the phone into his wing, he brought it up to his ear and answered: "Hello?"

"Colonel Toxic?" asked a voice on the other end. "We got important informations for you! According to some of our sources, Water "Aqua" Law of Urax The Destroyer's Deathless crew would have been spotted around your island!"

"Hmm? Was he accompanied by other members of the Deathless crew?" Toxic asked with sudden interest.

"We don't know for the moment. All we know is that his submarine, the Polar Tang, have been spotted around the zone under your guard."

"And you think he could be in Begin Town?"

"That's possible. We'd like you to check around the city just to be sure. If he's present, arrest him and his accomplices immediately!"

"Okay, I'm on it," Toxic said before hanging the phone and turned toward the NF soldier who waited at the entrance. "Gather all your men; we're going on a patrol around the whole city."

* * *

Meanwhile, back in town, Dominic followed Aqua's directions and arrived in front of a shop which had two pirate swords crossing as a panel. This was probably the Arms Shop Aqua told him. It was only after entering inside that all doubt was cleared from his mind. The shop was filled with all kinds of weapons going from sabers to knight swords, spears, bows and arrows, and even armors.

At the end of the shop was a counter behind which a male flacon with dark brown feathers and noticeable big black eyebrows was sleeping in a sitting position. Probably on a chair or something. Dominic calmly stepped forward and then made his presence known: "I came to see for two sabers."

The falcon suddenly shot awake and, upon seeing his new client, whipped the saliva that drooled on his beak away and putted on a nice smile. "Of course, make your choice, sir. I have no doubt you will find something to please you: we're experts in the sword business since 200 years."

Dominic took out the coin bag Aqua gave him and dropped it on the counter. "I've got a budget of 200 coins. I need two sabers for this amount."

The falcon rose an eyebrow. "Two sabers for 200 coins?" He narrowed his eyes toward the bag. "Not the best client, I see," he mumbled in his head. "For this price, don't expect to get something of big quality."

Dominic just shrugged. "Too bad for me; I must do with what I have."

"Yeah, I see," the seller just sighed with resting his head on one wing. "What an amateur." However, his eyes happened to fall on the saber Dominic was carrying on his back and he suddenly shot them wide open. "T-This saber...?!" He then looked up at Dominic with sweat forming on his forehead. "Excuse-me, c-c-can I see your s-s-saber?"

"Sure, no need to panic for that," Dominic said with a chuckle before taking his saber off and giving it to the falcon who took it in his wings.

He slowly pulled the sword out of its sheath to give a good look at the blade and his eyes shot even wider. "No doubt; that's really it! This lucky boy doesn't even know what kind of sabers he got in his possession! No, I must stay calm." He pulled the sword back into his sheath. "Your saber is not exactly of first choice, but I still like it. I can buy it for 2000 coins which will leave you with 2200 coins. that way, you'll be able to buy three sabers of higher quality."

"Hum?" Dominic crossed his wings. "But I don't want to sell it."

"Oh? Okay, I can go up to 2500 coins. Or 3000?" the seller insisted with a nervous smile. "5000?"

Dominic shook his head. "Sorry, but like I said, I don't want to sell it."

"In that case, 6500, that's the best I can give you," the seller said with his nervous smile turned into a glance of hurry. "Okay, you won! 8000 coins! Are you fine with that?!"

Just then, someone entered the shop and ran at the counter right beside Dominic. This last one turned his head to see who the intruder was. A female eagle with snow white feathers, black wings, talons, tail feathers and beak, yellow facial expressions around her eyes, and a Hawaiian-like vest with little flower patterns.

"Hello!" she beamed. "So you're done with the sword I asked you to sharp?" Her look then turned toward Dominic. "Oh, hello there. Were you making business before me? Sorry. I didn't meant to interrupt..." She immediately stopped talking upon seeing Dominic's saber in the seller's wings. In a flash, she grabbed it into her own wings and looked at in awe. "Impossible! That saber! It looks like the Sabor! Yes, it is!"

Dominic rose an eye brow at the eagle lady. "Sabor?"

The falcon facewinged himself. "Shut up! Shut up!" he panicked in his head.

The young eagle pulled the saber out of the sheath and admired the blade. "What a beautiful saber! I think it's one of the Great Blades! There's only 21 like this in the world!" Pulling the saber back on the counter, she then putted a little notebook out of her vest and started running through the pages which illustrated pictures of katanas and other sabers and swords.

"There it is. And listen to that: it's value is estimated to at least 10,000 coins. Where did you find such a sword?"

The seller suddenly slammed his wing on the counter. "Couldn't you keep it shut?! You just ruined a good deal I was about to make!"

The female eagle looked curiously. "What do you mean? Ruined a deal? Did I said something I shouldn't have?"

"Listen, you came to get back your sword, Shigure, right?" the seller asked with taking a saber out from under his counter. "Well take it and please leave this shop!" he said with throwing the saber in her wings.

The saber, Shigure, was a normal katana with a green handle and a guard with a four-petaled design. The blade itself seemed normal while the sheath was elaborate, with the first half having a green and bumpy design, and the second half being white and smooth. There was circular designs embedded on the entire sheath. "So this girl is a swordsman too?" Dominic concluded.

"Tss," the seller sighed before turning back to Dominic. "You own big one to that woman. But I still think this saber is too important to be used by someone who doesn't even know its name. That's an insult." He then pointed on the other end of the shop where there was three barrels filled with swords. "Go see in those barrels, you,ll find not too costly sabers. Pick up two and leave my shop."

"Okay, no need to go mad," Dominic spat in annoyance as he walked over to the barrels and started checking for sabers.

"Say, you seem to really like swords, if you want to carry three at once," the eagle girl remarked as she walked behind Dominic. "But I'm glad a sword like Sabor ended in the wings of someone like you. I don't know why, but these times, almost all the swordsmen in the world are attracted to evil and become pirates or criminals. And many of the best sabers are in their hands. Those weapons doesn't deserve that."

A smirk formed on Dominic's beak as he kept searching amongst the sabers. "If they chose those paths, maybe they had their reasons. Men just adapt to their lives, you know."

"Anyways, I plan on perfecting my fighting style with Shigure! And then, I'll gather all the best swords in the world that ended in bandits hands. There is 12 First Order Swords, 21 Great Blades, and 50 Higher Quality Sabers. I will take them all back even at the cost of my life!" the eagle girl declared with determination.

Dominic turned to look at her with a smile. This girl had the same determination strength as his four students. And even Blu. "And you're planning on getting this saber back, Sabor right?" he asked with lifting his saber.

At this question, the girl flinched back. "Huh, I never said I wanted them all just for me. I just don't want them to be in bad hands...or wings," she nervously explained.

Dominic just chuckled and resumed his search. Eventually, his wing grabbed one which made him feel something. "Hum? This saber, it's...?" He carefully pulled it out of the barrel to get a good look on it. It was a moderately curved katana with a white edge and a distinct blue hamon that has the appearance of flames. Its tsuba was golden and shaped like a rounded cross pattée; the hilt was wrapped reddish-brown, with a golden clasp around its middle and a golden kashira pommel. The sheath of the sword was deep red and continued the design of the hilt, having two golden clasps in short succession around its middle, and the kojiri end cap also being golden.

As Dominic examined it, the eagle also looked at it and was surprised. "Oh! It's Eau De Mort!" She pulled her notebook out again and found a page with pictures and infos about this Eau De Mort sword. "Yes, there's no doubt, Eau De Mort. The second classed of the Great Blades."

Dominic nodded and looked carefully at the blue hamon blade while the eagle girl turned toward the owner. "Excuse-me, but you're certain to sell this for only 50 coins?"

"Huh, yes?" he nervously replied.

"Then it's totally worth it!" she beamed. "You can buy it; it's a golden opportunity! It's price is estimated to be at least a thousand coins! You cannot miss this!"

"W-Wait!" the seller suddenly called, his face covered of sweat. "I-I can't sell it!"

The eagle girl turned toward him. "And why not? 50 coins for such a saber is unpredictable!"

"No, it has nothing to do," the seller defended.

Dominic made some moves with the katana and grunted as he looked at the blade, tightening his hold on the handle. "This saber is cursed..."

The seller looked at him. "So you knew it..."

"No. I...felt it," Dominic explained without looking away from the sword.

"Every sword in the same lineage as this one are very strong, but also have the particularity of being cursed, all of them, no exception," the seller explained. "All the swordsmen who used them met an atrocious ending. Today, nobody dare using swords in the lineage of Eau De Mort, it's too dangerous. Those swords bear a curse that brings death. I must admit I'd like nothing more than getting rid of it as I'm afraid of being cursed myself."

The eagle girl widened her eyes in surprised and then bowed to Dominic. "I'm sorry for insisting that you buy this saber. I didn't knew it was cursed."

However, Dominic just rose the sword and smirked. "I actually like it. I think I'll buy it."

Needless to say the two others widened their eyes in surprise. "Don't be stupid! No, it is out of question for me to sale it! If you die, I'll never forgive myself!" the falcon protested.

However, Dominic just kept smirking. "Okay, here's what I suggest: my good luck vs this saber's curse. We'll see which's the strongest of both." then, without warning, the golden eagle tossed the cursed sword in the air, making it spin on itself and held his wing right underneath it, waiting for the sword to come down.

"NO!" the seller panicked. "This sword will cut your wing!"

Dominic just closed his eyes, waiting for the result. The sword slowly fell down toward his wing...

SHLING!

Everybody gasped. Dominic opened his eyes...and saw the saber planted into the floor. It had missed his wing.

The golden eagle smirked. "There, I take it."

The seller practically fell on his butt with pure awe in his face. Even the eagle girl couldn't hold back a gasp as Dominic took the saber out of the floor. "Say, could you help me, I also need a second saber," he added.

"Huh, okay," she mumbled with rubbing her forehead.

"Wait!" the seller suddenly said and ran to the back of his shop. He came back moments later with something covered by a blanket. He quickly removed this last one to reveal another saber. A long katana with a black handle. It had a cross-shaped guard and a black lacquered sheath. The blade itself was normal in appearance and its pattern was midareba or irregular pattern.

"This is the Snow Run sword. My shop may not be very big, but this is the best saber I possess."

"That's cool, but like I said, I don't have enough coins," Dominic declared with a firm look.

"It's a gift! Alongside Eau De Mort. See this as an apology for trying to deceive you." The seller then smiled. "Besides, it is said that swords choose their owners. I believe this and wish nothing but luck for you."

And so, it was with a smile that Dominic tied a belt around his waist to strap his two new swords and headed toward the exit. "By the way, you still didn't told me your name," he added to the female eagle before leaving.

"My name? It's Kamiki," she introduced herself with a smile.

"Cool name." He then turned away. "As for me, it's Yusef "Dominic" Saklov."

* * *

 **I think only Dominic can make shopping look this badass, don't you agree?**

 **And now, he's got two new sabers: Eau De Mort & Snow Run!**


	88. Leaving Begin Town

**In the previous chapter, the Colonel Toxic got warned of Aqua's presence in Begin Town and Dominic got two new swords from the Arms Shop.**

* * *

"You heard the colonel?! Go out in those streets and patrol everywhere?" one of the high-ranked NF soldiers ordered the others who ran out of the HQ.

"I think I told you to not scream like a deaf person," the Colonel Toxic remarked from the couch in which he was sitting.

"Huh, yes, sorry, sir," he quickly apologized.

Just then, the door opened and someone came inside. It was none other than the female eagle, Kamiki, who Dominic met at the Arms Shop. "There you are. Where have you been, Kamiki?" the colonel softly asked.

"Sorry, Colonel Toxic, Shigune needed to be sharpened a bit," the female eagle quickly explained.

Before the colonel could respond, the door shut open again. "Colonel Toxic!" shouted another soldier. "We found Aqua's position! He's at the town's port!"

* * *

"Too cool!" Lazaro beamed with enthusiasm, his funny beak filled with fish. "Can you believe all the fish types we found into this market?! And with the money Aqua gave us, we even were able to buy two samples of each!"

Hernandez, who was following his little best friend with many bags filled with fishes on his wings, simply nodded. "Don't you think we should have taken some fruits and vegetables too? the others might not like fish as much as we do."

"Are you kidding? Blu became a plastic bird and Vladimir became hard like rock because they ate strange fruits. Sorry, but I don't want to become a puffin made of lightning or something like that," the puffin protested before swallowing his mouthful. "And besides, there's everything we need in fish for long travel."

* * *

"I can't believe it!"

As he was walking into the streets, Apollo couldn't help but watch his backpack which was now filled with all the new supplies he bought from the weaponry shop. First of all, not only did he get the right material to reproduce more pepper bills, but he even got new types of bills for his slingshot: explosive pellets filled with gunpowder, smoke bombs, flame pallets, pallets containing hot sauce (probably tabasco), and even special pallets containing quills that would spread across the field upon explosion.

He also managed to find a whole belt of ammo for his flare gun and material like wood and steel to craft items. However, the best thing he managed to buy was a pair of sniper goggles. They had sunglasses to eliminate the sun rays when aiming and could also rotate. According to the bird who sold him the kit, they allowed to aim and shoot like a true sniper. Luckily for Apollo, they were on sale. He was currently wearing them proudly around his cap on his head. the others were going to be impressed!

* * *

Back To Blu's group, they visited the town's center and not only did they admire the beautiful city (so beautiful that Blu and Jewel couldn't resist the urge to snuggle and even share a kiss), but they were also lucky enough to find some shops offering a few interesting stuff.

"I still don't understand why Aqua insisted on us buying clothes though," Lilly remarked as they walked. Indeed, at her brother's demand, the group bought clothes for every member of the group, though they didn't knew why.

"Maybe the sea climate will get colder as we advance through the New World," Sky suggested with a shrug. "It's probably to keep us warm."

"Yeah, probably."

"And look what I managed to put my wing on," Jewel happily said with showing her new compass. It was round-shaped and filled with water and had a needle pointing in the directions marked underneath it. "With this little pompass or something, I'll always know where is the north."

 **(Let's be honest, Jewel and her tribe don't know what a compass is.)**

"It's called a compass, Jewel," Blu corrected before smiling. "But that's a smart choice: this kind of tool is actually very helpful to navigate in sea." Jewel pulled her smart bird closer and kissed him on the cheek, making him blush bashfully. "Okay, I think we did enough tourism. Let's go back at the Polar Tang. The others are probably waiting for us there."

And he was right. After walking all the way back to the Polar Tang, they found that their friends had all came back to the ship and were now chatting among themselves. The first conversation they heard was between Alex and Vladimir.

"So you found everything you needed at the medical shop, little Al?" Vladimir asked his little friend.

"Yes. I was surprised to found some much useful stuff for such a little prices," the snowy owl responded before noticing his friends returned. "Oh, hey guys!"

"You found everything you wanted?" Aqua asked as he advanced toward them.

"We didn't searched for anything in particular, but we found a compass and some clothes, like you asked us to." Blu then rose an eye brow. "Speaking of which, why did you really insisted for us to take clothes?"

Aqua just gave him one of his usual smiles. "You'll know soon enough. Trust me, it will be useful."

"ALL OF YOU! HALT!"

The group froze and turned their head to see a group of NF soldiers arriving their way. To Blu and Jewel's surprise, they were led by the strange bird wearing a gaz mask they met earlier in the streets.

"Who's that guy?" Lazaro asked, tensing and getting ready to fight.

"We know that guy!" Blu exclaimed. "It's him who told the girls and I how to get to the town's center!"

The masked bird just narrowed his eyes at the group, more specifically at Aqua. "So you guys are with Water "Aqua" Law after all. Hmm, I should have arrested you when I had the chance."

Dominic stepped beside Blu, ready to fight with his new swords, when he noticed a pretty interesting detail. Beside the Colonel Toxic was standing none other than Kamiki, the female eagle he met in the Arms Shop, the one who gave him valuable infos about the swords he bought. She showed an expression as surprised as his upon spotting him.

"M-Mr. Dominic?! What are you doing here?" She then looked at him and Aqua multiple times before it clicked in her head. "I-It can't be! You're not actually with Aqua are you?!"

"It seems like it," Dominic replied with a simple shrug.

"Guys!" Aqua called. "Those guys are the Naval Forces I talked to you about! They're our enemies! So don't go easy on them!"

"I'm taking Aqua down! You take care of the other ones!" Colonel Toxic ordered his men who all obeyed and charged with swords to attack the group.

"YOU WON'T GET THIS LITTLE FIGHTER!" Lazaro shouted with jumping and delivering a strong kick in a soldier's face.

With the battle engaged and our feathered friends fighting off the surprisingly numerous NF soldiers, everyone scattered a bit everywhere, turning it into a brawl. In the middle of it, Kamiki pushed a battle cry and swung her Shigure sword at Dominic who blocked with his new Eau De Mort in one wing.

The two eagles glared into each other's eyes before breaking contact. Dominic was the one to launch the next attack which got blocked by Kamiki. His beak twisted into a smirk as the female eagle's glare became even bigger. "Hold on, Yusef! I'm coming!" Vladimir called as he smashed a soldier away with his stone wing.

"Stay out of this, please!" Kamiki suddenly asked, making the bigger golden eagle stop. "This is a match between Dominic and myself!"

"You heard her, Vladimir," Dominic said without even turning to look at his comrade. "Go help the others! I'm taking her on!"

Nodding, Vladimir returned into the brawl, leaving the two eagles to have their duel. "Sergeant Major Kamiki!" one of the soldiers beamed with a smile. Probably was he thinking that she was going to easily defeat the new outlaw.

Oh, how wrong was she.

Still holding Eau De Mort in one wing, Dominic used his other one to reach and pull out Snow Run and then swung it at Kamiki. The eagle girl had no choice but to step back and block each of Dominic's attacks with her sword. Unfortunately, this left her with little to no room to fight back and she ended up being cornered against a wall. This gave Dominic the chance to knock her sword out of her wings, leaving her helpless.

He held his two swords under her chin and looked into her terrified face. "I can never lose those swords. No matter what." He then putted them away and started walking away from the defeated eagle girl.

"Sergeant Major Kamiki lost...," one of the NF soldiers said in shock.

The female eagle suddenly glared at Dominic and shouted: "Why didn't you killed me?! I might be a girl, but that doesn't mean you must spare me! It's humiliating!"

Dominic stopped walking and turned his head toward her. "It's simple, isn't it? The reason I don't kill you is that I'm planning to become the best swordsman in the world. And if I was to get as low as killing an helpless person like you, I'll never reach my goal." He then turned his head again. "Sorry, I know you don't like to know precious sabers like mine are in the possession of an outlaw, but you'll have to deal with it."

* * *

Colonel Toxic narrowed his eyes toward Aqua who remained behind the fight. "Alright, Water "Aqua" Law. You will be the first but not the last of the Deathless Crew to be arrested." He started running toward him, only for Blu to get in his way.

"I won't let you touch my brother!" he declared with getting into a fighting stance.

This statement caused Toxic to give him a confused eye brow. "What do you say? Your brother?"

"Yes! I'm Tyler "Blu" Gunderson! The one who will become the strongest bird in the world someday! And you won't touch my brother!" Blu repeated and curled his wing like a fist before throwing it at the colonel.

His attack actually connected with the yellow bird and even pierced through him...but that wasn't the strangest part. The strangest part was that the piece of body Toxic lost reformed itself with greenish yellow smoke. What the hell?!

"H-How'd he do that?!" Blu asked with his eyes wide open.

"Unfortunately for you, I ate a Magical Fruit," the colonel explained and then rose one wing which turned into yellow smoke. "I'm a bird made of smoke. And from the move you just pulled off, I can say you ate one too. So you can stretch your body at will?"

"I see," Aqua mumbled. "He ate a Logia type fruit."

Blu turned his head toward his brother. "Logia?"

"There is three known types of Magical Fruit: Pharmacia, the most commun type of the three. Paramecia-type Magical Fruits offer their users superhuman physical abilities or traits, such as shock wave generation and locking onto targets. Other Magical Fruits can alter features of the body such as a rubber physique or a body of blades, or the birds, objects, and environment around the user, like levitating objects or turning people into toys. Finally, there are some users that can manipulate and generate some kinds of substances, such as wax and poison."

"The second type is Zoan. The users of Zoan-type Magical Fruits gain the ability to transform into an animal (and acquire every trait affiliated with said animal). The user can also transform into a human-animal hybrid form or a twin-beast hybrid. Zoan Fruits can also be transferred into weapons, such as guns or swords. There are Zoan Magical Fruits based not only on common animals, but also on prehistoric animals like dinosaurs and mythological creatures as well (ancient and mythological are rarer than the typical Zoan Fruit, with mythological said to be even rarer than Logia Magical Fruits)."

"And finally, the last type is Logia. The rarest of the three Magical Fruit types, Logia-type Magical Fruits offer their users the ability to transform themselves into an element, whether it be solid elements like ice or sand, liquids like mud or syrup, gases like fire, smoke and poison gas, energy like lightning, or into a materialization of abstract concepts such as darkness. This can effectively make them intangible, making physical attacks harmlessly go through them, or allow them to be able to absorb the attack completely. They also gain every ability related to that element (such as in the case of sand where moisture can be absorbed or lightning where the user can travel through objects like electricity does) and gain the skill to disperse, control, and rejoin any part of their bodies while conscious and in control of their powers (including explosions, bullet wounds or cuts). Logia users can move every part of their transformed bodies while in element form."

Blu absorbed all the details Aqua just told him in his mind. "So my Magical Fruit is Pharmacia type?"

"Yes, and so is mine." He then narrowed his eyes at Toxic. "And judging by his powers, it looks like this guy's fruit is a Logia-type. This isn't gonna be easy."

"You said it!" Toxic said with rising his wings. "Toxic Beam!" His wings turned into greenish yellow smoke and turned into a beam which flew right at Blu, knocking him back and making him fall on his back.

Refusing to give up, the spix macaw immediately got back up after brushing the pain off and got on the offensive. "FIST STORM!" Swinging his wings at full speed like a gatling, Blu hit Toxic over and over again, but his wings just kept making holes into his smoke body which reformed immediately after.

Eventually, the colonel turned his whole body into smoke which flew behind Blu before reforming himself. Before Blu could react, he grabbed his head with his bigger wing and slammed it on the ground, sending a big jolt of pain through Blu's brain.

"You can't touch me!" he growled while pinning Blu's head on the ground. "You, the strongest bird in the world? While you can't even touch me? Stop dreaming, kid."

Luckily, Aqua jumped in action just in time by slamming his jitte sword across his face so hard that he was sent flying and crashed into a pile of wooden box. "Everyone! Get back on the Polar Tang! We're leaving right now!" Aqua ordered as he helped his brother back up.

Luckily, the others were done with all the NF soldiers and managed to catch up with the two macaws on the submarine. "Everyone get inside! We're going underwater!" Aqua ordered as he ran into the Polar Tang and at the control board. He pressed on the buttons to turn the machines back on and started driving away from Begin Town's port. Once they were far enough, Aqua pulled the leveler down and the submarine plunged underwater.

"Oh! We're underwater!" Hernandez exclaimed as he looked outside by the submarine's windows.

"What did you though? It's a submarine, big guy," Lazaro remarked as he jumped on his friend's shoulder.

"They shouldn't be able to follow us while we're hiding underwater. We should be safe for now," Aqua said as he kept controlling the submarine.

* * *

Back to the surface, Kamiki rushed to help her colonel getting back up. "Colonel Toxic! Is everything alright?"

The colonel just scoffed behind his mask and rubbed his cheek. "No, Kamiki. I'm not going alright at all. No pirate has ever escaped this island since I was in charge of it. I can't let this group led by Water "Aqua" Law escape. Prepare the ship; we're leaving to go after those outlaws!"


	89. Humanized

**Previously, our heroes escaped Colonel Toxic's forces and officially started their journey on the New World's path to the Treasure Planet.**

* * *

Once they were certain to have escaped the Naval Forces, Aqua brought the Polar Tang back to the surface. Things were back once again...well, they were for a few minutes before things changed for the worst. Believe it or not, but the sky turned dark and it actually started snowing over the submarine.

"I can't believe it!" Jewel exclaimed as she shivered from the cold air. "The weather was perfectly warm a few moments ago and then just like this, we're back at the ice age!"

"That's very strange, I agree," Blu said as he wrapped his wings protectively around his girlfriend to keep her warm. "The climate shouldn't just change like that. Looks like Sky was right about the cooler climate and why Aqua insisted on us buying clothes."

The couple's attention then turned to the other side of the deck where Apollo and Alex were taking benefit of the snow to have a little snow ball fight. "Eat that!" Alex shouted and threw a snow ball at Apollo whop easily ducked it.

"Not bad, but watch this!" The barn owl grabbed a smaller snowball that fitted into his slingshot and shot it directly into the snowy owl's beak, making roll back. He giggled.

"Oh, you're pay for that!" Eating a Balloon Candy, the bird kid turned into a balloon and started rolling in the snow and became a huge rolling snowball chasing after Apollo who started running away in fear while shouting that it wasn't part of the game.

"How can these two have so much energy when everything's so cold?" Jewel asked with a trembling voice.

"Well, Alex's a snowy owl. And for Apollo...well, I don't know," Blu admitted with a chuckle.

"Well, I'm not bothered at all!" Lazaro called from the other side as he threw some snow overboard with a shovel. Aqua asked him and Hernandez to put some of the snow away as he didn't wanted his decks to get overrun.

"That's because you're a puffin, dude," Hernandez calmly pointed without stopping doing his work.

And yet, the oddest part remained Dominic. The golden eagle was currently resting against the submarine's wall, taking a nap and snoring loudly. The others truly couldn't understand how he could simply sleep like this with the winter cold. Well, it's not like the golden eagle was easy to understand at all.

Suddenly, before Jewel could make another complaint about the weather, the air suddenly felt warmer and the sky above them cleared up, allowing the sun to shine once again. It was as if time passed from summer to winter and then to spring in a matter of minutes. "Can someone explain me what the hell is going on?" Jewel asked.

As the snow melted and the time got warmer, the group of birds couldn't help but imitate their golden eagle friend and lay down for a little nap on the deck. As if on cue, said golden eagle pushed a yawn and stretched as he woke up. That was when he noticed all the others laying down on the decks.

"Huh, guys? I know it's a good time, but you're really letting yourselves go, big lazy," he commented, not having a clue on what happened.

Jewel suddenly jumped and smashed him on top of the head with her wing. "Shut up! How dare you say that?! You slept the whole time while we were working our butts off the clean the snow on the decks!"

Dominic rubbed the pain off his head before looking at the female macaw. "What are you talking about? Snow?"

Just then, Aqua came out of the Polar Tang's control room. "The New World's climate is unpredictable. We never know what to expect from the time. It can get very hot or cold, heck, it can even get misty or dark at any moment." He then dropped the clothes they bought from Begin Town. "Now, I'd get ready to put these on if I were you."

This caused the others to look curiously at the spix macaw. "Huh, why? It's gonna get cold again?" Vladimir asked.

Before Aqua could answer them, the whole group started feeling weird, as if something was changing. "Huh, I'm feeling...strange," Blu said with rubbing his hand against his forehead.

...Wait a minute. His hand? His _hand_?!

"What the...?! My wings became hand!" he exclaimed upon looking at his new features. His look then trailed down on the rest of his body and he let out a big gasp. His spix macaw body turned into a human-shaped one. With the abdominal muscles, arms and long legs. He even had the...attraits that only humans had. His body was slender, but he sure looked good. But he still immediately covered his new parts with his hands in embarrassment.

"What the hell happened to us?!" Blu looked up to see that the very same thing happened to his friends. Dominic took the shape of a slightly muscled man, though not as big and though as Vladimir and Hernandez, and Alex and Lazaro became slightly taller, but were still the small ones of the group. Though for some reasons Alex kept his wings and Lazaro kept his flippers. As for Jewel...well, she now had a curvy figure and traits that would catch the attention of any man. Blu immediately found himself blushing and looking away from his girlfriend.

"That's one of the New World's particularity." Everyone turned to see Aqua finishing putting on a pair of blue jeans with a yellow zipped hoodie with his jitte sword tied to his back. "There are some zones that are affected by a spell that turn animals into human forms. Or "anthros" as we call them. This is why I wanted you to buy clothes. you should put them on before we get to the next island."

He didn't had to ask it twice as the birds putted on the clothes scattered on the floor. Blu's clothes consisted of slightly loose green pants which were being held by a rope tied around his waist and an open green jacket. Luckily, his feet remained like bird's and so he didn't needed boots or socks.

Dominic only putted on a pair of black trousers with the belts holding his swords on his hips and back. Apollo putted on handyman overalls with his backpack still tied to his back and his new goggles on his neck. For Alex, it was just little red shorts with his pannier resting on his hip. Lazaro putted on the same thing, but in orange.

Hernandez putted on blue jeans with a purple shirt that left his strong arms exposed and Vladimir wore the same thing, but with with a red buttoned vest. For Jewel, it was a pink top with brown shorts. She grunted a bit as it was the first time she putted on clothes and it felt weird to her. Actually, it was the first time for everyone.

Lilly putted on a purple shirt with knee-length shorts and Skyler putted on a black hoodie with a pair of grey joggings. That way, everyone was now clothed. And just in time, the next island was starting to get into view.

As they got closer, they saw that it looked like a rocky island with a river passing in the middle of it and, to their surprise, giant cactus overing it. "My friends, welcome to the Cactus Peaks!" Aqua announced.


	90. Party night at Cactus Peaks

"Strange island. I've never seen anything like this," Lazaro remarked as the Polar Tang was approaching the Cactus Peaks.

"I see huge cactus!" Blu pointed out.

"That's why it's called like that," Aqua remarked with a chuckle. "We're gonna follow this river; it should lead us to a landing point."

"I just hope we won't meet up with monsters in there," Apollo said while trembling nervously.

"It can happen; we're in the New World, everything's possible" Aqua responded while still looking forward.

Dominic suddenly narrowed his head in a direction and putted his wing on his sword. Vladimir noticed it. "What's wrong, Yusef?"

"Somebody's watching us," he mumbled. Indeed, a little mist formed upon their arrival and they could distinguish some figures standing on the land around them. "Those are people..."

The others also noticed it and got ready for the worst. "Reassure me Aqua; those people are nice and friendly right?" Apollo asked as he took out his slingshot.

"I honestly have no idea Apollo. It's the first time I see people as it was desert when I first came through," Aqua responded with taking out his jitte sword.

However, once the mist cleared out, it revealed tens of anthropomorphic birds and other animals cheering loudly in joy and wishing welcome to the newcomers. "Welcome, my friends!", "We're glad to see you in our city!", "Hello, we know how to receive pirates!"

Apollo putted his slingshot down and gave a dumbfounded look. "Huh...this has nothing to do with monsters. Those people look like they're actually happy to see us."

"What's going on here?" Lilly asked before turning toward Aqua. "Are you a celebrity and you forgot to tell us?"

"Not that I know."

When they finally found a spot to moor the submarine, the group of birds came down on land and were greeted by the townspeople. They noticed that the houses of the island were square-shaped and made of rock, like in desert cities. The first person to greet them was some kind of black wolf dressed in a blue shirt and shorts who gave them a big smile.

"Greetings, my friends and welcome to Cactus Peaks. I am Iagram, this town's mayor and our hospitality is our greatest proudness." He the noticed that the whole group of birds looked at him with odd looks. "Is there a problem?"

"Huh, it's the first time we meet a wolf that can talk," Blu pointed out.

"I forgot to tell you," Aqua suddenly said, "in the New World, there is not only birds, but also all other species of animals. Like wolves."

"What good wind brings you in our humble city?" the wolf, Iagram, asked.

"We're going to the New World to find a treasure," Alex responded.

"To find a treasure? There, there, why don't you rest a bit before going to business?" Iagram asked with wrapping a wing around Blu. "I'm certain you must all be tired. Listen to me, everyone! Tonight, we will hold a feast for our new guests!"

This announcement caused the whole town to cheer in joy.

* * *

Later on, as night time came, everyone was gathered in the town's bar with the party going all out. Musicians were playing music out loud as everyone danced, ate and drank beer.

"...And it was at this moment that I finished the queen off with my all powerful valerian sledgehammer!" Apollo concluded the story of his "great accomplishments" to a bunch of girls in a couch.

"Oh my gosh, Apollo! You're such a brave bird!" the girls beamed in admiration for the barn owl.

"They're not really buying in these stories?" Jewel sighed. "I know they technically happened, but they way he's telling them sounds like he was the only hero in the whole story."

"Here, milady," Iagram said with handing a glass of beer to Jewel. "This beverage is delicious."

"Huh, thanks, but I don't drink alcohol," she politely denied with shaking her wings.

"Do not worry; this is a special drink made of the finest grapes on our island. It taste like wine, but there is not one drop of alcohol in it," the wolf assured his guest.

Jewel looked at her glass and carefully picked it in her wings, lifting it to her beak and took a little sip of it. Her eyes shot open and she drank all of it in one gulp. "My gosh! This is absolutely delicious!"

"We had a particularly good harvest this year," Iagram said with a smile. "And now, may the drinking contest begin!" he announced and everyone around suddenly started drinking their glass. "It's a contest with a special reward for the winner. I hope you'll all be participating?"

"Huh, not thanks, I'm not that much of a drinker," Jewel denied once again.

"Did I mention there is a reward of 2000 coins?"

"Alright then! We all participate!" Aqua announced with rising his glass and started drinking. Clearly, he only needed money to be convinced.

"Here, have one glass too, kid!" some flamenco said with giving a glass of wine to Alex.

"Oh, okay. Thanks," the little kid took the glass and was about to take a sip of it, when Lazaro saw him and quickly snapped it out of his wings. "Hey! That's mine! Got get yourself one!"

"You can't drink that, Alex! That's for adults!" the puffin stopped his friend and began drinking the wine himself. "You'll understand when you'll be older," he added, making the kid look curiously at his puffin friend.

"Oh my gosh! Nothing can stop him! He's already at his 14th glass!" Everybody turned to see Hernandez calmly drinking a glass of wine, with many empty ones laying around him. This caused Lazaro to spit out the wine he drank.

"H-How can you drink so much and stay so calm?!"

"Dunno," he simply replied and kept drinking.

"Wow! Your friend sure is impressive, Blu!" Aqua beamed but got no answer. "Blu?" Turning his head, he saw with surprise that his three siblings were eating like pigs in a pile of pizzas.

"I can't believe they actually got pizzas in here!" Lilly beamed as she stuffed one point in her beak.

"Sparky should have came; he would have been in a dream," Sky added as she finished eating her own point.

"I never pizzas before as it's human food, but now I wish I would have done it sooner!" Blu added as he ate with little to no manners at all which wasn't like him.

Aqua just shrugged and continued the drinking contest against Dominic and Vladimir. Iagram laughed of good heart. "You have no idea how happy I am to see you having fun!" A little smirk then formed in the corner of his mouth. "Yes, you have no idea."

* * *

"Okay, I had enough...Need...to sleep..." Later on, Dominic stopped at his 20th glass and fell asleep on the table before him.

"Y-You weak, d-dude!" Aqua giggled, his face all red from drinking too much.

Not too far, Blu collapsed on the floor next to his sisters. His plastic belly was round and big like a balloon. "Can't...swallow...anything else..." Closing his eyes, he fell asleep, snoring next to his two sisters.

At the same time, Aqua won the contest as he was the last one standing, all the others having fallen asleep. "I WON! GIMMETHEMONEY!" he shouted out loud before collapsing and falling asleep on the ground as well.

Iagram smirked. He then left the bar and joined all the other citizens outside. "So they finally fell asleep?" one asked.

"Yes; the drinks and food finally took them down. Well safe for the kids. He fell asleep because it's past midnight," Iagram explained.

"I don't understand why we had to do this whole party thing. Couldn't we simply have take them all on?" another citizen asked.

The wolf took out a paper from his shirt. It had a picture of Aqua with a big A marked underneath it. "No because they are with Water "Aqua" Law of the Deathless Crew."

Everyone was surprised. "Oh my gosh! An A-rank class pirate?! I-I didn't expected that at all!"

"Me neither." Iagram putted the wanted poster away. "Go check on their ship to see if there's anything valuable."

"What about the crew?"

"If we bring back an A-rank class pirate to the Naval Forces, they'll give us a big reward. So tie them all while they're sleeping and we'll bring them alive," Iagram instructed and was about to leave.

"Huh, sorry to disrupt you, but I don't agree with this at all."

Everyone froze on the spot and slowly rose their head toward the source of the voice. They saw none other than Dominic standing on top of an house with the full moon shining behind him which was half-hiding his unhappy glare.

"You better just let them sleep. The journey to get here was very tiring for them."

"B-But that's impossible! you were one of the firsts to fall asleep!" Iagram exclaimed.

"A true swordsman never let his guard down under any circumstance." The golden eagle then narrowed his eyes over all the citizens who were armed with guns, knives, swords, etc. "So, if I got it correctly, this is a bounty hunter lair, right? You're stealing pirates going through here as they don't suspect you."

He then scoffed. "Well, I'm not gonna be impressed by a hundred bounty hunters. I AM YOUR OPPONENT!" He took out two sabers in his wings and putted the third one in his beak. "I'm finally gonna have the chance to try my new Three Sabers Style!"

* * *

 **The next chapter's gonna be filled with action as Dominic takes on a hundred bounty hunters with his three sabers.**

 **I'd like to take this moment to underline that not only is this the 90th chapter, but this story also reached 270 reviews, making it my most successful story ever! Special thanks to:**

 **-Rio2lover100**

 **-JamesonThePhoenixOwl**

 **-Dextrouscloth31**

 **-Loco Vampire**

 **-Skyler The Elf Owl**

 **-Jameson The Phoenix Owl**

 **-Ricardo The Black Hawk**

 **YOU GUYS ROCK!**


	91. Blu vs Dominic

"Since you know our true intentions," Iagram said, "we have no choice but to kill you. SLAY HIM DOWN!"

However, right after giving the order, the golden eagle mysteriously disappeared from the rooftop he was on moments ago. All the bounty hunters looked in awe and confusion. "Huh?! Where'd he go?!"

"Wanna start?" Everybody jumped as they realized Dominic was standing amongst them as if he was part of the crowd.

"SHOOT HIM DOWN!" Rising their guns, the hunters started shooting at the golden eagle...but the bullets only collided into all the hunters who were nearby as their target once again disappeared in a split-second.

Iagram looked in shock and horror at the corpse on the ground. "T-They killed each other!" He groaned. "How can he move so fast?!"

He suddenly felt the cold metal of Dominic's blade against his neck, causing him to freeze on the spot. He didn't made the slightest move as Dominic calmly rested against his back while holding his Snow Run sword at his neck.

"Unlike what you think, I'm not that fast; it's just you and your little pups who are slow like snails," the golden eagle whispered with venom in his voice. "Now i got a few questions for you; first, how can so many bounty hunters get along on such a small island? Knowing this kind of people, you should have all killed each other for a long time."

"I-It's because we are a group working together for a big organization! Booty Works!" Iagram quickly said.

"Booty Works?" Dominic asked, though it was a bit hard to talk with the saber he was holding in his beak.

The wolf nodded before suddenly grabbed a wooden machine-gun from his shirt and shot at the golden eagle who managed to move out of the way in time and run into hiding once again before he could be touched.

"You should give up! You don't stand a chance against all of us! Spread around and find him!" Iagram ordered as the hunters ran everywhere.

Meanwhile, Dominic watched, hiding behind a street corner. His gaze slowly lowered down on his two new swords. "The sabers I got from Begin Town, Eau De Mort and Snow Run. This is my chance to try you for the first time."

"GOTCHA!" a bounty hunter suddenly jumped out of nowhere and shot at Dominic, forcing him to roll inside the house he was hiding behind by the door.

The problem didn't stopped there as more hunters arrived at the windows and started shooting, forcing him to hide behind a wooden table. "Okay, I'm gonna try Snow run first," Dominic mumbled under the sound of gunshots before grabbing his new sword, swiftly cutting the table in two, and then rushing to cut down the hunters with such speed that they barely understood what happened.

"Good to move, light, a great saber," Dominic remarked with a smirk before running away from more hunters and jumping up on a rooftop.

There, one of them tried to surprise him with a little bazooka shot to the face which he ducked in time, letting it explode into the other house. Jumping forward, he once again used Snow Run to cut down the four hunters in a split-second before they could attack again.

Another hunter arrived with a sledgehammer which Dominic easily cut in half with Eau De Mort before kicking him away. "I cut this rock in two almost without wanting to. What an extraordinary blade! Eau De Mort is really cursed, but I didn't expected it to have so much cut behind its blade!" he remarked with looking at his cursed sword.

Once he was done admiring his cursed sword, the golden eagle noticed more bounty hunters rushing on the roof, forcing him to climb another ladder which led him on the higher he could get. He tried to fly of, but to his surprise, his wings couldn't take him off the floor. "Darn it! Looks like becoming anthro made me loose my flying capacity."

As more bounty hunters climbed up the ladder, Dominic greeted them by pushing the ladder off, sending them to fall below. "Seriously, you don't need to see Lord Of The Rings to know the defender will push the ladder off as you climb it up," he sarcastically remarked.

He then took momentum before jumping to the other rooftop where bounty others waited for him with guns. He decided to rise his two swords and came up with a new technique. "DEMON WINGS!" Swinging both sabers, he sent a shockwave that sent the hunters to fall off the roof.

Another one arrived with pushing a battle cry with a mace. However, Dominic just slammed him across the face with the flat side of his sword and said: "Shut up." The bounty hunters all tried to attack Dominic, only to get slaughtered down as soon as they landed on the roof. Before long, they were all laying down, defeated.

Dominic jumped down from the rooftop and walked toward a visibly terrified Iagram. He putted his machine-gun down and bowed kneeled his four limbs. "Please! Don't kill me! You can have our prisoner if that's what you want!"

Dominic just gave a curious look while pointing Eau De Mort at the wolf who was begging for his life. "Prisoner? Who are you talking about?"

Iagram just pointed at a little house close to their position. Curious, Dominic stepped toward said house while holding Eau De Mort toward the wolf and Snow Run ready to counter in case this would be a trap. There was no window, so he had no choice but to carefully open the door with one foot.

What he saw was rather...odd. The house was completely empty with nothing but two bound persons. One of them was a female parakeet with light blue feathers. Some of her head feathers were spike-shaped and aiming toward the sky while the ones resting on the back of her head and neck were mixed in colors, going from pink to purple to dark and light blue. She too was anthropomorphic, except that her arms had the same mix of colored feathers as her head ones, starting from her wrists to her elbows. She was wearing red shorts and a blue tank top that exposed her hourglass figure. She also had a yellow beak and purple eyes. Overall, she was pretty much a beautiful bird.

As for the other one, his appearance was rather odd. A large yellow duck with an orange beak. He was unusually big, but not anthro like the others. He was wearing a green chullo on his back as well as orange goggles on his forehead and some kind of little wooden barrel tied around his neck.

As the two birds squirmed in their bounds while trying to speak through the gags tied around their beak, Dominic couldn't help but turn toward Iagram and ask, "Who those guys?"

"It's our prisoners I talked about! You can have them! But please don't kill me!" he kept begging on his limbs.

Shrugging, Dominic dragged the two prisoners out of the house and swiftly swung his sword to cut them free from their bounds. The avians stood up and rubbed their wings/hands in relief. "Thanks for saving us. They've been keeping us in there for a full day," the lady parakeet sighed.

"And who are you exactly?" Dominic asked, not letting his guard down.

The duck replied with a quacking. "Hum, what?" Dominic asked in confusion.

"His name is 1-2-3 Coin," the parakeet explained. "He doesn't talk like you and I; his vocabulary is limited to quacking. I'm princess Chuva," she introduced herself.

"You're a princess?" Dominic turned around to see none other than Aqua arriving.

"Aqua? You're already awake?"

"Yeah; I didn't drank too much as I found it suspicious for a group of people on an island making so much buzz just for a group of pirates," Aqua explained before turning his gaze to Iagram. "Back to the main topic, what's this Booty Works exactly?"

The wolf answered without even looking up. "It's a secret criminal organization. No member knows the boss' identity; their work consists to spy, assassinate, steal, or just bounty hunting. They obey blindly to the chief."

Aqua frowned. "I don't understand how people could obey without questioning someone they never met or even saw at all."

"Booty Works aim for an ultimate goal," Iagram continued, "The creation on ideal state. Those who make the best work will get a special position in the new El Dorado that the boss is planning to institute. Our boss is known under the name Zero."

"DOMINIC!"

Everybody turned around to see none other than Blu arriving in running pace. The golden eagle he called for smiled. "Blu! You arrive a bit late, but don't worry. We already took care of those guys." However, his happy face turned upside down as he noticed a bothering detail: Blu seemed to be angry. "Huh, is there a problem?"

Using his momentum, the spix macaw shot his wing forward and actually smashed Dominic in the face, sending him to crash into an house's wall. Needles to say Aqua was completely shocked to see his brother do that.

"I'LL NEVER FORGIVE YOU! GET UP AND FIGHT LIKE A MAN!" Blu shouted in anger as his wing came back.

"Hey! What are you doing?!" Dominic asked as he weakly stood up and rubbed the pain off his face. "I don't understand what you're-"

"Shut up! You're gonna pay for what you did to those people!" Blu angrily declared with pointing at all the bounty hunters laying around everywhere. "Those people welcomed us , gave us drink, food and even a place to sleep! AND YOU, YOU JUST GET THEM INTO A MASSACRE!"

"Huh, yes I did, but-" Dominic tried to explain.

"You're gonna pay for that!" Blu cut him off.

Dominic frowned. "Are you gonna listen to me?! Those guys were bounty hunters-"

"I don't want to hear it!" And with that, he shot his wings at the golden eagle who swiftly dodged it. Not giving up, he kept shooting and swinging his plastic limbs at his former friend who just dodged, not wanting to harm him in any way.

Eventually, he had enough and kicked his friend under the beak to knock him back. "That's enough, Blu! If you try to kill me, I'll have no choice but to fight back!"

Blu didn't listened and threw his wings backward. "POWER SLAM!"

Dominic groaned and took his new saber sin his wings. "Okay, that's enough! DEMON WINGS!"

The two attacks collided, creating a huge shockwave that made the wind fly around hard. After that, both birds engaged a close combat. Blu swung his plastic limbs at Dominic who dodged and fought back with his swords which Blu also managed to dodge. In the midst of the confusion, Iagram saw an opportunity. "It's my chance to take them down!" he said with lifting his machine-gun, ready to take them down.

However, before he could shoot, a plastic wing smashed him in the face and a sword cut slashed through his shoulder, knocking him down.

"Shut up! You're disturbing our fight!" Blu and Dominic said at unison.

* * *

 **Oh my gosh! Blu engaged Dominic in a fight by misunderstanding. Will someone stop it before one of them get killed?**

 **Also, Chuva belongs to my DevianArt friend Navel-HMO. I really found her cute and asked him to include her in my story. You can go find a drawing of her on the site.**


	92. Chuva joins! Back to the sea!

**In the previous chapter, Dominic used his new sabers to defeat the bounty hunters of Booty Works and free a princess called Chuva as well as her friend, 1-2-3 Coin. However, Blu then attacked him as he misunderstood the situation.**

* * *

Blu and Dominic panted from exhaustion in the middle of the village and under the full moon. They were covered of dirt and blood from their duel. "Let's finish this!" Dominic said to which Blu nodded.

Both birds charged with a battle cry, looking to finish the other off...when Aqua suddenly jumped in to punch the two of them in the face, knocking them to the ground. "ARE YOU TWO DONE YET?!" He waited for them to get back up before making things clear for his brother. "Blu! Those people Dominic killed were bounty hunters who trapped us in this own in hopes of stealing everything we had! Dominic simply took them down out of self-defense! As your brother, I can swear to you it's true!"

Blu widened his eyes in utter shock. his gaze slowly turned toward Dominic. "Is it true?"

"Of course! That's what I've been trying to tell you from the start, you moron!" Dominic exclaimed with slapping his blue friend on the head.

Blu was feeling a huge regret. He attacked the first ever friend he made and the one who always stood by his side no matter what simply because he though that he killed some random strangers in cold blood. "O-Oh my god, Dominic! I-I'm so sorry!"

The golden eagle just sighed and rubbed the back of his head. "Just listen to wait I have to say the next time you want to attack me alright?" Blu was glad his good old eagle pal didn't held a grudge against him.

Aqua chuckled. "While you two were fighting, I was having a good negotiation with our young princess," he said with turning toward Chuva. "So, as I was saying, Princess, we can assure your protection for ten thousand gold coins. trust me, that's a good deal."

The beautiful parakeet looked at the spix macaw before gazing down. "I refuse." This answer surprised Aqua. "I thank you for saving me, but we'll stay there."

"But ten thousand coins shouldn't be too much for you. I mean, you're a princess, right?" Aqua asked.

Chuva rose her head again. "Do you know the Sequin Kingdom?"

"Huh...no?" Aqua admitted.

Chuva looked down again. "It was one of the most civilized countries of the New World. Peace ruled there, once in a time."

Aqua rose an eye brow. "Once in a time? What about now?"

"We're in the middle of a civil war. For many years, a revolutionary movement has been happening. Riots happened and the country started fading into chaos." The parakeet then hardened her fists. "One day, I heard about a criminal organization called Booty Works! I heard they were the ones inciting the people to revolt. But I couldn't get any more informations."

"And so, I found a way to infiltrate the organization in hopes of finding who their boss is."

"Wow," Dominic exclaimed with an impressed look. "For a princess, you don't seem to back up from anything. But did you learn anything about their motivations?"

Chuva nodded. "Their leader says he wants to form an ideal state. But his intentions are completely different; he just wants to overthrow the Sequin Kingdom. I must quickly return home and end those riots before it's too late."

Aqua looked down. "I see. If your kingdom is at war, there there must not be a lot of money left. I can forget about my ten thousand coins."

Blu slapped his brother on the shoulder for thinking about money in such a situation before turning back to Chuva. "But tell me, you don't know who's responsible for all this?"

The parakeet widened her eyes and shook her hands. "No! I-I can't tell you! Your lives would be in danger!"

Aqua chuckled. "You're right; this guy wants to take a whole country down, so I only guess it must be some blood thirsty freak."

"Exactly," Chuva confirmed. "You might be strong, but you don't stand a chance against the Seven Warlords and specially not against Risky Boots!"

Right after she finished her sentence, silence fell on the four birds. Aqua was frozen like a statue and looked at the princess with his eyes wide open. It took him 30 seconds before talking again: "W-W-Wait a sec! Did you just said one of the Seven Warlords?!"

Dominic decided to jump in the conversation: "Who are those Seven Warlords you talk about all the time?! You said the same thing when I mentioned Hawkeye. Who are those guys?"

Aqua sighed. "The Seven Warlords are a group of former pirates who have allied themselves with the world government in order to obtain forgiveness and freedom. They are extra-strong as their knowledge in the pirate domain makes them a major threat against anyone who meet their path. Hawkeye and this Risky Boots are part of them."

Blu and Dominic just gazed at Aqua before turning to Chuva. "This Risky Boots is really so strong?"

The parakeet nodded. "She's one of the Seven Warlords. Before she joined the world government, she was an A-class rank pirate."

"A-rank class?" Blu asked.

"When the world government recognizes the existence of a pirate," Aqua started explaining, "they get a classed by a letter in order of their threat level:

-F-rank, E-rank, and D-rank classes are for the lower class pirates

-C-rank pirates are slightly more dangerous, but nothing to be too worried about

-B-rank is a class attributed to pirates who committed noticeable crimes and usually requires colonels or commandants to get neutralized

-A-rank pirates are some of the strongest you'll find on the seas. They are dangerous enough to cause a major threat for the government and are ready to all just to catch them

-And finally, S-rank class is the highest bounty level one can reach. The pirates who get to this level are considered dangerous enough to cause big problems for the government and they generally requires Warlords or even admirals to get neutralized. If you bring them one of this kind, they'll give you enough money to live for the rest of your life."

"Really?" blu asked. "And what rank are you, Aqua?"

His brother smiled and took out a bounty paper from his hoodie which had a picture of his face with a big A written underneath. "I'm a A-rank class pirate. I'm pretty proud of it, if you ask me."

"Wait, so this Risky Boots is at the same threat level as you?" Dominic asked.

"Was, before she joined the Warlords," Aqua corrected and putted his bounty paper away.

"Alright, we'll do it!" Everyone looked at Blu who seemed decided. "Sorry Aqua, I know you want us to find the Treasure Planet, but I can't just let a girl in need like this. So we're gonna have to put our current quest on hiatus until we brought Chuva back to her home."

Aqua just looked at his brother...before smiling. "That's fine with me. I'm not in a hurry anyway."

"We should go wake up the others and explain them everything before leaving though," Dominic remarked.

* * *

Moments later, everyone was awake and gathered on the Polar Tang after Blu, Dominic and Aqua explained everything to their friends.

"I see," Lazaro mumbled. "I'm feeling a bit guilty for missing this episode, but you can totally count on me for what's next." The puffin turned toward Chuva and bowed. "Princess, my name is Lazaro and I'm making it my duty to make sure nothing happens to you until you're back to your kingdom safe and sound." The others scoffed a bit at their friend's overacted scene.

Apollo was looking at the princess in awe. He sure did met some beautiful girls since meeting Blu and Dominic, but this girl...she had something...special. That made him feel warm in his heart and made the heat rise to his cheeks. He only came back to reality when she turned her look toward him. "Oh, uh! H-Hi! The name's Abirdo Pird - Huh, I mean Apollo Bird! I-I'm a crafter of sea!" he nervously introduced himself.

The others blinked their eyes in curiosity, not understanding why he was so nervous all of a sudden. Vladimir then took Chuva's hand and planted a kiss on it. "Nice to meet you, Princess, my name is Vladimir. The pelican over there is called Hernandez."

Chuva blushed a bit by the golden eagle's gentleman manners. Alex then jumped on his shoulder. "And I'm Alex, the crew's doctor." A split-second after, the kid found himself trapped in a big hug from the parakeet.

"Oh my gosh! He's so adorable!" she beamed while nuzzling her cheek against Alex's.

"Why do they all react like that?" the kid asked while being trapped in the hug.

Lilly chuckled a bit before stepping forward to introduce herself. "I'm Lilly and this is Sky, my sister. Actually, we're Blu and Aqua's sisters."

Chuva eyed the little elf owl. "Hey, you're an elf owl. Your species is pretty common in my kingdom, you know."

"Really?" Sky asked with her face lightening up. "Awesome! I'll meet more like me! Sparky would have loved that too."

Chuva giggled a bit before looking down. "Listen, I thank you for taking me and 1-2-3 Coin in, but we don't want to be dead weight for you or disturb your serenity."

Jewel then came and wrapped her arm around the princess. "It's a bit too late for that, girl. We're already in and we can't step back now. Specially if my boyfriend made his choice," she added with winking at him, causing him to smile and blush.

"Alright, we're heading toward our next destination: Sequin," Aqua informed after coming out of the control board room. "We should be there in one or two days."

"Alright! We're on!" Blu beamed.

* * *

 **Okay, Blu and Dominic didn't killed each other. That's already good.**

 **We also learned about the pirate threat level classing system and the existence of the Seven Warlords which Hawkeye and this Risky Boots are part of.**

 **And now, our friends are heading toward the Sequin Kingdom with princess Chuva and 1-2-3 Coin. Let's hope they can stop Booty Works' civil war there.**


	93. Sequin's Hero! A snake on the ship

KINGDOM OF SEQUIN - AFTERNOON

In the village village located on a desert landscape, people were terrorized as a group of pirates were looting their village of all their money and food, hurting and even killing those who tried to resist. Eventually, one of the villagers spotted a figure standing on a rooftop overlooking them all.

"Risky Boots?!" the villager said.

This caused all the pirates to turn their attention toward said figure and the villagers started pushing words of joy, believing this person came to save them. "T-This is THE Risky Boots?! One of the Seven Warlords?" the apparent captain asked.

"Be quiet, you fools!" the figure, Risky Boots, ordered. "If I came, it's only to slay those pirates and the reward that comes with it."

"You might say this, but you still came to save us!" a villager said. "HURAY FOR MISS RISKY BOOTS!"

Risky Boots just chuckled as she stepped forward so that everyone could get a good look at her. She was a purple bird wearing a large pirate hat, with a skull symbol. She had a purple necklace with a gold pendant around her neck, a top around her chest that looked like the upper half of a skull and left her shoulders, arms and tummy exposed, deep purple pants hanging on her hips lined with a white rim that looked like a jaw bone, a belt which held her scimitar, and red bands on her wrists.

"You can call like you want, I don't care." She then narrowed her eyes toward the pirates with a smirk. "As for you, little bugs, you're gonna regret coming to trouble this country!"

"Hey! Watch your tongue, lady!"

"Who do you think you are! You really think you stand a chance against all of us?!"

Their captain scoffed. "First, she sells out to the Naval Forces and now, she plays heroes! Get down here! I'll hit with a dose of reality!"

Risky Boots just chuckled and took out her scimitar. "All of you who don't wanna die, leave now!"

She then jumped down and, at their captain's command, all the pirates stabbed their swords and spears into her, much to the villagers' shock.

Their captain laughed. "Sucker! And you call yourself a Warlord!" However, they soon realized something was wrong as not only did the pink bird seemed unaffected by their weapons, but those last ones were even stuck in her body as they wouldn't move, no matter how hard they tried to pull them off.

She suddenly rose her scimitar and sand started coming at her into a tornado. Before everyone could understand what was happening, the sand faded, revealing all the pirates laying dead on the sand. They looked like they didn't drank water for ages, all mummified.

Risky Boots putted her scimitar away and picked up the mummified captain's corpse as all the villagers came out from hiding. As the pink bird started walking away from the village, everyone cheered in joy: "Risky Boot! Risky Boots! Risky Boots!" At the same time, the Royal Guards arrived and saw that the pirate problem have already been taken care of.

"We're too late again," one of them said.

"It's not that bad; what matters is that the people is safe. Let's go make our report to King Alkawbra."

* * *

Back to the Polar Tang, Jewel was on the decks with Chuva, looking down at her compass. "Yes, there's no doubt, we're going straight for the Sequin Kingdom."

The parakeet princess nodded and looked forward. "I'm coming, Father..."

"Wow Jewel, you sure seem to have learned about navigation," Aqua remarked as he came to join the girls.

"Yes, I had nothing to do for the last two days, so I decided to read all the books you had on the subject," Jewel admitted, a bit embarrassed as she wasn't the book worm type of girl like Blu. "My friend Gylfie was really passionated by it as well; she talked to me about it a lot, back in Ga'Hoole."

"And you learned really fast," Blu said as he joined them. "Seriously, I'm surprised you learned so much about navigation in two days. I though it would be hard for you to remember all that."

"It's because you helped me all the way," Jewel giggled and kissed her boyfriend on the cheek, causing him to blush.

"BLU!" Lazaro suddenly rushed in and delivered a violent kick to the back of the macaw's head, much to the other's surprise. "HOW DARE YOU ATE MY FAVORITE FISH!"

"What are you talking about?" Blu asked with rubbing the back of his head in pain.

Lazaro pointed an accusing flipper at his friend. "The red snapper I bought at Begin Town! Someone ate it while I _specifically_ said that I wanted it for me! I found its remaining in the kitchen!"

"And what makes you think it was me?"

The puffin got right in his friend's face. "Look at me in the eyes and tell me you aren't the guilty one." Blu started sweating nervously and soon started laughing as well. He then started running for his life. "I KNEW IT! COME BACK HERE, YOU FISH STEALER!"

He chased after him for a moment before loosing sight of the spix macaw. Probably did he went to hide somewhere. Pushing a sigh, Lazaro decided to give up and instead turned toward Apollo, Alex, Hernandez and 1-2-3 Coin who were all sitting on the submarine's edge with fishing rods to get fishes.

"So, did you caught anything?" the puffin asked as he walked over to them.

"Huh...almost," Apollo nervously answered.

"So-so," Alex added.

Coin answered with a quack.

"We don't get nothing," Hernandez decided to tell the truth which the others failed to do.

Jis little friend just sighed with rubbing his forehead and jumped on the edge of the submarine. "Forget that; I'll get them myself." And he dived down into the water. Being a puffin, catching fish was easier for him than for the others.

Chuva just giggled as the puffin jumped on the submarine with a beak full of fishes which he dropped down before diving in the water again. However, she then noticed a bothering detail ahead. "What's that?"

The submarine was advancing right toward some kind of green smoke wall coming out of the water. "What's this strange cloud?" Lazaro asked after he spat the new fishes he caught.

"It looks like cotton candy," Alex innocently remarked.

Jewel then joined the friends. "Don't worry. It's not dangerous; that's just steam."

"How do you know that?" Vladimir asked.

"Like I said, I made a lot of reading during those last two days," Jewel repeated. "It's because there's a volcano down below. Its magma is causing all the steam while also solidifying and, in a few thousand years, it will create an island."

Blu came to give a kiss to his girlfriend. "You're so smart, you know that?"

Their romantic moment was disrupted as the submarine went through the wall of steam, causing everyone to start coughing.

"What the hell?!" Dominic shouted as he got awaken from his nap.

"It feels like sulfur!" Apollo said before coughing loudly.

"I can't see anything!" Alex said with covering his beak with his wings and his eyes full of tears.

"Be patient; it's soon gonna be over!" Jewel said.

Eventually, they escaped the steam wall and could breath fresh air again. "Awww, that's good! I felt like I would choke down," Sky sighed before noticing the presence of a new person on the desk. "Wait a minute! Who's that?"

The intruder in question coughed a bit before getting back up to be seen. It was some kind of reptile with pale white scales on his skin, yellow-green eyes and a long tongue that flicked out. He was pretty muscular in shape and his hands had only three fingers each - same for his toes. His dress consisted of a dark green ninja vest and headband around his forehead. He apparently jumped out of the water as he was all wet.

"I though it was the end," he coughed. "Thank you, you saved my life. I was lucky to met you," he said with a bow to the group of birds. "You have my eternal recognition. And if I may, can I have a little cup of coffee? That would be nice."

"Sorry, there's no coffee on this submarine," Aqua answered.

Chuva eyed the strange reptile who in turn spotted her. "Oh my, what a beautiful young girl. Totally to my taste," he said with a smile and flicked his tongue out once again. This caused the princess to shiver uncomfortably.

"So, what were you doing in the water if you don't know how to swim?" Lilly asked.

"Well, I was messing around on my ship with my Magical Fruit powers and I ended up falling overboard," he explained.

"Really? You ate a Magical Fruit?" Apollo asked. "What powers do you have?"

This made the reptile smile. "I'm gonna make you a little demo." He then poked at Blu in the shoulder before bringing his three-fingered hand to his face and becoming...Blu?

"Huh?!" everyone exclaimed at unison.

"So? What do you say?" the reptile who became Blu asked with his voice and all.

"But! You're me!" Blu exclaimed.

"Yes, and I can take back my normal appearance!" the clone said with suddenly becoming a reptile once again. "That's the power of my Magical Fruit," he said before poking all the others. "I can take the appearance and voice of all the people that I touch. Like this," using his power again, he became Jewel, Chuva, Dominic, Alex, Apollo, Vladimir, Lazaro, Hernandez, and 1-2-3 Coin.

"That's awesome!" Blu beamed. "Do it again!" he said with Alex and Apollo encouraging him as well.

"Alright, alright, if you insist," the reptile said and started taking the appearance of various birds and animals for the fun of the others. "Every face that I touch became marked in my head forever."

"That's ridiculous," Dominic spat while Blu, Apollo and Alex kept cheering him.

"You're very lucky; usually, I don't show this to anyone," the reptile said with a chuckle.

"That's awesome!" the three friends exclaimed and caught the reptile into a big hug while laughing of good heart. The others either rolled their eyes or chuckled in amusement.

The reptile, however, stopped upon seeing a little boat passing near the Polar Tang. He jumped on the edge of it, his back facing the others. "I'm sorry, my little cakes, but it's already time for us to part ways."

The three friends whined. "Come on, just stay a little longer!" Apollo whined.

"No, don't be sad. Goodbyes are a part of the journey. We must all face it. But just remember this: even of our friendship was born only a few minutes ago, it will be stronger than time itself!" he declared before jumping on his own boat.

"YES!" Blu, Apollo and Alex said at unison with tears in their eyes.

"Alright boys, let's continue our way!" he ordered the other reptiles on his boat.

"Yes, Mister Chameleon!" he answered before the boat started drifting away.

"What?!" Chuva suddenly exclaimed, getting everyone's attention. "That man was Chameleon?!"

"You know this guy, Chuva?" Lilly asked her.

"Yes; he's one of the top agents of Booty Works. I didn't recognized him at first as I only met him once and it was very brief. I didn't even knew he had this power." She looked down. "But I did heard about a chameleon dressing like a green ninja with the power to change his appearance."

"And you didn't made the link instantly?" Dominic and Vladimir asked at unison.

"But why are you all nervous?" Blu then asked, noticing the sweat on her forehead.

"Amongst the faces he used, he used that of my father's. I recognized him," she sighed nervously.

"I don't know what he had in mind for making himself pass for the king, but it's no good," Dominic mumbled with crossing his wings.

"Holy cow, we just let a psychopath pass!" Apollo groaned.

"He's our enemy now?" Alex asked.

"That's not good," Sky said with rubbing her chin. "Imagine that he learns we're his enemies. He touched all of us and can take all of our appearance. He could slip in our ranks and we wouldn't be able to trust anybody."

Dominic smirked. "At least, we had fate on our side for meeting him first. We just have to find a precaution to be able to distinguish the true ones."

"And what's your plan?" Aqua asked.

Dominic just took a pencil from inside the submarine. "Alright, give me all your wings." And so, the golden eagle traced black Xs on his friend's wings/arms/flippers as well as on his own.

"With this, we will be able to tell if there's an intruder amongst us," Dominic said. "But we still have to be careful, so let's not get too far away from each other, okay?"

"But we can beat those guys, right?" Alex asked with a slightly nervous smile.

"You must do what you can. But do not try the impossible and run if you cannot win," Apollo said his little friend.

"Sweet speech, but it sounded like you were trying to convince yourself," Lazaro mumbled to himself.

"Give my best, okay!" Alex said with high-fiving Apollo.

Blu then saw something. "Hey! I can see the land!"

Indeed, they were getting close to an island which looked like the desert of Sahara with high sand dunes. "We're coming to the village of Nonoana. But we must first hide the Polar Tang," Chuva explained.

"Okay, we'll do that," Blu said before showing his X on his arm. "From now on, this is our recognition mark which unite us in this adventure! Now let's get to this island to find a good tavern and after, we'll take care of the Sequin Kingdom."

"Agreed...," the others said at unison as they were pretty hungry and thirsty too.


	94. Arrival in Sequin!

**In the previous chapter, our heroes met a reptile named Chameleon with the power to transform into other people as they approached the Kingdom of Sequin. They learned his name was Chameleon and he was actually working for Booty Works. And so, they decided to draw marks on their wings to make sure they'll be able to tell if they are the real ones.**

* * *

The Polar Tang was slowly approaching the coast of the Sequin Kingdom. Princess Chuva and 1-2-3 Coin were standing at the edge of the decks, looking at their homeland. "We're arriving at last," Jewel said as she joined the parakeet. "It was easier said than done, but we did it. Do you have any idea of how to stop the rebellion?"

She turned toward Jewel with a smile. "I have an idea, yes." She then turned back toward the island with her smile fading. "But honestly, I don't know if this will be enough to calm the others."

Meanwhile, Blu and Alex were laying on their back in a corner, covered in sweat because of the heat. "I'm burning...," Blu gasped.

"It's too hot," the poor kid whined, not being used to too hot climate. Sure, Brazil had a pretty hot temperature too, but this one was infernal.

Aqua drove the Polar Tang behind some rocks near the coast so that it wouldn't be seen by the others. Also there, they could get a good view on the village. "Wow, so this is the Kingdom of Sequin," Apollo remarked.

"Is there food? I'm very hungry," Blu whined.

"Just one thing before we leave," Jewel said. "It would be better if you all think before acting okay?"

Lazaro just let out a scoff. "As if you never do dumb things too," he mumbled to which Dominic nodded in agreement.

"And besides, you're not the captain here, Jewel; Aqua is. Right, Aqua?" Getting no answer, the golden eagle turned to see the captain was no longer present. He quickly spotted him down from the submarine on the sand land with Blu.

"Sorry guys, but we're too hungry! See you later!" And with that, the two brothers ran away toward the island.

"Guys wait!" Jewel called, but they were already too far. she rubbed her forehead with her hands. "Grr, boys..."

"What a bunch of gluttons," Apollo sighed. "What do we do?"

"We'll just go to the taverns around; they'll be there," Lazaro simply said with jumping off the submarine and onto the land, wanting to stretch his poor legs a bit.

"Yeah, and besides, it's not like Blu and Aqua can't fight for themselves," Dominic remarked as he too jumped down from the submarine.

"I'm pretty hungry too. We should do like them," Alex added with putting on his backpack and joining his friends down.

Jewel just shook her head in despair. "I'm sorry, but Coin and I won't be able to come with you," Chuva suddenly said.

"Why? You don't feel well?" Apollo asked her.

"No, it's just that everyone knows who I am here."

"That's true; they'll all recognize her," Vladimir said with a nod.

"Don't worry; we'll bring you everything you need," Hernandez assured as he joined Lazaro.

1-2-3 Coin suddenly let out a big quack that caught the others' attention. "What's wrong?" Chuva asked. The duck then pointed in a direction where another boat was accosted at the land's coast. It was blue and had a big "3" written in black on the side. Chuva widened her eyes. "Oh no! It's Mr. 3's boat!"

"Mr. 3?" Apollo asked.

"He's a Booty Works agent too. This boat only works thanks to candle; the element he controls thanks to a Magical Fruit," the parakeet explained.

"There's another Booty Works agent around then," Lazaro deduced.

"That makes more trouble for us then," Lilly said with crossing her wings.

"Alright then, let's just sneak into a spot where we won't be seen and then get dresses so that the local people won't recognize us okay?" Apollo suggested. Everyone nodded in agreement with his plan.

* * *

The group of birds (minus Blu and Aqua) sneaked their way across the village without getting spotted and reached a rendez-vous point behind a big tree. "Alright, I think nobody spotted us," Apollo said with a smile before taking his cap off the rub the sweat off his head.

"Alright, you guys stay hidden while Hernandez and I go make the groceries," Lazaro said. "That way, you won't risk of getting spotted, Chuva." He then noticed the princess was looking down. Chuva?"

She snapped back to reality. "Huh? Yes?"

"Are you alright?"

"Yes, it's just...it's just that it's a bit hard for me to be here," she admitted. "I observed well and everything in the village seems normal. I don't know if it's true, but I have a feeling we arrived in time."

"Nonoana seems like a peaceful village to me," Jewel remarked.

"Chuva," Dominic suddenly said to get the princess' attention. "You did said you might know how to stop the rebel army?" he asked to which she nodded. "What are you planning to do? And how can we help you? We need to act quick if we want to avoid people getting killed."

"Yes, it's true, but you held on your promise. You all brought me to Sequin. Nothing forces you to-"

She got interrupted by a hit on the shoulder from Jewel. "You're not as smart as I though."

"What do you mean?" Chuva asked with a risen eyebrow and rubbing her shoulder.

"We're not gonna just leave you there after we traveled all the way here."

"It's true that it's not like us to do that," Apollo agreed. "Don't be afraid; we did take part in a war before."

"And I'd like to learn more about the Seven Warlords," Dominic said.

"Seriously? We're about to get into war and you're still stuck on that?" Sky asked with rubbing her head in desperation.

Chuva just smiled. "Thank you." Alex and 1-2-3 Coin exchanged smiles and even chuckled a bit. "to the north of this village is an oasis called "Yuba". This is where the rebel army have installed its headquarters. And this is where we must go. In the desert. I must absolutely stop the rebel army or they'll burn the country down. We would be better to make some reserves before leaving; we'll need a lot of food and water for the journey. But we can't run the risk of meeting Mr. 3 or Chameleon."

"Don't worry; we'll be careful," Lazaro assured before wrapping a flipper around Alex. "Wanna come with me and Hernandez, Al?"

"Sure, why not?"

"Hum, you sure, Alex?" Apollo asked, not liking the idea of his friend getting out in an unknown world.

"Sure, I wanna help as much as I can," he affirmed with a cute smile on his sweet face.

"Cool, but could you at least eat your Reindeer Candy?" Lazaro asked. "This species must be more common than snow creatures like you."

"Okay." the kid took out the candy from his backpack and unwrapped it before throwing it in his beak and swallowing. In a few seconds, he turned into his reindeer form. "I'm ready!"

It was them that they noticed Chuva was looking at him in utter shock. "H-How did you do that?!"

"Oh, you didn't know," Apollo said. "Alex uses special candy to change forms or other special things to affect his body. That's how he fights."

* * *

And so, Alex under his reindeer form, Lazaro and Hernandez left the group walked over to the village's market to make their groceries. "Okay, Chuva gave us a list of things we need to buy," the puffin explained with looking at a paper while walking. "She also asked me to get everyone new clothes so that we can fit more amongst the people."

"Alright, let's go get all that!" Alex beamed with enthusiasm.

"By the way, do you have any idea where Blu and Aqua went?" Hernandez asked.

* * *

Speaking of which, we go back to Blu and Aqua who were currently standing in the middle of the burning desert with a warm wind blowing over them.

"...Okay, I think I made a little mistake," Aqua recognized with a cheeky smile.

"You and your orientation sense," Blu sighed.

"I think we better go back on our steps," his brother admitted and was about to walk away when he noticed something in the landscape. "Hey, what's that?" he asked with pointing at a little lonely house not too far.

Blu noticed the house and saw that there was a chimney from where smoke was actually coming out. "Hey, there's fire coming from this house. If there's smoke, there's fire...and where there's fire, there is..."

"FOOD!" the brothers shouted at unison and ran at full speed toward the house, hoping the owner would get them a little something to eat.

* * *

Back to the market, Hernandez bought a little plate of special rice which tasted pretty good. "What a like about this kind of market is that they always give us a chance to taste international meals," the pelican admitted before putting more rice in his giant beak.

Alex suddenly coughed. "Oh my gosh! What's that smell?!" he groaned with covering his nose with one hoof.

"It must come from here," Hernandez said with pointing at a shop which was selling girl stuff. "They must sell perfume which is what you smell."

"That's disgusting!" the kid kept groaning.

"If the smell disturb you so much, you might be better to go back to the others. We can finish the groceries alone with Lazaro."

"Good idea. Good luck," the reindeer and happily walked away from that disgusting smell. However, as he walked into the streets, the violent was catching up to him. His white fur was soaked in sweat and his panting was getting heavy. "Man, it's hot! I won't be able to stand it for long. I need to find somewhere to get away from this heat."

He looked all around for a spot safe from the sun and spotted a trailer which seemed abandoned and had the door left open. "Bingo! That'll do it!"

The reindeer made his way to the trailer and saw that there was some barrels and wooden boxes inside, but nothing too important. He just laid down on his side. "Aww, it's better there. I think I'll take a little nap," he said and closed his eyes, quickly drifting to sleep.

Unknowns to him, as he fell asleep, someone closed the trailer's door which suddenly started moving away.

* * *

 **Oh no, where's Alex gonna end up? Are Blu and Aqua gonna find their way back to the others? Are they gonna get a meal from this lonely house? You'll know all that in the next chapter.**


	95. Dance powder

KNOCK! KNOCK!

Blu and Aqua knocked at the house's door but got no answer. "Hello? Someone's there? We just want something to eat!" Blu called but didn't got any response. "I don't feel like there's anyone in here."

Aqua then spotted some barrel on the side of the house. "Hey, look, a barrel. Maybe there's water inside." He went over to turn the pipe on...but nothing came out of it. "Empty. With the luck we have, it's no real surprise."

As Aqua removed his winter hat to let the heat come out, Blu noticed a pile of bags next to the chimney. It looked like it could contain some food. "What's that?" Using his talons, Blu cut one bag open, revealing some kind of green powder. He exchanged a glance with Aqua and the two brothers picked some of this green powder to see if it was comestible...only to spit it out almost instantly.

"Erk! What the cheese and sprinkles is that?!" Blu asked in disgust.

"I think it must be poison or something!" Aqua said with coughing. He then turned his head toward the furnace connected to the chimney. "I say we burn this down before it kills someone."

Blu agreed and they tossed all the poison bags one-by-one into the furnace, burning them down. "Here," Blu said with closing the furnace. "This poison won't cause any trouble to anyone now. Now let's get out there and find a good restaurant."

However, it was then that they realized something unusual. Green smoke started coming out of the chimney an rose into the sky to form a dark cloud that only grew bigger and bigger. Thunder could be heard and suddenly, it started raining. As if that wasn't surprising enough, the little rain soon turned into a total storm, almost pinning the brothers under its weight.

"Rain?! How is it possible?!" Aqua asked. "Well, we won't complain about it; we were thirsty anyways." The two macaws opened their beaks to get the water inside and drink.

It was then that the door suddenly shot open and out of it came a fox wearing Arabian-like clothes and rushed at the two brothers. "What is going on HERE?!" he gasped upon seeing the rain. "My bags have disappeared!" He then took out a scimitar and glared at the intruders. "What have you done with my reserve?!"

"Who are you?" Blu asked curiously.

"No matter! What have you done with the powder bags that were just there?"

"You mean the poison?" Aqua asked. "We just burned it down."

"WHAT?!" the fox shouted in horror. "My dance powder! My treasure is gone!"

"Why do you mind so much? That thing tasted terrible," Aqua remarked before blocking a scimitar swing with his jitte sword.

"How could you burn all my powder! You know how much it costed me?!" he angrily shouted and kept attacking Aqua.

"Calm down! What was that poison anyway?!" Aqua asked as he kept blocking his attacks.

"This powder was my dream!" the fox angrily said and ceased to attack. "I bet everything on it; all my ambitions were resting on this dance powder!"

"Well we're sorry," Blu said with rubbing the back of his wet head.

"I don't care about your apologies! Give me back the money I spent for this powder!"

"Sorry, but all the money I have is for my journey," Aqua denied.

the fox suddenly fell on his knees. "Everything's gone...and I was so close..."

"Don't worry, I'm sure you can buy more bags," Blu said with putting his wing on his shoulder, only for the fox to rudely push him back.

"You really powder like this can be found in any street?! It's not that simple! Buying and selling it is illegal!" He quickly clapped his paws on his mouth upon realizing what he just said.

"Really? You mean you were not supposed to have it home?" Aqua asked with narrowing his eyes at the fox.

This last one grabbed his sword again and jumped toward the spix macaws. "Now that you know my secret, you must die!"

* * *

Back to Alex, the reindeer just woke up from his sleep and realized the trailer he was in was currently moving. "What's going on? Where am I?"

He carefully peaked his head out to see the driver's seat which was occupied by two person and carried by a big camel. However, he quickly went back inside before one of the two people could see him. It was then that he returned to his snowy owl form.

"W-What? Who are those guys?" Just then, a little shake-off caused a wooden box to fall and spill its content which was some kind of guns. "W-Weapons?!"

One of the two people driving suddenly moved off the blanket to watch in the trailer. Alex managed to hide behind a wooden box just in time to not be spotted.

"What's wrong?"

The person backed away. "Nothing. I just though I heard something back there."

Alex came out of his hiding spot while sweating nervously. "I don't know what's going on, but those guys doesn't seem like nice people. I'm better to leave-" however, before he could get to the trailer's door, everything suddenly stopped, causing him to fall backward.

"Alright, we arrived," he heard someone say outside. "Where is Tirofijo?"

"He's at the back."

The trailer suddenly opened and people came to take the boxes and barrels away, leaving more and more little place for Alex to hide. It won't be long before they would spot him. Suddenly, as there was only one box left, someone caught the kid from behind and ragged him out of the trailer, making him try to scream, but there was a paw covering his beak and preventing him from making any noise.

He calmed upon seeing it was the camel who drove the trailer. this last one putted a finger before his mouth to tell Alex not to make any noise before pointing at a bag resting on his side in which Alex would fit perfectly. Understanding what he meant, the snowy owl kid sneaked into his bag and closed it behind. "I'm gonna go drink a bit at the water source!" the camel then called before walking away from his group.

After many minutes, they were away from the city and into the desert. The camel stopped walking and took off his bag. "It's okay, you can come out now."

Alex came out of his hiding spot and sighed in relief. "That was close. Thanks. But why did you help me?"

The camel chuckled. "Well, you look like a nice little kid to me."

"Really? Just for that?" Alex then grinned. "You're very sympathetic."

"Thanks. But I've gotta go back to my group," the camel said and walked back toward the city.

"Goodbye and thanks again!" Alex said with waving his wing at his new friend who soon faded from sight. "funny guy, but I'm sure I'll see him again someday. Speaking of which, I still don't know who were those animals carrying weapons. Okay, I just have to go back to Nonoana." The kid smelled the air and coughed. "Okay, it's that way; I recognize this smell."

* * *

Back to Blu and Aqua, the two brothers easily handed the fox and even gave him a good beating without even needing to use their powers. "Cheese, you guys are very strong," the beaten fox nervously said with whipping the blood off his face. The rain had stopped and all the landscape was wet.

"Yeah, we know how to fight," Aqua said, speaking for himself and his brother.

"I'm sorry for taking you on like this."

"No; you had every reason to be angry. We're sorry for burning your precious powder," Blu said with a bow.

"I-It's okay; I can forgive that. But could you just keep this for you; nobody must know that I had dance powder," he asked.

"But can you tell us what's this dance powder?" Aqua asked.

"You really don't know what it is?" the fox asked to which both brothers shook their heads. "The dance powder is a huge problem for some and a blessing for others. The dance powder is also known as the powder that calls for rain. By burning it sooner, you caused the huge storm after." He then proceeded to tell them that this powder was created by an alchemist to cause rain and how it worked, but true to be told, both brother didn't completely understood all of it. "...and that's all. You understand?"

"Yes," they at unison. "But why did you need so much of this powder?" Blu asked.

"Are you serious? I could believe it's the first time you step into that country."

"Well, that's the case; we arrived only a few hours ago," Aqua explained.

"I understand better now. It's been many years that Sequin is suffering from drought. There's not enough water. And it's getting worst; those last years, rain is getting VERY rare. Many oasis have dried up."

"But they should have used your powder in that case," Aqua remarked.

"Indeed, but the world government have forbidden the use of dance powder. She became costly and illegal. If they saw me use it, they'll get me executed, no doubt about it. A lot of people think it's this powder that started the rebellion in our country."

"And is it true?" Blu asked.

"I don't know."

Something then clicked in Blu's head. "Oh, I got it! The dream you talked about earlier, it was to save your country with this powder, right?"

The fox blinked his eyes before rubbing the back of his head. "Well, true to be told, I had other plans in mind. I wanted to make a lot of money by producing water and selling it on the market."

Aqua just rolled his eyes. "Okay, that's your business. That's not all, but we still gotta find a tavern."

The fox then kneeled before the two brothers. "Please, don't go tell what I told you. I'd get serious trouble."

"Don't worry; we have other things to do," Blu assured.

"Thanks a lot. You said you were hungry right? At least let me offer you my breakfast as a gift of good nature," the fox and handed a wrapped bag to the brothers.

"'Wow, thanks," Aqua said with taking the bag. "See you soon, maybe!" he added before he and Blu started walking away with waving their hands at him. "By the way, we wouldn't be able to sell you out even if we wanted to," he said with turning his head one last time. "We're pirates."

This caused the fox's jaw to fall. "P-P-Pirates?!"

* * *

Back to the others, Lazaro and Hernandez finished making the groceries. Along with the water and food, they also bought desert clothes for everyone. Jewel and Chuva were looking uncertain at the costumes they got for them. Jewel got a light green belly dancer dress that included a well-shaped top, a skirt that hugged her hips, a pair of gloves, and golden bracelets for her arms and ankles.

For Chuva, they only got her a little golden top decorated with a blue emerald on her chest which was tied to her shoulders along with a red and dark blue sarong that still left her legs exposed, golden bracelets for her arms, and a red mask for her beak.

"Wow! It's true that I look good with that," Jewel exclaimed with admiring her new costume. She wasn't used to wear clothes and already liked to have less of it on her body.

"But guys, we asked you to wear clothes that wouldn't get attention on us," Chuva pointed out. "With those clothes...we kinda risk of getting too much."

"Really? Strange, the seller affirmed it was common for women to dress like that around here," Lazaro said with scratching the back of his head.

"Well you should have got a better judgement," Apollo pointed out as he putted on his desert robe alongside Dominic, Vladimir and Hernandez which made them look like bandits.

"Well, personally, I like this new costume," Lilly said with Sky nodding. For them, Lazaro managed to get them special dress that looked like Arabian ninja with scarfs for their head - purple for Lilly and black for Sky. **(To give you an idea, imagine it like what the prince wears in Princes Of Persia.)**

"What do you think, Alex?" Sky asked toward the snowy owl kid. He was dressed in a purple-dark desert jacket and top which left his round tummy visibly. He was currently drinking in 1-2-3 Coin's water barrel which the duck accepted to share with him.

"Well, the heat's still strong, but at least, I'm not dead," he responded before drinking again.

"Were did you go after leaving?" Hernandez asked the kid. "You took some time before returning."

"I walked around a bit," Alex said before drinking again.

"Enough talking," Apollo suddenly said. "We have everything we needed for the journey, right?"

"So we go to Yuba, right Chuva?" Jewel asked.

"Yes; it's a little village, but we must cross the desert to reach it." She then looked down. "You know, I feel a bit guilty for mixing you up in this story. I wanted to end the war by myself. this quest will probably be harder then you think. It's gonna be perilous, we can die at any fault. I don't know if my plan will work, but I have to try. I wanna bring peace back in my country. so I will ask you one last time: if you wanna help me, then do it! I need all the help I can!"

"Girl, we already talked about it many times," Jewel said with a sigh.

"You know, we can never predict what'll happen, Chuva," Lazaro said with an optimistic smile. Dominic and Hernandez nodded in agreement.

"I can't wait to see how the rest of this country looks," Alex beamed with 1-2-3 Coin giving him a friendly quack.

"We swear on the way of Bushido to get you to Yuba safely!" Lilly said to which Sky nodded in agreement.

"Let's get to Yuba with the smile!" Apollo said with rising his fist in the air.

"...right after we found Blu and Aqua."

* * *

 **Wow! I managed to write two chapters in less than a few hours. I'm really on fire!**

 **And before you ask me, yes, I like Prince Of Persia. Actually, I like it more than Assassin's Creed which has been made by the same company, Ubisoft. I can't wait to see their remake.**


	96. Jason Donald

**It has now been three years since rain stopped falling over the desert kingdom of Sequin where we could once find many oasis. A group of insurgents decided to take weapons against the power, seeing this as a chance for a better life. An underground revolt is slowly building up.**

 **Accompanied by Blu and his friends, princess Chuva made her return on her home country of Sequin. the little group arrived at the port village of Nonoana. They are getting ready to leave for the desert where is located the rebel army. All while being careful to not meet the hunters of Booty Works.**

 **But barely did they arrived that Blu and Aqua got lost away from the village and got lost in the immensity of this unknown country.**

* * *

In another city of Sequin in a street filled with different shops, a figure was walking amongst the crowd. This odd individual was a male cheetah with yellow fur, safe for his underbelly's which was white, and some brown spots. He was wearing a full black attire with red boots, black fingerless gloves, and a small open red vest. The sleeves of his attire were so small that we could see his arms and he had a strange logo tattooed on his left bicep.

He suddenly got stopped by a camel merchant who was holding some kind of golden apple. "Greetings, stranger. I suppose you're passing by, so welcome to Sequin." He then showed him the golden apple he was holding. "Look at this. It's a golden apple."

The stranger was just going to pass by, but the merchant stopped him. "Wait, I'll tell you a little secret: this apple is a sacred treasure. I found it while searching ancient ruins. Should you take only one bit of this apple, you'll live for a thousand years."

The cheetah just smiled. "I'm sorry, old man, but I'm not interested in living for so long. I only care about present time." And with that, he walked pass the merchant and continuing his way.

The camel sighed before seeing two birds looking in awe at his apple. It was none other than Apollo and Alex. "Look! It's a golden apple!" Alex exclaimed.

"A thousand year you said?" Apollo asked. "You really found it in ancient ruins?"

"Absolutely; it's the legacy of our ancestral civilization," the camel confirmed with a nod.

"We can really live for a thousand year just by bitting it?" Alex asked in excitation.

"Yes. Try it and you will see. That's very wise, my friends. I see you are censed people. And just for you, I'm ready to make a deal of only 1000 coins for this apple," he said with a wink.

"1000 coins only?! We take it!" the two owls beamed at unison.

Just then, Vladimir arrived and grabbed them by the collar. "You guys know how naive you are?"

"Don't tell me you actually believed his story," Dominic said with pushing a blanket beside the camel's stand to reveal another camel painting an apple in golden paint. Upon seeing that he got discovered, he putted on a nervous look.

Vladimir started carrying the owls away from the shop. "Now that we have anything we need, there's no reason to stick around here any longer. We can leave after we find Blu and Aqua."

"Speaking of which, I wonder where they have been," Hernandez said with looking all around.

Dominic suddenly stopped walking as he spotted a detail. "Who's that guy?" he mumbled as he saw the strange cheetah from earlier at another stand.

"I got a question for you: have you seen this guy?" he asked with showing the merchant lady a poster.

She looked over it. "Oh, Water "Aqua" Law." The mention of that name caught the whole group's attention.

"He might be in this city. I've been searching him for a while now," the stranger explained.

"I never saw him. however, if I were you, I got get informations at the restaurant located two steps away from here. The owner knows a lot of people and maybe could help you."

"Okay, thanks," the cheetah said with a bow. "Restaurant, heh? Good; I'm starting to get hungry." He started walking away toward said location.

"This guy sure looks strong," Alex remarked.

"What do you think he wants with Aqua?" Apollo asked.

"Probably a bounty hunter," Jewel said.

"I don't think," Dominic mumbled with narrowing his eyes. "This tattoo on his arm..." the others turned at him with curious looks. "I know this symbol. Aqua mentioned it to me." The golden eagle suddenly widened his eyes in shock. "Holy cow!"

The others followed his gaze to see why he was so surprised. not too far from the stranger was none other than Kamiki, the female eagle Dominic met at Begin Town. She was apparently scolding a merchant selling weapons.

"Great, we really needed this!" Dominic sighed with rubbing his forehead. "What is she here for?" Then, as she turned her head in their direction, Dom gasped and rushed to hide behind a barrel. "The last thing I want is to face that girl again!"

Just then, Kamiki was joined by another person. As if things couldn't get any worse, this person was Colonel Toxic who was carrying two pirates on his shoulders. "Hey, Kamiki." He dropped the pirates before his lieutenant. "Those pirates, they dared challenging me and I had to give them a good beat down."

"You really hate pirates," the white eagle remarked. "Even so far from your town, you're fierce with them."

"No mercy for those trash. No go give those outlaws to the local authorities instead of moralizing me."

"Yes, sir!" Kamiki said with doing the military greet.

"On my side, I couldn't find any clue about Aqua's possible whereabouts. But we need to keep an eye open; we can expect him and his crew to come out at any moment."

Jewel, who went to hide with Dominic and all the others during the discussion, leaned toward her friends. "Hey, you recognize this guy? It's Toxic, the colonel of the Naval Forces in Begin Town."

"But then...it means that he's after us since we left Begin Town?!" Apollo exclaimed.

"Yup, looks like it's the case," Dominic nodded. "And not only him. Smells like we're getting more and more trouble." He then looked toward the sky. "And where are those dumb Blu and Aqua?"

* * *

Farther from there, in the desert, the two brothers were weakly walking under the burning sun. "Too...hot...," Blu weakly mumbled with whipping sweat from his forehead.

"The water and breakfast we got from this camel quickly drained away," Aqua remarked with taking his winter cap off once again. "If we don't find a place to eat and drink, I'll go crazy..."

As if his prayers got answered, the town they searched for since the start got into view. With a newfound rush of energy, Aqua grabbed his brother by the wing and rushed at full speed toward the city. "FOOOOOOOD! DRIIIIINK!"

* * *

Speaking of which, inside a restaurant in the city called "Spice Bean", a big crowd was gathered at the entrance. "What's going on?" someone asked.

"One of the clients in the restaurant fell dead in his food!"

Inside the restaurant, all the clients and kitchen staff looked in horror as the mysterious cheetah who was sitting at the counter was unconscious, his head plunged into his meal. "Apparently, he was chatting with the owner before falling head first into his food!"

"I think he ate a desert strawberry!" someone said.

"A desert strawberry?"

"It's a very toxic spider that has the shape of a strawberry, causing unknown travelers to mistake it for one and eating it. Only, they die some time after because of the poison."

As the people looked sadly at the corpse, the cheetah suddenly snored and rose his head, causing them all to panic as they though it was a zombie. The stranger, however, just looked at all the people staring at him with a curious look. "What's wrong? Oh yeah, I fell asleep," he sighed.

"WHAT?! HE JUST SLEPT?!" everyone shouted at unison.

"You fell asleep while eating and in the middle of a conversation?!"

"And he starts eating again as if nothing was!"

While chewing on his food, the cheetah turned toward the crowd. "Why so much agitation?"

"BECAUSE WE THOUGH YOU WERE DEAD!" they shouted at unison.

"Dead? You're too funny," the cheetah chuckled before suddenly falling asleep in his food again.

"AGAIN?!"

The whole crowd sighed in annoyance before leaving as this was a false alert. Outside the restaurant, Colonel Toxic happened to pass by and saw the agitation. Curious, the greenish yellow macaw decided to go see what was going on in this restaurant.

The cheetah sighed and pushed his last plate on a huge pile of other ones. "Aww, okay, now I'm full. Just one last thing, mister, have you seen this guy?" he asked with taking out the wanted poster of Aqua.

"You must have some nerve to calmly come and eat a snack in such a place while you're a commandant of Urax The Destroyer's crew." The intruder who said that was none other than Colonel Toxic who just entered the restaurant. "Right...Jason Donald?"

The boss just widened his eyes upon hearing that. "Urax The Destroyer?! The greatly feared pirate?! This guy is a part of his crew?!" This caused everyone in the restaurant to back away from the cheetah called Jason Donald.

"You can tell me what a notorious pirate like you came to do in such a country?" Toxic asked with crossing his arms.

Jason just putted his coffee cup down and turned around with a smile. "I'm looking for my brother-at-arms."

* * *

"FOOOOD! DRIIIINK!" Aqua shouted while running at full speed in the streets with still holding Blu.

"Calm down, Aqua!" Blu tried to reason his brother. Sure, he was hungry and thirsty too, but he didn't wanted to look like a fool to everyone just because of it.

However, Aqua suddenly ran even faster upon seeing a restaurant called "Spice Bean" right ahead. Wasting no time, he shot the door open and rushed inside. What he didn't realized was that as he did so, he slammed the door into Toxic's back, sending him to crash into Jason Donald and through the restaurant's wall.

Everybody just looked in awe as the spix macaw interrupted a duel about to happen and rushed at the counter. "Chief! Give us food and drink! Anything! Quick!" Aqua ordered to the chief who was till trying to figure out what was happening in his restaurant.

Blu was still shaken from the quick run Aqua dragged him through, but still ate all the food the chief brought them mainly consisted of pastas and rice as well as wine. Blu wasn't really into alcohol, but was too thirsty to complain.

"This is delicious!" Aqua complimented the chief with his beak half-full.

"Huh, thanks," the chief responded unsure, "but if I were you, I'd leave this place, sir."

"Why's that?" Blu asked after swallowing an apple.

"Do you have any idea of who you just knocked away while entering here?" he asked with pointing at the hole in the wall.

"We knocked someone?" Aqua innocently asked. "Oh, I didn't saw it. Don't worry; I'll pay for the damages."

Meanwhile, Colonel Toxic came out of the rubles left from the walls. Groaning in anger he stepped back toward the restaurant, apologizing to the habitants of the house he went through as he passed by. Upon stepping into the restaurant by the hole in the wall, he gasped as he saw the responsible ones.

"AQUA! AND THE RUBBER BIRD!" he shouted and rushed in their faces. "I've been searching for you since a few days. I was certain you would come into this city." To his annoyance, while Blu looked at him in surprise, Aqua just kept on eating and drinking. "I'm talking to you! Stop eating!"

Blu gulped as he remembered this colonel and knew he couldn't beat him; his wings always went through his smoke body. "Oh my gosh! Aqua! You need to take care of him! I can't touch-" Blu interrupted himself upon seeing that his brother had fell asleep on the counter right beside him. "Seriously?!" Groaning in anger, he grabbed a bag of coin from his brother's pocket and tossed it on the counter for the chief before taking him on his shoulder and running away. "THANKS FOR THE FOOD!"

"Come back here!" Toxic shouted and ran after him.

"It was well the time to fall asleep!" Blu angrily though while running.

"KAMIKI!" Toxic called as his lieutenant was on the way before Blu. She turned her head and saw them coming her way. "IT'S AQUA AND HIS BROTHER! ARREST THEM!"

The female eagle realized it and just nodded before running at Blu and taking out her Shigure sword. Swinging it at him, Blu somehow managed to jump pass her and then stretched his plastic wing to grab a rooftop and reach right there, hoping to escape his followers by that way.

Toxic turned his body into smoke and flew to go up on the roof as well and run after his targets. "Kamiki! Mobilize all our men right now! Make them scout the whole town to find the rest of his crew!"

Kamiki just nodded before running to go get her men. "Aqua's crew is here?" she though. "Then it means...Dominic is there too!"

Back on the roof, Blu was running as fast as his little plastic legs allowed him to. Toxic shot his smoke arms in his direction, trying to catch up to him. no matter how hard he pushed himself, Blu couldn't prevent the arm from getting closer and closer to him.

"What did you came to do in this country, rubber bird?!" the colonel asked while still reaching for him.

"We came to kick Risky Boots' butt out of this country!" Blu replied without stopping to run.

This caused the green parrot to give a surprised look. "What? You know Risky Boots? You're bond to her? How's that?!"

Deciding to not answer him, Blu instead shot his plastic wing to grab a tree and jump down from the roof and back into the streets where he continued to run. Upon seeing this, Toxic turned his whole body into smoke once again and flew down to chase after the blue macaw. It was then that Aqua groaned and started waking up.

"Huh? What's going on?" His answer was Blu throwing him forward.

"What's happening is that you fell asleep on me while Colonel Toxic found and chased us! Now run!"

Aqua was a bit lost but started running like his brother ordered him to. "What do you say? Colonel Toxic is after us?!"

"Yes! And his men are gonna join soon, so run!" Blu ordered seriously.

"BLU! THIS WAY!"

They saw Dominic with the others at the end of a street that exited the city. "Dominic! Guys!" Blu happily beamed and ran in their direction.

"Quick! We must get out of here!" Dominic ordered as the others packed up their stuff, ready to leave. Once it was done, they followed Blu and Aqua as tens of NF soldiers were after them.

To their horror, Colonel Toxic was at their head and shot a Toxic Beam in Blu's direction. The attack was about to collide with him...

"Rainbow Fireball!"

Suddenly, his attack got stopped by a jet of fire that came out of nowhere. However, this fire wasn't usual: it was rainbow-colored. Everybody stopped running in looked at the fire in confusion. To their surprise, the mysterious cheetah, Jason Donald, jumped between them and the NF soldiers, his body emanating rainbow-colored fire.

"You again!" Toxic groaned with narrowing his eyes.

Strangely, Aqua looked at him in awe and surprise. "You should stop there. You control smoke; I control fire. this fight would never end," the cheetah said with a smirk.

"This guy has a Magical Fruit power too!" Dominic remarked.

"But who's that guy? And why did he saved us?" Apollo asked in confusion.

"J-Jason?!" Aqua said in surprise.

The cheetah turned to look at Aqua with a smile. "You really didn't changed one bit, Aqua. Now run, I'll catch up with you latter."

Aqua smiled. "Okay!" And he started running with the others.

"Aqua! Who was that guy?!" Lilly asked her brother with a confused look while running.

"His name is Jason Donald!" He turned to look at the others with a big smile. "He's my brother-at-arms!"

* * *

 **I won't lie to you: Jason Donald was one of the characters I was the most excited to introduce in this story. His rainbow fire powers will be absolutely awesome in his fight against Colonel Toxic and his forces! You'll see!**


	97. Aqua & Jason: Passion & Brotherhood

The heat was becoming stronger than it already was because of Jason Donald's rainbow flames. As his men were trembling, Colonel Toxic just narrowed his eyes at the cheetah. "Get lost!"

He answered with a smirk. "This won't be possible." He then made his whole body burn with rain fire.

"I didn't know you were Water "Aqua" Law's brother." He then rose his wings and turned them into smoke followed by his whole body and then charged to clash his smoke with Jason's flames. Everybody looked in awe as the two elements wrestled against one another in the air.

Blu's group stopped running to look at this. "I've never seen such a thing before!" Alex remarked in awe from the top of Vladimir's head.

"Toxic smoke fighting rainbow fire!" Apollo added.

"Wait, you're serious, Aqua? this guy's your brother too?" Sky asked Aqua.

"Yup!" he confirmed. "When I joined Urax's crew, he's the one I grew up the closest to. Since I missed all of you, he allowed me to call him my brother-at-arms!"

Sky just smiled. "Then it adds another one in our family," she said to which Blu and Lilly nodded.

"That's cool, but I'd like to know what he came to do in Sequin," Dominic remarked.

"Guys! I say we don't wait for Toxic's men to find us and get back to the boat!" Jewel suggested.

The others agreed and ran away as the fight was raging on. The smoke and flames exploded in the sky, scattering everywhere. They soon reached the Polar Tang and wasted no time packing their stuff on board while Aqua went at the command control room and made it drive away from the port and along the coast. Once they were far enough from Nonoana and sure the Naval Forces stopped following them, everyone sighed and calmed down.

"I think we lost them," Apollo said as he leaned back against the wall. "Man, that was a close one."

All the eyes then turned on Aqua. "What?"

"What do you mean "what?!" Lilly said. "We're waiting for you to tell us more about your brother you never mentioned to us before!"

"Oh, you mean Jason Donald? Well, what do you want me to tell?"

"How about you start by formally introducing us?" Everybody looked up to see Jason Donald standing on top of the submarine. Jumping down before Aqua, he looked at him with a smile. "But first, what's new, old buddy?"

Aqua just smiled and exchanged a wing/paw shake with his brother-at-arms which suddenly turned into an arm wrestling contest. "Well, you'll have to forgive me, but I still have no idea about the Treasure Planet's whereabouts. But on a positive note, I got reunited with my three childhood siblings I told you about."

After a few seconds, they stopped the contest as none of the two was able to win. Instead, they turned toward the others. "So, which one of them are your siblings."

"The blue macaw guy is Hario and the two girls dressed like Persian ninjas are Lilly (the tall one) and Sky (the small one)."

As they all stepped forward, the adult cheetah did the same to take a good look at them. "Well, I must say you all look exactly like how Aqua described you." He then chuckled. As the two girls removed their head scarfs, he slightly widened his eyes. "Wow, I see he didn't exaggerated when he talked about how cute you were."

This statement caused Aqua to smack him behind the head. "Don't say that, dude! It sounds weird!" His reaction caused the others to laugh.

Jason rubbed his head before turning toward Blu. "And you're Hario, right? The little dreamer Aqua told me about?"

"Yes, I'm known as Tyler "Blu" Gunderson now, but you can call me like you want," Blu nicely said and shook wing/paw with Jason.

"Hario it is then. And you're the leader of this team?" he asked with turning his attention to the rest of the group which he didn't met yet.

"Yes." Blu started by wrapping a wing around Dominic. "This is Dominic, the first friend I made outside the Amazon and the future best swordsman in the world."

"Heya," the golden eagle said with a cool smile and a wing wave.

"He wanna become better then Dracule "Hawkeye" Yun," Aqua pointed out.

"Wow, that's a huge goal," Jason said with an amazed look.

Blu then pulled Jewel closer. "This is Jewel, my girlfriend."

"Wow, and a pretty one that is," Jason said, causing Jewel to blush a bit. "Nice to meetcha, beautiful lady," he said with taking her wing in a gentleman way, making her blush even more.

"You're quite the charmer, aren't you?" she giggled. If he wasn't Aqua's brother, Blu would feel a bit jealous.

"This is Apollo, our crafter," he continued, pointing at the barn owl who waved his wing with a smile.

"Crafter? You build boats?" Jason asked.

"Sorry, I didn't reached that point yet," Apollo admitted with rubbing the back of his head.

"This is Vladimir, my friend and student," Dominic said with taking his friend's wing. "We were together during our young years in Russia's army."

Lazaro suddenly jumped beside Jason, bringing Hernandez with him. "This awesome puffin is called Lazaro, and this big guy's my best friend, Hernandez. Together, we are this team's enforcers."

Jason just rose an eyebrow. "You sure? You look pretty small to me." This earned him a kick in the nose from the puffin. "Okay, I believe you."

Alex then jumped on Hernandez's shoulder so that Jason could see him. "I'm Alex, the doctor of the group."

The cheetah was a bit surprised. "Huh? But you're a kid. How old are you exactly?"

"Around eleven year old," the kid responded before putting on a pouting face. "But don't underestimate me just because of it!"

Jewel then pulled Chuva closer. "This is the princess Chuva and her friend 1-2-3 Coin. We're escorting her to her hometown so that she can stop a civil war."

"A princess huh?" Jason said with a little smug. "With such a beauty, I could have guessed it at first look." This statement caused the princess to blush bashfully too.

"Huh, guys, I don't want to break the mood, but ALERT!" Apollo suddenly shouted with pointing his wing forward where five ships have the Booty Works logo on their mat was waiting for them.

"Booty Works! They found us!" Dominic said with drawing out his Eau De Mort saber.

"Everybody! Get ready for battle!" Aqua ordered with taking out his jitte sword.

"No need," Jason suddenly stopped them. He jumped overboard and landed on a very little jet board which the others failed to notice before. "I'll take care of them."

He drove at full speed toward the ships as his friends called for him in concern, not seeing how he could take down five ships all by himself. As he was getting closer, the cheetah took out what seemed to be a little metal handle out of his vest.

"What is he gonna do with that?" one of the Booty Works pirates asked in a mocking tone.

The cheetah just smirked before pressing a button on his handle which summoned a very, very, VERY long and large blade made of red, yellow and green energy. **(AN: To give you an idea, imagine it as long as Sephiroth's sword and three times as large as Cloud's Buster Sword)** By the time everyone came out of their surprise by the large weapon, Jason already jumped and cut a whole ship in two with one swing of his giant sword.

The pirates shot cannonballs at the cheetah who easily cut all of them with surprising ease despite his sword's size. In a matter of seconds, all four ships were cut in half by the cheetah, leaving the pirates to fall into the sea and swim to the coast.

"Can your sword do the same!" Alex innocently asked Aqua.

"No...unfortunately," he admitted, looking a bit jealous.

Jason then jumped back on the Polar Tang after tying his jet board to it and immediately received compliments from everyone. "Thank you, thank you everyone." He then looked seriously at Aqua. "But now that everything's out of the way, let's get to the reason of my presence in this country."

"Oh yes, I forgot to ask, but what is it?" Aqua asked.

"There is two reasons actually. The first one is because I'm searching for a guy. His name is Silverbeard."

"Silverbeard?" Apollo asked with a curious look.

"It's a notorious criminal," Chuva said. "He committed a big homicide in the Drom Kingdom."

Aqua had a surprised look and narrowed his eyes. "You mean Johny Silver, huh? That bastard..."

"He was a part of Urax's second fleet which I'm the commandant of, meaning he was under my orders," Jason explained. "That son of a bitch committed the worst possible crime for a pirate: killing a member of our crew. I must find and neutralize him. It's my duty as a commandant. I came here because many people claim they have seen him around here."

"And what's your second reason?" Sky curiously asked.

Jason putted his paw on Aqua's shoulder. "Urax wants you to come back to the fleet. You've been gone for eight months now and everyone's getting worried."

Aqua looked at his brothers-at-arms before slowly turning toward his three childhood siblings. He reunited with them barely a few days ago and didn't wanted to leave them so soon. And it was reciprocal. Jason probably noticed it because he then turned toward the group.

"Hey, would you guys like to join Urax's fleet? I'm certain he'd like to have birds like you in his ranks."

"We appreciate the offer, Jason, but Sky and I have a family back in the Human World," Lilly responded.

"And we still gotta finish our ninja training with them," Sky added.

"As for me, I wanna become the strongest bird in the world," Blu said. "And I wanna do it by making my own path, even if it means becoming a pirate captain and fight super strong guys in this New World. Heck, even if it means finding the Treasure Planet first, then I'll do it!"

Jason just smiled at those statements. "If that's the case, it means we're rivals as I'm planning on making Urax the next King of Pirates by finding the Treasure Planet. But don't worry, I'll still see you as a friend."

Aqua then went inside and brought beer barrels for everyone. "Let's drink to our next journey then!"

The friends all took one beer cup and rose it in the air with cheers.

* * *

 **AN: For those who think Jason Donald shouldn't be able to lift such a huge sword, allow me to explain: the blade itself doesn't have any weight as it is made of energy, only the handle's weight count.**

 **I sure hope you like the character of Jason Donald so far. Don't worry; he's the last siblings in Blu's brotherhood that I have in mind for the moment.**


	98. Kung Fu Dugongs & the Green City

Following their in-extremis escape from Colonel Toxic's forces, Blu's group reunited with Aqua's brother-at-arms, Jason Donald, and drove away from the coast's length on the Polar Tang. They next destination was the Yuba Oasis where the rebel army was located, according to Chuva.

"THIS IS DELICIOUS!" Jason beamed as he happily ate the fish meal Lazaro made for him.

"Isn't it? You talk to a fish professional," the puffin proudly said. Everyone gathered in the kitchen just rolled their eyes.

"Show-off," Vladimir mumbled.

Meanwhile, outside, on the deck, Dominic was training by swinging a giant weight in the shape of a sword to make his wings stronger. "Awww, this feels good." Alex was laying next to his golden eagle friend who created big gusts of wind with each swings he made which was refreshing for the kid, specially on his exposed tummy.

"Hey, that's not very cool to take benefit of someone training to relax," Dominic remarked, but his student was just laying there, his eyes closed and enjoying the wind. This made him sigh.

Meanwhile, Blu and Jewel were having a little romantic time together on the other end of the deck. Sitting together on the edge and enjoying the view of the sea, Jewel had her feathered arms wrapped around Blu's one. This caused him to blush a bit as this caused his arm to get in contact with her chest. True to be told, Blu still had to adjust to Jewel's new human look...and her belly dancer dress wasn't making easier. Thank you, Lazaro!

It was then that Chuva walked in the control room to meet Aqua. "Excuse-me, Aqua. Could we make a quick stop here?"

This earned her a curious look from the captain. "Why?"

"I got a little mission for Coin," she said with pointing at her loyal duck behind her.

* * *

Aqua parked the Polar Tang on the coast and Chuva got down on land alongside 1-2-3 Coin. She handed him a message paper.

"Coin, I want you to get to Alubarna's palace and give this letter to my father." He answered with a quack. "I'm telling him that I discovered Risky Boots' plans and also that I'm well and back to Sequin Kingdom with powerful allies." At this statement, Blu and his friends couldn't help but smile proudly. "Think you can do it?"

The duck gave a quack and did the military greet, making Chuva smile and put the letter in his side bag.

"Just don't waste all the water in your barrel at once; the travel should be long."

"Good luck," Blu wished him with a smile.

"And don't forget to tell my father that we can still save the kingdom," Chuva added before Coin gave one last quack and then started running in the desert ahead. Before long, he was nothing more than a spot at the horizon. "I trust you, Coin..."

Meanwhile, on the Polar Tang, Dominic and Jason watched the scene with the cheetah smiling. "I knew there was one of the Seven Warlords around here, but I didn't expected him - or rather her - to wanna conquer a whole country. Pirates are not the type to stay at one place, it must be the same for this Risky Boots. If you want my opinion, she doesn't really want to be queen."

"You think?" Dominic asked the cheetah before the others came back on the submarine.

"Let's go!" Aqua called.

"W-Wait! I'm not on board yet!" Apollo called in a panicked tone.

* * *

Around an hour later, the Polar Tang arrived at the part of the coast our heroes wanted to reach. "We're arrived!" Aqua called and made the submarine stop.

"Great! We can now cross the desert!" Alex happily beamed. "I just hope it won't be too hot."

"I wouldn't count on that, little Al; the submarine's thermometer indicates at least fifty degrees Celsius," Jewel pointed out.

Alex looked at her with his eyes wide open. "What?! Are you serious?!" He then looked down. "Man, this is gonna be a long travel," he whined as Jewel just patted him on the head.

"Here, put this one, Blu," Lilly said as she handed her brother desert robes like the ones Lazaro bought for the others. "This will help you with the sun's heat."

"Okay, thanks." Putting the robes on, Blu's discomfort reached a new level. He already wasn't completely used to wear pants and an open jacket, but with these robes on, he felt like his moves were more limited. But that was still better than getting killed by the sun, right?

"Okay, let's get off," Dominic said and was about to jump down on land. However, he spotted something in the water - some kind of figures. "Huh? What's that?"

SPLASH!

As if on cue, the figures jumped out of the water and onto the land, blocking the way to our heroes. Those strange creatures were some kind of dugongs with brown fur wearing dark green turtle shells on their back.

"What's that? Turtles?" Dominic asked.

"They look more like green otters," Lilly remarked.

"No! Those are Kung Fu dugongs!" Chuva exclaimed. the little creature made strange noises with their mouth. "They are challenging us to fight them or to just pass our way."

Seeing a chance to shine before the princess, Apollo stepped forward. "Alright! If they want a brawl, I'll give them one! YAAAAH!" Taking his mallet, he jumped toward them.

"Apollo! Wait!" Chuva called too late.

BAM! PAF! SMASH!

In a matter of seconds, the barn owl found himself laying on the ground with bruises all over his body. "That's what I tried to say; Kung Fu dugongs are pretty strong," Chuva pointed out.

"You sure?" Everybody turned their head to see in surprise that Blu jumped down and defeated a dugong while they were not looking. "They don't seem so strong to me." The defeat dugong suddenly got back up and looked at Blu before bowing. "Huh? What is it?"

The dugong looked at him with...admiration? "Dugongs have a rule: should any of them be defeated, the winner become their sensei," Chuva explained as all the dugongs looked at Blu with admiration in their eyes and gathered all around him.

"What?! But w-w-w-w-wait! I'm no sensei!" Blu said with shaking his hands at the dugongs that were gathered all around him, begging for him to train them. Unknown to him, Jewel and Chuva found this pretty cute. "Get them off!"

"I'm afraid it's not that simple," Chuva said with a giggle. "Once a Kung Fu dugong gets attached to someone, they don't want to leave this person."

"So I'm trapped with them forever?!"

"I think I have an idea," Alex suddenly said as he reached into his backpack and took out a lollipop. "Hey, Kung Fu dugongs, this delicious candy is for you, if you nicely wait for us here until our return." The marine creatures all looked at Alex...before jumping on him and trapping in a giant group hug. "AAAAH! HELP ME!"

The group decided to leave a part of their food supplies to the Kung Fu dugongs to convince them to stay on the coast. The marine creatures looked sadly at Blu's group as they walked away and waved their flippers at them. Blu couldn't help but feel sad at the sight.

"Don't worry! I'll come back after we save the country!" he called at them. "Man, I feel bad for those little guys..."

Jewel wrapped a wing around her boyfriend's shoulder. "Don't be, my little blueberry. Chuva said they wouldn't have survived the travel through the desert. It was for their own good." She kissed him on the cheek.

"Yeah, it only costed us half of our food supply," Lazaro sarcastically remarked. Eventually, the group ceased to walk as they arrived near what seemed to be an abandoned village with no sign of life anywhere. "What's that?"

"We already reached Yuba?" Blu asked.

"No. We're at Elmar, the town that was once called the Green City," Chuva explained, her beautiful face reflecting bad memories.

"The Green City?" Jewel asked.

The princess turned with a sad look. "Follow me; I'll make you visit. And then, you'll understand better what Booty Works did to this country and what the people must endure every day."

And so, the group started walking across the town that was composed of nothing but old buildings that looked ready to collapse at any moment of dried trees that visibly didn't tasted any water for a very long time. The only sound they could hear was the wind blowing.

"For the love of ninjas! There's nothing left here!" Lilly remarked with looking all around.

"Exactly; nothing left but ruins," Chuva confirmed. "But had you seen it many years earlier, you would have seen it was a fresh oasis."

"Kinda hard to believe," Dominic said with poking at a dead palm tree.

"As far as memories goes, there has never been much water around here, but the people was used to collect rain. They created a very useful collecting system. Only, one day, the rain ceased to fall and didn't came back for now three years," Chuva kept explaining.

"Huh?! Three years?!" Skyler asked in surprise.

"That's very long!" Alex added.

"But the people couldn't count on the river we used to come here?" Dominic asked.

"Yeah, why didn't they simply used the Sendora River's water while waiting for the rain to come back?" Apollo added.

"The answer to your question is out of the city," Chuva simply answered without stopping to walk. "The dryness surprised everyone. Sequin didn't lived such a thing for thousands of years. And there was a nearby town where it was raining more often than usual. The capital of Alubarna. The city where the king had his palace built." she marked a pause to look down. "People called this phenomenon the "Royal Miracle". Until that day...when the people found dance powder at the city's port."

"Dance powder?" Aqua asked. "Hey, we met a guy in the desert who had the same thing!"

"Really? What is it?" Sky asked.

"To make it short, it's a powder that calls the rain."

"We can call the rain?" Alex asked.

"If I remember correctly what the guy said, some alchemist guy created this powder a very long time ago in a country where dryness was strong. The powder produces a green smoke that rise in the sky and creates an artificial rain," Blu explained.

"Wait, I don't understand," Apollo came in. "If such a powder exists, then it's a good thing for a dry country, isn't it?"

"We could believe it," Chuva said. "When this powder was created, there has been celebrations across the whole country. People danced and this is why they called it "dance powder". But they didn't knew this powder also brought grave consequences. See, the dance powder causes the clouds to grow in an artificial way. They stimulate the growth of rain drops and immediately causes a rain where there wouldn't have been any otherwise."

Something then snapped in Apollo's head. "I got it: the country who use the dance powder inadvertently steals the rain from those who would have got it naturally!"

"Yes," Chuva confirmed with a nod. "This is why the war started with thousands of victims. Due to this, the world government made the dance powder illegal."

"I see...what makes some's happiness can also make others' sadness," Apollo mumbled with rubbing his beak.

"Exactly. And when this dance powder has been found at Alubarna's port, Sequin was going through a huge period of dryness - no rain anywhere. Except on the royal city."

Blu looked at her with wide eyes. "What?! Your father used dance powder to take the rain away from the whole country?!"

"You don't get it!" Dominic cut him off before he could make anymore assumptions. "What Chuva means is that her father was victim of a setup."

The parakeet sadly looked down. "Yes. My father had nothing to do in this story. But the facts were against him as bags of dance powders were found in the palace's cave."

"He was victim of low shot," Sky deduced. "There was an avenue here before?"

The parakeet shook her head with pointing at the trace in the sand below them. "No; it was the canal connected to the Sandora River. A few years ago, he was feeding the whole city, but he's now completely destroyed. We never learned who was behind this sabotage. But Elmar lost its only water source."

Alex marked a pause to grab a little rock and toss it into a water well. He waited a few seconds before hearing a POKE!

"Elmar lost every access to potable water and, no matter how much they pried, rain never came back. And following the dance powder accident, my father lost the people's trust."

"Everything happened as Risky Boots planned it," Aqua mumbled.

"To top it all, the civil war happened. The people left the region to avoid the war and search for new oasis. Elmar was soon completely abandoned and this how the Green City became a ghost town..."

The princess suddenly collapsed on her knees. "BE CURSED, RISKY BOOTS! SO MUCH PAIN AND DEAD HAPPENED BECAUSE OF YOU! I'LL NEVER FORGIVE YOU!"

CRASH!

The princess turned around to see a building collapse as Blu smashed through it. Anger was all over his face as he then sent his foot to destroy another building. "Blu! What are you doing?" Jewel asked.

"I'm taking my anger out!" he replied with smashing a dead tree. "I'm mad at this Risky Boots! And I can't wait to face her on!"

BAM!

Lazaro kicked a dead tree which immediately collapsed too. Same for Alex who turned into his Muscle Candy form. The others just watched as the trio unleashed their anger for a moment. Blu panted as he took back from his fluffing. Dominic came to put a wing on his shoulder.

"Feeling better?"

"Yeah," he answered with turning around. "Let's keep going on and find this rebel army."

* * *

 **For those of you who found this scene out of character for Blu, you'll know that everyone needs to release their anger once in a while. Same goes for Alex and Lazaro. Risky Boots' better watch for herself!**


	99. Adventures in the burning desert

After reaching the coast, meeting with a bunch of cute Kung Fu dugongs, and walking across the ghost town of Elmar, our group of feathered friends traveled across the burning desert of Sequin with their destination being the Yuba Oasis. Beads upon beads of sweat poured down the avians as they gasped for much needed air.

"It's too hot!" Blu complained and took some water from his gourd to keep himself hydrated inside and outside.

"I have to agree with you. Curse you, sun!" Lazaro shouted with a flipper curled like a fist toward the sky. It was pretty odd as the puffin wasn't the kind to complain even in hard conditions.

"I hope we find somewhere to get cooled off soon," Jewel said with taking Blu's gourd and pouring water over her head too. As the water flowed on her body, making her look beautiful, Lazaro and Apollo had to fight hard to not look at her and look live pervs.

"Can't take it anymore... I'm okay with cold, but heat, I can't stand it," whined Alex who had to be carried on Hernandez's shoulder. The heat was already violent for a normal bird, so imagine the effects on a winter animal like him.

"Hold on, Alex, we'll find a spot to get away from the sun," the big pelican assured the kid, trying to ignore the cascade of sweat that was flowing on his back because of him.

Apollo tried to fan himself with his cap before turning toward Chuva with a curious look. "You don't seem to be bothered by the heat, Chuva."

She giggled a bit. "I was born here; I'm used to the heat."

The only ones not complaining were Dominic, Vladimir, Aqua, Skyler, and Jason Donald. The golden eagles were probably used to those kind of rough conditions with their time in the army. Aqua and Jason too. As for Sky, it was a bit normal as her species were made to live in the desert.

As they walked, Apollo couldn't help but notice that almost all the landscape was composed of dunes. "Why are those dunes so high? Shouldn't a desert be flat?"

"He's very old. Some dunes can even reach 300 meters," Chuva informed him.

"3-300 meters?! That's practically the high of a mountain!" Apollo exclaimed.

* * *

Luckily, night time soon arrived and the group settled their campsite for the night. Lazaro cooked some fishes above the camp fire for everyone. "And don't even think about taking my favorite part, Blu!" the puffin said with a pointing look, making his macaw friend understand that he still didn't forgave him for the red snapper accident.

Jewel shivered next to her boyfriend. "Ironic. It's burning hot all day long, but when it's night time, we found ourselves in Antarctica."

"There's nothing holding back heat in the desert," Chuva explained. "The desert is full of dangers."

Unlike Jewel, Alex was not complaining about the cold atmosphere at all. In fact, he was even enjoying it. Resting on his back, he looked up at the night sky. "Wow, there is so many stars up there... Back in France, we could barely see the stars because of the city lights."

"I'm too cold to watch the stars," Apollo said as he snuggled himself against the little snowy owl and sighed because of the warmth source. "Aww, that's better."

Skyler came to do the same and smiled. "That's true. So warm and fluffy..."

Alex blushed a bit by the two other owls who were snuggling against him. "Do as you wish, but don't think this makes me happy."

Meanwhile, Aqua and Jason were watching the scene unfold with smiles. Their attention then turned toward Blu who had his wings wrapped around Jewel to keep her warm. "Your brother is certainly a thing," Jason remarked. "He's not like the other captains I've seen. A captain is usually venerated by his crew. But Hario debates and argue with his friends most of the time."

"That's Hario's way of doing things," Aqua simply said. "He didn't changed too much since he was a kid; always so socially awkward and nervous. But somehow, people are still attracted to him. That's his charisma. I've known him for a long time and I am very grateful to Jewel, Dominic and the others for watching after him."

* * *

The following day, the group of birds resumed their walk where they stopped. Everyone started complaining about the heat and Alex had to be carried by Hernandez once again. It only took two hours for them to be tired already.

"We already wasted half our water supply," Dominic informed everyone while walking. "From, now on, we're gonna have to make sure not to drink too much."

"What? But we barely made 1/5 of the journey," Chuva informed in surprise.

"AAAAAAAH!" a scream was suddenly heard.

Surprising everyone, the group looked ahead and saw what seemed like a dust cloud making its way toward them. After waiting for a few seconds, they got a better view over it: there was a normal camel running in their direction, looking like he was panicking, with something under the sand following him. This camel looked vaguely familiar to Alex. Before they could call for him, the thing following him jumped out of the ground and revealed itself to be a giant purple very hungry-looking lizard.

"Impossible!" Chuva mumbled with a look of horror.

"IT'S HUGE!" Apollo and Alex shrieked in horror.

"What the heck is that?!" Dominic and Vladimir asked at unison.

"It's a Great Sandora Lizard!" Chuva exclaimed. "The biggest kind of reptile in the desert! It follows its prey underground! Its feng and claws are sharp like razors, but it rarely needs it as it usually needs only one bite to swallow its prey!"

"You got a thing to bring up problems, don't ya?" Jason Donald remarked with amusement.

Dominic slowly took out his Snow Run and Eau De Mort swords. "Lazaro! Hernandez! Ready to take this thing down?"

They both nodded and jumped pass the camel toward the giant reptile. In a second, Hernandez sent a strong smash right in his face while Lazaro performed a dive kick on top of his skull, cracking it, and Dominic cut through his throat, killing him instantly without giving him time to suffer. Blu felt a shiver as, despite all the battles he went through in the past, he still wasn't used to see people die. It was something he totally despised, even for a giant lizard that tried to eat them.

"That didn't took very long," Apollo remarked.

"I almost feel bad for the monster," Vladimir added with a smirk.

Dominic then proceeded to cut a few parts of the lizard corpse and made them cook for extra-food (which wasn't hard with the desert heat). "Water might be low, but our food supply totally won't," the golden eagle said with a smile.

"Are you okay?" Chuva then asked the camel.

"Yes. Thank you; I was walking calmly through the desert when this thing started chasing me. Have you not interfered, I would have ended in his stomach. The name's Longcil by the way," the camel introduced himself.

Alex stepped forward. "Didn't we met before? You look familiar to me."

The camel eyed the snowy owl kid and then gasped. "Yes, I know you! You're that kid I helped back in Nonoana!"

"You know this guy, Alex?" Blu asked him.

"Yes; I met him after getting separated from Lazaro and Hernandez, back in Nonoana. He helped me get out of a trailer."

"Well we should thank then I guess," Lilly said.

"I'm the one thanking you for saving my life. In exchange, I accept to carry your belongings to your next destination. That's what camels excel in."

"Wow, thanks, that's very cool," Alex happily said.

* * *

 **I know this chapter was short, but I woke up early from being unable to fall asleep. I don't know what's wrong with me.**


	100. Tirofijo, a proud rebel

**I finally did it! This is the 100th chapter! It's the first time I write so many chapters for a single story.**

 **I wanna take time to thank those of you who still read this story even after so many chapters. It means a lot to me.**

 **I hope you're not too sad, but this chapter's gonna mainly be a flashback. If that doesn't bother you, then it's cool.**

* * *

It has now been two days since our heroes started their travel across the desert. Blu started to seriously miss the cold but pleasant air of Moose Lake where even summer time remained cool. The time his routine was simple and consisted of simply waking up, brushing his beak, eating breakfast and enjoy a day with cookies, hot chocolate and books seemed so far behind. Sure, he didn't regretted leaving all that for his precious Jewel nor for his wonderful friends. But he would have gladly avoided the desert.

He gladly accepted when Apollo offered him some water from a barrel in which he justly drank. Normally, he would have preferred to not drink in the same barrel as someone else, but it was better to risk getting bacterias than dying of thirst.

Hernandez had to drink more than the others because of his large beak. He then offered some to Alex who was still laying on his shoulder. "Want some?"

"No thanks, I can still hold on," the kid politely denied.

At least the travel got easier now that Longcil, the camel they saved from a giant lizard, was carrying their packs and supplies stock. "You're very cool for helping us, you know," Vladimir remarked.

"You're welcome; it's the least I can do for those who saved my camel butt," he said with a chuckle. "And besides, I'm already used to travel in the desert."

Jewel then approached Chuva as she had something to ask: "Say, Chuva, can you tell us more about the rebel army?"

She turned her head toward her friend. "To understand, I'm gonna have to tell you about something else. It happened eleven years ago..."

* * *

 _"Chuva, listen, you must become a great princess..."_

Many years ago, inside the royal palace of Alubarna, we see the king Alkawbra, an elder male parakeet with light blue feathers (though darker than Chuva's) with a wrinkled face and long, curly, black hair. He wears a green robe with yellow edging, an orange and beige sash around his waist, and a purple coat. He also wears sandals and a necklace.

He was currently sitting on his throne chair at the end of the room with palace guards standing on both sides of the long room. In the very middle of this room was standing a young silver fox with dirty clothes that was pleading for a cause. "There's no more water in our village! Why didn't you saved us? You're the king!" His ice blue eyes had some tears in the corner.

"You know, only God can decide for the weather," the king simply said with a soft tone to the kid. "I might be king, but I can't do anything against the forces of nature."

"This is not what my father told me! He says the king is so powerful that he can do anything!" the fox kid insisted.

"Know, kid, that I'm an animal like the others; I do not possess supernatural powers," the king tried again to resonate the kid.

"Majesty!" Everybody turned to see an adult silver fox with also dirty clothes, probably the kid's father, rushing in. "Please, forgive his insolence! It's my son! He doesn't know what he's saying! I'm absolutely sorry! I'm the one you must punish! I'm the only responsible!"

The begging fox ran beside his son and gave him a hit on the head before forcing him to bow down. "What have you done, you fool?! I can't believe it! You don't have anything in that skull of yours?! You're a shaming thug!"

The king couldn't help but chuckle at the father's overreaction. "You must be Toto, am I right?"

"Yes, Majesty!" the fox nervously replied.

"I will make sure all the habitants of the village touched by the dryness get financially taken care of by the state. You'll come here and carefully prepare your future," he generously offered.

"Oh, Majesty, you're so good! In name of all my people, I thank you!" Toto said with bowing and forcing his son to do the same.

But the kid pushed his father's paw away. "It's not gonna make me forget what my village's friends had to endure!" And he ran away and out of the throne room.

"Tirofijo! Wait!" his father called.

the king just chuckled before saying: "Listen to me. Your son is shaken by the things your people went through. He's a good boy. He pleaded his people's cause. Your son have heart and doesn't lack courage."

Meanwhile, the little fox kid known as Tirofijo was running in the palace's hall with tears in his eyes. As he did so, he ran pass a younger Chuva and 1-2-3 Coin standing by. "Where is this crybaby coming from?" the princess asked in a mean way.

This caused the fox to stop running and turn toward the girl, whipping his tears away before he did so. "What did you say, little girl?! You got a problem with me?!"

"Little girl?" young Chuva asked in an annoyed tone before stepping forward.

Back in the throne room, the king's adviser stepped toward him. "Majesty."

"What is it?"

"Without wanting to contradict you, I'm afraid the promise you made is impossible. We don't have enough money to help them all."

The king answered by chopping the adviser on top of the head. "You noodlehead! We just need to lesser our train of life and that way, we'll get the necessary money!"

"Yes, Majesty," the adviser simply said with rubbing the top of his head.

The doors suddenly shot open and a guard ran in. "Majesty! Majesty! It's princess Chuva!" Indeed, he was followed by a young Chuva covered of bruises but she apparently didn't bothered.

"I fought with someone and I lost," she simply said, causing her father's lower beak to fall.

"...Okay, I never expected my daughter to get into a child brawl," he though to himself.

* * *

Outside the palace and into the market place of the city, many kids were gathered in a crowd around Tirofijo and princess Chuva who were about to have a revenge match. As they cheered for one participant or the other, Chuva cracked her knuckles while Tirofijo just smirked with his arms crossed.

"If I win, I'll become the chief of your band!" the parakeet declared with pointing at the silver fox.

"Don't dream, little girl: I've always been the leader of all the children in this village and it's not gonna change!"

Chuva stuck her tongue out at him and smirked. "We'll see about that!"

And so, the two kids fought a long match...but in the end, neither came out on top. "Listen to me, everyone!" Tirofijo called at the kids with a paw on Chuva's shoulder. "Since there has been no winner, Chuva will now be our second captain-in-command for the Sand Clan! Any objections?"

The kids all responded with cheers of happiness. Unknown to them, the king was watching this from an hiding spot and smiled. "Would you look at that. My little Chuva just made herself new friends. This is good news and even something primary for her future. When she'll rule Sequin."

* * *

"Everything was peaceful?" Apollo asked Chuva, having decided to listen to her story as well as the others as she told it.

"Yes. Only, a lot of things happened..."

* * *

One day, as young princess Chuva was walking alone on the road outside her city to go visit Tirofijo and her friends, she suddenly got stopped by two male barn owls who didn't looked very friendly. "Hello, young lady," one of them said with a smirk.

"So we walk around with no company?" the other one said with slowly his wing toward her.

However, she dodged him and, thanks to fate, her friends from the Sand Clan arrived. "Sand Clan! Attack!" Tirofijo ordered as he and the other kids all jumped on the two adults, kicking, biting and hitting them with their wooden clubs.

Despite being superior in numbers, the kids were ultimately all defeated by the two bandits, barely giving them a few wounds. Tirofijo was now the last one standing between the bandits and Chuva with his wooden club.

"It's over, kid! Just get outta here and we will let you live with your friends," one of the barn owl said with taking out a knife.

Chuva gasped in fear, but her fox friend remained firm. "That's out of question! I won't let you touch her! We're all ready to die to protect our friend!"

Chuva looked at him with wide eyes from behind. "Tirofijo..."

"As you wish, but don't complain after your death, kid!" the owl holding a knife said and charged forward. In a split-second, the owl swung his knife across the fox's skin just above his left eye, sending a jet of blood flying in the air while the kid responded by smashing his club as hard as he could in his face, making the owl's beak crack and spit some blood before collapsing down.

Tirofijo panted for a while before feeling the effects of his wound and quickly closed his left eye before the blood could flow down in it. He groaned because of the burning pain and slammed a paw against his scar in a desperate attempt to make the blood stop flowing out.

"Tirofijo!" Chuva shouted in horror as she rushed at her friend's side and wrapped an arm around him. At the same time, the other barn owl rushed at his friend's unconscious form and groaned in anger.

"How dare you do that to my brother, you little brat! I'm gonna kick your a-" Unfortunately, he never got to finish his sentence as a chop on the back of the head knocked him out cold.

"Daddy!" Chuva happily beamed as Tirofijo also smiled in relief.

"You little scoundrels! What were you planning to do with my daughter, huh?!" the king angrily asked despite the two owls being unconscious.

Chuva was very happy, but then turned her attention back to her fox friend who was groaning in pain. "Father! Tirofijo is hurt!"

The elder parakeet turned his attention toward the kids. "Yes. We will bring him along with all the other kids to a doctor and quick." He then couldn't help but show a smile. "Those kids are very courageous."

* * *

Later on, Tirofijo was brought to the palace where a very skilled doctor took care of his wounds, patching bandages on the scar above his left eye. He was currently laying on a bed with Chuva, King Alkawbra, and other guards around him.

"What is wrong, my little Chuva? you don't seem so well," her father asked.

"It's because...because I got scared," she mumbled.

"I was too, you know," Tirofijo remarked. "This guy had a knife; I don't know what he would have done to you."

Chuva suddenly started sniffing. "No, that's not it! What scared me is that you said that you were all ready to die just to protect me! I don't want you to get killed, you understand?" She sniffed and whipped her tears away.

The king couldn't help but smile at seeing his daughter caring for her friends' lives. He then started walking out of the room with guards and 1-2-3 Coin. "Tirofijo, Chuva might still be a young girl, but she is still this kingdom's princess. Today, you acted with great courage by saving her. I wanted to thank you."

The young silver fox just looked at the king who thanked him. "You know, Chuva is my friend: it's normal that I always help her."

"That's true. But with people like you, I do not worry for the future of Sequin. Tell me, do you like this country?"

Tirofijo chuckled. "Of course: I was born here."

"I too love it," the king affirmed and chuckled too."

A few minutes later, the king walked in the palace's halls with his adviser. "Your Majesty?" he asked with a somehow serious tone.

"Yes?"

"I'd like to point out a little detail: directing a country sometimes imply to take difficult decisions. And princess Chuva is a little too soft for this."

The king just kept walking at this statement. "My friend, this is no problem. I am certain this is what is best for Sequin."

* * *

"...And so, a few days later, Tirofijo moved on to the Yuba Oasis with his parents, friends and people. This place was located in the middle of many market routes between the cities. It was the perfect place for them to sell their supplies and make money along with having a great source of water," Chuva concluded.

"I see," Jewel mumbled. "Your Tirofijo friend sounds like a good guy. But this story doesn't connect with the rebel army."

"Well, don't get the wrong idea," Chuva said. "It appears that the money account of the rebel army is located in the old Yuba Oasis. And the man leading this whole army is called...Tirofijo."

This caused everyone to gasp. "Really?!" Skyler asked.

"Yes...it's the fox I just told you about," the princess confirmed.

"But if you know the leader of the army, then you can make them stop!" Apollo realized.

"I sure hope...," Chuva said with looking down uncertain.

Blu putted a hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry, Chuva; we'll be with you to help if things go south! You can count on us!" he declared with confidence, backed up by nods from his friends.

Chuva looked at him with her eyes wide open before smiling. "Thank you, guys..."

* * *

 **Already 100 chapters. Yet I still feel like I'm at the starting line of it. This is gonna be huge.**

 **On another note, the character of Tirofijo is based on real life guerrilla Manuel Marulanda Velez. He was the leader of a Revolutionary group from Colombia until 2008 when he died of an heart attack. He was nicknamed "Tirofijo" (which translates to "Surefire" or "Sureshot") by his comrades, apparently because of a reputed ability to accurately aim firearms.**

 **I wanna take time to thank all my friends who still follow this story after so many chapters:**

 **-Skyler The Elf Owl**

 **-Rio2lover100**

 **-Jameson The Phoenix Owl**

 **-DextrousCloth31**

 **And also to those who help me by giving creative reviews for this story though they still have many chapters to read:**

 **-Ricardo The Black Hawk**

 **-Loco Vampire**

 **-Nightfly123**


	101. Encounter at the Spiders Café

The sun started setting down at the horizon, causing the heat to drop down a bit, much to the pleasure of Blu's group. The sky turned amber in color and the other end opposite from the sun started turning dark as the stars came out. The group has been walking for now three days. According to Chuva, the Yuba Oasis shouldn't be too far now.

"Come on, we can do it!" Blu cheered on for his friends.

Jewel suddenly noticed a detail: Jason Donald stopped walking. "Jason? What's wrong?" Jewel's question caused the others to turn as well.

The cheetah looked at the group. "This is where I'll be leaving you."

"What?!" everyone exclaimed in surprise.

"Don't get me wrong; I'd like nothing more than to help you with Risky Boots, however...There's a detail I completely forgot about." Aqua looked curiously at his brother-at-arms...before putting on a surprised look, as if he just remembered something.

"The storm cycle!" he exclaimed.

"Storm cycle? What's that?" Jewel asked.

"It's a period of time during which the seas around the region get hit by giant storms that makes it nearly impossible to navigate through them," Aqua explained. "This period can last many days or even a full month. I completely forgot about it. And it's starting tomorrow." Taking his winter hat off, the macaw looked down before turning seriously to the others. "I'm sorry guys, but Jason and I have to go now. We're already late and if we waste any more time, he won't be happy."

Blu couldn't believe it. His brother really wanted to leave like this at such an important moment?" "But you can't leave us like that!" he protested. "You really cannot stay a little bit longer?"

"I'm afraid this is not possible. I really want to, but I have to return to Urax as soon as possible," Aqua explained, this time with some visible pain in his voice. And Blu immediately understood that it was because he didn't wanted to leave his siblings right after getting reunited with them again after so many years.

Lilly then stepped forward, having something to say. "Aqua, before you go, do you think you can bring Sky and I back to the Human World? If this storm cycle you talked is to last for so long, then our siblings will get worried to see us gone for so long."

Skyler nodded in agreement before turning toward Blu. "Sorry to leave you in such an important situation, Hario."

The spix macaw just remained silent for a long moment. But then, he smiled. "It's okay. I understand. We're no longer kids. this means we can't spend all our time playing together like we used to. Now, we're adults and we all have a dream to follow. It would be selfish to ask you to put your quest on standby for me. Specially when I'm the one who decided to help Chuva in the first place."

Lilly couldn't help but smile and putted an hand on her brother's shoulder. "You've changed so much from the last time I've seen you as a kid."

"I know how much seeing the whole world counts for you," Sky added with a nod. "Well now, you're free to go explore it and, hopefully, find the Treasure Planet."

"You sure become stronger, little bro," Aqua said with a smirk, "but don't get the wrong idea; I'm planning on making Urax the King of Pirates and possibly even become stronger than him someday."

Jason was the next to step before Blu. "You're truly a special bird, Hario. However, if you're searching to find the Treasure Planet, then this will make us rivals."

Blu just shrugged. "I don't really care about the Pirate King title. I just wanna find it to prove I'm the strongest bird in the world."

"It's not that simple: if you find the Treasure Planet, you automatically become the king, that's how it works," Jason explained with a smile. "But whatever you're planning to do, I wish you good luck."

Seeing the sad looks on his siblings' faces, Dominic decided to wrap a wing around Blu's shoulder. "Don't worry about him; we'll be here to make sure he doesn't do anything stupid. Right, Blu?"

The four siblings exchanged one last big group hug and whipped some tears before the four walked away from Blu. He waved his wing at them before they were nothing more then spots at the horizon. Jewel then came to put a wing on her boyfriend's shoulder. She turned it into a hug to make him feel better. Getting separated from his siblings right after getting reunited with them was pretty hard for him.

"Blu, you're alright?" Apollo asked him.

"Yeah," Blu responded after breaking from the hug with his beloved Jewel. "Let's go save the Kingdom of Sequin." He started walking toward their destination with renewed determination and his friends could only follow him with enthusiasm.

"You're not too sad, Blu?" Alex asked with sympathy for his friend.

"Don't worry Alex; one day, we'll meet again and we will all have become closer to our dreams than we already are. Lilly and Sky will have become great ninjas and Aqua a great pirate," Blu declared with an optimistic smile. "As for me, I'll be closer to become the strongest bird in the world."

Everyone was happy to see Blu wasn't too sad. "You know what, we'll reach Yuba after those huge rocks," Chuva announced with pointing at big rocks on their way.

"Yeah!" the whole group beamed and walked faster, eager to reach their destination.

* * *

Meanwhile, very far from there, in the middle of the desert, was standing a little restaurant called the Spiders Café. It wasn't too fancy and only had wooden tables, chairs and counter. A little disc reader was playing classic music in the corner and the only person inside was a female panther behind the counter.

She was pretty young and had long hair with some blue streaks. She was wearing a black top with purple rims, shoulder-length black gloves which left her hands exposed and were decorated with two dark blue crystals. She was also wearing a pair of grey jeans with a hole for her black tail to dance around freely. She was just reading her restaurant's menu before rising her purple eyes as someone entered.

"Hello! Merry Christmas! The journey was long and I'm tired! My back's aching! And this is all because of you, Mr. 4! You're too slow!"

"Sorry, Miss Merry Christmas."

The intruders were a female mole with brown fur wearing a purple vest and shorts along with slit-shaped eyes and a male yellow bear wearing a red shirt and shorts (no, it's not Winnie The Pooh). Their names were Miss Merry Christmas and Mr. 4 respectively, as we heard it.

The mole then noticed the panther and went to sit at the counter. "Aww, Kyria, my little panther, it's been so long!"

The panther named Kyria smiled. "Same here, Miss Merry Christmas. And Mr. 4 too." The bear smiled at her. "Today, the restaurant is closed for the reunion of our group. So, I'm serving you some orange and apple juice, as always?"

They both nodded and the black panther walked to her fridge to serve them said drinks. "So things are going well for you."

"If they were not, we wouldn't be here, silly," Miss Merry Christmas said with a giggle before taking a sip of her orange juice.

"Yes, that's true, excuse-me," she giggled too. She then moved her ears and pushed a sigh. "You can come out now, Chameleon."

Right after she said that, the reptile our feathered friends met on their ship before arriving on the coast appeared on the wall and jumped down. "How did you know I was here? I was invisible."

"You talked to yourself out loud again. Being invisible is pointless if we can easily hear you talk alone," the panther said with offering him some apple juice.

"Am I so predictable?" he asked with taking his cup and drinking it. He then turned his head toward the others. "Oh, my favorite mole and bear."

"Stop trying to charm me, Chameleon," Miss Merry Christmas said with a giggle.

The reptile then noticed something. "Our meeting is supposed to be for 20:00, but I don't see our new comrade anywhere. Where's Mr. 1?"

"No idea," Kyria said with a shrug. "I sure hope they'll be here on time though."

Suddenly, the door opened and someone else entered. It was a medium-sized grey turtle with a rather round-shaped shell, light blue protection glasses and scarf around his neck. However, his most noticeable attribute was the strange black knot tied into a "3" on top of his head.

"Ah, Mr. 3," Kyria said. "About time you show up. Where have you been?"

"I kinda got lost in the desert. It's a bit hard for a turtle like me to find orientation around here," he admitted with a chuckle before joining the others at the counter.

* * *

It was 19:59 and Mr. 1 was still missing. "Man, where's Mr. 1? It's almost time," Mr. 4 remarked.

"I bet he just ran away in fear. It's always like that: newcomers say they're ready, but they don't have the guts to come to work," Chameleon simply spat while rubbing his shoulder scales.

BAM!

Right before the last bell announcing 20:00 rang, the door shut open and an imposing figure stepped in. All the eyes turned toward the intruder and Kyria smiled. "So you finally came, Mr. 1...AKA Metal Niguel!"

Indeed, their new member was none other than our good old cockatiel criminal and the first antagonist met by Blu and his friends. He was still ugly as before and now wearing some kind of yellow Shakespeare vest with a red "1" written on it.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," he simply brushed off and closed the door behind him.

Kirya smiled. "Alright, all the agents that have been called are present." She turned toward everyone. "I must say something: a letter giving all the instructions have been given to the café. We must go to Rainbase all together. the boss we have never seen wants to meet us all."

This caused everyone to look at her with surprised looks. "What?! You're serious?!" Mr. 3 asked.

The panther just smirked. "More serious than ever..."

* * *

Back to our feathered friends, the desert landscape around them was starting to fade into darkness. However, they could still see clearly and at least, the air was well-balanced between the day's burning heat and night's freezing cold.

Chuva suddenly gasped. "Hey, look! The oasis is in view!" she beamed with pointing forward where a town could indeed be designed.

"We're finally arrived?" Alex asked from Longcil's back, excited to finally get to rest a bit.

However, Chuva's smile suddenly dropped. "Wait a second, something's wrong."

Everyone ran up to the oasis...and found it in the exact same state as Elmar: a lot of sand, no signs of life, weak houses, and dead trees.

"This is not possible...!" Chuva mumbled with her eyes wide open in shock.

"What a disaster; it's not very different from Elmar," Dominic remarked with crossing his wings.

"Crap! There's no water anywhere!" Lazaro whined, being very thirsty.

"But it was supposed to be an oasis! What happened, Chuva?" Hernandez asked his parakeet friend.

"It's horrible: the sand covered everything. The oasis is completely gone!" the princess said in horror. She then noticed a figure into what seemed like the remaining of a dried river. This figure was covered by a hood and used a shovel to throw sand out.

"You are travelers?" he asked them. "You must be tired from walking for a long time in the desert. I'm sorry, but the town is running low on water." The figure then turned his head to reveal a silver fox. "But you're welcome to rest if you want to."

Chuva putted her red mask back on to cover her face. "You will find a lot of earth. That's one of this oasis's pride, you know."

"Actually," Chuva said," we came here because we were told the rebel army was located here, at Yuba.

This caused the old silver fox to stop what he was doing and turn toward them with a surprised look. "What?! You can't be serious!" However, he then calmed down. "The rebel army is no longer in Yuba. They left a few days ago."

This announcement caused everyone to look at him with wide eyes.

"What the hell?!" Dominic exclaimed.

"That's a joke!" Blu said with facewinging himself.

The silver fox resumed digging the sand. "There has just been a sandstorm. It's not the first time it happens, but the ground has became completely dry from the dryness that has been hitting our country for three years. Ans Yuba has been constantly hit by sandstorms that ended taking our water away. This is what became of our old oasis. All merchants stopped coming here and it became impossible for the insurgents to keep fighting in those conditions. This is why the rebel army transferred it's headquarters to Katorea."

"Katorea?!" Chuva exclaimed.

"Where's that located, Chuva?" Blu asked.

"It's the oasis located right next to Nononana."

"Hey, I know that place!" Alex exclaimed. "This is where I got lost and met Longcil."

"Indeed," the camel confirmed. "In fact, right before bringing Alex away, I transferred some weapons to the army rebel in Katorea."

"COULDN'T YOU TELL US BEFORE?!" Blu, Apollo and Lazaro shouted at unison.

"I didn't knew!" he protested.

"So if I get it well, we came all the way here for nothing," Dominic concluded.

They then noticed the silver fox walking toward them with an interested look. "C-Chuva? You said Chuva?"

This caused Blu to slap himself on the head as he forgot that he was supposed to keep the princess' identity a secret. The elder fox walked over to Chuva who decided to remove her mask as there was no point in hiding anymore.

"You really are Chuva. Thank god. Don't you recognize me? But it's normal: I did get a bit more slender since the last time we've seen."

Chuva suddenly gasped as she recognized him. "Toto?!"

The fox had tears in his eyes. "Yes, it's me."

"It's him, toto?! The father of Tirofijo?" Blu asked.

"I want you to know, my little Chuva, that the king always had my trust!" the fox said as the tears started coming out of his eyes. "I know he cannot betray this country. This revolt is stupid! My son is stupid! What's wrong with them?! It's true that it stopped raining for three years, but I still trust the king! And most of the people too!"

He looked up at everyone. "Many times, I've managed to stop them from revolting. But this time, they didn't listened to one word. They are not strong enough; I know they reached their limit. They wanna try all for all! But they have no chance! They're gonna die! Please, Chuva, you must stop them."

He kept crying until Chuva took a towel and whipped his tears away with it. "Courage, toto. Don't worry. I'm gonna take care of this and end the revolt."

Toto's lips trembled and formed a weak smile. "Thank you..."

* * *

 **Author's note: I hope you're not too sad Lilly, Sky, Aqua, and Jason Donald already left. But it was for screenplay reasons. I wanted to write their respective story without making them overshadow each other. And let's be honest, nobody likes a story with overcrowded spots.**

 **Also, TA-DA-DAM! Nigel's back! I bet you didn't expected him to return for this arc nor did you remembered about him at all. I like plot twists.**

 **Except that, I hope you enjoy this so far.**


	102. Blu vs Chuva: a vow of friendship

"I can't take it anymore! I'm dying of tiredness! How many kilometers have we traveled in one day?! What I suggest is to take a good nap to be in shape for tomorrow, what do you say? Good night."

As Apollo laid on the bed inside one of the Yuba Oasis' houses, Dominic slammed a pillow on top of his head before he could fall asleep. "You're gonna stop whining? Get up!"

Apollo angrily got back up. "I'm not a mutant like you guys! I can get tired!" the barn owl screamed and then tossed the pillow right back to Dominic's face. Needless to say he didn't looked happy at all.

"You're gonna regret doing that!"

Apollo tossed another pillow at him but ended up touching Alex in the face instead. "And for your information, it's that little snowball who slept during the whole travel!"

Alex jumped into Apollo's face with a mad look. "Hey! It's not my fault if I'm sensitive to heat!" He tossed a pillow toward Apollo who dodged, resulting in Lazaro taking the hit instead. the puffin slowly turned with a smug, making the snowy owl realize the mistake he did.

"Alright, time to brawl!"

And so, a pillow fight started in the house. Jewel groaned as she looked down from the up bed she was trying to sleep in. "Hey! Could you shut it down?! I'm trying to sleep up there-" Her sentence was interrupted by a pillow to the face which was enough to convince her to join in the fight.

Chuva couldn't help but giggle as she watched the scene from her safe spot under the bed. She then turned her head and saw her silver fox friends still digging outside in the night. Blu was giving him an hand. "Toto..."

* * *

Meanwhile, in the city of Rainbase which was strangely similar to Las Vegas, a little reunion was being held inside a secret place. "Enough! It lasted for too long! How much longer will they make us wait like this?!"

The person whining was Chameleon who was sitting around a pretty fancy table alongside Kirya, Mr. 4, Miss Merry Christmas, Mr. 3 and Nigel. It was like one of those royal eating rooms with the table being long, a big aquarium with a giant alligator behind the wall, and a large well-decorated staircase from where they arrived.

Mr. 4 just laughed as Kirya sighed. "Calm down, Chameleon."

"Yes, shut up!" Miss Merry Christmas added despite herself being angry as well.

"Calm down, my friends. I'm not asking you to become the best friends in the world, just to get along," a voice suddenly interrupted them.

"Who's there?!" Nigel asked as he got ready to jump on the intruder.

Suddenly, the chair at the end of the table turned around to reveal a familiar purple bird dressed like a pirate and smirking. All the eyes turned toward her.

"Who's...?"

"Is she...?"

"Indeed. I am Risky Boots, great boss of Booty Works. I thank all of you for coming here. I'm very glad to see all of you reunited in this wonderful place, the Rain Diners, greatest casino in Rainbase, which as you know is the city of wonder with players from all the country coming here to gain fortune."

"You are Risky Boots?!" Nigel asked for everyone.

The purple bird just smiled. "It is time for Operation: Utopia to start. It's the code name of my plan."

"So our big boss is one of the Seven Warlords," Kirya mumbled while looking at her boss.

"My gosh! For a surprise, it's really a surprise!" Miss Merry Christmas remarked with rubbing her forehead.

"If I get it correctly, we spent all our time working for a pirate?" Chameleon asked.

"You're really the boss of our organization?" Nigel asked with a frown, not feeling well about being bossed by a girl.

Risky Boots narrowed her eyes at everyone. "Why? Got a problem with that?" Her question was answered by silence.

"Let's just say that I'm...surprised. Aren't the Seven Warlords supposed to be working with the world government?" Kirya asked with rubbing the back of her head.

Risky Boots just curled her beak into a smirk. "Fortune and fame doesn't interest me. What I covet more than anything is military power."

"Military power?" Mr. 3 asked.

"For now, let's not skip the steps," the lady said with adjusting her pirate hat. "I'm gonna unveil my real purpose to all of you. But first of all, let me tell you the final objective of Booty Works.

And so, she explained her whole plan to her trusted associates who were surprised for most.

"And so, you wanna take control of this weapon by taking down the government, right?" Chameleon asked.

"Long story short, our mission is the success of your long term plan," Nigel deduced with a scoff.

"That's exactly that," Risky Boots said with a smirk. "Ever since the first hours of Booty Works, each and every one of your missions were following a precise processes: the realization of this plan. Before you are the last directives I have for you." After she said that, the others picked up papers before them and started reading their content. "It is time for the Kingdom of Sequin to be whipped off the map for good," she said with a sinister grin.

"When all of you will have accomplished the different tasks I assigned, the Kingdom of Sequin will collapse like an house of cards. The rebel army and the people will have nowhere left to go. And so, they will have no choice but to fall in our clutches. You,ll only need one night to make the kingdom fall and ensure this country becomes our utopia. This is why I called the last step of my plan "Operation: Utopia". I will not tolerate any failure. The hostilities will start tomorrow at twelve o'clock."

"Yes!" everyone said at unison.

"I wish you good luck," Risky Boots said with a smile and her wings pressed together.

Something then clicked into Mr 3's head. "Oh, boss! I forgot to give you an important information!"

Risky Boots turned her head toward the turtle with a questioning look. "What information, Mr. 3?"

"One of our spies wanted me to give you this, two days ago," the turtle said with taking out a picture which he gave to his boss.

Taking it in her wing, she identified the photo which showed some hooded figures walking outside the city of Nonoana. Her attention got particularly attracted to two blue female birds wearing pretty exposing outfits. "Wait a minute... This blue girl, it's...!"

"It's princess Chuva," Mr. 3 confirmed. "This picture date from a few days ago; they saw her heading toward the Yuba Oasis."

Risky Boots frowned. "Who are the other birds with her?"

"We don't know, but they are twelve in total."

Risky Boots groaned and tossed the picture on the middle of the table. Nigel and Chameleon peaked at it before gasping at unison. "I KNOW THEM!"

Risky Boots rose a curious eyebrow. "You do?"

"It's those darn birds that made me loose my job and end up here!" Nigel angrily groaned with slamming a wing on the picture.

"And I met those guys while coming in this country," Chameleon added. He showed each one of their faces with his power for emphasis. "See?"

Risky Boots frowned. "So they know my true identity. And they will do anything to stop my plans. We cannot allow them to live." This statement made Chameleon feel a bit sad as he befriended them and didn't really wanted to do this. But...his boss gave the orders and he had to follow them.

"Bit Ms. Risky Boots, Chuva might be a princess, but I don't see how she could stop the rebellion," Chameleon pointed out.

"From what I've heard, princess Chuva and Tirofijo, the leader of the rebel army, are childhood friends. Stopping seven hundred thousand men? I don't think she can. However, I cannot ignore the possibility that she ends up causing trouble. I sent a few spies to infiltrate the insurgents' ranks. For now, none of them have tried to contact me, meaning everything's alright for now. It's important to make sure the princess and Tirofijo doesn't meet." She then smirked. "Now go and have fun..."

* * *

Back to the Yuba Oasis, sun has returned and it was time for our heroes to leave for Katorea. "Chuva, I'm sorry for crying like a baby in front of you earlier," Toto said, standing in front of the whole group at the oasis' entrance.

"Don't be; it's nothing," she assured. "But it is time for us to go."

The silver fox nodded. "I wish you nothing but good luck in your quest. And please, stop my stupid son before he does something he'll regret later."

"You can count on us," Blu promised. "Goodbye!"

Waving at the fox, the group walked away from the Yuba Oasis and returned on their steps in the desert once again. Suddenly, Blu stopped in mid-walk to sit down and stopped moving completely. Apollo was the first one to notice.

"Hey, what are you doing, Blu?" he asked.

"Is something wrong?" Jewel asked with approaching her boyfriend.

Blu just looked down before saying: "...I give up."

"Huh?!" everyone except Dominic said at unison.

"You give up? What does that mean, Blu?" Chuva asked in confusion.

"Blu, it's not time to whine; we got a huge walk to do!" Apollo said with stomping on the floor.

"Yeah; we need to go back on our steps and reach the city of Katorea or a thousand people will die and Sequin will never get back from that," Lazaro backed up his friend with an impatient tone. He stepped toward his friend and tried to get him back up with his flippers by grabbing by the neck. "Come on, get up!"

However, Blu simply pushed the puffin away which was relatively easy because of his size. While everyone was surprised by this gesture coming from someone who would never harm any of his friends, Blu turned toward the princess. "Chuva."

"Yes?"

"I know that you wanna save this country, but what I wanna do is kick Risky Boots' butt. It's cool to stop the rebel army, but Risky Boots won't stop. Why should we go to Katorea? It's not our place. May I remind you that we're supposed to be pirates. We have nothing to do there."

"But, Blu...," Chuva mumbled nervously.

"What you want is that nobody gets killed in this battle, right? No death among the people, among the rebels, among our group, no victim at all. More than a thousand people are about to fight each other and one of the Seven Warlords is behind all of this. And you, Chuva, you hope there won't be any victim. I'm sorry, but that's not possible."

If the group was shocked about their friend's behavior, he who never wanted anyone to die either, they realized that he was right. During their time in Ga'Hoole, they did participate into a big war between the Guardians and Pure Ones. A lot of blood fell and many lives were lost. The conflict they were already implied in was not that different. Surely people would die regardless of their efforts.

Tears of frustration started forming in Chuva's eyes. "Where's the problem?! You're scolding me for wishing that everyone will survive?!"

Blu just looked up at her. "I too believed that killing was evil and that it was something to avoid at all costs because every lives are precious...but then, we went into that other world and I faced reality. We don't live into one of these animated movies were singing and talking can solve all the problems. Reality is different."

Chuva groaned and slapped Blu in the face so hard that he was knocked down. "Chuva!" Hernandez shouted and was about to interfere, only to be stopped by Dominic who raised one wing.

"I forbid you from saying, Blu, you hear me?! If you say that again, I'll never forgive you!" Chuva angrily shouted. "I'll do anything to stop this massacre! If we're here, it's not the rebel army's fault nor the royal army's! They haven't done anything wrong! Why should they die! Risky Boots is the only responsible one!"

Blu weakly stood up and got face-to-face with the princess. "I know! But why would you risk your life?! It's not hard to know what to do to save this country! Even I got it! You really think putting your own life on the line will be enough?!"

"What do you want me to put else on the line?! I have nothing else!" Chuva shouted, her tears finally coming out.

"Oh yes, you do, Chuva! You can put _our_ lives on the line! WE'RE YOUR FRIENDS!" Chuva widened her eyes at the statement and cried a bit more. "We're your friends!" Blu repeated softly. "It's okay, you can cry. The thing is that I'm certain you want a piece of Risky Boots the most of us all."

Jewel slowly walked and took her parakeet friend into a comforting hug. All the others just starred silently. Blu slowly stood up with a look of determination.

"And now, Chuva...TELL ME WHERE'S RISKY BOOTS!"

* * *

 **For those of you who think that Blu was out of character in this scene, allow me to explain you: Blu saw the reality during the war in the Ga'Hoole world. He saw that you cannot save every lives in a war. It would be like cracking an egg and not expecting any pieces of shell to fall down. It's not realistic.**


	103. Sequin is getting ready for battle

Chuva was still crying with on her knees, her tears falling and quickly drying away on the sand. She sniffed before looking up at her friends. "Listen, Blu is right. I am ready now. I will bring you to where Risky Boots is hiding."

This made Blu smile in satisfaction and give the princess his wing to help her get back up. "I think we should take the most direct path," Jewel suggested.

"Yeah, no need to take a shortcut where we could meet more trouble," Dominic agreed with a nod.

"So where's this bastard of Risky Boots?" Lazaro asked, eager to go kick her butt.

Chuva took out a map and unrolled it on the ground. "Here, look," she said with pointing at a spot as everyone looked at the map. "The rebel army is at Katorea, ready to attack. This is Alubarna, the kingdom's capital."

"We better give a surprise attack on Booty Works before they get into action," Vladimir remarked.

"And this is where Risky Boots is located," Chuva continued with pointing at another spot on the map. "At Rainbase."

"Rainbase?" Apollo asked with rising an eyebrow.

"We need to head north. It should take us one day to get there."

Nodding, everyone got back up and resumed their walk - thought this time, they were heading to Rainbase instead of Katorea like they originally planned to. While walking, Dominic turned his head toward Alex who was in his reindeer form.

"Hey, congratulations, Alex," he said with a smile.

"Yes, I should be able to hold on for now," the reindeer responded. "Chuva, you think we'll find water at Rainbase?"

"Yes, there'll be a lot of it there." she turned her head toward the kid. "It's a casino city outside of the rebellion conflict."

Dominic then noticed that Vladimir had a strange look in his face. "What's wrong, Vladimir?"

"Nothing... I'm just wondering if there's somewhere in Sequin where life can be simple."

Apollo then collapsed on his knees. "I want water! When are we arriving at Rainbase?"

Chuva suddenly stopped walking and turned toward Blu. "Blu. I wanted to thank you. I don't think I would have been able to make this decision by myself."

"You're welcome," Blu warmly said before sighing. "But if you really wanna thank me, make sure I can drink and eat after I'm done with Risky Boots, okay?"

Chuva just giggled. "Okay, if you want."

* * *

Meanwhile, at the rebel base in Katorea, Tirofijo was sitting on a wooden box as a little kid was trying to convince him to allow him to join his army. He was a little hyena with dirty clothes, a belt holding little rocks tied above his shoulder and another bag filled with weapons like an hammer, a stone club, and a wooden bat.

"Tirofijo, please, accept me in your army!" he begged.

The silver fox just narrowed his eyes at him. "That's out of question!"

"But why?! I don't understand! I should have the right to join your organization because I hate the king and I wanna fight to your side!" the kid insisted.

"Show him," Tirofijo asked on of his men who removed his vest and revealed a terrible wound on his shoulder which made the kid widen his eyes. "He was badly wounded during a battle to protect me. If you like that, you just have to visit the wounded and the dead."

The young hyena trembled a bit before frowning. "No need: I won't change my mind! The whole town is dried because the king stole the rain! People are dying and my friends are sick! All that because of the king! I wanna take harms too! I'm not afraid to be hurt or killed! I wanna fight!"

Tirofijo just scoffed. "Go back home. We're not on the same page. Know that we don't wanna fight and that we're scared."

"Then why did you took harms?!" the kid insisted.

"You see, that's not what we wanted. But we had to do it because it was what we were expected to do. Wether you like it or not, don't interfere in this story. go back home!" The kid trembled but did not move. This led the silver fox to stand up with a severe look. "I told you to go back home! This is no place for kids! Got it?!"

After chasing the kid away, Tirofijo returned inside his tent in the camp. "What's wrong, Tiro? It's not like you to scream after a kid," one of his men remarked.

"I got carried away," he admitted with rubbing his forehead. "I realized that I have been like him. It made me feel strange. Actually, I didn't really changed: I'm still the same." He then looked at his men. "Did you found weapons?"

"Not as much as we wished for."

Tirofijo sighed. "I want you to send a message to every delegations of the city: as soon as the artillery will be done, we'll make a general offense."

* * *

Meanwhile, at the royal palace of Alubarna, the king was in his throne room, having a conversation with his two head guards.

"Your majesty," said Chaka, a male jackal wearing a long, light-green tunic, revealing his muscular chest, and two belts around his waist: a striped, pale-red and crimson large one, and over it a purple, thinner one. Around his neck he have a necklace consisting of big golden beads, and wears a dark-green coat draped on his shoulders like a cape. He carried a massive sword, with a blue hilt and sheath, on his right hip. "It is only a matter of time. The rebel army can invade Alubarna at any time. We need to take defensive disposition and quick!"

The king Alkawbra just looked at him with a firm look. "Be quiet! I already said no! This is not a game! If they attack us, what are you gonna do? Return the hits?"

"But...if we don't do anything, the kingdom could be annihilated !" Chaka insisted.

"Yes, but what can we do?" the king asked with looking down. "Ever since the episode of the dance powder, I am perfectly aware that someone's plotting to take down the kingdom. What are you planning to do? Killing the people to know where the responsible ones are? Don't you know it's the people that makes the nation? Attack the people and you'll destroy the kingdom!"

"The problem is indeed that we don't know who's responsible," Chaka admitted. "When the kingdom will be destroyed by an opponent we don't know, it will be too late! Your majesty-"

"No," the king cut him off. "Please, understand me."

And so, Chaka walked out with the other head guard, Piell. He is a tall peregrine falcon with a purple line under each eye that runs down the sides of his face. He wears a long white robe with brown star-like motifs on it and a matching hat. He has a big orange necklace around his neck, and also sports striped socks under a pair of normal shoes. He carries his sword on his right hip.

"The king is forbidding us from fighting back," Chaka groaned impatiently.

"We don't have enough weight with the soldiers to calm them down," Piell remarked. "If only Princess Chuva was with us right now..."

A guard suddenly arrived in a rush. "Chaka! Piell!"

"What is it?" the falcon asked with a curious look.

"It's 1-2-3 Coin! He returned!"

The two head guards widened their eyes in surprise. "He returned?!"

The duo quickly rushed in the king's bedroom to find him sitting on his large bed with a paper in his hands and 1-2-3 Coin standing to the side and drinking a big barrel of water (probably because of the desert's heat). "Your majesty, you received a letter?" Chaka asked.

The king nodded and gave it to Piell who immediately proceeded to read it. "I am certain she is from Chuva's hand."

"But majesty...then it means that Coin came to bring a letter from Chuva!" Piell exclaimed.

The king slammed an hand on his forehead while trembling. "Risky Boots... I didn't beware her. I thought she was with the world government. I would have never expected her to try and take the kingdom!" However, he felt a little at ease to know she was with trusted allies to followed her on her quest.

Chaka then turned toward 1-2-3 Coin who finished drinking his barrel and patted his now round belly. "You did a good job, Coin." He the noticed the black "X" marked on his wing. but before he could question him about it, the king called for him.

"Chaka. Now we know who our enemy is. Tell your men to get ready for a campaign. Chuva and Coin's efforts won't be vain! We need to send an expedition to Rainbase where Risky Boots can be found!" he seriously ordered while turning toward the bedroom's window.

"But your majesty, this isn't reasonable, you know that Rainbase is too far from here," Piell protested.

"And what's more is that most of the people is on Risky Boots' side," Chaka added. "I even fear that most of your subjects are on her side."

"If we leave for Rainbase, the rebel army with take this opportunity to attack the palace. They won't hesitate for a second!"

"Do you really think it's so important, if the rebels destroy the palace?" the king asked, finally turning away from the window. "I already told you: it's the people that makes the nation. We must defeat Risky Boots at any cost, even if we are killed in the battle. the people will know how to build a new nation. It would be pointless to fight the rebel army. Risky Boots would be the only one to come out victorious of this fight."

Piell's angry look faded away. "Your majesty..."

"You took your decision?" Chaka asked.

"Listen very well! No matter what the rebel army will do, what matters is to take Risky Boots down!" The king then turned back to the window. "We know our enemy is one of the Seven Warlords. This won't be easy. We will lead a terrible battle and many of our men will die. Chaka! Call the chiefs of first guard for a battle reunion right now! Piell! Leave to spy the enemy lines!"

"Yes, sir," the falcon said with a bow.

A little smile formed on Chaka's lips. "I think we underestimated our king. He knows exactly what he's doing."

"The battle will start tomorrow at dawn," the king continued. "I want all of our troops to walk on Rainbase!"

"Yes, sir!"

* * *

Back to Blu's group in the desert, the heat once again caused them to feel tiredness. Luckily, Chuva saw the end of their long day of walking.

"Finally."

"We're arrived?" Alex asked from Hernandez's shoulder.

Indeed, Rainbase got into view as a city similar to Las Vegas formed not too far from them. "So this is Rainbase? We're arrived?" Blu asked.

"Say, you guys think Booty Works know we're in the sector?" Dominic asked his friends.

"Yes, probably," Jewel nodded. "since we met the lizard guy when we arrived, they probably know where we are."

"This is not good," Blu mumbled with a wing on his chin.

"It doesn't matter; we're gonna kick their butts out of here anyway!" Lazaro declared with slamming a flipper into his palm.

Apollo suddenly pushed a scream. "RAAAARGH! I NEED WATER! OR I'LL GO CRAZY!" He then rushed into the city in search of a water point.

"Apollo! Wait!" Blu called but to no avail. "Okay guys, I'll go after him to make sure he doesn't do anything stupid. See ya later!" He rushed after his friend.

Blu managed to catch up with his barn owl friend, finding him inside a restaurant called "Sand Café". He was sitting at the counter and screamed at the owner to give him water like a fool.

Shaking his head, Blu went to sit beside him. "Seriously, Apollo, what's the idea of rushing away like this? You start to act like my brother."

The barn owl just ignored him and smiled as the owner brought him five completely barrels of water. He opened one and started drinking its content, making water flow on the sides of his beak and over his body. Blu rolled his eyes out of desperation.

"Hey, you." Blu turned toward the person who called him...and widened his eyes.

The person sitting beside him was a familiar greenish bird wearing a gas mask and a jitte sword. Blu gaped as he starred directly in the eyes of a visibly surprised Colonel Toxic.

"LET'S GET OUT OF HERE!" the macaw shouted after many awkward seconds and ran out of the restaurant with his owl friend who actually took time to take his five barrels with him before running away. "WHAT THE HELL ARE THE NAVAL FORCES DOING HERE?!"

"I DON'T KNOW!" Apollo screamed back in panic.

Before long, at least fifteen or so NF soldiers were running after them. Luckily, they found their friends pretty quick. "Are you serious?! They brought NF soldiers again?!" Lazaro asked in disbelief.

"What should we do?" Chuva asked as everyone got up from their relaxing pose. "Alex hasn't come back from relieving himself!"

"Don't worry; he can take care of himself!" Dominic responded. "Let's get out of here!"

Blu's group ran away from Toxic's men who were chasing after them. "I just hope we won't end up meeting Booty Works agents while the Naval Forces are chasing us!" Apollo remarked.

As he did that, Dominic couldn't help but notice many strange people holding pictures and giving glares in their direction. "You noticed that? It won't be long!"

"In that case, we have no choice!" Blu called. "We need to get to Risky Boots! You know the way, Chuva?!"

The female parakeet nodded and pointed forward while running. "You see this building with a crocodile on the roof? It's a casino, the Rain Dinners. And it belongs to Risky Boots."

"So this is where we can find her!" Blu deduced.

Vladimir couldn't help but look at the NF soldiers running after them. "Guys! I think we should split up!"

"Yeah, I agree!" Dominic said with a nod.

"Okay, let's reunite at the casino!" Blu called as his friends ran in separate directions while he shot his plastic wing to grab a rooftop and throw himself in the air.

"You won't escape me forever!" Colonel Toxic declared as he turned his body into smoke and jumped up to wrap himself around Blu's waist.

The blue macaw instinctively took a deep breath to turn himself into a balloon and push his attacker away before slowly landing down and resumed running.

* * *

Meanwhile, Alex returned to the spot his friends were at before the soldiers arrived. "Aww, that feels better." He then noticed all of his friends were gone. "Were did they go?"

The kid decided to take another Reindeer Candy to transform and used his better developed smell to follow's his friends' smells across the city. As he stopped to try and deduce where his friends left, NF soldiers suddenly ran pass, knocking him down in the process. "Ouch..."

* * *

At the same time, Dominic and Chuva stopped running as they got trapped between two ways by bounty hunters. Visibly Booty Works agents. "We're trapped!" Chuva realized in horror.

A smirk formed on Dominic's beak. "Funny. That's what we call some action." He then pushed the princess toward an alleyway on the side. "Go, I'll join you later."

She nodded and ran away as Dominic putted his wing on the handle of his Sabor sword.

* * *

"Apollo! Jewel! Go ahead!" Lazaro ordered as he and Hernandez stopped running. "We'll take care of these guys!"

"Okay, but be careful," Apollo asked his friends before running ahead with Jewel as the NF soldiers were getting closer.

"Ready to kick some butt?" the puffin asked to his pelican friend who cracked his non-existen knuckles.

"Yeah..."

Pushing a battle cry, Lazaro jumped and kicked a soldier in the face while Hernandez smashed another one in the stomach, sending him to crash into his colleagues.

* * *

Back to Dominic, all the bounty hunters looked in awe as he easily unharmed them from their weapons with only one saber. "You're no match for me, but you can still try," he stated in a challenging tone.

"Yusef "Dominic" Saklov, well, well." Dominic gasped and tensed up as he recognized this feminine voice.

"Oh no..."

Slowly turning around, he met up with the unexpected sight of Kamiki the yellow marked eagle with two NF soldiers. "I've been searching you for a few days. I see you're using your saber to kill people who are not on your level."

"For your info, I don't really have a choice!" Dominic defended himself before putting his saber away. "But I warn you, it is out of question for me to fight you again! We fought once at Begin Town and that's enough!"

"That's wrong!" Kamiki declared with a frown and took out her Shigure saber. "We did not fought at Begin Town; it wasn't a duel!"

"Darn it! I can't fight her! No way!" Dominic sighed with rubbing his forehead and then decided to run away from the field.

"Hey! Come back!" Kamiki shouted and ran after him, insulted.

* * *

Apollo and Jewel were still running away from bounty hunters they on their way after leaving Lazaro and Hernandez. Luckily, they managed to send them off in a alleyway by pushing wooden barrels into their way. The barn owl then putted them on fire by shooting a flame pallet, blocking their way.

"Nice job, Apollo! You're the best!" Jewel congratulated her friend before they resumed running. "Hey! We're arriving at the Rain Dinners!" she then remarked as they exited the alleyway.

"No one's there? Are we the first ones?" Apollo asked as they ran at the casino's entrance.

"I'm here!" Turning around, they were relieved to see Dominic arriving.

"Dominic?! What are you doing here? I thought you were with Chuva?" Jewel asked.

"We got separated! Do you know if she's here?"

"No, but maybe she's already inside?" Apollo suggested. They then heard a screaming and turned around to see Blu rushing their way, Toxic on his heels. "Blu?"

"Stop!" Colonel Toxic ordered.

"Everyone in the casino! Quick!" Blu ordered as he ran for his life. The four birds ran together in direction of the Rain Dinners and, as they did so, Blu couldn't help but look at the crocodile head on the rooftop.

"Hold on, Risky Boots! I'm coming..."


	104. Desperate situation! Rain Dinners' trap

**Oh my gosh! I can't believe I reached 200,000 words for this story! It's the first time I write so many words for one story. This makes you understand how much I love this fanfic ;)**

* * *

Blu, Dominic, Jewel and Apollo all rushed toward the Rain Dinners casino as many Booty Works agents and Colonel Toxic were chasing them. The agents shot at them with guns which annoyed Dominic.

"Okay, that's it!" Using his Eau De Mort saber, Dominic dashed through the five agents who collapsed after two seconds with jets of blood coming out of their shoulders or torso. The golden eagle smirked. "They finally calmed down."

He then joined the others as they reached the casino's doors. Taking a deep breath, Blu kicked them open and took a fighting stance. "Risky Boots! It's over! I've came to..."

The macaw interrupted himself upon seeing the casino filled with animals who were either playing card games, drinking and chatting, or sitting before slot machines. They all stopped what they were doing to look at him with curious looks. Blu felt a nervous heat rise to his cheek in embarrassment. He expected to meet Risky Boots a bit too soon.

"You just embarrassed yourself, my blueberry," Jewel remarked with a little giggle.

"And you should avoid screaming things like that: Risky Boots is seen as a hero around here," Apollo added.

"So what should we do now?" Blu asked with rubbing the back of his head, glad that the people returned to what they were doing before his irruption.

"Without Chuva, we can't do much," the barn owl remarked with rubbing his chin. "She's the only one who knows how Risky Boots look."

"That's true," Jewel nodded before noticing something. "Speaking of which, where is she?"

"TYLER "BLU" GUNDERSON!" Another wave of fear hit the group as they saw Colonel Toxic running in their direction, having completely forgotten about him. "YOU REALLY THOUGHT YOU WERE GOING TO ESCAPE ME?!"

"Holy cheese and sprinkles! Run!" Blu screamed and the four birds ran across the casino with the colonel on their heels.

"What's this guy doing in Rainbase? He doesn't anything else to do but chasing us?!" Apollo asked.

"Maybe he needs to find a girlfriend! Except if he's in love with Blu!" Dominic remarked with a laugh.

"But I already have a girlfriend!" Blu protested.

Two casino guards suddenly blocked the colonel's path. "Stop, mister! People aligned with the world government are not allowed in here!"

"MOVE!" the colonel responded with knocking them out of the way and resuming his chase.

"He won't let go!" Dominic remarked just as three other casino guards tried to stop them as well, only to get punched away by the golden eagle. "Shut up."

While running, they saw a door at the end of the room with "V.I.P." written above it. "Let's get in there! Maybe we will find a way to escape him!" Blu ordered.

The four birds shot the doors open and found themselves into a pretty long hallway which was ending in a crossroads with a path to the right and one to the left. "Huh, should we go left or right?" Jewel asked.

They didn't had a lot of time to think and decided to turn right. And they immediately regretted it as it was leading to a dead end. Before they could turn around and follow the other path, Colonel Toxic arrived and blocked the way.

However, before the fight could irrupt, the floor under their feet opened and sent them to fall in the darkness below...

* * *

Back in the streets of Rainbase, Alex was walking alone in a alleyway, searching for his friends. "Where did they all go?"

"Colonel Toxic?" The snowy owl kid stopped dead in his tracks as he recognized Kamiki arriving and went to hide behind a wooden box. "I wonder where the colonel went. He should be after Aqua's brother."

"T-This girl is working for the Naval Forces," Alex thought to himself. Just as he came out from behind the box to run away, the female eagle suddenly turned around and bumped into him, resulting in her collapsing on top of him.

She groaned in pain before getting on her knees and looking at the little snowy owl. "Sorry kid, I didn't saw you. You're very cute, you know," she said with patting him on the head before walking out of alleyway. "See you someday!"

The little kid was left there in the alleyway with his eyes wide open. He then formed a grin and started blushing which he tried to hide. "If you think calling me cute is making me happy, it's not the case at all! Why would it make me happy?"

"Are you done denying compliments? We need to find the others!" Alex turned around to see Lazaro and Hernandez with the former looking impatient and the latter looking just amused.

* * *

Meanwhile, Blu and his friends groaned and rubbed their butts on which they landed before taking a look around them. They realized they were trapped in a cage inside some kind of room with nothing but a fancy table outside.

"I can't believe we fall in such a ridiculous trap!" Dominic said with rubbing his forehead.

"Guess we forgot that we can no longer fly in those human forms," Blu remarked with a nervous chuckle.

"No kidding!" Apollo and Jewel said at unison.

"Hey, I don't know what's happening, but suddenly I feel...tired," Blu said as he suddenly started trembling from the legs.

A huge jolt of pain suddenly pierced his cheek as he received a smash across the face which knocked him on the floor. Before he could recover and get back up, a cold metallic object was pressed against his stomach, somehow making him feel even weaker than he already was. slightly opening one of his eyes, he saw that it was Toxic who was pressing the tip of his jitte sword on him.

"Leave him alone!" Jewel screamed and jumped onto Toxic's back to make him let go of her boyfriend. However, he was too strong and easily knocked her right into Apollo with only one arm while still holding the weak Blu under him.

"Let him go! Now!" Dominic ordered on a threatening tone, taking out his Snow Run saber.

"No...more...strength...," Blu weakly mumbled while panting in pain.

"What are you doing to Blu?!" Jewel angrily asked after Apollo helped her back up.

"My jitte sword is made of a special material called Sea Stone," Toxic answered. "All that I know is that it's a mysterious stone we can find in some maritime zones. We know almost nothing about this mineral. But for short, it can cancel the Magical Fruits' powers upon entering in contact."

"So this is why Blu's feeling so weak," Dominic deduced with a frown.

"Yes. In the Naval Forces, we use Sea Stone to build the prisons so that the criminals who ate a Magical Fruit cannot escape."

"But then your powers are canceled by this cage too!" Apollo pointed out.

"Of course. Otherwise, I would've left a long time ago!" the colonel sarcastically answered.

"In that case, I could cut you into little pieces," Dominic remarked with a smirk, ready to attack and help his friend.

"Would you stop that?" a voice suddenly asked, causing everyone to turn their head. "You're going to die together. Might as well be nice to each other."

Toxic frowned and removed his jitte sword from Blu. "Risky Boots..."

This caused his former prisoner to widen his eyes. "What?"

The chair at the end of the table then turned around to reveal the pirate purple bird who smirked with her wings pressed together. So this was Risky Boots. "One of the Seven Warlords," Dominic mumbled.

"Wait, Risky Boots' a girl?!" Apollo asked in surprise.

"Of course, what did you expect!?" she sarcastically replied.

"You're as disgusting as I imagined!" Toxic groaned.

Risky just giggled. "And you're true to your reputation as well: a true enraged dog. Ever since the start, it seemed like you knew we were not on the same side." She then got up and started walking toward the cage. "Colonel Toxic who will die accidentally. Do not worry thought as I will let them know that you went down bravely while fighting the plastic bird. But honestly, I don't know what you're doing here. You must have come on your own as the world government have too much of a big faith in the Seven Warlords."

Blu then slammed his fist on the floor to get her attention. "So you are Risky Boots! I'm gonna take you down!" He then coughed as weakness was overwhelming him again.

"Water "Aqua" Law's brother," Risky mumbled with a smirk on her beak. "I congratulate you for making it all the way here. It won't be long before I kill you all; just be a little patient. We still wait for the special guest."

"Special guest?" Jewel asked and widened her eyes as she understood who she was referring to. "You don't mean...!"

"I just sent one of my agents to get her. It won't be long..."

* * *

Chuva groaned as she was knocked the ground by one of the many Booty Works agents who surrounded her. She tried to run away and join the others like Dominic told her too, but ended up getting spotted and ultimately trapped by the bounty hunters with no escape left.

"You gave us a lot of work to do, princess. that's not good," the hunter mockingly said. He then held the poor parakeet at gun point. "but don't you think it would be a good time to give up and come with us?" He then laughed mockingly.

However, before he could lay another paw on her, a shadow quickly passed across him. Everyone looked up at the sky in curiosity to see what looked like a bird ascending toward them. "What the-"

TRTRTRTRTRT!

Almost all of the bounty hunters found themselves hit by what looked like machine-gun shots coming from the sky. As the mysterious bird got closer, Chuva saw that it was none other than Piell the falcon who was shooting at the bounty hunters with a pair of gatling guns like a fighter plane. Once he got close to the ground, the falcon adjusted himself and flew across the hunters in a straight line, knocking down many of them with his strong wings.

As he flew pass Chuva, the princess grabbed his legs as he flew up into the sky and onto a rooftop that was high enough so that the agents wouldn't catch them. He carefully putted her down as she looked up at him with a more than happy smile.

"Piell. We can say that you came in time."

He smiled as well. "Been a while since we've last seen, princess."

"How's my father doing?"

"Very well. He received the letter you sent him and I read it as well."

Chuva's face lightened up even more. "Then it means...that 1-2-3 Coin arrived at Alubarna?"

"Indeed," Piell confirmed with a nod. "A very great soldier, the duck. Courageous and loyal. Thanks to the both of you, we finally managed to find out who is our REAL enemy." Chuva nodded and the falcon then turned his attention back at the bounty hunters. "Don't move; it shouldn't be long."

"Piell?! The falcon?!" one of them justly exclaimed with a look of horror "I've heard he's one of the strongest warriors in Sequin! Shoot him down!"

The bounty hunters started shooting at the falcon who flew down from the roof and made good work of them in only a few seconds with his speed, gatlings, and powerful wings. He left them all laying on the ground, defeated and hurt.

"I'm saved!" Chuva happily beamed with looking down at her friend. "Now I must go join the other quick."

"Is that so?" a voice asked from behind. "In that case, we agree on at least one point."

The princess quickly turned around to meet up with a familiar grey turtle. "M-Mr. 3?!"

The turtle tilted his head toward the defeated bounty hunters. "Too bad. They were maybe weak, but useful for Booty Works. A very beautiful show. but are you stronger than me? I strongly doubt it."

Piell just narrowed his falcon eyes at the intruder. "Princess, he's part of the organization threatening our whole country, right?"

"We would like to invite princess Chuva to a little private party. I hope you don't mind, my friend," Mr. 3 continued.

"Of course, in your dreams!" Piell said with putting a wing on the handle of his sword.

Chuva decided to take action and tried to punch Mr. 3 while his attention was turned toward Piell. However, he dodged with a pretty surprising swift for a turtle. Smirking, he rose his turtle paws and shot a jet of candle around the parakeet which quickly dried, trapping her with her arms pinned to her sides. She fell beak first onto the ground before understanding what was going on.

"PRINCESS!" Piell shouted in horror and launched himself at full speed toward the turtle to take him down before he could do any more harm to his princess.

The turtle just adjusted his blue protection goggles and lifted his paws again. "CANDLE JET!" A bigger jet of candle flew out of his paws and trapped Piell's wings and torso, sending him to crash hard onto the roof and trapping him, just like his princess.

Piell coughed as he was powerless in this dried candle. He could only narrow his eyes toward the turtle. "It looks like you ate a Magical Fruit."

"Indeed," the turtle confirmed with making candle flow out of his paws and onto the ground. "The fruit I ate gave me to power to create candle at will." He then gave a disappointed look. "And you're supposed to be the strongest warrior of this country? No wonder your king is so weak in term of military power."

The falcon wanted nothing more than breaking the candle holding him back and jumping at the turtle's neck for hurting his princess and insulting his king. The reptile turned his attention back toward the female parakeet who was still struggling in vain.

"Now let's go, shall we? Risky Boots is waiting for you."

* * *

Back to Rainbase - more precisely, to the cage in the Rain Dinners where our heroes were trapped, Blu was resting on his back with his head on Jewel's lap. His girlfriend softly stroked her feathered fingers across his head feathers. "Are you okay?"

Blu moaned a bit. "I've been better."

"We need to find a way out of here!" Dominic groaned, hating to see his best friend and captain in such a weak position. He wished so much he could cut through those bars, but it was pointless: he already tried and it made more damage to Sabor than the cage.

Risky Boots, meanwhile, got brought a plate of exotic food and was calmly eating it on the table while Blu suffered. "I have a feeling your crew have a great faith in you, Tyler "Blu" Gunderson," she finally decided to speak. She drank a bit from a cup of whine and giggled to herself. "Trust. Probably the most useless thing to be."

"Why don't you get us out so I can teach you one or two things about trust!" Jewel angrily spat the pirate girl, her glare fiercer than it has ever been.

"Calm down a bit, Jewel! Please!" Apollo begged his macaw friend. He too was concerned for Blu, but pissing off their holder was not going to help.

"RISKY BOOTS!"

"Hm?" The pirate girl turned her head to see her special guest at the entrance of the room (the door, not the trap) with Mr. 3.

"Chuva!" Blu, Jewel, Apollo and Dominic exclaimed at unison.

Risky Boots smiled and raised her arms. "Welcome, Chuva, princess of Sequin. Please, have a sit." The others could sense a bit of sarcasm and sincerity in her voice.

The princess just scoffed. "Thanks, but I'm not hungry. If I came all the way here, it's to take you down, Risky Boots! Nothing will stop me! I'll make you regret of ever stepping on this country!" She charged at the responsible of all her country's pain with rage.

"Chuva! Wait!" Blu called. Risky Boots was not one of the Seven Warlords for nothing; even he knew that Chuva could not take her down, even with all the power rage could give.

The parakeet jumped and punched the purple bird's face so hard that her head exploded into sand. Everyone present widened their eyes in surprise which got worst as the rest of Risky's body also turned into sand that floated all around.

"Feeling better?" Chuva widened her eyes in shock. "Don't tell me you didn't knew. Everybody know I have sand powers from a Magical Fruit." the sand reformed Risky's body behind Chuva and she grabbed this last one's beak in one hand while grabbing her arm with the other. "How about I turn you into a mummy now?" she seductively mumbled in her ear.

"She's made of sand?!" Apollo exclaimed in shock.

"Don't hurt her! Or else!" Blu threatened forcing himself up into a sitting position.

"Sit down!" Risky ordered and forced the young parakeet to sit down on the other chair behind the table. "It is time for the show to start. Of course, you will be in first range to watch it. This is gonna be fun. Don't you think, Mr. 3?"

"Show?" Dominic and Apollo asked at the same time.

The grey turtle then looked at a watch from his shell. "Oh, it's already noon. Operation: Utopia started."

"Operation: Utopia? What's that?" Jewel asked curiously.

A smirk formed on Risky Boots' beak and she started laughing, louder and louder. "Your kingdom will soon be nothing more than a pile of ashes, Miss Operation: Utopia...

...is starting!"


	105. Operation: Utopia starts!

_"Have faith in him, Tirofijo. You're well placed to know what kind of man he is."_

 _"Stop saying that. It's not for the king that I followed you to Yuba."_

 _"Apparently, there's already been one hundred thousand men to join the rebel army."_

 _"Yeah, and there has been a lot of dead."_

 _"He, he, he. Well, at least, if it was to rain, every doubt will fade away. Indeed."_

 _"Oh no! Someone sabotaged the water channel!"_

 _"Who could have done that?! How are we gonna bring water to town?!"_

 _"It's been one year since it stopped raining! Elbar is over!"_

 _"Have faith in him, Tirofijo."_

 _"You're still the same, Tirofijo."_

 _"No! I changed!"_

* * *

Tirofijo sighed as he was laying down in his bed the rebel army camp. "Where is this kingdom going...?"

He was brought out of his thoughts by one of his men who rushed inside the tent. His eyes were wide open in...shock? "Tirofijo! It's...It's terrible!"

* * *

Meanwhile, at the royal palace of Alubarna.

"It's terrible, sir!"

Chaka looked curiously at the royal guard. "What is it? Don't tell me it's about the king!"

"He...disappeared!"

The jackal widened his eyes. "What? Impossible! You searched everywhere?"

"Yes, sir," the guard nervously answered. "In the palace, in the garden, heck even in the barns. No traces to be found!"

"He must have left the palace during night," Chaka deduced.

"But that's impossible! He couldn't have possibly escaped our vigilance."

"And yet, that's exactly what he did. Why would he hide while we're about to leave for a campaign? Find him! Search the palace and the whole city!" he ordered with a move from his hand.

The guards all responded positively and ran to go search for their missing king. Chaka then turned his head toward the window of the hall and sweated from the head. "We would need your help, Piell. But you're gone to spy our enemies. Let's hope nothing happened to the king. I cannot do anything without his approval."

The jackal rested one arm against a pillar in the hall. "What a disaster! The situation couldn't be worst!"

* * *

Meanwhile, back at Rainbase, Risky Boots was still laughing as Chuva glared at her from the chair she was tied to. Everyone else was doing it too. "Tell me... TELL ME WHAT YOU'RE GONNA DO TO THIS KINGDOM!" the princess parakeet shouted in anger.

the purple bird stopped laughing, but her smile didn't faded. "You know what type of person I despise the most? The hypocrites claiming they care about their people's happiness before all. you see who I'm talking about?"

Chuva narrowed her eyes. "You're gonna execute my father? You can't do such a thing!"

"No need to scream. And do not worry; it's not my intention. He doesn't deserve death. I'm planning on making him go through a biggest humiliation. Something worst than death"

"Something worst than death?!" Apollo asked and gulped nervously at the thought.

Risky chuckled evilly. "A princess should not express so much anger."

"There's one more thing I'd like to know!" Chuva said, still with her angry tone. "What's this "Operation: Utopia"?! Answer me!"

Risky Boots chuckled. "You're in no position to ask for anything, princess."

"ANSWER ME! I HAVE THE RIGHT TO KNOW!" the poor parakeet insisted.

"Okay, in that case, I accept to make an exception for you, princess. The operation already started anyways. My plan have only goal; sending this kingdom to its doom!" She turned her eyes to Chuva. "That's the Operation: Utopia!"

* * *

Meanwhile, at the city of Nanoana, all the citizens were looking in pure shock and awe as the king Alkawbra walked in the middle of the street with many royal guards following.

"Oh! It's the king!" someone exclaimed.

"What's he doing here?" another one asked.

"Listen to me, all of you!" the king ordered. "I came to apologize to all of you. You want to know whoo took rain away from you? Know that I'm the only responsible."

Silence fell. All the present people were frozen as if the hot desert turned into a cold mountain. It took many seconds before someone found the strength to talk: "Majesty? It must be some kind of joke, right?"

"I am perfectly serious!" the king insisted with the most serious of faces. "And I used the dance powder to make rain only on Alubarna, my capital. I, the king - I mean, I, Alkawbra, I could not allow myself to die of thirst."

"O-Of course not, majesty! Only, many of your subjects across the country died of thirst! You couldn't ignore it!"

"Of course not. I also know that many oasis dried off," the king said with narrowing his eyes. "But we did had to make some sacrifices to save the kingdom."

The citizens all widened their eyes. "This is monstrous! Do you truly realize the consequences of your actions? YOU COULDN'T HAVE ACTED SO SELFLESSLY!"

A royal guard took out a gun and aimed it at the citizen to silence him. "Someone like you think he can lecture the king about how to lead this country? I already came to apologize to you all. What else do you want?"

A fox in the crowd narrowed his eyes and trembled in anger. "My brother died of hunger at Yuba!"

the king just ignored him. "There's another reason justifying my presence among you today. As you know, the world government forbids the use of dance powder. If the fact that the king used it despite this law, the Naval Forces would be forced to interfere. You being all aware of the dance powder being discovered at the port, two years ago, I cannot allow this rumor to grow up. I must cover my actions at any cost. Have I been clear enough for everyone?"

All the people widened their eyes even bigger. "You are not...?!"

"Yes! Nobody must ever know what I did! And for that, I'll have to eliminate all those who know!"

At this statement, all the citizens started panicking and running for their lives. "Majesty!"

The king turned his head to see a little hyena kid armed with weapons coming out of an alleyway (it's the same kid who went to see Tirofijo and asked to join his army).

"I knew it! All those deaths were because of you! You're gonna pay! All the oasis have dried off because of you!" Grabbing his sledgehammer, he charged at the king, looking to avenge everyone.

However, the adult parrot easily knocked him away with a strong kick in the face, sending him on the ground and before the even more horrified citizens of Nonana. The poor kid weakly stood up as he started bleeding from the nose and glared at the king.

"You...will...pay for that!"

"Son of a...!" another citizen angrily growled.

The parakeet rose his hand and ordered his guards: "Go! Kill them all and burn this town to ashes!"

Jus then, an intruder jumped from out of nowhere between the king's guards and the people. A silver fox. "Tirofijo!" everybody exclaimed in surprise and joy.

As he panted, the king just twisted his beak into a smug. "Tirofijo! It has been a long time!"

"What were you planning to do? Majesty?" he asked, his breath short from rushing from his base all the way up to Nonoana.

"Well, as you can see, I came to apologize."

The silver fox glared. "Are you kidding? Shut up! Do you even realize what you're saying?! You are insulting your people!"

"There's only one responsible for this heatwave," the king continued.

"Don't say another word!" Tirofijo growled in anger.

"Why so much anger? After all, I'm simply telling the-"

"Enough! You have no right to do this! I don't wanna hear anything!"

"It's my fault!"

"SHUT UP!" Tirofijo rushed toward the king, only to be blocked by two royal guards. "Do you have any idea of what those poor people must have felt, when they died of thirst?! But even at this moment, they were not mad at you! They kept thinking their good king was not responsible! All those brave people kept having faith in you! Proclaim your innocence, even if it's a lie! Do it by respect for their memory!"

POW!

A gunshot was heard and Tirofijo collapsed with a jet of blood flying up in the air. All the citizens looked in horror as the leader of the rebel army crashed hard on the dry ground.

"TIROFIJO!" the citizens and few rebel soldiers who followed their leader shouted in horror.

One guard then mumbled something at the king who smiled. "My subjects, it is time!"

"So that's what we were fighting for...," Tirofijo thought while laying on his stomach, blood flowing out from the wound in his shoulder while his soldier friends were trying to wake him up. "So that the people could know the truth."

The royal guards then started ravaging the city by shooting fire arrows everywhere and destroying markets and houses. As the citizens ran in fear, the rebel soldiers remained to fight the guards, but they were too low in numbers and could not hold them all back.

Suddenly, at the same time, a huge boat dashed toward the city from the sea, destroying the port and all the ships in it, jumping up in the air and crashing right in the middle of Nonana, destroying many buildings, markets and killing many people in its course.

What msot people failed to notice was that on board of this giant ship who caused so much chaos were none other than Nigel (aka M. 1) and Kirya from Booty Works. "Too bad this was the last part of the plan. Was easier than expected," the black panther remarked.

"Have any of our missions ever been hard?" Nigel sarcastically asked.

Meanwhile, the king smirked before suddenly changing his face to that of a familiar reptile. "Alright kids, let's get out of here."

"Yes, Mister Chameleon!" the guards - now revealing themselves to be Booty Works agents - said and followed their leader away from the scene.

* * *

Some rebel soldiers who were not busy fighting were still trying to wake their leader up. They noticed the king escaped, much to their anger. The people across the city were trying to take down the fire that was escalating quickly, but the lack of water from recent years made it nearly impossible.

"We don't have enough water!" a citizen said as the rebels carried Tirofijo. "We have no choicE: we must abandon the city!"

"Are you alright, Tirofijo?" asked the soldier who carried him over his shoulder. "I know it takes more than that to take down someone like you."

Something else then caught his attention: the hyena kid from earlier came out of an alleyway, covered of blood and collapsing on the ground.

"Kid! You're okay?!" asked another rebel soldier who rushed at the kid to check if he was okay. He took him in his arms and felt sick at the sight. "Who could do this to a kid?" The kid weakly tried to talk. "Shh, safe your strength," the soldier shushed him.

"It...wasn't...the king..."

Suddenly, a silver paw was put on the kid's forehead. The soldier saw in surprise that Tirofijo stood up despite the shot he received in his shoulder. "Don't worry...we'll heal you...," he then glared up. "That's enough. We must finish this. Warn all of our sections: they must get ready for the final assault!"

"But Tiro! We don't have enough weapons!" one soldier protested.

"Yes, we have everything we need," another soldier pointed out. "This huge ship that crashed in the middle of the city belonged to a weapon merchant."

"Really?!" all the others exclaimed in surprise.

"No; it's filled with weapons," Tirofijo confirmed with carefully putting the hyena kid down. "It's a sign..." He then lifted a fist in the air after turning toward his army. "Listen to me! The Kingdom of Sequin is dead! Let's throw all of our strength into the last battle! Let's attack Alubarna and make the capital fall! We must win at any cost!"

The whole army cheered loudly, causing the earth to shake a bit.

* * *

"Is this a joke?!" Chaka asked loudly. "King Alkawbra would never do such a thing! You must be wrong!"

"No, sir!" the royal guard insisted. "you know as well as I do that he is no longer in his apartments. And he could have made the journey all the way to Nonoana during the night. The news of what happened at Nonoana got spread like dust in the wind! The rebel army started gathering and worst; the people who supported the king 'till now also started rebelling! They are on their way to the palace as we speak! We can no longer stop them!"

Chaka groaned and sweated as well as bringing his paw up to his forehead. "Give orders and we'll obey!" a guard said, all the others nodding as well.

The jackal hesitated as it was the first time he had to command without the king being there to give the orders. However, he didn't had time to think and slammed his fist on a pillar before glaring at everyone. "Listen to me! We are the Sequin Kingdom's army. And as such, we'll do our duty. A kingdom must not fall, even with its king missing!"

He then unsheathed his sword. "We must defend the things in which we always believed! We will fight the rebel army!"

The royal guards all cheered as loudly as the rebel army from Nonoana.

* * *

"You will do what?!" Chuva asked in horror as everyone else also looked at Risky Boots with wide eyes.

The purple bird laughed mischievously. "You got this right, princess. Now, everyone only thinks about fighting for Sequin. Pretty ironic: it's the people that want to defend Sequin that will cause its downfall..."

* * *

 **It's no good! Chameleon took the appearance of the king and made him pass for a heartless monster and responsible for the war. The good guys will fight for the kingdom while Booty Works are the real responsible.**

 **Also, if I didn't updated for two days, it's because I recently got Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild (complete edition) on my Switch and I'm totally obsessed with this game.**


	106. The banana crocs

From the top of the royal palace at Alubarna, Chaka watched over the horizon. "The rebel army is getting closer." He then looked down at all the guards that were gathered in front of the palace. "Soldiers! We must defend the palace at any cost! I'm asking you to fight until the end! To sacrifice your life if necessary!" He unsheathed his sword. "The battle will be merciless! We're gonna tear the rebel army into pieces!"

The guards all cheered and raised their weapons.

* * *

Farther from there, in the desert, the rebel army was riding on horses' backs toward Alubarna. "We're gonna make Alubarna fall!"

As he rode his horse, Tirofijo couldn't help but hold his shoulder in which he has been shot with his hand. "You're okay, Tiro? Still holding on?" the soldier who helped him asked.

"Yes. Don't worry. If we keep advancing like this, we'll get to Alubarna tomorrow. So it's out of question to stop!" The soldier just nodded to his captain. "Time has become! The decisive battle will happen at dawn..."

* * *

Back to the Rain Dinners' underground, Chuva knocked her chair off, allowing herself to slip on the floor away from it, thought her hands were still tied in her back. "What a coincidence. We too must leave for Alubarna," risky Boots remarked, her back facing the princess. "You can come with us, if you wish. Unless you prefer...trying to save your friends."

She turned toward Chuva and took out a little key. "The key...," she mumbled.

"That's the cage's key, right?" Blu asked. "Give it back!"

Unfortunately, Risky Boots just held the small item above a trap that opened in the floor and, by the time Chuva managed to break free from her bounds, let the key fall into that trap.

"There's very little time remaining before the battle between the royal army and the rebels starts," Risky remarked. "If you waste time, you'll never get to Alubarna before the hostilities start. You must leave this place as soon as possible if you wanna stop them, princess Chuva. Unless you stay here to save your friends. Unfortunately, the key slipped and fell into a pit. And I'm afraid it is the lair of the banana crocs."

Chuva looked down into the pit and saw a round room with the key laying in the middle of it. However, a monstrous form crawled out from a door - a giant crocodile with banana yellow scales. "Oh no, banana crocs..."

"Banana crocs? What's that?" Blu asked as he couldn't see from inside the cage.

Chuva then looked in horror as said giant reptile grabbed the little key in his lips and swallowed it. "Oh my god! The croc ate the cage's key!"

"Crap!" Apollo swore. "Can you get it back?"

The parakeet turned toward the owl. "But what can I do? This beast is ferocious: they can even swallow marine monsters. He would eat me in one shot."

Risky Boots giggled again. "I am so sorry," she sarcastically said. "For letting this key fall. I'm very goofy, right?"

"What a jerk!" Jewel angrily groaned.

"If I was not trapped in here, I'd make myself a pleasure to go cut this girl down!" Dominic added with rising his Eau De Mort sword.

Risky then snapped her feathers, causing the door to open. "Alright, it's time for me to leave. This lair that served as me to direct Booty Works is of no use anymore. In a few moments, water will start entering until this room is completely flooded. She will completely disappear in the depths of Rainbase's lake." she looked at Chuva with a smug. "So? What is it gonna be? Are you gonna try to save a million of innocent lives or those four pirate avians? One thing's for sure: you cannot do both. And in both case, you have little chance to succeed. I let you choose."

The purple bird laughed again. "You know, the people of this country are so dumb. I particularly think about the rebel army and this old man who was digging holes at Yuba."

Blu widened his eyes in surprise. "Wait a sec! You're talking about Toto? The old, slender fox at Yuba?!"

Risky nodded. "This old, crazy fox keeps digging day and night in Yuba to the point of breaking his body. But he keeps going on; nothing stops him. Not even the sandstorms."

Blu glared in pure anger. "That's not funny!"

"Say, Blu, I have a question for you: do you think those sandstorms hitting the oasis are happening randomly?" Risky asked, turning to look at her prisoner.

Blu slowly widened his eyes as he started understanding what she meant. "Don't tell me...?!"

Chuva understood too and tears formed in the corner of her eyes.

"So it was you?! You're the one who caused all those sandstorms over Yuba?!" blu asked in anger.

The pirate girl rose her wing and made sand dance around it. "Of course, darling, I control sand, remember?"

Both Blu and Chuva narrowed their eyes. "I'm gonna kill you...monster!" Chuva mumbled with dread.

"You already tried and it didn't worked. Sorry," the purple said before starting to walk away through the exit door of the room.

Suddenly, two traps opened in the room's floor and water flew out of them. "It started! Water is rising!" Apollo exclaimed in fear. "Chuva, do something or we'll all drown! Please, help! I don't wanna die!"

"Calm down," Dominic tried to ease his friend.

"Calm down?! How am I supposed to calm down when we could die in the next minutes?!" the barn owl kept panicking.

Meanwhile, Chuva looked down as she was caught in a dilemma. "The kingdom...or my friends?" she then shook her head. "Anyways, I know they won't allow me to stop the hostilities. They'll kill me before I can say one word. The only thing we can do...is killing Risky Boots." Her tears finally came out. "She doesn't know anything about this country! She doesn't know anything about its people! Their way of life! She doesn't know anything!"

As the poor parakeet was trembling, Blu gathered his strength to get near the bars. "Chuva! Do something. We need to get out of here."

This made Risky Boots chuckle and turn around. "So you're getting afraid to die, Blu? That's normal; everyone gets scare in this kind of moments."

However, Blu just ignored her. "Quick, Chuva! If we die, there'll be no one left to bash her skull in!"

At this statement, Chuva looked at him with wide eyes while Risky just scoffed. "Don't pretend to be a hero, you big talker."

"You'll see who's the big talker once I'm out!" Blu angrily replied.

GROOOOWL!

Suddenly, as they talked, the banana croc jumped out of the opening in the floor and growled loudly, making the whole room shake. Chuva looked at it in pure fear as she was only a bug compared to him in terms of size. His big yellow eyes were glaring at her and his sharp teeth were showing, ready to tear her apart.

"O-Oh my god! He's enormous!" she said as her whole body trembled in fear.

"Don't stay there, Chuva! Run!" Apollo called. He was afraid to drown, but he didn't wanted his friend to get eaten alive in front of his eyes either.

The giant reptile suddenly opened his jaw and jumped at Chuva. She managed to roll out of the way in time, letting the croc bite and destroy a pillar instead. "What speed!" Dominic exclaimed. "He destroyed a rock pillar! His jaw is so powerful!"

The monster didn't gave a break time to Chuva as he swiftly swung his tail to smack her away, sending her to crash into the wall and collapse on the floor with a loud thud. The princess groaned to stand on her knees as pain was coursing through her whole body. She thought some of her bones may be broken. And the giant croc was hungrily approaching her once again.

"Don't stay there, Chuva!" Jewel called while holding on the cage bars.

As if on cue, the parakeet rushed toward the entrance door by where she originally came, marking a pause to turn at her friends and explain her plan. "We still have some time before the whole room gets flooded! I'm gonna get back to the surface and search for help!"

"Yes, Lazaro, Hernandez, Vladimir and Alex are still outside: if they didn't got caught, they can help us!" Apollo realized.

"Yes, we still have a chance to get out!" Jewel happily beamed.

* * *

Meanwhile, Risky Boots walked through her casino under the cheers of her servants and clients. They were all happy to see their beautiful boss and had no idea of all the terrible things happening because of her. Smirking to herself, she walked out of the building...to find a rather shocking sight.

Her Booty Works agents were laying everyone on the ground near the entrance, covered of bruises and blood from a pretty bad beat down. "What's that?!" she asked with her eyes wide open. She turned her attention to a barely conscious agent and kicked him. "What happened? Answer!"

"A-A group of birds attacked us!" he weakly mumbled.

"Where did they go!" she asked with a groan before rising her eyes and spotting a figure running away in the city. "There! Come back here!" turning her body into sand, she dashed after the responsible of her agents' beat down.

* * *

Back inside the casino, Chuva putted her mask back on to make sure the people in it would not recognize her. She could only hope that her very exposing dress or the dirt and blood she got from her confrontation with the banana croc would not bring too much attention on herself.

"Come on, where can I find help?" she asked herself in a hurried tone as she couldn't stop thinking about her friend about to drown.

"Why don't you ask us, princess?"

Chuva was surprised by this voice and turned around. She then gasped and a smile formed on her beak.

"Lazaro! Hernandez! Vladimir!"


	107. The key to freedom!

"So Alex is playing bait?" Chuva asked

"Yes, but don't worry; he's gonna make it out alive," Lazaro assured with putting a flipper on the princess' leg. "Now, we need to go find the others. Tell us what happened."

"But you guys are not hurt?"

the three boys smiled while running across the casino with the parakeet. "Us? Hurt? Not at all," Vladimir assured.

"We took down all those pirates and now, Alex's gonna make sure Risky Boots stays away while we save the others," Hernandez explained.

Chuva couldn't help but look down while running. "I hope Alex will be okay."

"Don't worry; the kid got more tricks than Apollo," Lazaro assured with an optimistic wink.

* * *

Meanwhile, in the city, Risky Boots kept chasing after the intruder, using her sand powers to dash faster, knocking many citizens out of the way in the process. eventually, she managed to catch up with him and pinned him on the ground.

"Gotcha!" she beamed before removing his hood to reveal...a reindeer?

"Please! Don't hurt me! I didn't stole those cookies!" Alex said with a begging little kid's voice.

Risky just looked at him in utter confusion. Alex chuckled in his head; she probably knew about him but ignored the fact that he could change into a reindeer. She just scoffed and got off him. "Sorry, I took you for someone else. Now get lost!"

Laughing in his head, the little reindeer ran away while Risky Boots kept searching for the responsible of her agents' beating.

* * *

Meanwhile, back in the Rain Dinners casino, tension started rising amongst the prisoners as well as the water level. "THE WATER IS RISING! THE WATER IS RISING! THE WATER IS RISING!" Apollo shouted in panic until Dominic slapped him across the face.

"WE GOT IT! THE WATER IS RISING! STOP SCREAMING IT!" the golden eagle furiously shouted.

As they were arguing, Jewel was screaming after the banana croc. "Hey, you big ugly reptile! Why don't you come take a bite out of us?" she asked and shook her tailfeathers at him for emphasis.

"Don't do that; he'll get mad!" Apollo tried to stop her.

"That's the idea; making him mad so that he'll destroy the cage and allow us to leave," Jewel explained the barn owl.

"Good idea!" Blu said and decided to back up his girlfriend. "Hey! Come here! We are delicious little birds just waiting to be eaten!"

Apollo groaned. "I hate that plan, but that's the best we can do." Taking his slingshot out, Apollo took an explosive bill and it near the banana croc's eye, making him roar loudly in anger.

The plan worked as the giant reptile opened his jaw wide. "WATCH OUT!" The bird back up as their attacker bit right into the cage.

CRACK!

The cracking noise was heard well, but the cage didn't seemed to be damaged at all. "Huh, guys?" Apollo took a peak out of the cage and saw the croc twitching in pain, his jaw wide open to expose his broken teeth.

"What the cheese?!" Blu exclaimed in surprise. "But what is this cage made of?!"

"I already told you; Sea Stone," Toxic calmly said, sitting in a corner of the cage.

"How can you stay so calm?!" Apollo asked. "Try to find a way out of this!"

"What exactly do you know? I'd like to know what Risky Boots have in her mind," the masked bird mumbled with looking at them in a glare. "All the agents working for her are know criminals. Knowing Risky, she won't stop only at one country, but will push her plan to a planetary level."

"What do you mean?" Jewel asked with a curious look.

"It doesn't matter!" Blu suddenly cut in. "No matter what happens, we'll stop this crazy pirate! She must pay for everything she did!"

Toxic just glanced at the spix macaw before closing his eyes. "Really? And how are you planning to get out of here?"

"We'll find a way...out..." Blu started feeling weak again and would have fell in the water, had Jewel not caught him in time.

"Hold on, Blu! We'll be out of here soon!" she begged him while holding him close in her wings. she then turned her head toward the door. "I'm sorry, Chuva. We asked you to get help with so little time remaining."

Meanwhile, Dominic was swearing in his head while looking down at his swords. "Darn it! If I was a better swordsman, I could cut this cage open!"

"TAKE THAT!"

In a split-second, the whining croc spat blood after receiving a strong kick across the jaw from a yet small puffin. He landed in the water with a loud splash and then got in a fighting stance.

"LAZARO!" everyone beamed in joy which made the puffin rub his beak in a show-off manner.

"And he's not alone!" looking up, they saw Vladimir and Hernandez being accompanied by Chuva.

"Guys!" Apollo beamed, relieved to see his friends. "You can not imagine how happy I am to see you right now!"

Vladimir jumped down and was about to ty to open the cage, only to be stopped by Dominic. "No, Vladimir! This cage is made of a material that weakens Magical Fruit users! It's so solid that even this giant croc could not break it!"

"The key's inside his stomach; you need to make him spit it out!" Jewel quickly told them.

"No problem! Let's do it, big guy!" Lazaro said with cracking his flippers despite the fact that he was going to use only his feet.

The banana croc who was now bleeding from the mouth roared and charged at the birds, looking to get a good meal. However, the little puffin refused to go down without a fight and jumped once again, this time to deliver a strong knee strike right under the croc's jaw, sending him crashing to the ceiling.

"Hernandez! Now!" he called. His pelican friend summoned his wing armor and then jumped to smash his fist right into the reptile's stomach. By doing so, he made him spit out a lot of saliva and sent him fly away. Lazaro spotted the key in the jet of saliva and managed to catch it in his flipper before landing back in the water. "I got it!"

"Lazaro!" He didn't got to celebrate their victory as he realized a terrible detail. By hitting the giant croc, Hernandez involuntarily sent him crash into the room's wall, causing it to break and let even more water flow into the room.

"GET US OUT OF HERE! QUICK!" Apollo called in panic as the water level reached above their waist level.

Lazaro wasted not time rushing at the cage door and managed to open it with the key before the water went above his head and soon filled the room as well. That was the last thing Blu registered before passing out both because of the weakness caused by the cage and from falling underwater...

* * *

"Blu...Blu...BLU!"

The spix macaw coughed as water shot out of his lungs. He had to blink a few times before seeing properly. He already felt relieved to see the beautiful face of his girlfriend above him with a look of concern in her eyes. "J-Jewel? What happened?"

He was answered by a big hug that squeezed even more water out of his plastic body. Once she was done, Blu inspected his surroundings to understand better. Everyone was on the edge of the lake that surrounded the Rain Dinners casino, their feathers all wet and looking tired.

"We're...alive?" Blu mumbled.

"Yes," Jewel confirmed with a wing on his shoulder. "When you passed out, Lazaro brought you back to the surface. Luckily that he's a water bird," she remarked with pointing at the puffin who was next to them, looking proud.

"No need to thank me, captain; that was the least I could do," he declared with rubbing his beak in a show-off way.

Jewel just gave a scoff before continuing. "Hernandez, also being a water bird, saved Apollo and Chuva. Dominic and Vladimir had no problem following us. Everyone is saved!" She hugged Blu once again and he happily returned the gesture, glad that all of his friends made it out alive.

"YUSEF SAKLOV!" The happy moment was ruined when Dominic had to turn around to block Toxic's jitte sword with Sabor. Blu had completely forgot about him! "Why did you save my life?" he asked with a visibly unhappy glare at the golden eagle.

Dominic made himself a pleasure to return the gesture. "I didn't do it by compassion. Only...before passing out, Blu told me to get you out of there. I didn't liked the idea of helping our enemy, but Blu insisted, saying that you would've died back there."

Everybody looked in surprise at this statement. "Is that true, Blu?" Apollo asked as all the eyes turned toward him.

The spix macaw slowly nodded his head. "If we let people die like this, then we're no better than jerks like Risky Boots and her agents. I refuse to lower myself to their level," he explained.

As the colonel looked in surprise, Dominic pushed his jitte sword away. "I just obeyed my leader's orders. No need to thank me; this guy can make some strange decisions by moment," he remarked with a chuckle.

The greenish yellow bird groaned behind his mask. "In that case, you won't have any objection that I do my work."

"That's why I always say we must never help the bad guys," Lazaro remarked with rubbing the back of his head.

Apollo suddenly kicked up. "Listen to me! It's time to go to Alubarna and stop all this once and for all!"

Blu nodded in agreement and then turned toward Toxic. "But first, we need to get rid of this guy."

The masked bird turned his head to see NF soldier closing in. He then looked back at the group and pushed a loud sigh with his eyes close. "...Go."

"Huh?" everyone looked at him curiously.

"I let you go for this time. But it will not happen again." He then glared again. "If I ever meet you again, I'll kill you all. Got it?"

Blu just looked at him in pure surprise. As the NF soldiers were getting close, Apollo screamed and starting running away with the group. Safe for Blu who didn't moved at all.

"Toxic," he mumbled. "Wether you're our friend or foe...thank you." He gave a sympathetic smile.

Toxic just looked at him...and then putted out an angry look. "JUST STOP MOCKING ME AND GO!"

Blu jumped from the sudden outburst and ran away to catch up with his friends.

"Those pirates...seriously..."

* * *

 **Colonel Toxic is not such a bad guy after all. He can be grateful when he wants to.**

 **Next stop for our friends: Alubarna to stop this war and Risky Boots once and for all!**


	108. Blu vs Risky Boots

"THEY'RE GETTING AWAY!"

Blu and his friends kept running through the city of Rainbase with the tens of NF soldiers on their heels. Colonel Toxic just looked at them getting away as his soldiers ran pass him. One of them stopped to address him.

"Colonel? You're letting them go away?"

He sighed, pushing greenish smoke through his mask. "Looks like it. I'm tired."

"Tired?" the soldier asked with a confused look.

"Yes. Call back the soldiers who ran after them; it's pointless now," Toxic ordered. "General meeting, and contact the Hq to tell them that we need every ship near Sequin for back up."

"You wanna call back up, Colonel?" the soldier asked and looked nervous. "With all due respect, the HQ will never accept to send us so much back up for a few pirates."

Toxic responded with a glare. "I don't remember asking your opinion or the HQ's!"

The soldier gulped. "As you wish!" He then ran after his soldiers, calling them back.

* * *

Back to our feathered friends, they were giving their all into their legs in hopes of escaping the NF soldiers. "Hey guys! You planning on running like this all the way to Alabasta?" Apollo asked them while panting, physical efforts not being his strong point.

"That's true! We must find Longcil!" Jewel agreed.

"And Alex too! Where did he go?" Dominic asked.

He immediately got his answer as Alex and Longcil appeared ahead of them once they reached the city's exit. And they were riding a rather...unexpected creature. A giant ruby-colored crab who was running on the side. He stopped before them and turned to show his face which had a big grin. Normally, Blu and his friends would have been shocked to see such a creature, but after everything they've seen since entering the New World, the surprise effect wasn't that strong.

"Hello, guys! I'm here!" Alex called from the top of the crab while bouncing in joy.

"What the heck is that crab?!" Apollo shouted with hiding behind Vladimir.

"Come on, get on!" Alex called for everyone to get on the crab.

"That's a cool beast you brought back, Al," Lazaro remarked as everyone jumped on the crab's big pinch so that he could lift them to the top of his head.

"Yeah, he's an old friend of Longcil," the snowy owl kid explained. "He grew up in this town and because of this, he got many friends all around. Cool, right?"

Longcil showed a proud smile and chuckled to himself. "I'm pretty surprised," Chuva said. "Giant Ruby Crabs like this one are living under the sand and are considered legendary because how rare they are."

"From what I've seen, this creature looks pretty fast," Dominic remarked with sitting down n top of the crab.

"Get ready, everyone! We're leaving!" Alex announced as the giant crab suddenly started running, making everyone lose their balance for a moment, but they quickly got adjusted to the speed.

"This is great!" Chuva said with a smile. "If we keep up this pace, we should arrive at Alubarna just in time for-"

She never got to finish her sentence as some whip made of sand came out of nowhere and grabbed her by the waist, pulling her off the crab's top. "CHUVA!" everybody exclaimed in shock.

"ALEX! MAKE THE CRAB STOP!" Dominic ordered and Alex nodded, asking the giant crab to stop running.

He obeyed, stopping dead in his track, and Blu shot his plastic arms to grab his parakeet friend, catching up to her and managing to break her free from the sand whip. He then tossed her back to the safety of the group with Dominic catching her in his arms. however, before Blu could turn away, the sand whip wrapped itself around his arm instead and dragged him away at Chuva's place.

"Crap, Blu!" Dominic called with putting the princess down.

"Blu!" Jewel called after her boyfriend as she saw him landing hard on the sand ground and cough.

"Go ahead!" he screamed. "I'll catch up with you latter! Bring Chuva to Alubarna! I'm counting on you!"

Everybody looked at their blue feathered friend with wide eyes. Dominic then smirked. "The idiot." He then turned to Alex. "Hey, Alex! We must go! Let's go to Alubarna!"

The owl kid nodded before asking the giant crab to start running again which he did. "Guys! Wait! We cannot leave him behind like this! We must hep him!" Apollo shouted and tried to make the crab stop.

"Blu! No! Wait!" Chuva called and tried to go help her friend, only for Jewel stop hold her back.

"Chuva, let him." Chuva was surprised that Jewel would let her boyfriend go against such a big danger like that. "Don't worry for Blu; he knows what he's doing. At your place, I'd rather be concerned for Risky Boots," she affirmed with an optimistic smile.

"Yeah. Don't worry; Blu already faced this guy of opponents before," Dominic backed her argument. "He's gonna win this fight. But if the rebels attack, it'll be over. The kingdom won't survive a clash between the royal army and the rebel troops." He looked seriously at the princess. "You're the only one who can prevent this massacre. And this is why you must survive at any cost. No matter the risks, don't worry for us and charge!"

Chuva just looked at the golden eagle with amazement. "But..."

"Chuva, Yusef's right," Vladimir told her with looking at Blu fading into the distance. "You're at the origin of this fight. You left your country to face this organization; you fought all your life for your kingdom." He then turned toward her. "But now, you're no longer alone in this fight."

"Vladimir...," she mumbled.

"Yeah, Chuva! W-We're with you! Don't worry! You can count on us! Don't be afraid!" Apollo said, hoping the princess wouldn't see the nervousness in his voice or his legs.

The young parakeet smiled at her friends' loyalty and whipped one tear away before turning toward the distant Blu. "BLU! WE'LL WAIT FOR YOU AT ALUBARNA!"

The spix macaw just smiled and nodded, even thought she couldn't have seen it from this far. He then turned his attention to the purple bird responsible of putting him away standing a bit farther from him.

"Enough playing this time, Gunderson!" Risky Boots declared with narrowing her eyes at him.

"That's the big problem with Chuva; she always wanna help the others while she's not strong enough to help herself," Blu explained. "She wanna help helpless people and it tortures her all the time. She hopes nobody will die in all of this."

"No one to die?" risky Boots asked before chuckling. "All those pacifists are morons. They know nothing of a true fight. you at least agree with me on that, right?"

Blu nodded. "Yes. But that doesn't mean we're not gonna try to save as many lives as we can. As long as you'll cause trouble, she'll be here to stop you. This is why I'm gonna stop you right now!" Blu declared with getting in his fighting stance.

Risky just giggled and putted one hand on her hip. "You're absolutely pathetic, but that's okay. You'll serve as an example. People ready to die for others, I killed many of them. Loosers like you, I make them bite the dust."

Blu gave her a smirk. "Quick question: you never thought that maybe YOU'RE the stupid one?"

Risky widened her eyes and then glared and groaned in anger before taking something out of her pocket. It was an hourglass which she dropped on the ground, allowing the sand inside to fall down. "I grant you three minutes, Gunderson. Not a second more. I already wasted enough time."

The sun was setting at the horizon, turning the sky into an amber-orange wall. The warm wind was blowing between the two birds about to clash as their eyes were locked into a deadly glare.

'Anything to say?" Risky asked.

"No, nothing at all," Blu responded.

Deciding to make the first move, the spix macaw shot his plastic fist at his opponent, looking to land a punch. However, Risky simply turned her body into sand and transitioned it away to dodge the attack. Appearing before Blu, she grabbed her scimitar which she swung at him. He managed to duck it by throwing his head backward and then shot a foot right into her, making her upper body explode into sand.

She reformed herself away once again. "Maybe I should have specified one detail, Gunderson: you don't stand a chance against me. I'm invincible, you better giving up."

Groaning and refusing to give up, Blu sent a Fist Storm, throwing his fists at full speed and making them blow holes into the purple bird which reformed themselves with sand, making it useless. He eventually stopped and panted, swearing in his head as none of his attacks were useful so far.

Risky laughed again. "This is how you plan to defeat me? Those pinches doesn't have any effect on me. I told you: just give up!"

Pushing a battle cry, Blu charged, shot his arms backward, and smashed her hard in the torso with a Power Slam, blowing a sand hole in the middle of her body. Not stopping there, he followed by throwing his foot in the air and slamming it down on top of her head for a Plastic Hammer which made the sand monster completely fade away. She didn't reappeared. did he got her for good this time?

"You're tiring yourself for nothing, Gunderson." Nope; she was behind him. "It's pointless; even with all your powers, you're no match for me. Can't you see you've already lost?"

Groaning in anger, Blu charged and smashed her in the face, blowing half of it into sand which reformed itself yet another time. "Stop saying dumb things! You hear me?!"

She groaned. "Okay, that's enough! We played around for long enough, kid!"

Blu rose a curious eyebrow. "What are you talking about? We're not playing. I'm dead serious." He then narrowed his eyes nervously. "I cannot deny she's very strong. My hits have no effect at all on her. She's just slipping through each of them!"

"You're starting to understand: we're not playing in the same category," Risky said with a smirk as she turned her right hand into a sand blade. "DESERT SWORD!" Swinging her sand blade into the ground, a jet flew across it and right toward Blu.

Luckily, the macaw's reflexes allowed him to move out of the way in time, leaving the attack form a big crater into the ground. "She cut the dune in half! This attack would've probably done the same with me!" he thought nervously before looking back at Risky.

"Depending on the way we use them, the powers of the Magical Fruits can make you invincible. It's possible to develop them with training. I am not one of those idiots who simply possess them!" she said with making sand dance around her hand. "Your time has come, Gunderson! You're gonna regret challenging me! SAND HOLE!"

Planting her sand sword into the ground, Blu screamed as it suddenly collapsed under his feet. Upon sitting up, he realized the ground turned into some kind of pit with quicksands burying him down. Not wanting to die, he immediately started running up, trying to get out of the pit, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't get out.

"You never heard about quicksands?" Risky asked from the upper floor with a smirk. "It's the desert's version of a tombstone and is created by a water hole under the sand. With my power, it's child play to localize them. I'm in my natural element here; nobody can defeat me in the desert."

Blu was not ready to die and specially not buried under the sand. Remembering a book he read about Sahara during his time with Linda which justly talked about quicksands, Blu stretched his plastic arms to grab the edge of the pit and throw himself out of it. Unfortunately, Risky Boots took this opportunity to surprise him with a slash from her sand sword across his his arm, causing him to collapse in pain. Upon inspecting his limb for any trace of injury, he was horrified to see his whole arm was all dry and pale, mummified like.

"My...My arm!" he groaned. "What have you done to me?!"

"That's one of my powers; I absorbed all the water in your arm," the purple pirate explained with turning toward the suffering macaw with a smug. "And when I'll have drained all the water in your body, you'll die of thirst."

Blu quickly sat up, grabbed the water barrel around his neck with his good hand and started sucking the water out of it, allowing his arm to get back to normal again. He pushed a sigh of relief as Risky looked at him curiously.

"Where did you get that water?"

"It was given to me by the old silver fox - Toto - of Yuba. He worked a lot to give it to me." Blu then smirked as he stood up. "And you know what he told me? That Yuba would never get defeated by the sand!"

Risky Boots impatiently groaned. "Enough! That's enough! I'm gonna make you disappear and this darn Yuba Oasis with you!" She pointed behind her to the hourglass she dropped earlier which was now completely empty. "Your three minutes are up. I told you that I wouldn't give you one second more. Enough playing. I wasted enough time like this." She rose one hand and created a tornado sand with it. "SANDSTORM!"

Blu had to lift his arms to block the strong wind caused by the tornado.

"The wind is particularly dry today," Risky remarked. "Listen to me, Gunderson: the winds always blow from north to south in this region. Imagine that a sandstorm would get carried by those winds. This storm will get bigger and stronger, right? But after you, in which direction would she go in?"

Blu just looked curiously and thought about what she said...before suddenly widening his eyes. "Toward south!"

Risky smirked. "Exactly. In other words, toward Yuba!"

Blu widened his eyes in horror. "No! Don't do that! Stop!"

Risky just smirked. "Look at my little tornado heading south."

"Stop it! The poor old man living didn't do anything wrong! Make it stop, you jerk!" Blu screamed in anger and horror.

Risky laughed at him again. "Don't waste your time. This tornado will gain in power and intensity. Even I cannot stop it. Yuba is doomed."

Blu rushed at her and grabbed her by the collar in his hands. "DON'T SAY THAT! MAKE THIS STORM STOP, YOU HEAR ME-ARGH!"

His sentence got interrupted by a sudden sharp pain that pierced his lower body. He felt a warm liquid flowing on his stomach and on the desert ground. Slowly looking down, he saw an even more horrifying sight than the tornado.

Risky's scimitar pierced his abdomen...

"Who do you think you are, little bug?" the purple bird mumbled in his ear as she slowly lifted him up with her sword through his bleeding abdomen. "People like you who think they are the king of the world, I faced many of them in the past. Even in the New World..."

* * *

 **Oh no! Blu is mortally wounded, Risky created a sandstorm that will hit Yuba and toto, and the group is about to face a huge Naval Forces battalion Things didn't really took a good turn in this chapter.**


	109. Help from unexpected animals

At the normally silent oasis of Yuba, cries of joy could be heard across the abandoned city for the first time in years. They came from a pit which was the result of Toto digging with all of his heart. It was justly the silver fox who shouted in joy as, after all his work, he finally managed to find a water source which started filling his pit.

"Would you look at that?! There's a lot!" Tears filled the fox's eyes as he plunged his weak paws into the water. "I'm not dreaming! Water! Water has come back!" He then looked up at the sky. "I told you, Chuva; this land wouldn't let sand win. The Yuba oasis is still alive."

* * *

Farther from there, Blu was still groaning as blood slowly dripped from his abdomen all the way down to the ground underneath him as he was lifted above the ground by Risky's scimitar. "I told you, Yuba is doomed. This sandstorm will seal its fate." She then smirked. "Which will add oil on the rebels' burning rage. Altruism is what will lead this kingdom to its doom."

Blood kept dripping on the now ruby red floor as Blu was bleeding not only from his abdomen, but also from his mouth and nose.

"It's all the same to me, Gunderson," Risky continued as she got closer to Blu's unresponding face. "You could have lived longer if you would have putted your good feelings aside." She then noticed a detail; a liquid was flowing on her sword and hand, but it was no blood. "Water? Looks like that wasn't enough to save you, little bug."

Suddenly, the macaw managed to grab her wrist with his hand and, before she could react, actually managed to break it. This caused her to groan in pain and drop her sword and her enemy on the ground. While holding her broken wrist, she noticed Blu was gasping and groaning in pain.

"What?! You're still alive?!" The purple bird groaned in anger before kicking Blu in the side after taking her sword out of him, making him roll and fall into the pit of quicksand she created earlier. Down there, the poor macaw kept twitching in pain while holding his abdomen hole in his arms.

"You're hurt, but don't worry; soon, your pain will end forever."

As Risky Boots giggled, Blu weakly looked up at here and could only hold a blood-covered hand in her direction as his body was slowly fading into the sand below. "Goodbye, Gunderson!" was the last thing he heard before disappearing into the darkness of the sand and loosing consciousness...

* * *

Back to Yuba, the winds were getting strong and Toto stood at the entrance of the oasis with his shovel planted firmly in the ground as a big tornado was closing in.

"Excellent," he mumbled. "Thanks to this sandstorm, the water I found will fly in the air and bring the rain back. This is how nature works." He putted on a determined face. "Bring it on, sandstorm! You can come as much as you want, Yuba will never give up!"

* * *

Meanwhile, far away from Yuba, the giant ruby crab was still running sideways across the desert with Blu's friends on his back. While most of them were trying to rest a bit in view of their upcoming confrontation with the royal and rebel armies, Dominic was doing push-ups and Apollo was telling one of his "heroic stories" to Alex.

"...and then I told him: If you don't want me to snap your pinches, get lost!" He got the fear of his life and this is why all the crabs in the world walk sideways since that day."

"Wow! That's amazing!" Alex beamed with a look of awe.

"But that's not all: he even had a companion with him - a lobster!" Apollo continued.

"Woah, a lobster hanging out with a crab?"

"Absolutely, little Al," Apollo said with a proud smile while Chuva just rolled her eyes at the kid's naivety.

Jewel then noticed her golden eagle friend doing push-ups. "Dominic, you should keep your strength for when we'll arrive at Alubarna."

"I'm okay," he simply replied and kept working out without looking at her.

Not buying it in, Vladimir walked over to his comrade and sat beside him. "Yusef, I know you too well: when you start working out, it's because something's bothering you. Tell me what it is."

Dominic just looked ahead of their direction and stopped pushing up. He sighed. "As much as I have faith in him, Blu is still facing one of the Seven Warlords...like Hawkeye."

Vladimir quickly understood what he meant. "You're afraid she could do to Blu what Hawkeye did to you, right? So you're keeping yourself busy because of your worries."

Dominic didn't answered and instead resume pushing up. "Blu already made his choice; all I can do is hope that he'll win and catch up with us eventually."

"Listen everyone, don't worry; Blu will make it," Chuva suddenly called to everyone. "Remember what he said; he will join us at Alubarna."

"Don't try to cheer us up; you're as scared as we are!" Apollo suddenly exclaimed.

Jewel nodded with wrapping one arm around the parakeet. "Just make sure to stop the rebellion, that's all we ask of you."

"It's up to us to back you up; not the other way around," Lazaro backed up Jewel's argument.

By now, the sun was nothing more than a weak blaze at the horizon with the rest of the sky turning dark and the stars showing out.

* * *

Back to Rainbase, Colonel Toxic met up with Kamiki at the entrance of the town and got ready to leave.

"You want me to go to Alubarna?" the female golden eagle asked. "To arrest Gunderson's crew or to back up the royal army?"

"It's up to you," the masked bird simply responded.

"What?" Kamiki asked with a confused look.

"I let you decide on what to do," the colonel simply replied without turning to look at this second.

"B-But I don't understand. What does it mean?"

"Don't worry; act in function of what you think is right. No matter what it is, I will take responsibilities of it."

"And where are you going, Colonel Toxic?"

"I have important business. I'll be on the sea for some times. Get ready; I'll contact you later."

"Yes," the golden eagle said with rising her wing to her head.

"One last thing, Kamiki: be careful about what will happen. No matter what is the fate of this kingdom, we must not forget that everything can happen, when things change."

The colonel then turned his body into toxic smoke and started flying away from the city, leaving a confused and serious Kamiki alone. "Master Chief! Master Chief!" She turned around to see her group of soldiers arriving. "What are the orders?"

As all the soldiers looked at her, Kamiki thought about what the colonel told her: _"Be careful about what will happen. No matter what is the fate of this kingdom, we must not forget that everything can happen, when things change."_

She took a deep breath before looking firmly at her soldiers. "We're going after Water "Aqua" Law's group! All the men must be ready to leave! Our destination is Alubarna!"

"Yes, sir!" all the soldiers said at unison with doing the military greet.

* * *

"What?!" Apollo exclaimed "How's that he cannot cross the Sandora River?!"

The group reached the big river that needed to be crossed to reach Alubarna, but the giant crab which served as their vehicle stopped because he was too tired.

"He ran for a very long time," Chuva said with gently patting him on the pinch. "He's completely exhausted and needs to rest."

"But we'll never get to Alubarn in time if we have to swim across this river!" Apollo insisted. "And that's not all; according to the map, we'll still have hundreds of kilometers to travel in the desert. If this crab doesn't make us travel across the river, we'll have to run."

"What are we gonna do?" Lazaro asked with rubbing his head. "I have no problem swimming, but time is running short on us."

Suddenly, a funny noise was heard from the river and everyone turned toward it to see familiar turtle-like creatures.

"The Kung Fu Dugongs!" everybody exclaimed in surprise.

The little creature they met upon arriving in Sequin jumped in front of them and made cute noises. "They say they wanna help us," Chuva traduced.

"Really?" Apollo asked in surprise. "I mean, this river's over 50 kilometers long. It seems like a pretty big travel to make."

The marine creatures made cute noises again. "They say they want to help their master's friends," Chuva traduced again.

Everyone immediately understood who they meant and Hernandez smiled. "Finally, it was a good thing that Blu defeated this dugong after all."

And so, the group of avians jumped on the Kung Fu Dugongs' back as they started swimming across the Sandora river for them. They actually arrived on land after barely half an hour.

"Thanks for everything!" Chuva called at them.

"Goodbye!" Alex added with waving his wing at them.

Dominic chuckled. "So far, we got lucky. Think we'll arrive in time?"

Chuva turned to him. "Well, even with Longcil's help, I think it's gonna be in extremis."

"And that's without counting the Booty Works agents that will probably be waiting us there," Apollo remarked and rubbed his chin. "Let's think about it; what can we do?"

As everyone looked down, trying to come up with an idea, Jewel suddenly heard a strange sound from behind and turned to see some kind of dust cloud at the distance coming their way. "Hey! Look! What's that?"

Apollo gasped. "The enemy! They're already attacking us!"

However, Chuva gave it a good look. "No, wait... IT'S 1-2-3 COIN!"

Indeed, their duck friend ran in their direction with 6 other ducks like him but in different sizes and wearing different hats at his side.

"He's accompanied by the Super Ducks Squad!" Chuva happily beamed as the ducks stopped before the group. "They came to get us!"

All the ducks smiled and dit eh military greet with their wings, Coin being particularly happy to see the princess again.

* * *

Meanwhile, near Rainbase, a certain peregrine falcon was limp as he tried to reach the city to get help. "This candle was tougher than it looked," Piell mumbled to himself.

It was then that he took noticed of a quicksands pit nearby, even through the darkness of the night (though the full moon did help clear the landscape). Curiosity getting the best of him, he decided to inspect it from the edge and was surprised to see a blue hand getting out of the middle.

Deciding to act, he quickly jumped and managed to grab the hand which he started dragging out of the sand. As he did so, the arm actually stretched, like it was made of plastic. The surprised look on his face faded as the body came out a few seconds after, revealing a male spix macaw who was covered of blood and looked pretty weak.

Piell quickly brought him out of the pit and carefully putted him in the ground before pressing his head on his chest to feel a weak but present beat. This bird was still alive, but needed help. the falcon then remembered a detail: in Chuva's letter addressed to the king, she described her new companions and mentioned a spix macaw who could stretch its body like plastic.

"But then...this bird is...!"

* * *

Meanwhile, not far from Alubarna, the rebel army was riding on their horses closer toward the capital and closer to the war.

"Just you wait, Alkawbra! We're gonna take this kingdom away from you! You have nothing to do with it! you betrayed us and you're gonna pay!" Tirofijo mumbled with a glare.

* * *

At Alubarna, the royal army was justly getting the city ready for war, having evacuated the people to avoid casualties and also positioning sandbags. Chaka watched all of this from the palace.

"They're two millions in the rebel army, but it won't change anything," he thought. "They can came; we prepared their arrival..."

Unknown to them, Mr. 4 and Miss Merry Christmas from Booty Works watched the whole scene from the top of a cliff with the mole smirking.

"The idiots. They're gonna kill each other and get their country lost...without even knowing that we have the true king with us..."

* * *

 **The war is getting closer by the chapters. It will be chaos except if Blu's friends can get there in time and stop Booty Works. And for those of you who thought Blu was dead, sorry, but Piell ruined everything for you XD**


	110. Alubarna's war starts

**It's in this chapter that the war for Sequin will officially start!**

* * *

Piell looked over the weak spix macaw who was coughing in pain on the ground. "Poor kid. You're gonna have to hold on."

"It...hurts...," Blu weakly mumbled while holding his wounded abdomen in pain. His messy feathers were covered of sand and dried blood.

Piell took him in his big wings and started walking away. "We must get you to a doctor."

Blu looked up at the peregrine falcon with a pleading look. "Please... We must stop Risky Boots... she tried to capture Chuva and mocked the poor old man at Yuba..."

Piell couldn't help but look at the macaw with a surprised look. "How can he be so resilient?"

* * *

Way farther from there, near Alubarna, the rebel army was still riding, more decided than ever to take down the royal army and save the kingdom of Sequin. Dawn started coming as the sun was settling, turning the sky from black to light blue and illuminating the landscape.

One of the rebels took out a scope to look at the distance and spotted something. "Here it is! Alubarna's in view! Tirofijo! We'll get there in less than twenty minutes!"

Perfect!" the silver fox said while running at the head of the army. "We're getting close to Alubarna! Get ready for the final battle!" he screamed with rising his fist in the air, receiving loud cheers from the whole army behind him.

* * *

Meanwhile, at the royal palace of Alubarna. "Chaka! The rebels are fifteen kilometers south from the city! They are gonna be two millions to besiege the south door of Alubarna!"

Chaka grumbled. "Protect every door of Alubarna - east, west, south, south-east, and south west! And fight to the end! We must prevent them from entering in the city at any cost!"

"YES!" all the guards responded at unison while standing in lines.

* * *

Near the West door of the city which presented itself as a big set of stairs, the major Booty Works agents - Nigel, Kirya, Chameleon, Mr. 3, Mr. 4, and Miss Merry Christmas were all waiting for the war to start.

"Hey, look! The rebel army is coming!" Chameleon announced in excitation. "Wow, there's a lot of people. The princess must have a lot of guts to stop all these." He then turned toward his comrades. "I wonder if she'll come at all."

"Of course she'll come," Miss Merry Christmas said with rolling her eyes and Mister 4 nodding in agreement. "If the rebel army is coming, then the princess will too. Right, Kirya?"

"No idea; maybe she won't arrive in time," the black panther answered while resting her back against the big rock wall surrounding the city. Nigel was sitting on a big rock next to her. "They lost a lot of time at Rainbase and there's no guarantee they'll catch it up."

"You really think?" Miss Merry Christmas asked with a curious look.

"That's cool, but then the rebel army will launch its attack. What about us? What will we do?" Chameleon asked.

"Nothing at all, my dear Chameleon," Kirya responded. "Once the war will have started, princess or not, nobody will be able to stop it."

"We just have to do our work; taking down those who we were told to take down. Is that too hard for you to understand?" Nigel pointed out.

"Huh, guys," Mister 4 suddenly called as he lowered his field glasses and turned to his comrades. "They're arriving."

"What?!" Miss Merry Christmas exclaimed as the others looked in surprise. She took the field glasses out of his paws and looked herself. "Couldn't you tell us sooner?!" Indeed, at the distance, she saw hooded figures riding super ducks and coming their way. "Oh my gosh! Ducks!"

"Ducks?" Kiera asked with a confused look. "What are you talking about, Miss Merry Christmas?"

"It looks like they lost a few members; there's less of them than the boss told us. They should be twelve, but I count...seven of them."

Nigel scoffed. "No matter how many of them there is. Only the princess is important. So what's the problem, Miss Merry Christmas?"

The mole lowered the field glasses. "You said only the princess is important, my dear Mister 1. I agree, but I cannot recognize her; they're all wearing white hoodies."

This caused Nigel to groan. "And they're all riding super ducks," Kirya remarked. "The fastest creatures in Sequin."

"What a bunch of rogues," Chameleon remarked. "That's very disturbing; which one of them is princess Chuva?"

Miss Merry Christmas groaned angrily. "Light them up, Mr. 4!"

The big bear nodded and took out some kind of bazooka which he used to shoot a baseball that landed in the sand and then exploded, forcing the super ducks to split up.

"Those darn ducks managed to dodge it!" Chameleon remarked.

Miss Merry Christmas then noticed two super ducks running pass them. "Two of them passed: they're heading south! From where the rebels are coming. Which means one of those two is princess Chuva. We're gonna take care of them! Come on, Mr. 4!" she ordered with jumping and digging underground. The bear putted his bazooka on his back and ran after her.

"EXPLOSIVE BILL!"

Nigel rose his hand and turned it into metal to block a shot which exploded and left a mark on him. It came from two other riders who split up from the group and ran pass them.

"Mr. 1, those two are splitting from the group as well! One of them could be Chuva!" Chameleon pointed out.

"They're heading to the west door," Kirya remarked.

"What are they planning?" Nigel mumbled before running. "Let's go!"

Two seconds after, Chameleon got knocked on his back by a super duck who ran into him. "Let's go to the south-qest door!" its rider ordered.

"Between all five doors to enter Alubarna, only three of them are accessible from west," Kirya deduced while running alongside Nigel. "They're splitting up to enter the city! Once inside, they won't escape us!"

Speaking of which, two riders ran up the staircase of one door which didn't go unnoticed by the guards. "Intruders in sight! Those are possibly enemies!"

"No, wait. They're from the Super Ducks Squad! Let them pass!"

In a few minutes, each Booty Works agent caught up with the riders with Chameleon, Nigel, Kirya, and Mr. 3 in the city and Miss Merry Christmas and Mr. 4 outside. The riders all stopped and turned to face the agents. Smirking underneath their hoods, the riders all took them off to reveal themselves to the BW agents: Nigel and Kirya found themselves with Dominic and Jewel; Miss Merry Christmas and Mr. 4 with Lazaro and Alex; Chameleon with Apollo and Longcil, and Mr. 3 with Vladimir and Hernandez.

"What's that joke?! Where's the princess?!" they all asked at unison.

Meanwhile, behind a rock near the city, Chuva came out on 1-2-3 Coin's back. "Thank you, everyone," she mumbled with a smile. "The rebel army will arrive soon. Let's go, Coin!" The duck answered with a positive quack.

* * *

"A camel?!" Chameleon asked in disbelief. "And you, the strange dressed owl, I know you too." This made Apollo gulp nervously.

* * *

"Been a while since we've last seen, Nigel," Dominic remarked with his eyes narrowed at the cockatoo. "You got a new girlfriend?" he asked, referring to Kirya.

"We're just workmates," the panther responded with crossing her arms.

"This was the last time you mocked me, you darn trash!" Nigel groaned angrily. "And where's your blue friend? I can't wait to make him pay for what he did to me."

"You're facing us," Jewel responded with a snarl, trying not to think about her boyfriend.

* * *

"Sorry my friends, but this war won't happen," Lazaro apologized with a smirk.

"What does that mean?!" Miss Merry Christmas asked in complete confusion.

* * *

Chuva arrived on the south field near the city. The ground was shaking from the thousands of footsteps of the rebel army that was closing in. The princess noticed that her super duck friend was trembling nervously.

"It's okay, Coin. You can leave," she said, but he shook his head and firmly stood by her side. She giggled. "Don't complain if you get stepped on." She then looked ahead. The rebel army was in view with a giant cloud of dust behind the riders. Sweat formed on her skin (and it wasn't because of the heat) as her heartbeat increased and she trembled a bit. "Tirofijo...you need to listen to me..."

Speaking of which, the silver fox riding ahead of his army took out his sword and rose it above his head. "Listen to me! Everyone need to stay united! We're gonna enforce the south door and once inside, we'll get the other doors open! GET READY!" All the army cheered loudly behind him.

Chuva gulped and hardened her fists before rising her arms. "STOP IT, YOU ALL! YOU'RE ALL FALLING INTO A TRAP! PLEASE, LISTEN TO ME! IT'S VERY IMPORTANT!"

As they were getting closer, Tirofijo started discerning Chuva and Coin's figures as they were getting closer to them. However, before he could correctly see, an explosion suddenly happened before him, creating a dust cloud which blindsided him.

The silver fox turned toward one of his men. "Hey, didn't you saw a figure around fifty meters ahead of us?"

"Huh, no. I don't think," the soldiers replied.

Chuva looked in horror as the cloud of dust prevented the rebel army from seeing her. She then turned her head to see this explosion has been caused by a canon from the front line of the city. "Why? Why did they shoot?!"

"You moron!" Chaka screamed in anger at the soldier who shot. "Why did you open fire?! I didn't gave the order yet! You must wait for the orders!"

"Huh, excuse-me. I'm terribly sorry; my hand slipped," the soldier explained nervously. He then chuckled and lifted his dress' sleeve to make sure no one will see the Booty Works logo tattooed on his arm.

Back in the dust cloud, the army kept charging despite Chuva begging them to stop with all of her lungs. Tirofijo actually passed beside her, but failed to notice her presence and simply charged toward Alubarna and to war.

Chuva turned her head and tried to call him back. "No! Wait! TIROOOOO!" But her friend was too far away

She suddenly got knocked down by one of the tens of riders who ran in her direction. The poor princess could only look in horror as many more were going to step on her.

QUACK!

As the rebels were getting near the city, the order to open fire was given and the canons started shooting on the field below, causing explosions that knocked down many rebel riders. This didn't made them slow down one bit and before long, they reached the staircase of the south door where royal guards waited for them. Tirofijo led the charge and at last, the war finally started with battle cries echoing everywhere and blood flying in the air.

* * *

Back on the south field, Chuva nervously opened her eyes to see someone had covered and protected her from the raiders who almost stomped her down. To her horror it was none other than 1-2-3 Coin who was all bruised, hurt and covered of blood.

"Coin...!" she mumbled in horror while looking at her trusted friend who weakly quacked in pain after protecting her. "You...You protected me!" she said, tears coming out of her eyes. "You sacrificed yourself for me! But...I couldn't stop the rebels! Please, forgive me!"

She then heard stepping noises. "Chuva!"

Turning around, she saw Apollo arriving on the back of an horse. "Apollo!" she happily beamed.

"I finally found you! everything's not over yet. come on, get on the horse!"

Chuva nodded. "Okay. But what about Coin?"

"Just leave him; he's done."

She froze immediately upon hearing those words. She slowly turned him with a suspicious look. "Just a second. Show me your arm."

The barn owl looked curiously but did as she asked...revealing an arm with no X on it.

Chuva narrowed her eyes. "You are not the real Apollo!"

The barn owl smirked and then turned into a reptile. "Indeed. How about you tell me how you guessed it: my costume was a perfect replica."

* * *

 **The war has started after another sabotage from Booty Works. 1-2-3 Coin got badly hurt and Chuva is alone with Chameleon. What happened to the real Apollo then? Stay stunned to find out!**


	111. 1-2-3 Coin's determination

"What happened to you?!" Lazaro asked in disbelief.

"Well, we caught this lizard guy, but...he kinda kicked out butts and hard." Apollo explained as he and Longcil were covered of bruises and bleeding from the nose. The camel nodded in agreement.

"This is no good," the puffin mumbled nervously. "It means Chuva's in danger! I'll go help her. Apollo, go back Alex up. He's at the south-east door," he ordered before running away as the barn owl nodded.

"Hold on, Chuva, I'm coming...," Lazaro thought while running as fast as his small but strong legs could go.

* * *

Speaking of which, near the south-east door, Alex was looking everywhere, trying to spot his two opponents whom he lost from his sight.

"Where are they? They can't have just faded like that."

Suddenly, the ground below him started rising and he jumped out of the way in time before an hole formed right where he was standing. Unfortunately for the snowy owl kid, it didn't stopped there as the phenom arrived again and again, forcing to jump and run to avoid the holes in the sand ground.

"It must be this mole girl," Alex deduced with dusting the sand off his feathers.

He then saw Mr. 4 coming out from one hole with his bazooka. The bear shot something and Alex widened his eyes before pushing a scream...

* * *

"This desert surrounding us will be your tombstone, princess!" Chameleon said with a snark as he tried to kick Chuva who dodged by rolling out of the way.

Before he could attack again, 1-2-3 Coin suddenly jumped up, caught the princess on his back, and charged at full speed toward the city. The reptile was pretty surprised by the sudden rush of energy coming from the super duck he thought dead.

"Tss, you can run as fast as you want. You won't go very far," he declared and started chasing after them on his four limbs.

Despite the pain from his bruises and having a swollen eye, Coin was rushing as fast as he could in hopes of saving the princess.

"Coin," chuva thought. "You got hurt. Please, manage your strength. Because of me, you're in no condition to run." she then realized he was running toward the staircase of the south door. "No, not in those stairs! He's gonna catch up to us! I'm gonna fight; let me go down, Coin."

However, the super duck suddenly turned right from the door and planted his talons in the cliff before starting running it up. Chameleon stopped at the foot of the cliff to look up in awe. "Impossible! He's running vertically! He's half-lion or what?"

Coin pushed a big quack of determination as he was about to reach for the top of the cliff...when his talons disconnected him from the wall. Widening his eyes at the realization, he started flapping his wings out of desperation to nit fall many feet below to the ground and back to Chameleon.

Looking at the edge of the cliff that was so close, 1-2-3 Coin started remembering the long adventure he went through with his friends and how much they considered him a friend. How they fought hard and did so much for his kingdom while he only crossed a desert to bring a message to the king. No! There was no way he would let them down like this in such an important moment while they did so much for him and Chuva.

Pushing a quack of determination, he flapped his wings as fast as he could and, by god knows which miracle, actually managed to grab the edge of the cliff with his wings. "WHAT?!" Chameleon exclaimed in surprise from below.

"Coin! You did it! You just flied!" Chuva beamed in joy while holding onto her friend's shoulders. "We're safe now. Chameleon cannot get us here..."

Just as she said that, the ninja reptile started climbing up the rock wall after them. "You darn duck! You're not the only one who can climb walls! I'm gonna get you!"

Not wanting to get caught, Coin forced himself up on the cliff and into the city where he and Chuva were immediately greeted by the horrible sight of royal guards and rebel soldiers fighting to the death everywhere. Swords were clashing, guns and arrows were shot, blood was flying in the air and screams of pain were heard.

Chuva's body trembled as she held on to Coin harder. "Coin...think you can run across this battlefield? I can never find Tirofijo amongst all those people. Instead, I'm gonna try to find Chaka and return to the palace before the rebel army progress and reach the downtown."

Coin nodded to his princess and close friend just as Chameleon reached the top of the cliff behind them. Widening his eyes in panic, he immediately started running again through the battlefield.

POW!

The super duck let out a big gasp as he received a lost bullet into his side. Loosing his balance, everything seemed to freeze around him as he was about to fall. "I'm trusting you with my daughter, Coin."

Just hearing the voice of the king in his head was enough for the super duck to push another determined quack and start running at full speed once again despite the blood flowing on his side and tainting his feathers. He pushed one quack after the other while running. He didn't took time to turn and see if Chameleon was still running after them.

By the time he exited the fighting zone and reached a calmer street, the super duck felt all his strength gone and finally allowed himself to collapse on the ground. The effects of all his injuries finally catching up.

"Coin!" Chuva exclaimed while looking at her best friend and taking his head in her hands. "Coin! Please! Don't die!"

The super duck just formed a weak smile on his beak and remembered all the good times he passed with his princess - no, his friend from the moment they were kids to now. Slowly lifting his wing to do a military greet, he gave a weak quack as Chameleon was getting close.

"Ha! I told you you wouldn't escape from me!"

Somehow, Chuva understood that her friend's quacks were to beg her to go. She planted an hand on her beak as her purple eyes got filled with tears.

BAM!

At the sudden noise, she rose her tears-filled eyes to see that Chameleon got knocked away and crashed into some wooden box. Her savers were none other than two members of the Super Ducks Squad whom she saw running with Coin in the desert. As Chuva looked in awe, a third one joined the scene as well.

"Good job, captain of the Super Ducks Squad," said Lazaro with a smile. "You made it out like a pro."

"Lazaro! It's you!" Chuva beamed.

"Go take him somewhere safe," The puffin instructed the two super ducks without turning away from Chameleon. "Chuva, it's not too late to stop the rebels. I'm gonna take care of this reptile ninja."

This statement made the princess smile happily and whip her tears away. "Hey! I know you! You're that puffin I met on the boat before coming here!" chameleon realized with pointing an accusing finger toward Lazaro.

"Yes it's me. My name's "Tornado Kicks" Lazaro! Remember it!" he said with rubbing his beak with his flipper. While he talked, Chuva ran away as the two super ducks took 1-2-3 Coin and carried him to safety.

"She's running away!" Chameleon grunted. "You can run, little brat: I'll still catch you sooner or later! MOVE OUT MY WAY!"

He charged for a kick which Lazaro blocked with one of his own. "In your dreams, amigo!"

* * *

Dominic and Jewel stood side-by-side, ready to take on the duo of Nigel and Kirya.

"Okay, so we know that Nigel have the ability to turn any part of his body in metal," Dominic thought with an hand on the handle of his Eau De Mort sword. "However, we know absolutely nothing about this kitty girl. And what says Nigel didn't learned anything new since the last time we met?"

"You couldn't defeat me back in Rio," Nigel suddenly spoke. "So what makes you think it will be different this time?"

A smirk formed on Dominic's beak. "For you info, we all became way stronger since that time. You're gonna see for yourself."

The black panther then ran her tongue on her lips. "Since you have a score to settle, I think I'm gonna play with the other one," she said with narrowing her eyes at Jewel. "From girl to girl."

* * *

"Wow! You guys sure are big," Mr. 3 remarked as he eyed Hernandez and Vladimir. "I bet you are the enforcers of you crew, am I wrong?"

"Nope, you are perfectly right," Vladimir confirmed as he turned his wings into stone and picked a huge one out of the ground. "And that's why we're not gonna have any trouble taking you down!"

He threw the big rock at the turtle which caused a loud crash. However, once the dust cleared out, it revealed that the turtle created some kind of wax bubble around himself which didn't got damaged at all by the rock. He smirked after making the wall disappear with his hands.

"That was a good attack, my friend. But you should know that raw strength isn't everything..."

* * *

Back to the field near the south-east door, Apollo walked and looked around. "This is the south-east door Lazaro told me. I've got a feeling the battle's already done here. Where's Alex?" He then turned his head and justly spotted his friend laying on the ground a bit farther. "Alex?!"

The barn owl rushed at his little friend and picked him up in his wings. "Al? You're okay? Say something!"

The kid blinked his eyes and looked up at his friend. "Apollo? I'm happy to see you? You're alright?"

"Yes, but I should be the one asking you that; you're looking terrible. You certain everything's fine?"

"Yes," the kid responded and managed to stand up.

Apollo then looked all around in search for their enemy. "So the two others are already gone? Cause I came as back-up." He smirked. "You would have seen it: I'm a best in combat. I would have kicked their butts in less than two minutes."

"It's not over yet; they're still around here," Alex deadpanned him.

"What?! Couldn't you say it sooner?!" the barn owl suddenly exclaimed, getting serious again.

The duo looked around the field which was riddled with holes in the ground. Suddenly, Mr. 4 jumped out of one behind them and shot another baseball with his bazooka.

"Apollo! Watch out! This ball's explosive!" Alex screamed in horror just as the ball got near them and exploded...

* * *

 **The fight between Blu's friends and the Booty Works starts! Are they gonna win or will the bad guys be too strong for them? And will Chuva manage to stop the war before too many people die? Stay stunned to find out!**

 **Also, while you probably like Dominic and Apollo, you gotta give credit to 1-2-3 Coin: the duck got stomped on by tens of horses and and shot in the side, but still managed to get Chuva to safety despite all. You're a strong duck, pal!**


	112. Owls, reindeers and moles

BOOM!

The explosion from Mr. 4's explosive baseball created a massive dust cloud and made the ground shake. Once the dust cleared, the bear was disappointed to see that Alex, now in his reindeer form, was holding Apollo by the back of his shirt in his mouth.

"That was close! Luckily that I ate my Reindeer Candy in time," Alex said as he dropped his friend.

"Thanks, Al," Apollo said with rubbing his head. He then noticed their two opponents were gone. "They went back underground," he deduced.

"If we wanna beat them, we must stay in movement," Alex pointed out.

"You're right; if we don't move, they'll take this as a chance to attack and I'd rather avoid this," Apollo agreed with a nod.

Just after this sentence, Mr. 4 jumped out of an hole and shot three explosive baseballs once again. The two owls saw it coming and moved out of the way in time. Alex used his reindeer speed to try and attack the big bear before he could go back in the underground tunnels once again.

Unfortunately, before he could land a hit, something caught his hooves, stopping him dead in his tracks. The kid was not surprised to see a familiar mole holding him from below. "I don't think so, kid!" Miss Merry Christmas said with a smirk.

Taking the chance as Alex was immobilized, Mr. 4 rose his bazooka and shot another explosive baseball. Alex had no choice but to rise his forelegs to try and reduce the damages. However, the explosion still caused him to be sent flying backward many feet away. The kid groaned. Luckily, he didn't sustained any bad injuries - a few burn marks - but that didn't made it less painful even for his best form.

"APOLLO SMASH!"

Miss Merry Christmas and Mr. 4's victory was cut short as the latter suddenly received a sledgehammer shot right on top of his skull from Apollo's valerian sledgehammer. The bear looked blankly for a moment before collapsing on his back.

"Mister 4!" Miss Merry Christmas exclaimed in horror as seeing her partner falling. "W-Where did you get that sledgehammer from?!"

"I built it myself at the Great Tree of Ga'Hoole!" Apollo responded before jumping toward the mole and starting a game of whack-a-mole, trying to smash her with his hammer every time she peaked it out from an hole without much success.

"Come on, Apollo! You got this!" Alex cheered his friend on.

Unfortunately, the barn owl quickly got tired as physical strength wasn't exactly his thing. Panting and covered of sweat, he started realizing his sledgehammer was getting heavier and heavier by the seconds.

BOOM!

As if things couldn't get any worst, something was shot at his beloved weapon which exploded, forcing him to drop it. "What the heck?!" Turning his head, the barn owl saw in shock that Mr. 4 was back up, bleeding from the head but alive, and just shot with his bazooka.

"Seriously?! He took a sledgehammer shot on top of his skull and he's still alive?!" Alex asked in shock. "He's a monster!"

"Bulbo is so gonna kill me for loosing this weapon!" Miss Merry Christmas took benefit of Apollo's distraction to jump out of one hole and smash him really hard across the face, knocking him down.

"Apollo!" Alex shouted and ran to go help his friend. Unfortunately, by doing so, he took his attention away from Mr. 4 who took his chance to shoot another baseball which exploded and knocked the kid to the ground with many burning marks.

Having recovered from the hit which left a mark on his cheek, Apollo saw this and widened his eyes in horror. "Alex! No!"

As he got up and ran toward his friend, the mole suddenly caught his feet from below, stopping him dead in his tracks, and charged at full speed toward the rock wall around the city. The poor barn owl could only look in horror as the wall was getting closer and closer until he crashed into hit a full speed, breaking a few bones and making him spit a lot of blood before collapsing.

Miss Merry Christmas stood over Apollo with a smirk. "You weaklings really thought you stood a chance against Booty Works? Not even in your dreams! You are all as weak as the dead macaw!"

At those words, Apollo suddenly shot his eyes open and weakly turned his head toward her. "D-D-Dead? What are you talking about?" he asked despite the visible pain.

"The blue bird? He's dead and buried: our boss personally took care of him," Miss Merry Christmas explained. "The civil war started: it's too late to stop it now. You all failed and shouldn't have challenged us."

Apollo froze, his body unable to make the slightest move and not because of the hit he just took. Blu, dead? The guy who embarked him on his adventures the very first day they met, back in Minnesota?

"B-Blu is...dead?" Alex also asked, having heard the conversation.

Apollo panted and then narrowed his eyes. "SHUT UP! YOU'RE SAYING BULLSHIT! BLU CANNOT BE DEAD! IT'S IMPOSSIBLE! HE CANNOT HAVE BEEN DEFEATED BY SOME PURPLE GAL!"

Miss Merry Christmas just scoffed. "Why are you saying he cannot die? Sure he can. Just like you."

"Blu will one day be the strongest bird in the world, you hear me!" Apollo continued to scream in anger. "He cannot die here! That's not his destiny!"

The lady mole suddenly burst out in laughter. "The strongest bird in the world?" Mr. 4 joined in the mockery too. "I hope that's a joke!"

The two's mockery caused Apollo to bite his beak to the point of threatening it to break and also hardened his fist.

"You shouldn't tell this kind of thing in the New World. You're perfectly ridiculous, my boy. Good thing your friend died; it was a pretentious idiot," Miss Merry Christmas kept mocking him, causing Apollo to harden his grip even more.

The barn suddenly snapped and rose his head. "ALEX! Listen to me! There are moments where-" Merry Christmas grabbed his feet again and charged at full speed once more, this time toward Mr. 4.

"There are moment where even if the fight seems lost, even if it seems lost in advance, even if death seems assured-" Apollo continued but didn't got to finish his sentence as Mr. 4 smashed him hard in the face with his bazooka while Miss Merry Christmas dragged him at full speed, causing his skull to crack even more that it already was and making him collapse on the sand ground.

"APOLLO!" Alex screamed in horror. He then narrowed his eyes toward the two others. "You! I'm gonna make you pay for that!"

Miss Merry Christmas just laughed again. "I'd run, if I were you. But as you wish, I'm gonna send you in the other world with this big chicken."

"SHUT UP!" the reindeer owl angrily growled. "You're wrong; Apollo's got nothing to do with a big chicken!" He narrowed his eyes with anger before looking in surprise as Apollo slowly rose behind the two Booty Works agents.

"...There are moments...," the barn owl mumbled, a flow of blood coming down from his broken head. "...where a man cannot avoid the fight..." He coughed some blood before turning his bloody, angry eyes toward the enemy. "Specially when someone mocks his friend's dream!"

"I must be dreaming!" Miss Merry Christmas exclaimed with her eyes wide open. "He took a 40 ton bazooka smash right in the face! He cannot still be alive! How did he do that?!"

"Blu will not die!" Apollo continued. "He must become the strongest bird in the world! I know he will! So I will not allow pieces of trash like you to mock him!"

"Alright, you don't want to retain the lesson; I'll do it again!" Miss Merry Christmas said and jumped underground once again. She grabbed Apollo by the feet again and charged toward Mr. 4.

"ALEX!" Apollo screamed. "STAY BEHIND ME!"

The snowy reindeer obeyed and ran on his four limbs behind his friend and the mole carrying him away. They were getting close to Mr. 4 who got ready to hit with his bazooka once again. However, they failed to notice Apollo smirking and putting his aiming googles on.

"Eat that! SMOKE BILL!" Taking out his slingshot, he used it to shoot a bill that collided with Mr. 4 and created a wall of smoke, blindfolding him. "Alex! Now!"

Getting the notice, Alex caught up to his friend and lifted Miss Merry Christmas from behind by trapping her in his horns, causing her to let go of Apollo. He ran at full speed toward Mr. 4 who no clue about what was going on, but saw a figure coming and, thinking it was Apollo, swung his bazooka to smash his partner in the face, breaking her skull. By the Mr. 4 realized in horror he smashed the wrong person, it was too late as Alex and Apollo charged toward him with their hooves and baseball bat charged respectively.

"ROSE HOOVES!"

"APOLLO HOMERUN!"

Alex's strongest attack left rose marks on the bear chest while Apollo's swing broke his skull, sending him fly away and land next to his partner, defeated. The duo of owls had won another fight.

"Victory!" Apollo beamed in a sight before collapsing on his back.

Alex allowed himself to collapse on his friend's stomach after returning to his normal form, just like he did when they defeated the Hagsfiend Queen back in Ga'Hoole. "Apollo, mind if I rest there for a while? I'm a bit tired from all this fighting."

"I don't mind at all, little snowball," the barn responded with wrapping an arm around his friend.

* * *

 **Apollo and Alex won yet another fight together. They form a great team, don't you think? Let's hope the others will do as well against the other BW agents.**

 **And I hope you enjoyed Apollo's speech.**


	113. Taking down the turtle

The war was raging on across the city of Alubarna. The number of victims among the royal army and rebels was reaching high numbers. Tirofijo was giving all he had in the battle, cutting down many royal guards with his saber before the pain of his gunshot wound caught up to him and made him groan in pain.

"Tiro!" one of the soldiers said with catching him. "You're alright?"

He just looked at him with a smile. "Yeah, don't worry."

"Still, the bullet you received back at Nonoana-"

"We're in the middle of a battlefield: it's not time to talk about my wound," the silver fox interrupted him. They went to take cover behind a wall which was the remaining of a destroyed house. "We need to take the guards' horses. I want to reach the north quarter where the royal palace is located. But to go there, we need to cross the main street."

"You wanna get to the royal palace? What for?" the soldier asked in confusion.

"I'm gonna ask the king to capitulate."

"Don't be stupid; going there would be crazy! Piell and Chaka are there; they're way too strong for us! It's too dangerous! Wouldn't it be better to wait for the others? We're not in a hurry and the back up should arrive soon," the soldier insisted.

"Listen, it's too late, we cannot wait any longer. You need to help me!" And with that being said, the silver fox jumped beyond their cover with the soldier following him as the royal guards' canons shot explosive canonballs at their position.

* * *

Many streets away from there, Lazaro and Chameleon charged to engage a duel of kicks, swinging their feet and legs at each other only to block or dodge all of the other's attacks. They were covered of dirt and small wounds as their fight was pretty intense with neither managing to make an advancement on the other.

Eventually, they actually managed to connect a kick to the other's face simultaneously, sending each other to fly and crash into a wall.

"Bastard...," Lazaro mumbled with whipping blood off his beak as he slowly stood up.

"He's strong! His fighting style is similar to mine!" Chameleon grumbled while also slowly standing up.

"You know, I kinda thought you were going to fight with a katana, shurikens and all those ninja stuff," Lazaro admitted.

"People and their cliches," the reptile sighed. "That's enough! Move out my way!"

The puffin just shook his head. "If you wanna pass, you'll have to take me down first, reptile guy!"

"Of course, play the though guys if you want! I'm a master of my style and you're not on my level!"

Charging once again, he delivered another storm of kicks which Lazaro easily dodged thanks to his small size. The puffin performed a series of backflips to put some distance between the two of them before hitting his flipper into his side to push him away after he got too close.

"I'm gonna have to push harder if I want a chance to finish him quick," Lazaro deduced. Charging again, he gave more kicks, but Chameleon blocked them all with his own legs.

Eventually, they pushed a battle cry and gave all their strength into one kick which collided with the other's. Pushing really hard into their limb, the force of the impact caused the bird and reptile to fly backward and crash hard into buildings' walls once again.

"I can't believe it! This dumb ninja stopped my strongest shot!" Lazaro thought while laying down in pain on the ground.

"How can such a little creature have such a huge strength?!" Chameleon asked himself while also laying down in pain. "Enough! I'm gonna fight seriously now, you halfling!"

"So am I then," Lazaro responded with a smirk.

Chameleon flicked his tongue. "You don't seem to realize the level of my powers."

"It's not that; I just don't give a fish about it," the puffin replied, causing the reptile to look insulted.

"Really? Then you won't mind if I do this?" With one more smirk, Chameleon suddenly turned invisible.

"What?!" Lazaro exclaimed in surprise. He then face-winged himself. "Of course he can turn invisible, he's a chameleon. I should've expected that."

* * *

Meanwhile, at the royal palace, Chuva was talking to Chaka with many royal guards watching. The princess managed to reach the safe spot after being saved by 1-2-3 Coin and Lazaro. the two just finished having a chat.

"Have you lost your mind, princess?!" Chaka asked in disbelief. "We can't do that!"

"Why not? Explain," Chuva said. "The kingdom of Sequin is not limited to this palace. The real kingdom is all those people who are killing each other. Without them, there's no kingdom, it's as simple as that. I just want to end this battle. Please, if we can get everyone's attention for only a few seconds, I'll took care of the rest and arrange everything. I know I can do it."

"So...destroy the palace!"

Chaka was sweating hard with his eyes wide open and his body trembling. "Destroy the palace? You can't be serious! It holds more than 4000 years of history!" a soldier protested.

"Chaka! Say something!" another one said.

The jackal remembered how the king made him a similar speech a few days ago about how the people made the kingdom when he and Piell wanted to fight back. He could only smile at how her daughter was similar and then bowed respectfully before the princess.

"We will do as you say, majesty..."

* * *

Vladimir groaned as his situation was pretty delicate. Despite their strongest attacks, Mr. 3 managed to avoid them all thanks to his candle powers and trapped Hernandez into a candle trap, leaving the pelican to struggle on the floor to break free.

"Don't waste your energy: even an elephant could not be strong enough to break this candle trap," the grey turtle chuckled.

"I can tell you you're not gonna trap me like this!" Vladimir declared with glaring at the turtle. "I have to win this fight and go join Yusef as fast as possible."

"You can't beat me; why do you so much to fight?" the turtle asked with a curious look.

"It doesn't matter if I can win or not; I made a promise to my friends and I am planning on holding it!"

Mr. 3 just scoffed. "Loyalty, huh? Such a waste of time. I never understood people ready to give their life just to stay loyal to someone else. In fact, you wanna know what? After taking care of you two, I'm planning on getting to the royal palace, stealing a good part of their fortune, and then leave this damned country on a boat without Risky Boots seeing it."

Vladimir widened his eyes in surprise. "What do you say?! You're planning on leaving your comrades like this after doubling them?! Even your leader?!"

Mr. 3 nodded. "I don't know much about your group, but in the organization I'm a part of, we don't consider each other friends or even partners: we're workmates and that's all. We don't hesitate to give up on each other if things gets too rough. Even on our own boss."

Vladimir hardened his fist because of that statement. "You pieces of trash! How dare you betray each other like this! I won't allow such cowards like you to get away like this!"

Having enough, Mr. 3 rose his paws toward the golden eagle. "Enough talking! I have other things to do! CANDLE BEAM!" His paws shot jets of candle which connected with Vladimir, trapping him into a prison with his own shape. "That was too easy: though guys like they think they're the best when-"

CRACK!

Needless to say the turtle widened his eyes in complete shock upon seeing a Vladimir entirely made of rock break the candle prison he found himself trapped in. "You said that not even an elephant could break out of your trap? Well sorry, but with the powers of my Magical Fruit, I'm strong than an elephant! ROCK WAVE!"

Slamming his fist into the ground, a wave of rock dashed right at the turtle, knocking him hard into a little building that completely collapsed upon impact. When the dust cleared, it revealed that he was laying on his back, covered of blood and his eyes all white, unconscious.

Spitting in disgust, Vladimir walked over to Hernandez and used his rock power to break him free, helping him back up. "Sorry I wasn't of much help," the pelican apologized.

"Don't worry; we won and that's all that matters. Now let's go join the others," Vladimir said as they walked away.


	114. Lazaro vs Chameleon

Chameleon laughed as Lazaro was laying on the ground, his head trapped underneath his invisible foot. "What's wrong, little puffin? Can't get back up?"

Lazaro groaned in anger. "I can't let that idiot ridicule me like that! I must win at all cost!"

Pushing his foot off from his head, Lazaro went for a spin kick which Chameleon dodged or missed (hard to say; he was invisible) and instead received a knee strike in the stomach that knocked the wind out of him. As he curled and groaned in pain, Chameleon followed with a double foot stomp to his face which knocked him back into a wall with a loud thud.

"And that's how you take an aquatic bird down!" Chameleon laughed before said aquatic bird kicked back up, panting.

"I HAD ENOUGH!" Running, Lazaro started swinging and kicking his legs around in random directions without touching anything. When he finally stopped to catch his breath, he felt a violent kick being delivered to his back, almost snapping his spine.

Chameleon laughed again. "Okay, now listen, my little puffin, as fun as it is, I still got work to do. Someone's gotta kill the princess after all."

* * *

Speaking of which, let's get back to the princess who was on the high gardens of the royal palace, watching over the terrible war in the city with Chaka beside her"I'm sorry things took this turn, princess."

"You don't have to apologize, Chaka," Chuva assured without turning her look away. "The fight with the rebel army was unavoidable. It really wasn't easy to hold back this revolution during the last three years. My departure to go learn everything about Booty Works was sudden, but it was the right decision. It allowed me to meet those incredible people that can save Sequin."

As she talked, the parakeet thought about how Blu remained behind to fight Risky Boots (she still wondered if he won) and Dominic's speech about how she needed to live to save the kingdom and that she had to ignore all the rest.

"You helped me at the risk of your lives. I'm so worried for you," she thought.

"Princess Chuva," Chaka said, bringing her back to reality. "You changed a lot since the last time I've seen you. When this conflict will be done, I hope I will have the chance to celebrate with your pirate friends."

"Really?" Chuva asked.

Suddenly, the garden's doors opened and two royal guards rushed in. "We need to talk!"

"What is it?" Chaka asked as he and Chuva turned toward them.

"We've heard that there has been an order to make the palace blow up. the guards are preparing the powder."

"You cannot do that!"

"I gave the order and you're gonna execute it immediately," Chuva firmly said.

"Princess?!" both guards asked simultaneously.

"Gather all the canon powder you can find! We must end this pointless carnage! I don't want to see Sequin's kingdom turned into a bloodbath!" Chuva kept ordering. "This is why I decided to make the royal palace explode."

* * *

Lazaro groaned as the invisible Chameleon kicked him down once again. "You should just give up! Can't see me? Can't beat me!" the reptile glossed.

As he groaned in pain on the ground, Lazaro started doubting his chances of winning. However, something then popped inside his mind and a smirk formed on his beak. "Of course...the solution was right there, under my nose."

With a sudden rush of energy, he kicked up and performed a spin with his legs opened, causing a little sandstorm around him. Just like he expected, Chameleon coughed a bit as he got covered in sand that allowed everyone to get a better view over his figure.

"Gotcha!" Smirking, Lazaro delivered a strong spin kick into the reptile's side, sending him flying right into another wooden box (how many of them is there in here?). "I was so obsessed with kicking your invisible butt that I didn't thought about using sand to make you visible; sand always stick to the body, right?"

Chameleon scoffed as he got back up and glared at the puffin. "It doesn't matter! You realized it way too late! You already took a lot of damage!" Turning visible again, he made his dance dance and point at his enemy. "TAIL RIFFLE!"

His tail suddenly stretched and charged at Lazaro who managed to dodge it with a cartwheel, letting it pierce a building's all. Once he removed it, it revealed a pretty precise hole in the wall.

"His tail pierced the wall!" Lazaro realized with a nervous look.

"Nice dodging, my little puffin," Chameleon complimented. "All my attack force is gathered in one zone: the tip of my tail. That way, not only can I send an attack as strong as a riffle shot, but without exposing myself to much risk. The only problem is that I cannot use it while in invisible mode. But that's not that much of a detail; I'll take you down with it."

The reptile kept shooting his tail over and over again at the puffin who managed to dodge it, leaving him pierce holes in the ground instead. At one point, he tried to go for a spin kick which Chameleon blocked with his own leg. Before Lazaro could jump back, Chameleon sent his tail to hit a Tail Riffle right into his shoulder, piercing a hole which made blood fly out and knocked the puffin far back.

"The...bastard...!" Lazaro groaned in pain as he held his bleeding shoulder with his flipper.

"Looks like game is set for you!" Chameleon said with a laughter before jumping in the air, ready to deliver the finishing to his opponent.

Throwing his tail forward once again, Lazaro performed a moonsault at the very last second, barely dodging the lizard's attack, and then delivered an impressive spin kick right into his cheek which knocked him back. Upon hitting the ground, Chameleon busted himself open and started bleeding from the side of his head. Before he could recover, Lazaro jumped behind him and kicked his back immediately followed with another kick to his jaw, making him spit blood.

As the puffin charged for another attack, Chameleon pushed a big cry and stabbed his tail right into his attacker's hip before his foot could reach him. However, he simply pushed the tail away with his flipper and then engaged a kick duel, both opponents' legs colliding with the other's. This duel lasted for a full minute before they kicked each other in the face simultaneously, knocking the enemy away once again.

Badly hurt and covered of blood and dirt, the avian and reptile weakly stood up before throwing kicks at each other yet again, refusing to back down. No matter how much they kicked each other, neither of the proud warriors would stay down - they kept fighting through the wounds and the blood.

Eventually, they marked a pause to catch their breath. "I have enough energy for one last attack. How about you?" Lazaro asked.

"That's the same for me. The next shot will be the last," Chameleon responded with flicking his tongue.

Nodding at each other, the two warriors jumped forward and clashed with one last kick before standing back-to-back, waiting to see who had won (like in samurai movies)...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...Lazaro groaned and held his stomach in pain while falling on his knees.

Chameleon chuckled, thinking he had won...before suddenly collapsing in pain as his thorax was broken. Lazaro remained on the ground for a while before finding the strength to get back up and weakly walked over to Chameleon who was still alive but barely breathing.

"You...won...," he coughed. "I can't...move... I can no longer...fight... You won this fight... Kill me..."

He noticed Lazaro's surprised look. "I failed... No matter what I do, Booty Works will try to get rid of me... That's how it works... So please...finish me off..."

To his surprise and confusion, the puffin who defeated him simply pressed his own foot against his. "That was an awesome fight. I've gotta recognize that you're the best opponent I ever faced so far, and coming from me, that means a lot." The puffin then turned his back and walked away. "Leave this country. I hope to face you again someday, but this time not in a death battle. And please, leave Booty Works, or I'll be force to kill you next time we face."

Chameleon just looked in awe as his enemy walked away. "...Sparring someone?! That's the best friendship proof you can see! My gosh!"

* * *

Back to the royal palace, the royal guards finished putting in place the final explosive systems around the building. "We are ready, Princess Chuva!" one guard said while holding a fire torch and one of the four ropes connected to the explosives which he was supposed to light up alongside the three other guards. "We're awaiting your signal now."

The young parakeet nodded with a firm, determined look. "This palace is the witness of 4000 years of Sequin's history." She remembered old times she passed in this building like when she used to play with 1-2-3 Coin as a kid or when her father told her funny stories. "It is the witness of my most beautiful memories. If we destroy it, the rebels will cease to fight and turn their attention toward me. So I can tell the truth that they have been manipulated from the start." She looked at the soldiers. "So go! Light them up!"

The guards all nodded and approached their flaming torches to the ropes...before a sudden violent wind accompanied by sand not only turned them off but also blew the guards into the air, letting them crash down with a loud thud.

"What the hell?!" Chaka exclaimed as he and Chuva rushed at the guards to see them unconscious.

"Now, now, it wouldn't be very nice to blow up my future residence from where I will impose my tyranny over all those miserable people."

Widening their eyes, Chuva and Chaka looked up in the sky to see the sand gathering and taking a familiar form. The princess looked even more in horror.

"...Risky Boots?!"

* * *

 **So far, Apollo and Alex defeated Mr. 4 and Miss Merry Christmas, Vladimir & Hernandez beat Mr. 3, and Lazaro took down Chameleon in an epic kick duel. Now, Dominic just have to beat Nigel and Jewel have to take care of Kirya.**

 **But again, they'll have to also face Risky Boots.**


	115. Jewel's new weapon, the Wind Waker

"What did you say?! Blu is dead?!" Chuva asked with her eyes wide open before glaring up at Risky Boots. "No! I don't believe you! That's not true!"

The purple bird just giggled. "Unfortunately, it is, princess. He's buried underneath the sand of Rainbase. What's ironic is that he would have lived longer, had he not crossed your path, princess."

"That's not true! He would have never let a monster like you defeat him!" Chuva angrily denied.

"And yet, that's only the truth. You can refuse to believe me if you want, I don't really care. You should be grateful; that moron went as far as giving his life for you."

"WHERE'S BLU?!" Chuva shouted impatiently. "AND WHY ARE YOU SO CRUEL WITH US?!"

Risky Boots just smirked as tears started to form in Chuva's eyes and the sounds of the raging war could be heard all the way up there...

* * *

Meanwhile, very far from there, in a calmer street, Jewel was resting on a wall while hiding behind a wooden barrel. She managed to escape the black panther named Kirya for now, she she knew from experience back in the Amazon that it would only be a matter of time before the predator would find her.

She couldn't help but tilt her head in many directions as she could hear swords clashing, guns shooting, and people screaming everywhere. "I can hear this battle all the way here. They didn't stopped the rebel troops at the city's entrance," the young spix macaw thought. "I wonder if Chuva and the others are going well." She then thought about her boyfriend. "Blu... No, I'm sure he took care of Risky Boots and is on his way to join us. That's the only possibility."

She then couldn't help but look down with slight regret. "They're all fighting out there. Risking their lives at every second. While I..."

FLASHBACK

 _One day prior to arriving at Sequin, Jewel was having a conversation with Apollo, who was busy checking up his arsenal, inside the Polar Tang._

 _"Listen Apollo, I really need it. You need to craft a weapon for me," Jewel seriously asked her barn owl friend._

 _"Really?" he responded without turning his look away from his tools scattered on the floor. "And why do you want it so much? You already have your staff, don't you?"_

 _"The trick is...I'm not as skilled as you guys in terms of fighting," Jewel admitted with looking down. "I mean, I know that I can use a staff and all but-"_

 _"Can you get straight to the point?" Apollo asked._

 _Jewel looked down once again. "Well...I'd like to be able to fight for myself without having to bother everyone. To bother Blu. I want to help him, and Chuva too." She then looked up. "Please. If there's someone that can understand, it's you. We're different from the rest of the team and you know it. They have superpowers or abilities that we will never have and can face any enemy. While you and I are...normal birds with no special skills. In fights, we can barely be as useful as the others. We're only deadweight if they have to protect us along with fighting the enemy."_

 _"We have no choice but to count on our weapons. It's hard, but we have to accept it. So please, help me," Jewel begged once again. "I know the reason you always craft new weapons is because you wanna be able to fight at your friends' side. They know they can count on you. Well it's the same for me: I wanna help Blu. I want him to know I'm here for him. Please, help me."_

 _Apollo sighed and finally turned to look at her. "But we almost no time left. We almost reached Sequin."_

 _Jewel just starred at him before sighing and looking down. "You're right; we can build a weapon so easily. Sorry for bothering you with that," she apologized and turned toward the door to leave._

 _"I said we had little time, not that it was impossible," Apollo stopped her. "You should know that Apollo Bird can make the impossible come true."_

 _Jewel formed a big happy smile on her beak before turning to her friend who smiled as well. "So you agree? You're gonna make me a weapon? Thank you, Apollo! You're the best!"_

 _"Wait, it's done yet," Apollo calmed her down with a wing. "For the materials, I need-"_

 _Jewel cut him off with a big hug. "Thank you so much! You're awesome!"_

 _Apollo just rolled his eyes and chuckled nervously._

FLASHBACK END

Jewel got brought out of her thoughts by a noise coming from beside her and immediately lowered herself to avoid being spotted...only to see it was a piece of wood that fell from the wall. she pushed a sigh and sat against the wall.

"What's wrong with me? Get ahold of yourself, Jewel. You're ridiculous to jump at any noise. Dad and Mom taught me how to survive in the forest; it's no different," Jewel thought to herself.

She then looked up. "After the speech I made to Apollo, I should be the first one to jump on the battlefield. I should fight for Chuva and give everything for her." Reaching into the bottom of her dancer dress, she took out a grey metal staff with wind pattern over it. The new weapon Apollo made for her. She slowly stood up with a look of determination. "Yes, Apollo held his promise, so I must hold mine. I must beat this panther. I can-ARGH!"

Her sentence got interrupted as she felt a sharp pain pierce her right shoulder. Feeling the wind leave her body for a second, the thing that pierced her retreated, allowing blood to flow out from the wound it created and letting her collapse on the ground. Holding her shoulder in pain with one hand, she looked up to see a small hole in the wall she rested moments ago. Soon, more holes where pierced around it by something sharp until the wall collapsed and out of it came none other than Kirya herself.

The black panther slowly walked with a smirk and both paws on her hips. "You can't escape me, young girl."

"Kirya!" Jewel groaned. "I didn't saw the weapon she used. It looked like a spear. She must have some Magical Fruit powers."

"Indeed," the black panther confirmed as she rose one paw and made sea urchin spines-like spikes come out of it. "Ever since I ate a Magical Fruit, I can make spikes come out of any part of my body."

"Spikes that can pierce a rock wall?" Jewel said in her head. "She just need to touch my body once to kill me," she thought before getting up and rising her new staff.

"Huh? You're still planning on facing me?" Kirya asked with a surprised look.

Jewel remembered what Apollo told her about this staff: "It can change the weather, it can make the rain fall, and even create storms. I present to you the Wind Waker!"

"You can make your priers! You're gonna taste the power of my Wind Waker staff!" Jewel declared with rising her weapon.

"What?!" Kirya exclaimed with looking in confusion.

Jewel then attached the three tact of her new staff to form a triangle. "Fine Tempo!" she shouted with pressing a button...which made confettis jump out of the staff. Both girls just stood there in silence until Jewel shouted: "WHAT'S THAT JOKE?!"

"Hum...okay, wanna continue?" Kirya uncertainly asked.

Something then clicked into Jewel's mind. "Hey, what if it was supposed to happen to destabilize my opponent? Of course, you're a genius, Apollo!" This time, Jewel attached the tacts so that it formed a riffle and pointed it at Kirya. "Your time has come this time! Cloudy Tempo!"

She pressed the button again...to make flowers sprout out from the tip of it. This caused another awkward silence between both girls and Jewel to once again insult Apollo in her head.

"I don't know why, but in a certain way, I pity this girl," Kirya thought before resuming her attack, shooting spikes toward Jewel.

The macaw saw it coming and managed to roll out of the way in time, finding herself resting against the wall of a building. Kirya kept shooting her spikes at her, only piercing the wall as she moved fast enough to dodge the panther. However, she kicked up the pace and actually managed to land a few cuts on the macaw as the spikes barely rubbed her skin and feathers.

By the time she managed to get away from the wall and her attacker, she was already feeling tired, her feathers messy and covered of blood. "You're very stubborn, you know," Kirya remarked with a smirk. "Unfortunately, your efforts are pointless; you won't escape me. All the odds are against you."

Jewel gulped nervously and then reached once again into her dress bottom to take out some paper. Those were the instructions for the Wind Waker that Apollo left her. There had to be something this staff could do to help her, not just pretty tricks!

"Just stop struggling," Kirya spoke again. "If you cooperate, I promise you a quick and painless death." Jewel just scoffed and took her Wind Waker in one wing to rise it. "Really? You persist on wanting to face me?"

This time, Jewel pressed the three tacts into a Y shape and rose it with her wings after putting the notes away. She held the Y poles and pointed the tip of it at Kirya. "Thunder Tempo!" This time, the Wind Waker shot...a toy boxing fist like the ones used by jokers. However, it didn't even reached the black panther who just starred at it unimpressed.

"Seriously? Why is it even called Thunder Tempo? Where's the thunder?" Jewel angrily mumbled under her breath.

Having enough of this child's play, Kirya used her fingers to shoot more spikes with one of them actually cutting Jewel on the cheek. The avian quickly ran away as fast as her legs could (she started missing not being able to fly) until she turned into an alleyway. There she marked a pause to make sure the feline did not follow her before rubbing the blood away from her cheek with her hand.

"She almost got me. A little more and I was done for it." She looked down. "Is it my destiny to get killed by this girl?" She frowned. "Darn it, Apollo! If I die here, I swear you're gonna hear of me!" Seeing no other option, she took out the instructions again and quickly read further into them in hopes of finding anything that could make this dumb staff useful for once.

"SPIKE BALL!"

Barely after reading a few lines, Jewel was surprised by this voice and turned around to see a black spike ball rolling her way. This prompted her to start running once again to avoid getting turned into a skewer. Nothing seemed to stop this ball as it destroyed every barrel and other pieces of wood on its way. Jewel realized Kirya was advantaged in open spaces and started looking for a way out of the alley.

She soon spotted an open window and quickly jumped to the side, throwing herself through it and into the building, finally escaping the spike ball. Unfortunately, her break was cut short as the spike ball rolled through the window too.

"It's useless! I'm gonna skewer you!" the spike ball, now revealed to be Kirya, declared.

However, Jewel rolled out of the way, letting her crash into the next room, and ran back out by the window. Rushing as fast as she could, she once again went to hide behind wooden boxes. And again, she took out her instruction notes given by Apollo.

"I did not dream," she panted. "I swear I saw something that could be useful somewhere in these notes. Where was it? Damn, there's only stuff for parties or to lighten up the mood!"

It was then that she saw a little thing written at the bottom of the page: "For battle tricks, see on the other side".

Doing as it was written, she turned the paper and saw new instructions. "Where are you, pretty girl? Come see mommy, little kitty," Kirya sing songed as she looked all around.

Jewel suddenly came out of hiding with a smirk. "Enough with hiding! I won't do it anymore! It may not look like it, but I've been surviving in a jungle and across a whole country on my own! I'm not some helpless little girl!"

"Really? Where did you get that sudden arrogance?" Kirya curiously asked.

"Watch out, big cat! I'm gonna show you what I got!" Grabbing one of the three tacts, Jewel took a deep breath and blew into its hole which created some red bubble that flew right at Kirya.

"Huh? This ball is warm," Kirya remarked as she danced her fingers into the bubble.

"It's an heat ball," Jewel remarked before grabbing another tact and blew another bubble, this time ice blue, which once again floated at Kirya.

"Oh, that one's fresh," she said.

"It's a cool ball. And I still have one left," Jewel said before blowing a third one that was yellow and had some electricity emanating from it. Putting her paw into it, the black panther felt some shock.

"This one's shocking."

"It's a thunder ball," Jewel said. Thought she did not understand why it didn't made any damage and started reading the notes where she stopped: "But the system's not on point for fighting yet and should only be used for parties."

She face-winged herself once again. "Seriously, Apollo? Couldn't you just make me a staff that hit hard or something?"

"Are you done messing around?" Kirya asked with a visibly impatient look before getting on her four limbs and running after her prey who started fleeing while also reading her notes.

"Come on, there's gotta be something useful, a secret technique or-ARGH!" She got interrupted in her tracks as she felt another thing pierce her right ankle, causing her to fall head first on the ground. Kirya smirked as she retreated her spine from Jewel's ankle.

"It's over now. I lost enough time like this." She summoned spines underneath her foot and got ready to stomp on Jewel with it.

Seeing her chance, the macaw slammed her staff into the panther's torso. To her surprise, she bent her weapon like a cross and before she could understand what was happening, was sent flying up in the air and to crash into a wooden box.

Jewel looked in surprise as her staff came flying back into her hand. "Cyclone Tempo, huh? Finally, it's not entirely useless, Apollo," she thought. She then took out her notes and read more in the battle uses section. She suddenly widened her eyes. "What's that?"

Kirya broke out from the remaining of the wooden box she crashed into. "I've never seen such a weapon!" She suddenly saw Jewel with her back facing her. "You should never turn your back on your opponent during a fight!" the panther declared before stabbing three spines into the avian's back...only for it to turn into water. "What?!"

Hearing laughters, she turned around to see Jewel standing there with a smirk. "I used another technique in Apollo's notes: the Mirage Tempo. I didn't understood all the explanations, but for short, it created a mirage of myself. And I still have many other tricks with this staff. I learned how to use it; now we're united!"

* * *

Back to the palace, Chuva and Chaka looked in horror as Risky Boots brought none other than King Alkawbra and planted him against the wall with two big nails into his arms. The poor king was in terrible shape and looked ready to die.

"Free the king now!" Chaka angrily ordered at the purple bird.

"It would be with pleasure, but how do you want me to free him, wen the king himself isn't able to move?" she sarcastically asked. "You should use that jackal head of yours sometimes."

The king suddenly managed to weakly rise his head and look at his daughter. "I'm sorry, my little Chuva. You put your life on the line to give us a chance to counter this monster's plans. But I couldn't capitalize on it."

"Don't say this, Father," Chuva begged.

"How cute," Risky Boots sarcastically said. "The reunion of a father and his daughter." She then turned her head toward Chuva. "I rather warn you; I'm not planning on sparing you. When a king falls, so does his kingdom as well as his family. Don't you think? However," she started stepping toward the nailed king, "I want to ask a question to the king before he completely loses his kingdom." She bent toward the parakeet. "Tell me where I can find the object of my biggest desire. Alkawbra...tell me where's Pluton!"

At the mention of that name, the king widened his eyes in horror. "Impossible... How do you know that name?!"

* * *

 **Yes, Jewel got a new weapon. My explanation is that I wanted her to be able to catch up to the rest of the team and not always be a damsel in distress. Thought we'll have to see if she can use it correctly to beat Kirya.**


	116. Pluton: the royal family's secret weapon

**I'm going back to school in one week, so I prefer warning you that my publishing rhythm for this story will probably low down a bit.**

* * *

Chuva looked curiously and confused at Risky Boots. "Pluton? What's that?"

"Pluton," Risky talked again. "A weapon so powerful that it can destroy an island in one second. It has been existing for centuries and it's the most dangerous weapon in the world. I know it's somewhere in this country." Alkawbra sweated nervously as he glanced at her.

"For centuries you say?" Chuva asked. "Such a weapon hidden in here? And father knew about it?"

"One of the secrets transmitted after taking place on the throne," Chaka said with a nod.

"In reality, that's the only thing interesting me from the start," Risky Boots admitted. "With this weapon, I'll be able to built the strongest military state in here."

Chaka narrowed his eyes. "But in that case...you did all this only to...?!"

"When I become the queen of this country, it will be easy for me to gather the pirates all around under my orders," the purple bird continued. "My strength will grow and eventually, it will outclass that of the World Government. Ah, the absolute dream."

"The World Government won't let you act, you scoundrel!" the king angrily said, thought the nails planted in his arms caused him to twitch in pain.

"You're probably right which is why I need Pluton's power," Risky said with looking at the king above her shoulder.

"I don't understand; where did you heard about this weapon? But anyways, to be frank, even I don't know where this weapon is located," Alkawbra admitted.

Risky just closed her eyes. "You don't seem like you're laying, I can believe you." She then opened them again. "It's a possibility that I considered. I know its existence can be questioned, but I suppose that I kept my child's heart," she giggled.

She then looked away. "If my calculations are right, the rebel army should arrive in around twenty minutes. But at half past four, in an half-four for short, a projectile of a phenomenal power will devastate all the zone." Alkawbra, Chuva and Chaka all widened their eyes in horror at this announcement.

"You're crazy!" the king exclaimed.

"This bullet will destroy everything in a beam of five kilometers. Needless to say it will change the landscape," the pirate queen giggled evilly.

"You can't do that!" Chuva shouted.

"There won't be any survivor, wether it's on your side or on the rebels'. That way, the war will definitely end. Isn't that what you wanted? To end the rebellion? Please, no need to thank me," she mockingly said with waving her hand. "You see, this way, it will be faster and simpler. Making them all blow up instead of the palace."

"How can you do such a thing?!" Chuva angrily asked, thought Chaka held her back from jumping on Risky Boots. "What these people did to you?! They don't deserve that! You're really a monster!"

Risky just scoffed, ignoring the princess, and then turned toward her father. "Majesty, there's still one thing I wanna ask you." She got face-to-face with the king. I'll be direct; I wanna know where are the ancient texts."

"The ancient texts? What do they have with this?" Chuva asked in confusion.

"If you show them to you, you promise you will...?" the king asked and Risky instantly nodded. The king lowered his head and closed his eyes. "I agree. I will show you the ancient texts."

Chuva widened her eyes. "Father!"

Risky let out another laugh. "I didn't expected anything less from you, Alkawbra. This is reasonable."

Groaning, Chaka grabbed his sword and took it out. "Okay, that's enough! I won't tolerate this anymore!"

Risky Boots just turned toward him and smirked as sand started floating around her body...

* * *

"Listen, Jewel. To win the fight, you need to use your head for the Wind Waker. That's our only weapon, remember?" So were the words Apollo wrote Jewel.

"YOU COULD HAVE TOLD ME SOONER!" she angrily thought while still running across a street with Kirya running after her, shooting spikes with her paws.

"I can use every function and combine them. That's how the Wind Waker works," Jewel thought, wincing as her pierced left ankle was still making it hard for her to run, but she could still pull it off for now.

After a turning corner, she used her staff to make some wooden barrels fall in hopes of slowing her pursuer down which failed as she easily jumped past them with her feline agility. The spix macaw quickly went to hide behind another corner to read more battle uses and find something interesting. The Tornado Tempo. The only function that Apollo apparently installed in the Wind Waker to be used in battle and not devised by Jewel. He explained that this attack can only be used once and should be used only when the situation calls for it.

"I can only use it once and if I fail...I'm done for it."

"FOUND YA!"

Jewel rose her staff just in time to block two upcoming spikes. Kirya stood to her right with a smirk, licking her lips like a predator would do before eating its prey.

"Your weapon is very interesting, but if you want my opinion, it's just a useless gadget. It couldn't defend you after all, and the point of a weapon is justly to kill the enemy, don't you think?" She shot another spoke with her paw which Jewel ducked, letting it pierce the wall behind her.

The spix macaw had no choice but to run away once again. "If I keep letting myself go like this, she'll get me no doubt! Quick, I must use the Tornado Tempo!" She stopped running both to look at her opponent and to allow her injured ankle to rest a bit. "I need to find a way to distract her. That way, I'll be able to use the Tornado Tempo."

"What can I do with those three bubbles and the heat of this country?" Putting a thumb on her chin, she tried to remember what Blu and Gylfie taught her about navigation as well as weather. "Grr, if only the air could be humid." Something then clicked in her head and she looked down at her staff. "Humidity? Of course! I can make the rain fall!"

"Alright, I had enough of you and your little dumb tricks good only for clowns!" Kirya suddenly declared and turned her head into a spike ball. "STINGER CHARGE!" She ran like a bull toward Jewel who quickly used her Wind Waker to blow heat balls in the air before rolling out of the way, letting the panther crash through a wall.

"I must act quick," Jewel mumbled and blew more heat balls into the air before Kirya came out of the wall.

"You amused me a lot, young girl; now it's my turn to show you what I can do." She rose her arms and covered them completely in spikes.

Jewel then switched to blowing cool bubbles in the air. "The warm air rises and meets the cool air coming down. And so, if I remember correctly what Gylfie told me, the combined air will turn into humidity."

"I told you not to let your guard down!" Kirya angrily said as she charged and swung a fist at the macaw. "STINGER FIST!" Jewel managed to duck her attack, letting it destroy the pillar of an house instead.

* * *

Let's get back to the outside of the city

"I-I'm doing okay. Everybody here is ready to die in battle. Nothing will stop me either. Even if we rip my arms and legs off, even if we break my beak..."

Apollo was saying good words while walking back toward the city, resting on Alex who once again took his reindeer form. "You should avoid talking too much Apollo; you could cause an intern bleeding," the kid remarked.

"Yeah, you're right."

"Hey, you're alive," a voice coming from behind remarked. The two friends turned around to see a familiar puffin smiling.

"Lazaro!" they exclaimed at unison. "Are you hurt? You defeated Chameleon?"

"Yes, of course," the puffin replied with rubbing his big nose in a proud way. However, it ended soon as he then turned around. "Hey, look at that."

They looked in same way as him and saw figures at the far distance coming their way, leaving a huge cloud of dust behind them. "It must be the reinforcements for the rebel army.

"There's more coming up?" Alex asked with his eyes wide open.

"Yup. Apparently, Chuva failed to stop them," Lazaro deduced.

"Crap!" Apollo swore before hearing a noise behind him. Turning his head, he was met with a familiar camel. "Longcil?! Where have you been? We were worried."

"It's no time for happy reunions," Lazaro interrupted. "We need to get to the royal palace and see if we can help Chuva." Following the puffin's directions, everyone ran back toward the city with Longcil carrying Apollo on his back.

* * *

Jewel pushed a loud groan in pain as Kirya knocked her down on the ground. "I must recognize that you're a champion for dodging."

Fighting through the pain, the suffering avian pushed herself with her arms to look up at the sky. "So what does it give?" Much to her relief, a little cloud appeared above their heads, meaning her trick worked. It was small, but a cloud's a cloud.

Getting up with newfound confidence, Jewel started spinning the two tacts of her Wind Waker to create heat and cool bubbles with the wind instead of blowing into them, sending more bubbles toward the cloud and making it grow bigger.

"That's enough! Stinger smash!" Kirya went on the offensive again and Jewel had to raise her staff to block her attack, but still got knocked onto her back by the force of the attack. "Wanna give up yet?" the panther asked with a smirk.

Jewel just chuckled and looked at her with a smirk of her own. "I was about to ask you the same thing." She used her staff to get back up and then shot a thunder ball right into her cloud right above her opponent.

"Huh?" Next thing she knew, Kirya got hit by a thunder-strike which made electric jolts run through her whole body. Jewel had to cover her eyes because of the light it created, but could hear the panther's cries of pain.

By the time it was done, Jewel turned to look and saw the panther looked liked she got passed in a toaster: she was completely rotten with jolts still coming out of her body. A detail was worrying Jewel however; why was she still standing on her feet and looking angry.

"Y-You're gonna pay for that!" Rising her spiked arms, she ran and pierced right through Jewel's neck once again...only for her to turn into water once again. "WHAT?!"

"Dry time with little wind planned for today," Jewel teasingly said while calmly walking far behind the dumbfounded feline. "Be specially careful around tornados," she added with rising her staff now shaped like a T. She was about to use the Tornado Tempo and remembered what Apollo told her: "If you fail, you're done for it."

Gulping, Jewel glared with determination. "I must win this fight. For Blu and Chuva." She looked down at her staff. "It can create rain and also big storms. Wind Waker, please, just one last effort. For my friends!"

The macaw winced in pain because on her ankle wound which caused her to drop a bit. Kirya didn't failed to notice it and smirked. "Looks like your left ankle is making you suffer a lot. I suppose you're having an hard time standing up, right?"

As the panther charged for another Sting Fist, Jewel ducked her attack and planted her T staff into her abdomen. "You wanna know what? It doesn't even hurt that much! It's nothing compared to what Chuva's enduring right now! That's why I don't care about loosing one foot! I almost lost more than that and I survived! TORNADO TEMPO!"

In a bright flash from each end, two clockwork doves bursted out and ensnared her opponent. The T then started to spin rapidly until it finally shot the captured panther with extreme centrifugal force. So much in fact that Jewel herself was sent flying back and rolled a lot onto the ground.

After the pain from the attack passed away, Jewel stood up once again and started limping toward the direction Kirya flew into. To her surprise, the panther broke not through one but TWO walls of a building. She was now laying onto the ground, covered of blood and bruises and unconscious.

This could only mean one thing: Jewel had won!

Smiling from this and allowing herself to fall in a sitting position to finally rest her wounded leg, she looked up at the sky. "I did it...Blu..."

* * *

But the battle was not over yet.

CLASH!

Dominic swung his Sabor saber at Nigel who blocked it with his metal wings, creating sparkles that flew in the air, and replied with punches to Dominic easily dodged.

"You couldn't take me down the last time we faced, eagle! What makes you think this time will be different?" Nigel growled.

"It's true that you pretty much kicked all my team's butt back in Rio," Dominic recognized before narrowing his eyes. "However, don't go think I'm still as weak as that time; I got WAY stronger," he declared with putting one feathered hand on his Eau De Mort sword.

* * *

 **Jewel beat Kirya! That's another one down. Next time, we'll see Dominic vs Nigel.**

 **For those of you who thought I was going to keep Jewel away from the fights and keep her as a sideline character, you were wrong. I still have plans for her.**

 **I'd like to address those who wonder why I only write one fight per chapter instead of many ones: it's because I want to write longer fights to make them more interesting and "goofy" if I may say. Let's be honest, do you prefer seeing Blu and his friends win fights in strange and elaborated ways, or simply see them win via raw strength and by shooting beams?**

 **I use the "Rock, Paper, Scissors Style" for fights, thank you The Grey Coincidence for teaching it to me.**


	117. Swordsman eagle vs metal cockatoo

CLANG!

Dominic clashed his sword with Nigel's metal arm once again. Neither of the fighters managed to make an advancement on the other and for now, they were on equal level.

"It's no good!" Dominic thought after slashing his sword across Nigel's torso to no effect. "No matter how much force I put behind my blows, I just can't cut him down. Looks like my workout didn't paid that much..."

"That's all you can do? After so much time, I thought you would have become stronger since the last time we faced!" Nigel stated and threw a punch which Dominic dodged by backflipping away, letting him blow a crater into the ground.

"I thought so too," Dominic admitted while panting a bit. "But it looks like to beat you, I must be at least capable of cutting through metal. The problem is that I don't know if I can."

Nigel spat in disgust. "It's not that surprising, considering that you and your friends spend all your time dancing and singing," he said with shaking his tailfeathers in a mocking way for emphasis.

This caused Dominic to look a bit annoyed. "For the record, we didn't just "danced and sang", as you say; you have no idea of everything we did after defeating you and your smuggler friends. And at least, we visibly didn't read too much Shakespeare," he said with giving a mocking look at Nigel's attire.

"Hey! My new owner forced me to wear it!" the cockatoo defended himself before taking a theatrical pose. "After your darned friend made a fool out of me, I found myself without any person to help or love me. I was rejected, hated. That was until I got captured by this merciless merchant on the side of a street in this dirty old town. He forced me to play a fortune-teller while also living alongside this crazy purple frog and anteater who wanted nothing to do with me. One day, I managed to escape and found myself on a boat at sea until..."

He stopped talking upon noticing a rather insulting sight: Dominic was laying on his beak with his eyes closed, snoring loudly. Groaning in frustration, Nigel pushed a loud: "HEY! WAKE UP!"

"Huh?" Shaking his head, Dominic opened his eyes and looked at the cockatoo. "You finished talking? Sorry, but your story was so long and boring that I decided to take a nap. You don't mind?"

"I hope you enjoyed it 'cause it will the last one you'll ever have!" Nigel angrily declared with turning his arms into metal once again.

"Things will finally get serious," Dominic remarked with a smile before taking out Eau De Mort and Snow Run.

Nigel charged and swung his fists at the golden eagle who swiftly dodged him with his agility. He then slashed his two sabers across the cockatoo's abdomen which made him feel slight pain, but not as much as if his abdomen would have been made of flesh. The golden eagle pressed on his attacks, pushing the cockatoo back before deciding to use his three-swords style and putted Sabor in his beak.

"DEMON SLASH!" Unleashing his powerful attack with his three sabers, Dominic ran through Nigel who was sent flying into the air in the process. "And that's not all! TIGER SLASH!" Waiting for him to get back down, Dominic used his two primary sabers to slash into the metal avian, also slamming him hard onto the ground in the process.

Panting, the golden eagle putted his sabers away, hoping that his attacks were strong enough to keep the crazy cockatoo down for good. His hopes were quickly pulled away, however, as the sound of steps could be heard and revealed Nigel still standing up after the sand cloud created by the impact faded away.

"What?! My attacks had no effect at all on him?!" Dominic gasped upon seeing Nigel standing as if nothing had just happened.

Nigel charged once again, swinging his metal talons which Dominic blocked with his saber. The cockatoo followed with a metal fist swing which the golden eagle ducked but, unfortunately, couldn't do the same with the next punch which he received right in the face, causing him to get knocked away into a building which completely collapsed over him.

Standing before the crumbles of the building, Nigel let out his trademark crazy laughter. "You really were too weak to beat me after all! You said you got stronger, but you're still that weak eagle I easily took down back in Rio! And now, because of your failure, nothing can stop me now from going to make those damn blue birds suffer for what they did to me. I will hold the male down and force him to watch as I will slowly tear his beloved wife apart in front of his eyes!"

The cockatoo was preparing to leave...only to stop in his tracks upon hearing a noise and turning around to see Dominic forcing his way out of the crumbles. He was visibly hurt and covered of blood, but he didn't seemed to realize it. Panting loudly, he slowly narrowed his eyes into a glare at the cockatoo.

"...You can mock my strength, say I'm not as strong as I should or tell me as many dumb stories as you want...BUT IF YOU DARE PUT YOUR DIRTY FEATHERS ON MY CAPTAIN OR MY FRIENDS, YOU'RE THE ONE THAT'LL GET TEARED APART!"

 _"Remember Dominic: there are swordsmen in this world who can cut anything but chooses to not cut anything. From my point of view, a good sword should always be used to protect what the user cherishes the most; if a sword just cuts anything indiscriminately, then it's not really a good sword. Only you can know when you'll be ready to cut through anything..."_

As Dominic was hearing This voice from the past in his head, Nigel shouted something at him, thought he did not listen, and then charged to give him a massive metal punch right in the stomach, making him spit blood, but he didn't really cared.

"That feeling...," he thought. "...That's the exact same thing I felt, when I faced Hawkeye... I can...feel the universe around me breathe...I...I CAN DO IT!"

With a new rush of energy, Dominic took out Eau De Mort and Snow Run and started slashing them all over the metal cockatoo at an incredible speed, making sparks fly everywhere. Every slash was strong than the previous one. Nigel just looked in shock and confusion at the golden eagle who shouted words in Russian that he didn't understood.

CLANG!

CLANG!

CLANG!

SLASH!

After tens of attacks, sparks were not longer flying. It was blood that came out of Nigel's body.

"Impossible...," was the last thing Mr. 1 mumbled before collapsing as his torso was cut open.

Dominic panted as a smile formed over his beak. He did it! He managed to cut through metal and defeat Nigel once and for all. However, his joy was cut short as the adrenaline cooled down and the pain from the hits he took were getting felt. This caused him to fall on his knees and cough a bit because of the blood he just realized was flowing in his beak. And the metal punch he took in his stomach was not helping either.

""Maybe...next time...I'll be able...to cut through diamond...," he chuckled to himself.


	118. Tirofijo's white flag! The war ends!

**Every member of Booty Works has been defeated: Risky Boots' the last one to take down.**

* * *

As Risky Boots unveiled her plan while also standing before the nailed king, Chaka's patience reached its limit. "Okay, that's enough! It doesn't matter if I die; I must protect the king at all cost!"

Grabbing his sword, he charged and swung it through the purple bird's sand body. She was a bit surprised that he finally decided to act, but turned her body to sand to fly to the palace's roof. "I admit I didn't saw that coming," she admitted with little interest.

"Chaka! Don't do that!" Alkawbra screamed with his eyes wide open in terror.

The jackal didn't listened, well decided to stop Risky Boots once and for all. He jumped toward his enemy again and pierced her with his sword, turning her whole left side into sand.

She simply turned to look at him. "Seriously? You repeat the same thing and expect things to be different?" she made sand dance around her. "I'm gonna make quick work out of you..."

* * *

Back in the city, Dominic was weakly laying down on his side, still being in terrible shape after his fight with Nigel. "That's no good. I lost a lot of blood," he groaned. "Well, at least my wounds could have been worst." He then looked up toward the sky. "How are the others doing? I hope no one's dead."

* * *

Not too far from there, Lazaro was still running beside Longcil who was carrying Apollo on his back and Alex on his head. the puffin couldn't help but notice his barn owl friend was sniffing.

"Apollo, what's wrong? Why are you crying?" he asked.

"I-I'm not crying!" he denied with trying to look away. "What makes you say that?"

"Come on, tell me what's wrong," Lazaro insisted.

Apollo sniffed once again before looking at his friend. "Okay... It's because...this mole girl told us during our fight that...Risky Boots had killed Blu."

Alex looked down sadly. "You think it's true, Lazaro?"

"Why are you asking me that? Do YOU believe her?"

"ABSOLUTELY NOT!" both owls and camel replied at unison.

"Okay, okay, no need to get mad," Lazaro quickly said with his flippers risen in defense. "You know what we have to do now: charging at full speed toward the palace. Snuff a good shoot and after, I don't wanna hear you cry until the end of battles, Apollo." The barn owl nodded and sniffed harder. "DON'T SWALLOW YOUR GLANDERS!"

* * *

Jewel picked up the parts of her Wind Waker used to defeat Kirya and putted it back into place. "Too bad I could only use it once," she giggled. She then tilted her head as she could hear the sounds of battle not too far. "Looks the situation is changing. I must quickly get to the palace." Without another thought, she started running away - or tried as her ankle was still making her suffer.

* * *

Speaking of which, let's get back at the palace.

Chuva looked up in horror as Chaka was laying down, defeated, his body covered of bruises and blood, right next to Risky Boots. "Being weak is an unforgivable sin," she scoffed with whipping blood off her scimitar.

Tears started forming in the eyelids of Chuva at seeing her friend badly injured like this. "CHUVA!"

Turning her head, she was surprised to see a pretty familiar silver fox who looked exhausted, panting, and shocked with his eyes widely open.

"T-Tirofijo?!"

Alkawbra looked pretty surprised. "Tirofijo...you entered by our ancient secret passage, right?"

The silver fox just starred blankly. "...Am I hallucinating? I came to try and convince the king to surrender." He looked up and spotted his old friend defeated. "Chaka! What does it means? Why is our national hero trying to murder the king?"

The purple bird let out a big laughter. "I must recognize it's totally worth the show. While both sides are still fighting out there, the leaders are meeting in a total random situation. I'm afraid this conflict isn't that interesting however." She noticed Tirofijo was still glancing at her. "You seem pretty confused. Notice that it's pretty normal, but you're gonna understand quickly. You just have to imagine the worst possible scenario and that'll be pretty much the truth."

The silver fox widened his eyes in horror as he started putting two and two together. "Tiro, listen, it's-" Chuva tried to explain.

"Chuva!" the silver fox cut her off. "Tell me the truth! Who took the rain away from our country?"

The parakeet frowned before looking up at Risky Boots. "Everything's her fault!"

"Yes, I'm guilty," the purple bird confirmed, causing Tirofijo to look at her in surprise. "In reality, everything you're holding against the king and his government are the webs of a trap I myself created with my organization. For three years, I've been manipulating you like puppets. And yet, the royal army and the rebels tried everything to unmask us, but their efforts were pointless." She chuckled evilly at the fox's dumbfounded face. "You would've died in peace if you would have stayed in ignorance."

"Tirofijo! Don't listen to her!" the king suddenly called. "It's not too late; you can still do something. Go and try to save as many lives as possible."

"Majesty...," the fox mumbled.

"Time is running short...," he looked up to see Chaka barely alive. "In less than an half-hour, the large square will explode..."

"What?!" Tirofijo exclaimed in horror.

"You're still alive?" Risky Boots remarked with looking at the injured jackal. Scoffing, she rose her scimitar once again, ready to give the finishing blow.

"HURRY!" was the last thing Chaka said before Risky Boots stabbed him with her sword.

Tirofijo looked in horror, completely frozen at the sights of seeing an old friend getting killed in cold blood like this. However, he quickly snapped out of it and started running away, only for Chuva to chase after him and tackle him to the ground, much to Risky's confusion.

"Chuva?" the king exclaimed.

She turned her fox friend on his back. "What's wrong with you?! Let me go! Both sides will fight at the large square! The explosion will kill them-"

"Listen!" the parakeet princess cut him off. "I can't let you do that! You're still under the revelation's shock, but imagine what'll happen if you go tell everyone that the large square is about to blow up! It will be a general panic and the battle won't stop. It will be worst, no one will survive."

Tirofijo looked in her humid purple eyes and softened his hurry.

"There's only one thing we can do to avoid chaos; we need to end this rebellion. You're the only one, Tiro. You're the only who can do this." She started crying as her fox friend kept looking at her.

He slowly took her trembling hand with his paw and allowed himself to sit up and look directly into her eyes. "Chuva..."

Before he could say anything else, sand floated behind the princess and Risky Boots appeared with her scimitar lifted. "You don't think I'm gonna simply let you act without reacting!"

CLANG!

Tirofijo took out his sword and got ready to protect his friend, but someone else did it at his place. To everyone's surprise, it was Chaka who somehow still had the strength to move and blocked Risky's scimitar with his own sword.

"Chaka!" Chuva exclaimed in surprise.

The defender narrowed his eyes at the lady pirate. "Listen well: I'm the protecting jackal of the Sequin Kingdom charged to take down anyone trying to take on the royal family! And I will fight until my last breath, you hear me?!"

"You're really stubborn, you know that," Risky simply remarked.

"Chuva, Tiro, go! I should be able to hold her back for a few minutes!" the jackal instructed them without turning around.

The two friends just nodded and ran away down the palace's stairs and toward the city. They eventually arrived before the royal guards who remained to protect the palace.

"Soldiers!" Chuva screamed to get all of their attention. "Rise the white flag! Surrender immediately! That's an order!"

The guards all looked at her in surprise in confusion. "What? You want us to surrender, Princess Chuva?"

"But what will become of the kingdom if we capitulate?"

"HEY, LOOK!"

The guards were all surprised to see Tirofijo, the leader of the rebel army, stepping beside the princess and wondering what he was doing here.

"Please! Listen to your princess and to what I have to say!" he called. "This conflict needs to end! We have no reason left to fight! We wanna put an end to this fight!" He putted his sword down before the confused guards. "I'll go talk to my men and explain them that this rebellion is a terrible mistake! I'm asking you to believe me! This fight no longer have any sense! Stop making the blood flow for no reason! Rise the white flag! I'm begging you!"

* * *

Moments later, the rebel army was getting close to the royal palace while screaming anti-government about. However, they all stopped upon seeing royal guards holding white flags waiting them at the entrance.

"STOP!" ordered one of them. "The white flag? They surrender. The royal army's rising the white flag in sign of capitulation!"

And that wasn't all; Torifijo was standing with them as well, holding a white flag too. "Hey, it's Tirofijo!" This fact caused many whispers between the rebel soldiers.

"The battle is over!" the silver fox announced his fellow rebels. "Listen to me: I'm asking you to swallow down your anger and put the weapons down! The royal army troops no longer desire to fight! This conflict doesn't have any sense!"

Chuva watched from the top of the stairs, hoping her friend could convince the rebels. "Please, listen to him!" she begged in her head.

"A-Are you sure about it, Tiro?" one of the rebel soldiers asked as everyone starred at him.

"Yes, the fight is over..."

POW! POW! POW! POW!"

Everybody widened their eyes in horror as a royal guard (secretly working for Booty Works) took out his gun and shot four times through Tirofijo's abdomen from behind. The silver fox coughed out a loud of blood before slowly falling forward to everyone's horror. But Chuva was the most shocked one.

"TIROFIJO!"

* * *

 **Darn! Booty Works once again sabotaged Chuva's attempt at ending the war and Tirofijo got killed!**

 **On another note, for those of you who think this arc is lasting way too long, don't worry; the end is getting near. I'm afraid I won't be able to end it before I return to school thought.**


	119. The hero coming from above

Chuva, the royal guards and rebel soldiers could only look in shock as Tirofijo, leader of the rebel army, slowly collapsed onto the ground after getting shot four times through the torso. A long silence lasted between both sides before a rebel decided to speak:

"How could you do that to Tirofijo?! Let's kill them all!"

Chuva looked in the direction of the shooter and managed to spot him. He was grinning while holding a pistol, but that wasn't the detail that caught the princess' eye; he had the Booty Works logo tattooed on his arm. The parakeet quickly understood what it meant.

"Hey! Why did you shoot Tirofijo?!" one of the royal guards asked and grabbed him by the neck.

The fallen silver fox panted and gasped as blood came out of his mouth and he weakly rose his eyes toward his men. "Rebel soldiers...please...don't attack them..."

Suddenly, a sandstorm came out of nowhere and blindsided both sides who were confused, wondering where this came from. There was no wind seconds ago, right?

POW!

One of the rebel soldiers got shot down by a gunshot coming from the other side. But they couldn't see who did it because of the sand wall. "They're still shooting at us! What a bunch of cowards!"

"I've never such sand clouds in my life," a royal guard remarked on the other side of the cloud.

POW!

Said royal guard also got taken down by a gunshot from the rebels' side. "The bastards! They're shooting at us!" a guard said with trying to help his comrade.

Unknown to them, the Booty Works agents who sneaked both in the rebels and royal army's camps were laughing. "They didn't realized we're the one acting in their backs, the idiots..."

Chuva could only look in horror from the palace's high-garden as more and more gunshots could be heard. "No! Not that!" The white flags were dropped and both sides started fighting once again. "Stop it! I'm begging you, listen to me!"

Down below, the badly wounded Tirofijo was also begging them to stop, thought his pleas were too weak to be heard through the battles' noises. But the rebels and guards kept slashing, shooting, and killing each other once again, still while ignoring the bomb that would blow up soon. Chuva could only look down in horror as the war resumed despite all the pleas she screamed.

"No...please, stop fighting..."

"Nice trying, princess, but your voice cannot reach them," Risky Boots remarked from behind her.

The king watched helplessly at his daughter and the defeated Chaka while also listening to the sound of war. "It's...over... RUN, CHUVA! PLEASE, YOU NEED TO GET AWAY FROM THIS WOMAN!"

The princess slowly turned around and whipped away the tears from her eyes. "No way..." She narrowed her eyes at Risky Boots who also turned toward her. "You're the one doing it? This sand cloud? It doesn't matter. I still have fifteen minutes before the explosion. If I can stop, a lot of people will be saved."

The purple bird smirked and stepped toward the princess. "Ever since the start, it's always the same old drill: you always think you can stop the rebellion." She suddenly grabbed Chuva by the throat and lifted her off the ground. "It's time for you to see reality: I have enough of your dumb idealism."

The poor princess hasped as Risky's grip on her throat was making it hard for her to breath. "Let me tell you a good thing: it's only when we have the power that we can have the luxury of changing an ideal. It has always been like that."

The parakeet squirmed her legs and allowed tears to come out of her eyes, but remained firm. "I don't care! I won't give up my ideals! You can't understand! I'm the daughter of the king ruling over this country! I'll never surrender, you hear me?!"

Risky just let out a scoff at her speech. "How annoying can you be. "The explosion will happen in less than fifteen minutes, princess. You know the rebels are coming more and more numerous. They're gathering at the very spot where the bomb will explode. Unfortunately, they have no idea what's gonna happen to them."

The pirate then stepped forward so that she was holding Chuva over the edge of the garden with the ground behind several stories down below. She couldn't help but tremble in fear as her enemy would just have to loose her grip to send her to her death.

"Warning the royal army would have no doubt caused panic, but at least, you would have saved thousands of lives...or maybe more."

"Stop! I'm begging you! Don't do that!" the king begged while trying in vain to free his arms from the nails in his arms that were holding him back.

"Your unbreakable optimism that makes you think you're gonna save everyone is gonna lead all those people you love so much to their death, just like rain did. Anyway, one thing's for sure: until now, you made me laugh a lot. Yes, you amused me a lot," the purple bird affirmed with a nod. "You tried for so long to stop me. It was impossible for you to stop anything, princess. On the contrary. Because of your stupid actions to stop the rebellion and save the kingdom, people died in vain by your fault!"

"How can you understand? You cannot save your country." She smirked and looked into the parakeet's teary eyes. "Goodbye, princess!"

Finally loosening her grip, she allowed the princess to drop and fall down toward her death. The poor parakeet could only look up as Risky Boots was slowly getting farther and farther from her, her body getting closer to the ground and her unavoidable doom. She closed her eyes. "Sorry guys, I failed to save my country. At least, I'll have tried..."

"RISKY BOOTS!"

Shooting her eyes open to that familiar voice, Chuva was surprised to see a figure coming down from the sky on the back of a peregrine falcon. Almost instantly, a smile appeared on her beak.

"BLU!"

Indeed, the spix macaw claimed dead by Risky Boots came down from the sky on Piell's back, looking as healthy as ever. For some reason, he had a strange wooden barrel with a tube tied to his back, but for now it wasn't important.

Diving down, Piell managed to catch the princess on his back and get back up before they could hit the ground. "Just in time," Blu mumbled as he helped Chuva on their "vehicle".

"Blu, Piell," the princess happily mumbled. She started crying into Blu's chest. "Everything's gonna explode. We have little time left." She sniffed. "Blu...so many people died...and nobody heard my voice. My country...everything's lost!" She started crying again.

"Don't worry," Blu said with his comforting voice and patted the back of her head. This caused her to look up at his soft, confident face. He smiled. "Chuva, I swear that WE heard your voice." She smiled with her trembling beak and hugged her blue friend again.

"We're arrived!"

Down below, in the middle of the battlefield, Dominic arrived on the scene and before the palace with gently putting Jewel down from her back.

"Thanks for carrying me, Dom," Jewel happily said with rubbing her injured ankle. "But I feel a bit guilty for that."

"Don't," the golden eagle assured. "My torso makes me suffer a lot, but my arms and legs are perfectly fine."

Piell then landed down and allowed his two passagers to go down. Blu wasted no time in throwing his plastic wings to grab the edge of the high-garden where Chuva got dropped from, looking to go finish his business with Risky Boots. "Be careful, Blu," the peregrine falcon warned him.

"Don't worry; I took all the rest I needed," Blu assured with pointing at his completely healed torso. He then narrowed his eyes toward Risky. "I won't loose this time."

"H-How did this parasite escaped the quicksands and with the wound I inflected him?!" the purple bird asked herself while looking down at Blu in pure shock.

"BLU!" The three birds turned around to see Alex, Apollo and Longcil arriving. The snowy owl kid was the one who talked.

"Alex!" Chuva beamed, glad to see her kid friend still alive.

"I knew you were alive!" Apollo exclaimed with tears in his eyes. "That old mole was saying bullcrap!"

"That's not what you seemed to think," Lazaro remarked with a smirk and Longcil nodded.

"Lazaro, Longcil! You're here too!" Chuva beamed again.

"Did we missed something?" The next ones to join were Vladimir and Hernandez who looked tired.

"Hernandez! Vladimir!" Chuva exclaimed once more.

Lazaro suddenly jumped and slapped his pelican friend on the head. "Where have you been, big guy?! I expected you to be the first one here!"

"We met a Booty Work agent," Hernandez explained himself with rubbing his head.

"BLU!" In a split-second, the macaw found himself into a thigh hug from his girlfriend who embraced him so hard it looked like it was the last time they'll ever see each other.

Blu would have gladly returned the gesture, had he not been grabbing the high-garden's edge, but still smiled and nuzzled the bird of his life. "Jewel, you're fine?"

She broke from the hug and gave him a firm look. "I should be the one asking you that, bird brain. Where have you been and why is this crazy purple bird still standing?"

"He's alive and that's all that matters," Dominic pointed out. He then turned toward Chuva. "So what's the situation, Chuva? Why the war is still raging on?"

It's because I lost against her," Blu responded, making everyone turn to look at him. "I'm sorry; I said I was gonna kick her feathered butt, but I didn't. I won't deny it; she completely whipped the floor with me. But I won't loose a second time. I let you take care of the rest, okay?"

Dominic smiled at his leader. "Go; you can count on us."

"Yeah, because honestly, outside of you Blu, I don't see who can beat her!" Apollo added with a serious nod.

Blu turned his head to look at his friends. "It's time for us to end this once and for all, guys!"

"YEAH!" the whole group cheered at unison.

Chuva whipped tears of joy from her eyes. "I'm so lucky to have friends like you!"

With one final nod, Blu finally allowed himself to be sent flying up like a slingshot toward the palace's high-garden and toward Risky Boots. After letting go of the edge, he flew up in the air and was aiming right at the uninterested purple bird.

"Looks like you learned nothing from our previous encounter. You can try as much as you want, it won't change anything-"

PAF!

To Risky's surprise, Blu smashed her in the face, but instead of her turning to sand, she actually felt the pain of the hit and was knocked away onto her back. Shocked, she slowly lifted one hand to her hurting cheek and gaped at the blue macaw who glared at her.

"H-How did you-" She didn't got to finish her sentence as Blu surprised her with a violent headbutt. While the hit made him feel some pain in his skull, Risky Boots visibly took the worst of it and once again got knocked to the ground - a feeling she was probably new to.

The king Alkawbra looked at this sight in complete awe. "He...He took Risky Boots down?!"

Blu narrowed his eyes at the girl. "Yes, I didn't touched you one time, back at Rainbase. However, after you stabbed me, I noticed an interesting detail: when my blood flew down on your hand, I managed to break your wrist. So I came to this conclusion..." He took the tube from the barrel on his back and splashed some water on his fist. "...liquid is your weakness, right? This is why you wanted to prevent rain from falling: because water and other liquids are your weak point."

He held his wet fist toward the lady pirate. "Now that I found your weakness, I can take down. The REAL fight can start..."


	120. Blu's water vs Risky's sand

Risky Boots was still laying after the shots she received from Blu who discovered her weakness. "Come on! Get up and fight, you big coward!" he urged her. "What's wrong? You're already out? Not so though for a Warlord!"

However, Risky's beak curled into a smirk and she started laughing louder and louder before sitting up and glancing at him. "Are you kidding? We're barely getting started!"

* * *

Meanwhile, at the level below, Chuva and the rest of Blu's team were discussing on what to do.

"What?! No kidding! Those bastards are gonna bombard the large square in less than ten minute?!" Apollo asked in horror.

"Exact. At 16:30 exactly," Chuva confirmed with a nod. "the explosion will destroy everything in a radius of five kilometers. There won't be any survivor. Risky Boots said it herself."

"F-Five kilometers?!" Jewel asked, her eyes widened in surprise.

"This won't choose any victim; the explosion will kill the whole royal and rebel armies!" Alex remarked.

"That bastard; she's gonna kill everyone!" Lazaro angrily groaned.

"That's a catastrophe! What are we gonna do now?" Apollo asked with shaking in panic.

"We find the bombers and we take them down," Dominic simply said with his wings crossed. "We must prevent them from shooting at any cost."

"Finding the bombers? That's a good one; how are we supposed to do that?" Vladimir asked with a curious eyebrow. "We don't even have ten minutes."

"No time to talk: we must charge!" Dominic firmly ordered.

"And how do you want us to find the bombers in a radius of five kilometers?" Apollo asked. "That's impossible!"

"Not really," Chuva suddenly said, making all the eyes turn toward her. "I think there's a chance they are installed near the large square."

"Huh? But that's completely dumb; they would be ready to blow themselves up?" Apollo asked with a confused look.

"I don't think that's the kind of detail that would bother Risky Boots," Jewel remarked with an angry look on the ground.

"She'd go as far as to sacrifice her own allies?" Alex asked with a scared look.

"What a jerk!" Lazaro groaned angrily as Hernandez nodded in agreement.

"Let's go! There's not one second to loose-" Dominic started but interrupted himself as he saw a figure through the sand cloud behind Chuva. Almost immediately, he took out his saber to slash the intruder while Lazaro kicked the Booty Works agent away.

That was only the peak of their problems, however, as tens more of them arrived, all grinning and with their weapons risen, ready to cut the group down. "Booty Works agents!" Chuva exclaimed in fear.

"Guys, you go ahead," Dominic ordered before turning toward Lazaro and Hernandez. "Lazaro, Hernandez! What do you say about a little competition against Vladimir and I? The team who takes down the most of them wins."

Lazaro grinned. "You wanna loose today? fine with me. Let's go, Hernandez!"

And with that, both teams charged into the mass of Booty Works agents and started taking them down one-by-one while their friends ran in the opposite direction. Piell took off in the sky while the rest of the group separated and ran out of the sand cloud.

"10 minutes...that's the time I have left to save my country..."

* * *

Back to the palace's high-garden, Risky Boots was still laughing at Blu. "Pathetic! You think you're strong enough to beat me?" she asked with a smug.

"I am: I found your weakness and can now kick your butt!" Blu declared while staying on his fighting stance.

"You saw correctly for the water. Congratulations, I didn't thought you'd understand in the state I left you," Risky admitted. "However, it won't be enough to fill the world of differences between us. You're no match. Don't forget that I am one of the Seven Warlords. I can't loose."

"There's a start to everything," Blu responded, more serious than ever.

Alkawbra just blinked his eyes at the determined spix macaw. "Incredible! Who exactly is this boy? Young, made of plastic...it must be the boy who saved Chuva!"

Having enough of standing around and doing nothing, Blu shot his plastic fist at Risky Boots who scoffed, dodged it, and grabbed it with her hand. "Your hits are too easy to dodge, wether you're wet or not. I can absorb water by the palm of my hand."

As she said that, Blu's arms started drying quickly and getting mummified. "Crap! I forgot about that!" Breaking his arm free before the dryness could reach the rest of his body, the macaw ran and delivered a kick in the purple bird's face, making it explode into sand. His talons weren't wet.

He then grabbed his barrel's tube and quickly drank water from it so that his arm returned to normal. "That's better." He then looked back at Risky Boots. "Remember what you said? The powers of a Magical Fruit can make one invincible: it all depends of the way you use them," he said with splashing more water from his barrel over his head and the rest of his body for extra measures.

"FIST STORM!" He shot his fists so quickly that they looked like gatling shots and actually managed to land many hits on the purple bird.

"You bastard! DESERT SWORD!" Swinging her sand sword into the ground, the jet of sand flew across the ground and toward Blu.

"Not that again!" he mumbled before dodging the attack which left an open cut into the garden's floor. "That was a close one!" He then turned toward Risky Boots and shot a fist which she caught in her hand.

"You're just repeating the same thing! You really think-" She didn't got to finishing her sentence as Blu shot himself forward and smashed her across the face with his other fist before she could drain his water.

"I made mistakes the first time we faced, but you know, I learn quick from my mistakes!" Blu declared. He then took the barrel off his back and into his hands. "I've been wanting to do this from the start!" He tossed the barrel toward Risky, hoping to cover her completely in water.

"That's predictable, don't you think?" she mumbled before suddenly creating a little sand tornado that pushed Blu and the barrel in the air.

Blu quickly stretched his arms to grab the barrel before it could crash down and hardly landed on his feet. Risky Boots laughed as she got back up.

"You look so desperate that it's too funny! Look at yourself; you can't do anything without your water barrel. In fact, nothing changed at all since our last fight."

Blu groaned with narrowing his eyes. "Yeah...I guess we can see things like that." He then smirked. "But with this, it's different!" Grabbing the pipe, Blu sucked all the water in the barrel until his belly turned into a big balloon.

Risky Boots and Alkawbra just starred at him with dumbfounded looks. "...Are you serious?" Risky asked lowly. "YOU'RE GONNA STOP MOCKING ME, YOU MORON!" Taking out her scimitar, she charged at her enemy.

However, the spix macaw pulled water up in his mouth and spat a water ball which Risky failed to dodge, causing herself to get completely wet. "Crap! He got me!" she thought.

"POWER SLAM!" After catching her, Blu shot his arms backward before charging and slamming them right into her torso. Her sand powers being neutralized by the water he shot at her, the purple bird spat blood and let out a big groan as she was sent flying backward and crashing hard into one of the garden's statues which completely got destroyed upon impact.

"What do you say about that, Risky Boots?!" Blu asked as he panted and his huge, bubble belly wiggled.

"I-I can't believe it...," mumbled king Alkawbra as he looked in awe. "This kid have defeated Risky Boots! That's extraordinary! But who are you?"

Before the spix macaw could answer, Risky Boots suddenly jumped out of the statue's rumbles, looking more pissed off than before. "Alright, you putted me in a terrible mood!"

She suddenly planted her hand onto the ground, much to Blu's confusion. "Alright, let's end this, Gunderson! Did you knew that every mineral matter ends up decomposing?"

The macaw just looked curiously before widening his eyes as the ground started drying under Risky's hand. The grass died just like the trees that fell into ashes and before long, the whole ground started cracking and falling apart. Blu had to struggle to keep his balance, but once he did, he turned his focus back to Risky and shot three water balls at her.

The purple bird smirked as she rose her hand again and absorbed all three balls with it. "You thought you neutralized my powers, Gunderson? How dumb this is! the real power of the sand is to dry everything!"

Planting her hand into the ground again, the start re-started shaking and jets of sand irrupted from all around, the garden starting to fall apart. Risky glared at a visibly horrified Blu with a smirk as she created a sand tornado around the garden, causing it to fall faster.

* * *

Far from there, Jewel and Alex were running through the streets, searching for the bombers. "Where are those darn bombers?" Jewel impatiently asked.

"We only have eight minutes remaining!" Alex remarked nervously as he ran as fast as his little legs could allow him to.

"We need to find them quick; I won't let millions of people getting killed like that!"

* * *

Back to the palace, the whole high-garden ground was completely destroyed. Luckily, Blu had managed to grab the roof's edge with his plastic arms.

"Cheese and sprinkles, that was close!" He looked down to see the destroyed garden. "There's nothing left of the green herb; only sand."

He then tried to climb onto the roof (which wasn't easy with his big bubble belly), but to his horror, Risky Boots was already there, ready to greet him with a smirk. "I hate wasting energy for nothing!"

She grabbed him by the throat with her hand once again. By reflex, Blu spat three water bubbles at her in hopes of inflicting some damage, but she simply moved her head to dodge them.

"Missed," she giggled and started draining the water out of Blu to the point his belly went from big and round to slender and thin. His body became mummified once again. "You failed once again...Gunderson!" she laughed and lifted the half-dead Blu with her arm.

* * *

 **Oh no! Even though he found her weakness, Blu was not able to take Risky Boots down. And the others have barely eight minutes remaining to find the bombers before the whole city of Alubarna gets destroyed. Things doesn't look good at all.**


	121. Blu chases Risky Boots

Blu coughed as his lungs desperately needed air. Once his poor inner organs were satisfied, he took notice that he was all wet with water. But wait a second, didn't he got dried to death by Risky Boots before falling unconscious?

Upon further investigation, he realized that he was laying in the middle of the now all dried and covered of sand garden. Risky Boots was nowhere to be seen and neither was the king as the wall where he has been nailed was still covered of blood, but the king wasn't there anymore. But the biggest question that bothered the macaw was how could he still be alive after getting drained to death?

He took a few seconds to think about it...and came up with a theory: maybe the three water bubbles he tried to spit at Risky Boots ended up falling back to the ground and right on him. Yes, that was the only logical explanation as there wasn't any water remaining around here and no one nearby to be generous enough to give him water, right?

"Okay, I gotta catch Risky Boots again! I don't know how I'll defeat her this time, but I've gotta try as many times as necessary!" Getting up, the spix macaw ran after a trail of sand left on the floor, hoping it was his nemesis who left it.

* * *

Far from there, at the city's ancient ruins, king Alkawbra groaned as he was forced to follow Risky Boots with a sand leash tied around his waist, pinning his damaged arms to his sides.

"It's here, isn't it? The royal family's shrine. Where all the kings are buried." She turned toward the silent king. "Where are the poneglyphs?"

Alkawbra just turned and slowly pushed a fish statue around which activated a mechanism that opened a secret passage in the floor.

"A secret passage, huh?" Risky said with an hand on her hip.

"The poneglyphs are right in there," the king informed her. she started walking down the dusty staircase that was getting lower into the ground with the king following behind. "But...how do you know of their existence?"

"There's a lot of things you ignore about me, King," she simply replied without stopping walking and adjusting her pirate hat. "Those ancient writings, they lead to the ultimate weapon that is Pluton, correct?"

"I don't know. My family have for duty to protect this stone for generations; I don't really care about the rest," the king explained.

Risky just scoffed and continued walking down the stairs. Eventually, they arrived into a large room which looked like those Egyptian pyramids where the pharaohs with pillars, strange drawings marked on the walls, and tombstones.

"This room is impressive," the lady pirate admitted.

"It's behind the door at the end of the room," the king told her.

Following his instructions, the purple bird advanced and opened the big door which required a pretty big effort out of her. Almost immediately, a smirk formed on her beak.

"I see you didn't lied to me..."

* * *

"Let's think: if I were Risky Boots, where would I hide the bombers?" Apollo asked with rubbing his chin.

"How am I supposed to know?" Dominic impatiently replied."We don't even have five minutes left!"

In another street, Alex was running in his Muscle Candy form. "Five minutes! A million person are gonna die in five minutes! We need to find those bombers and quick!"

"Alex, can you take your reindeer form and smell the bombers' location?" Jewel, who was running beside him, asked.

"No, I already used all the Reindeer Candies I had," the kid replied and shook his head.

Lazaro and Hernandez had not much chance on their side either. "A canon that can destroy everything in a radius of five kilometers, it should be easy to find!" the puffin angrily groaned as he ran so fast that his pelican friend had an hard time catching up with him.

"Say, don't you think such a bullet could be near the center town?" Hernandez asked.

Lazaro stopped dead in his tracks and froze for a moment...before jumping and slapping his friend on the head. "COULDN'T YOU TELL IT SOONER?!"

Finally, Chuva was running in the street with Piell flying above her. "You saw anything, Piell?"

"I looked every rooftops around the large square, but I didn't saw any canon," the peregrine falcon responded with looking down at the princess.

"In that case, he might be hidden inside one of the houses," the parakeet deduced with a finger on her chin.

"I'm gonna search everywhere!" Piell said and flew higher to get a better view over the whole city.

* * *

Back to the surface, Blu ran and followed the trail of sand which would hopefully lead him to Risky Boots. He tried to manage his energy as the effects of getting mummified could still be felt, even after the water he received.

He soon came across a rather shocking sight: many Naval Forces soldiers were laying on the middle of the street, covered of bruises and blood. Judging by the sand marks on them, there was a lot to bet Risky Boots was the one who did that. This meant he was on the right way.

Before he could resume running however, he noticed another interesting detail: the female golden eagle - Kamiki he thought - was laying down and looked like she took the worst of the beating with a swollen eye, her feathers covered of blood, and her left leg twisted in a way it clearly shouldn't. She groaned, barely conscious, and looked toward Blu.

"G-Gunderson...?!" she groaned.

Blu really wanted to help her, but if he didn't stopped Risky Boots right now, a lot of people would die. "Which way did she go?"

The golden eagle just starred at him for a moment, looking confused...before lowering her head and pointing to the right. "She went this way, toward the royal family's shrine."

"Okay, thanks! I'll come back to help you later!" Blu said and ran into said direction.

However, barely ten seconds after rushing, the spix macaw's run came to an abrupt stop as he felt the pain of his torso wounds opening itself again and blood coming out. Pushing a swear, he let his body fall against a wall as he planted an hand over his bleeding wound.

"Cheese and sprinkles! It hurts!" he groaned through his beak and looked at his blood covered hand. "I thought Piell said I should feel completely better now." Even through the pain, Blu pushed himself to his feet and stepped toward his destination. "It doesn't matter! I must stop Risky Boots at any cost!"

* * *

Back into the shrine, Risky Boots pulled king Alkawbra before a huge square-shaped stone which had strange ancient-looking symbols imprinted on it. "Those are the poneglyphs right? Read them!" she ordered.

The king just groaned and started reading the ancient text: "Celestial Age, 239: Kaira conquers Sequin. 260: total domination of the Taimar Dynasty. 306: the Yuba Oasis is discovered-"

An impatient Risky Boots decided to cut him off: "Hey, hold a sec! What's that? I didn't came here for this! I don't care about this country's history! I wanna know where I can find the legendary weapon Pluton! Where is this weapon?!"

The king smirked as he looked back at her. "Sorry; this poneglyphs only talk about the story of the Sequin Kingdom. There is no mention of Pluton anywhere."

The purple frowned with all the rage she was feeling at that very moment - never did she felt so much anger before in her life. Pushing an angry cry, she shoved the king to the side. "DARN IT! All this work to find the poneglyphs and it give me absolutely nothing!" She took a deep breath. "But it doesn't matter: your reaction from earlier is a proof that this weapon is around here somewhere."

Suddenly, the whole room started shaking and dust fell from the ceiling. "Huh? What's happening? It can't be the explosion; it's too soon," she remarked. She then heard the king chuckling as he sat back against the wall and the noticed that one brick was missing above his shoulder. "It's you? What have you done?"

"Oh, nothing," he said calmly with a smirk. "Only, this shrine is composed so that you only need to move one little part to unbalance its composure and make it collapse." He then looked up at her. "You're gonna die here with me. That's all you won. As the 12th monarch of my dynasty, let me tell you something: I will never let you take the Sequin Kingdom."

* * *

Back to the surface, Chuva was panicking as time was running short and the bomb would explode in a few minutes. "Only three minutes remaining!" she nervously thought. "A huge canon capable of destroying everything in a radius of five kilometers! There's not many places we can hide such a weapon! Why can't we find it?" Something suddenly clicked in her head. "Such a big space...?! OF COURSE!"

As if on cue, she turned to see none other than Apollo running her way in panic. "HELP! DOMINIC!" he screamed in fear before Chuva grabbed him by the arm. "Oh, hello Chuva. Did you found the canon? 'Cause Dom and I didn't."

"Yes; there's only one place it can be," the parakeet nodded.

"Really?! Wait, I'm gonna warn the others," Apollo said and took out his flare gun. "Cover your ears!" As Chuva did that and the barn owl covered one ear with his free wing, he pressed the trigger and shot a flare in the sky to warn the others.

* * *

Back underground, as the shrine was starting to collapse, Risky Boots just smirked at the king. "You're the example of the devoted king. You were planning to burry the two of us down? That's perfectly dumb! Have you forgotten I can turn anything - even rock - into sand? I'll just have to do that to escape. You're gonna die in vain, Alkawbra!"

This caused the king to widen his eyes at the detail he forgot as Risky laughed and looked up. "Only three minutes left before the explosion! That's perfect: the bomb and the fall of this shrine will take down each and every of my opponents! In three little minutes, all this land will belong to me!"

* * *

 **Time is running short! Can Blu's friend stop the bomb and defeat Risky Boots before it's too late?**

 **Also, my summer vacations are almost over; I already miss them :(**


	122. Time's running short!

The war was raging on across the city of Alubarna who had no clue about the bomb that was about to kill everyone. Apollo just shot a flare in the sky and, amidst the battles, got told by Chuva where the bomb was.

"I'm certain this is the only place where they can bomber the whole city!"

Apollo looked at her in surprise. "Y-You really think there's someone with a canon hiding in there?!"

The parakeet nodded. "Yes; this sand cloud must be part of the plan. The canon is in there. I'm sure of it, it can't be anywhere else." She turned and pointed at the great clocktower located in the very middle of the large square. "It's the only place they can hide such a weapon without being spotted. I don't know where else they could hide it."

"Okay, I'm gonna leave a message to help the others find us," Apollo said and started tracing his fingers in the sand on the ground.

"I'm gonna go ahead, Apollo! Join me later!" the princess said and ran ahead toward the clocktower.

"Wait! Don't leave me alone!" the barn owl called and quickly ran after her.

Suddenly, the princess' course got abruptly stopped by a wall of Booty Works agents who looked pretty excited to take her down. The two avians realized in horror that they must have been alerted by the flare Apollo shot earlier.

"Cover your ears again, Chuva!" the barn owl ordered and quickly shot another flare in the agents' direction to both blindside and stun it worked, he grabbed the princess by the arm and started running away. "Quick! It won't stun them for long!"

* * *

Back underneath the old ruins, the whole royal family's shrine was collapsing piece-by-piece as king Alkawbra was still sitting against a wall, looking helplessly at an unaffected Risky Boots.

"I wasted a lot of time to get there," the pirate lady declared. "But time has come! In a few minutes, everything will be over! This land will belong to me!" She laughed evilly and really loud despite everything collapsing around her.

"RISKY BOOTS!"

The purple bird froze on the spot at that all too familiar voice. She slowly turned around to see a spix macaw looking exhausted and hurt with blood on his torso, feet, and hands glaring at her. She frowned in pure shock.

"You again?!"

"I'm gonna take you down for good this time, Risky Boots!" he declared through his panting.

"How can you still be alive?! I already killed you twice and you come back every time! EXPLAIN ME!" the purple bird angrily ordered.

"Incredible, how could he not only survive but also get here?" the king mumbled to himself while starring at Blu.

"How many times will I have to kill you for you to leave me alone?!"

"Want me to leave you alone? It's plain simple: just give them back what you stole!"

"What are you talking about?" the pirate lady asked with putting an hand on her hip. "Money? Prestige? Trust? Rain? I stole so many things from them you're gonna have to be more precise."

Blu just narrowed his eyes toward this disgusting being. "The whole country!"

"The whole country? Good one. In a few minutes, this kingdom will belong to me! I will become its sovereign and impose my reign!"

"When we arrived here, the country of Sequin already changed a long time ago. It wasn't the same she knew."

Risky Boots looked curiously. "She?"

"You know exactly who I'm talking about! If this was really her country, she would be smiling a lot more than now, don't you think?!" Blu angrily asked her.

Having enough, he charged once again, ready to take the pirate down once and for all this time. "Tss, you're wasting your time," Risky said with a lack of interest. "you can't do a damn thing against me with no water-"

SMASH!

Blu delivered a strong kick across her face which surprisingly worked and knocked her hard into a wall, leaving a crack there and making her bleed from the beak and the head. Groaning in pain, she sat up to glare at her opponent. "How the hell did he do that?! He's not even wet!"

Blu immediately followed with a punch in her face that caused even more damage, releasing all the anger he felt toward this disgusting avian. He then showed her his arms where she noticed little cuts above his wrists where blood was flowing out on his hands. The same was for his feet.

"You really thought I wouldn't learn from my mistakes?" he asked her. "Before coming here, I took time to cut myself with my talons to cover my limbs in blood - in case you don't know, blood's composed of water."

"Are you crazy?! You already lost a lot of blood! You won't survive long with these wounds!" Risky exclaimed.

"I know. This is why I must take you down before I pass out."

The purple bird gazed at the macaw before starting laughing again. "First it was at Rainbase, then the palace, and now this underground shrine! I already tried to send you to hell twice, but since you want to get there so badly, I'll make your wish come true!" she declared with standing back up.

"IN YOUR DREAMS!" Blu sent his foot for a kick which Risky avoided by rolling out of the way and took out her scimitar, revealing little holes in the blade from where purple steam escaped.

"You know what. I can clearly see that you want to take me down so badly, when you fight. And I must recognize that you're a pretty though opponent."

Blu narrowed his eyes toward her scimitar, eying it curiously. "What's that?"

"My sword is filled with poison," the purple bird explained. "I think you're knew to this whole pirate business, so let me tell you this: when two pirates fight, it's always to the death. If you wanna survive, everything's allowed."

As the shrine was collapsing harder, big rocks falling from the ceiling, both pirates took their fighting stance, ready to fight to the death.

"All this place will fall as soon as the large square's destruction will have started! This time, you won't be able to run away! Let's end this once and for all!"

"With pleasure!"

* * *

Back to the surface, Dominic was running through the streets after getting separated from Apollo. Luckily, he spotted hi owl friend's flare shot and was heading toward where he saw it.

However, he was spotted in his tracks as he came across a NF unit. "Oh, you're kidding me?!"

"Look! It's that eagle pirate!" one of them said with pointing at Dominic, making everyone take notice of his presence.

"Crap! What are they doing here? Did this eagle girl followed us all the way here?" He then putted an hand on his Eau De Mort saber. "I'm gonna have to make quick work of them."

"Quick! The large square is north from where you came from!" one of the soldiers said.

"Yeah! If you run fast enough, you should get there in time!" another one said.

"Run! And fast!"

Dominic just looked in confusion; the NF soldiers were helping him? "...What's that joke?"

* * *

At the same time, Chuva and Apollo were still running away from the BW agents chasing after them.

SLASH!

They turned around and were surprised to see none other than Kamiki and some NF soldiers taking down on the agents.

"T-The Naval forces?!" Apollo said in surprise.

Kamiki turned her still damaged head toward them. "Don't stay there; get to the large square! Quick!"

Knowing time was running short, the duo just gave a nod before resuming their run, still surprised that the Naval Forces were helping them like this.

"We lost too much time!" Chuva realized in horror.

"It would've been worst had the Naval Forces not been there!" Apollo remarked as they arrived at the large square where the battle was still raging on and the sand cloud making it hard to see.

As they ran, Chuva turned her head and saw many royal and rebel army corpses all around. This was making her feel sick which Apollo noticed. "Don't look away, Chuva! Just keep running!" Looking up ahead, the barn owl saw that the clocktower was getting close. "Two minutes left! Either we'll die or we'll win!"

"Chuva! Apollo!"

They turned and saw Jewel and Alex arriving. "Jewel! Alex!" Chuva happily beamed.

"I'm confused; the Naval Forces helped us coming here," Jewel remarked.

"Did you locate the bombers?" Alex asked.

"We didn't checked yet, but I know for sure where it is. We passed before it many times without realizing it!" Chuva explained. "The canon is hidden up there, in the clocktower!"

The two avians widened their eyes. "Of course! It's the perfect spot for a bombing!" Alex realized.

"If only Piell could arrive, we would still have a chance," Chuva mumbled.

* * *

Back to the shrine, time was running short as everything was falling apart quickly. Blu shot a fist at Risky Boots who dodged and swung her scimitar to leave a small cut on his arm. Panting, Blu quickly inspected the wound, hoping the poison didn't got inside.

But for now, the two opponents were panting in exhaustion as they have bee fighting for quite a moment now. Refusing to give up, Blu charged and went for a punch which Risky got ready to block with her hand and drain his water again. However, this was a feint as he stopped his attack at the last second and instead went for a spin kick.

Risky was surprised, but managed to duck his attack and swing her poisoned scimitar to leave another small cut on his leg this time. Blu groaned in pain and retracted his limb before marking a pause and glaring at a smirking Risky Boots while panting in exhaustion.

Everything around them was collapsing faster. They had to finish this battle quick. Charging at each other once again, Blu sent his feet again and managed to land a good kick across Risky's cheek this time and followed with another one that sent her crashing into the wall.

"This boy is incredible!" king Alkawbra thought as he watched the whole action happening before his very eyes. "How can he take so much out of Risky Boots while even the best warriors of the country got defeated with ease?"

As she groaned in pain, Risky Boots also started chuckling, much to Blu's confusion. "I stabbed, drained, and buried you. But every time, you come back." Rising her bleeding head with a smirk she showed her poisoned scimitar. "But I'm afraid you won't have so much chance this time. In a few seconds, you'll the poison in your veins. I already won."

"Not yet!" Blu declared with taking his fighting stance again, time running short on him.

* * *

"Piell's still not there!" Chuva said as she looked all around the sky, waiting for her falcon friend to arrive. "What's he doing? I hope nothing happened to him."

"Listen Chuva," Jewel said as she stepped toward her friend, "it's good that you located the right spot, but how are we supposed to get up there in less than one minute?"

"Time's running short. We just have to get there ourselves," Alex said and stepped toward the staircases.

"Hey guys!" Hearing that familiar voice, everyone looked up to see...Lazaro peaking out from the upper floor's window?!

"Lazaro?! What are you doing up there?!" Apollo asked.

"Well, you left me a message at the spot you shot a flare: I just followed it!" the puffin explained himself. "It said rendez-vous at the clocktower. So I entered to see if you were there! What should I do now? Where are the canons?"

"They are up the clocktower! Quick! Get up there to stop them, Lazaro!" Apollo quickly explained.

"There you are!" As if Lazaro being up there wasn't surprising enough, Dominic popped out of the open floor right above. "I've been searching you everywhere!"

"Dom! You're here too!" Lazaro exclaimed as he looked up at him.

"Oh, hi Lazaro!" Dominic waved at his friend.

"Guys! Listen!" Apollo called. "You need to get up the tower and stop the bombers!"

"No," Chuva cut off. "It's pointless; they can't get inside from where they are. There's only one entrance for the clocktower: the stairs inside."

"In that case, Dominic can break the wall and enter," Alex remarked.

"If the shock's too violent, the tower will fall and the bomb will go off. We have no choice; we must take the stairs."

"Wait, Chuva!" Jewel stopped her friend before she could get inside. "I think I just had an idea..."

* * *

 **Time's running short! Can Blu defeat Risky Boots once and for all before the shrine collapses and before he passes out from his blood loses and poison? Can his friends stop the bomb before it's too late? Let's all pray for them!**


	123. Alubarna's guardian angel

The war opposing the royal army against the rebels and the Booty Works agents against the Naval Forces soldiers led by Kamiki was still raging on across the city of Alubarna. In the middle of the chaos, a few ones noticed that the clocktower opened to reveal a big canon behind it. Probably was it the one destined to shoot the final bomb.

"Crap! We're all gonna die!" Apollo panicked as everyone looked nervously.

"Wait! I think I have an idea!" Dominic suddenly said and looked down toward his puffin friend at the second floor. "Lazaro! I'm gonna need your help on this one!"

* * *

Back to the royal family's shrine which was collapsing more and more by the minutes, the fight between Blu and Risky Boots was getting violent, both opponents being hurt, covered in blood and not far from death. And yet, they were still standing on their feet.

"Who do you think you are?!" Risky Boots angrily asked. "What does that mean? You think I don't understand?!"

"EXACTLY!" Blu responded and charged for another punch which the purple bird ducked. Normally, he wouldn't go directly for an attack like this, but he was running short on time for multiple reasons; there was no time to think of a strategy. "FIST STORM!"

The purple bird once again rolled out of the way to avoid Blu's biggest attack fueled by anger and also some rocks that fell from the ceiling. She was getting tired too, but she could still carry on this fight.

"You're the one who doesn't understand! You're dying little by little," Risky explained. "When I cut you with my sword, I also poisoned you."

Now that she said it, Blu could indeed feel a big pain in his limbs and noticed that a strange purple steam was coming out from the cuts she gave him.

"Can't feel your limbs anymore, right? It's normal," Risky said with a smirk. "One thing's for sure: wether you win or not, you'll end up buried underneath the crumbles of this shrine!"

* * *

Back to the surface, there was only 15 seconds remaining before the explosion would be launched. Dominic realized it as he looked up at the open clocktower from where the canon was peaking out and looked back down.

"Lazaro! You're ready?!"

The puffin was in place below. "Yeah, but I still think this is a crazy idea!"

"NOW!"

As Dominic leaped down, Lazaro jumped out of the window and tried to position himself as well as possible. Once the golden eagle arrived, he made sure his feet landed right on Lazaro's. Releasing a cry, the puffin pushed Dominic upward with all the power of his legs, sending him to fly directly toward the canon.

"I'm coming for them!" the golden eagle declared as he took out his Eau De Mort and Snow Run sabers in his hands.

* * *

"I don't understand...," Risky mumbled while glaring at Blu. "Nothing bounds you to this country: you're a foreigner here. And you're really ready to die for the people of this kingdom?" She spat in disgust. "Let me tell you this: you're giving your life away for nothing! Tell me why you're willing to do so much for the princess!"

Blu groaned and panted while narrowing his eyes at her. "...That's exactly what I said. You understand absolutely nothing. Chuva...she doesn't stand to see other people putting their lives on the line. To save everyone, she won't hesitate to sacrifice herself. If we don't help her, she'll die by your dirty hands..."

"You're even dumber than I thought! I just told you you just have given up already! This burden will cost you a lot!" Risky angrily declared with rising her poisoned scimitar.

"YOU'RE AN IDIOT! WE'RE A FLOCKING TEAM!" Blu suddenly irrupted in anger. "AND UNLIKE YOUR ORGANIZATION, WE DON'T GIVE UP ON EACH OTHER! This means that as long as she'll fight for her country, we'll do the same! There's no way in hell we'll give up on her!"

Risky Boots just starred at him, letting the speech he just made sink in. "...You realize that you're assured to die in this little game?"

"We'll see about that; you know how persistent I can be," Blu declared with taking back his fighting stance.

* * *

Dominic was pushed at full speed by Lazaro toward the clocktower's open clock with his sabers ready to cut down the weapon. However, just as he putted a foot inside the room, he was surprised by two BW agents who were pointing handguns at him.

POW! POW!

Before he could react, the two bullets were shot and pierced into both his shoulders, making him shout in pain as a flow of blood irrupted from his wounds. Time seemed to move slowly again as he could hear his friends screaming in fear below and also noticed the grins on the agents' faces and the canon's wick slowly burning off for the shoot.

"No! I can't fail after getting so far! It would be too dumb!" the golden eagle thought with determination.

Pushing a loud cry, he forced himself to advance and sliced both BW agents down with his sabers.

* * *

Risky Boots laughed evilly as Blu fell on his knees. "You talk a lot, but when it's time to act, your body won't obey, right? You still think you can fight me?"

Blu hated to admit it, but she was right; the effects of her poison were starting to getting feel across his whole body. It wasn't good.

* * *

"Come one, Dominic, come on!" Apollo nervously mumbled as he and the others waited for him to stop the canon.

Many seconds passed and no explosion happened. The group came to the conclusion that their golden eagle friend managed to stop it. He soon peaked his head out of the clocktower.

"Dominic!" Alex happily beamed.

"So? You stopped it?" Vladimir (he and Hernandez joined them moments ago) asked with an optimistic smile. However, it turned upside down upon seeing his golden eagle friend looking down at them with a serious look. "Yusef?"

"Listen to me! I cut the rope that was gonna light up the canon and took down the two agents keeping it...but...the bomb itself have a timer which will explode in less than a minute."

Needless to say the others were shocked by this revelation. "WHAT THE HELL?! HOW'S THAT POSSIBLE?!" Apollo screamed in horror.

"Crap! He stopped the bombers, but there's still this damned bomb in the canon!" Lazaro groaned with a shocked look.

"We're doomed!" Alex panicked.

"If this can really destroy everything in a five kilometers radius, then it won't change anything it explodes up or down here!" Vladimir remarked.

"It was destined to fail from the start! We couldn't do anything at all in the end," Apollo groaned with lowering his head.

Dominic couldn't help but groan as he looked at the time bomb in the canon making "tic-tac!" Even if he would try to destroy it with his sabers, the explosion would still go off and kill everyone. He was powerless; they were all going to die...

TOC!

Suddenly, someone landed behind the group below who all turned around to see a visibly tired and hurt Piell. Probably did he met enemies while scooting the arena for the bombing weapon. Strangely, the peregrine falcon starred only at Chuva, not seeming to notice the others.

"This clocktower is a place you loved a lot, right Princess?" he calmly asked. "It was the secret base of the Sand Clan. I must recognize I wasn't at ease with you here and I trembled in fear at each of your getaways..."

FLASHBACK

 _"For god's sake, Princess Chuva! What are you doing in the gunpowder supply room?" asked a royal guard who was accompanied by two more at the entrance of the gunpowder supply room of the royal palace._

 _Smoke came out from the entry and a very young Princess Chuva came out of the room, covered of black dust and coughing a lot. "Princess, we already told you many times to never get near the gunpowder room; it's dangerous!" another royal guard explained while checking the young parakeet for any sign of injuries._

 _They then turned around as Piell arrived with a blank look. "Oh, Piell," the young Chuva said and rubbed the back of her head nervously. "I wanted to make a firework, but it didn't worked. Today's the birthday of your entry in the royal guard and I wanted to-"_

 _SLAP!_

 _To everybody's shock, the peregrine falcon charged of protecting the royal family actually slapped the young Chuva across the cheek. The guards all gasped as the little parakeet slowly putted an hand on her cheek which was stinging with pain and slowly looked back at her friend._

 _"How many times will we have to tell you not to get near this reserve?!" he shouted in anger._

 _"HEY! WHAT ARE YOU DOING, PIELL?!" asked Chaka who jumped out from behind a bush and was ready to bounce on his comrade, only to be stopped by king Alkawbra in person who putted an arm before him._

 _"No wait, Chaka. Piell is right...," he mumbled and looked at the scene._

 _The peregrine falcon kneeled before the visibly shaken Chuva who started to have tears in her eyes. "You were lucky; you could have been badly hurt," he softly said with the most sincere of looks. "You were very lucky..."_

 _After that accident, Chuva returned to her room where she remained sadly with only 1-2-3 Coin to hold her company and comfort her. Luckily, Piell decided to get forgiven later that day by taking the young princess on a flying tour around the palace on his back._

 _"Higher! Higher!" she happily beamed. The view from this height was very beautiful as she could see almost the whole horizon. And the sunset that was making the sky turn auburn in color made it even better._

 _"Huh, Princess Chuva, could you please not tell any of this to your father the king? He has been strict on this; not flying tour with the princess," the falcon asked while battling his wings._

 _"In that case, you can put me down, but I'll never forgive you!" the princess giggled and the guard shared it with her. After laughing a moment, she got serious again. "Piell?"_

 _"Yes?"_

 _"Every day, I see you training in combat. What is it for?"_

 _"Well, it's because I'm a part of the royal guard. My duty is to protect the country and for that, I need to be strong."_

 _"You will fight against someone?"_

 _"...Maybe. But it's not really about fighting: it's about protecting the kingdom."_

 _"Isn't that the same?"_

 _"No, the purpose isn't the same at all."_

 _"I'm not sure to understand," Chuva admitted._

FLASHBACK END

Piell kept looking at his beloved princes with a weak smile. "My little princess...I'm proud to have served the royal family. With all my heart and soul."

Chuva looked at him in confusion. "Huh? What does that mean-Piell?!"

The peregrine falcon suddenly flew up in the clocktower, past Dominic, grabbed the time bomb, and used his strength to bring it out of the tower and started flying up toward the sky.

In a split-second, everyone understood what he was about to do.

"PIELL! NO! DON'T DO THAT! COME BACK!" Chuva screamed with her hand stretched, as if she could catch up with her guard and friend.

Piell, protector of Alubarna and the royal family, flew higher and higher until he reached above the clouds and far enough for the city to be safe. He lowered his gaze to see the bomb's clockwise reaching his final tac. A little smile formed on his beak.

"For everyone..."

A huge light exploded in the sky, pushing the clouds away and bringing a powerful sound of a thousand lightnings that caused the ground to shake...

* * *

 **Man! You have no idea how much emotional effort it took me to write this chapter from the touching flashback with Chuva and Piell to the later's sacrifice. Even thought he was a secondary character, I loved him because of how much he cared for his country and Chuva.**

 **R.I.P., guardian angel of Alubarna. You might left this story early, but you sure didn't go down like a wimp.**


	124. I must win! Sequin's rain

The power of the explosion, even from the sky, created a powerful wind that caused some of the highest buildings to fall in pieces and some window to explode in shards. Many people who were too close to it were sent to fly backward. Dominic (who came down from the clocktower) stabbed two sabers into the ground and held on them; Vladimir grabbed Alex in his arms and created a rock wall for protection; Hernandez grabbed Jewel and Chuva in his strong arms and Lazaro held on his best friend's beak for dear life. As for Apollo, well, he was sent flying backward, but not too far.

After many seconds, the shockwave ended and everything became peaceful again. Chuva looked up with her eyes wide open at the realization that Piell, her friend since she was born, protector of her family and of her country, sacrificed himself to save everyone. Tears slowly filled her poor eyelids.

Once our heroes took back from the explosion's effects, they all looked up toward the sky. "No... He...?!" Lazaro mumbled in shock.

"He...gave his life!" Jewel softly said with tears in her eyes as Dominic lowered his head with a frown.

Alex had tears coming out of his eyes with his wings pressed against his beak while Vladimir silently made a prayer. Apollo groaned in pain from the shock as he slowly rose himself up on his four limbs and then looked up...to see a rather shocking sight.

"G-Guys!" he weakly said as he grabbed his cap which have fallen during the explosion and pointed forward.

The rebels and royal guards all rose up from their feet after getting knocked down by the power of the explosion...and then resumed fighting, as if nothing happened. The swords clashed again, gunshots were heard once more, and blood started flowing even more.

"They are crazy!" thought Kamiki who was in the middle of this horror show with the remaining of her men. "Why they don't stop?"

"PLEASE! STOP FIGHTING!" Our heroes widened their eyes and turned their head to see Chuva had climbed up to the top floor of the clocktower (she's really fast, isn't she?) and was screaming at everyone. "PLEASE! STOP FIGHTING! PLEASE! STOP FIGHTING!"

She kept screaming this over and over again, but no matter how much force and despair she putted into it, the fighters would just not listen. "Chuva...," Dominic mumbled in horror.

Tears came out of Jewel's eyes which she quickly whipped away before turning to her friends. "DON'T JUST STAY HERE! DO SOMETHING - ANYTHING TO STOP THEM!"

"PLEASE! STOP FIGHTING!"

* * *

In the underground shrine, the shockwave caused by the explosion was felt. King Alkawbra lowered his eyes as he realized Risky Boots' plan had worked and the city was possibly destroyed by now. The purple bird herself laughed out loud.

"Finally...my time to shine has come! My dream becomes true! This country is finally mine!" she beamed with rising her arms.

 _"We're a team and we don't give up on each other like in your organization!"_

 _"This means that as long as she'll fight for her country, we'll do the same!"_

Risky Boots turned her head and looked in surprise as the spix macaw she thought was dead lifted himself up to his feet - not without pain thought. For a moment, there was no noise outside of Blu's panting and the sound of the shrine collapsing around them.

"You... You can't...," Blu weakly said as Risky Boots and king Alkawbra looked at him in surprise. "You can't...beat me!"

The purpled bird just starred...and then smirked. "That's all you've got to say?" She started stepping toward him, her poisoned scimitar ready to strike. "You think you scare me? You're nothing but a half-dead kid. You give yourself a though look, but I know that you're afraid right now."

Blu just groaned as he gave her a glare. "I'm gonna become the strongest bird in the world! Get that in your dumb head!"

Risky just scoffed and stopped walking. "Listen kid, the people who knows the New World to a certain level never say this kind of thing." She then pointed her scimitar toward him. "I already told you: those seas are full of little arrogant brats like you! It's completely pathetic! And when you know the dangers of this world, you come back to reality!"

She ran toward the boy, ready to finish him off with her scimitar once and for all. To her surprise, Blu did not move at all and instead caught her weapon by the handle in his hands, stopping it with his raw strength. Once she was completely stopped, he pushed it down to the floor, making the blade collide and break upon the impact.

"I am...stronger than you!" Blu groaned, clearly getting to his extreme limits.

Pushing a huge cry of determination and throwing his plastic arm backward, Blu smashed Risky Boots in the chest (a cracking sound was heard, meaning he broke a few bones), making the purple bird moan in pain as well as spitting even more blood. Not stopping there, he followed with a kick across her face and ultimately finished his combo by throwing his arm above him and slamming it down on Risky's head, making it hit the floor hard. Adrenaline had complete control over him by this point.

The purple bird rolled away from Blu to catch some rest and coughed more blood. "I-I don't understand... The poison should have already made its effect! W-Where does he take his strength from?!" She slowly turned to look at the unbroken spix macaw. "Is he really...unstoppable?!"

She shook this thought out of her head and pushed herself back up with a groan of anger. "I don't know where you're from, Gunderson, but what's for sure IS THAT I'M GONNA SHOW YOU WHO I AM!"

Charging again, she summoned her sand blade and swung it at the macaw's head. He easily ducked it and replied: I DON'T CARE ABOUT WHO YOU ARE! I'M GONNA BEAT YOU!" before delivering a violent kick to her jaw which sent her flying right into the ceiling. Due to the damages caused by the crumbling, it instantly broke and she even flew through two more ceilings before coming to an halt.

Feeling his body getting numb, Blu decided to finish this once and for all. Taking so much air in his lungs that his body turned into a balloon, he blew it all out to send himself flying up toward Risky like a soda can. "Time for me to win! FIST STORM!" Swinging his arms, Blu hit the pirate lady with his gatling-like attack, putting all of his strength behind each blow.

 _"For the country of Sequin!"_ The attacks caused Risky to break through another ceiling, but Blu didn't stopped hitting her.

 _"For all the persons she killed!"_ She broke through another one.

 _"For all my friends you and your stupid organization hurt!"_ Another one.

"But most of all, for Chuva! POWER SLAM!" Throwing his arms backward, Blu pushed a battle cry and gave one last effort by hitting the purple with his strongest attack, making her break through one last ceiling.

This time, the ceiling she broke through actually exited to the surface, bringing the sunlight inside the shrine for the first time ever. Blu noticed this before gravity sent him fall back down to the shrine's floor.

Near there, as Dominic and the rest of the team were busy knocking out the fighters to prevent them from killing each other pointlessly, Lazaro took notice of the purple bird being sent high into the air. "Hey! Look!"

The whole team stopped to turn their head toward what he saw. "RISKY BOOTS?!" they exclaimed in surprise at unison. Even Chuva saw it from the upper floor of the clocktower's building.

Risky Boots was sent flying into the air, covered of bruises and bleeding a lot, before slowly falling down, defeated. Everybody almost instantly knew what this meant.

"HE DID IT! BLU WON!" Apollo beamed, tears of joy forming in his eyes.

"YEAH!" the other beamed as well, Jewel crying in joy for her boyfriend, Alex sharing a big hug with Lazaro, and Dominic, Vladimir and Hernandez smiling happily.

Chuva collapsed on her knees and started sniffing. "Risky Boots is...defeated... This fight is over..."

* * *

Suddenly, one of the rebel soldiers who was about to shoot with a gun stopped as he felt something fall on his nose. "Hey, you felt that?"

The other fighters soon felt the same thing as him. It was like...droplets? Getting stronger and stronger? They all looked up to see the sky has turned dark and down from it was falling...rain?!

Almost instantly, all the fights across Alubarna ceased. Everyone was too surprised to see rain falling on them for the first time in years. "Hey, the rain is making the dust go away," Alex remarked.

Indeed, the rain made it easy to see around once since Risky Boots' sand trick. "STOP FIGHTING NOW!" All turned toward the clocktower from where Chuva screamed at them.

A little smile formed across Jewel's beak. "They finally heard her."

One by one, the fighters dropped their weapon. "Princess Chuva?" one said.

"What's she doing here? I thought she abandoned this country," another one said.

Some attention turned over to the defeated Risky Boots who was laying unconscious in the middle of the field. "Hey! It's Risky Boots, one of the Seven Warlords! What is she doing there?"

Chuva looked at all the people with her beak trembling and tears coming out of her eyes to mix with the rain. "This time, it's truly over. Rain has come back.

* * *

Back in the collapsing shrine, King Alkawbra crawled over to Blu who was laying down in his back, panting in exhaustion from the incredible accomplishment he just made. The parakeet was smiling at the hero.

"Thank you, my friend..."

Blu smiled back. "You're welcome...Majesty..."

* * *

 **HE DID IT! Blu finally defeated Risky Boots! And rain started falling again: the war is over! It's a victory!**

 **Well, we still have to see if Blu and king Alkawbra can leave the shrine before being buried alive. But at least, there won't be anymore pointless death.**

 **The Sequin Kingdom Arc is getting close to its end, but you can already guess that.**


	125. The weapons are dropped

The first rain of Sequin since many years was falling over the badly damaged city and all the corpses laying across it. Along with the fighters gathered at the large square who were all looking up at Chuva.

"The nightmare is over?! In your dreams! We don't forget what happened!" a rebel soldier declared.

"Yes! We saw the king destroying Nonoana!"

"And the royal guards shot down Tirofijo! How do you explain all that?!"

As the rebels kept shooting angry about and rose their weapons once again, ready to clash with the royal guards, a familiar voice cut everything down: "SOLDIERS! DROP YOUR WEAPONS RIGHT NOW!"

All turned to see a familiar jackal standing on top of the stairs leading to the royal palace. "Master Chaka?!" The captain was still badly wounded and had dried blood over him, but at least, he survived Risky Boots' attacks.

"...C-Chaka?!" Chuva mumbled, glad that at least one of her friends survived.

Everyone, the guards, rebels, NF soldiers, and Blu's group, was surprised. "Hey! Look!" As if that wasn't surprising enough, another familiar person arrived: the little hyena kid who got supposedly beat down by the king arrived. He seemed in better shape since the last time the rebels saw him.

"Hey, it's the kid from Nonoana!" one rebel remarked. "The one who got beat down by the royal guards."

"It wasn't royal guards," the kid said, tears mixed with raindrops in his face. "Those who did this to me had nothing to do with the royal army: they were impostors. I saw them, you must believe me! And it wasn't the kind; it was some kind of reptile who could change appearance!"

At this statement, all the rebels widened their eyes in surprise. "He's telling the truth. This fight...was built in our backs..."

This time, all the heads toward a silver fox. "Tirofijo!" The rebel army leader was still hurt, sitting down with two holding him as he was pale from all the blood he lost.

"We can explain everything, but first drop all your weapons!" Chaka ordered.

Everyone hesitated, but one-by-one, they all dropped their weapons. At the same time, Chuva quickly ran down the clocktower's stairs and got back on the ground. "Princess Chuva?!" exclaimed most of the rebel soldiers who turned to look at her.

"Where are they? Where are my friends?" she asked hurriedly, looking all around for her friends.

* * *

A few streets away, our heroes were walking away from the crowded large square. "Can't we take a break? I'm dying in here!" Apollo whined, barely able to walk on his own.

"Well I have to walk with a broken torso; you really think I find this funny?" Dominic sarcastically asked his owl friend without turning to look at him.

"Hey! I have an half-broken skull! It's far worst, you know!"

Lazaro just rolled his eyes before looking ahead...and widening them. As before them came king Alkawbra with an unconscious Blu on his back. "Who are you, young people?" he curiously asked.

"Huh, we're the friends of this guy. Can you leave it to us? We can take care of him," Lazaro explained.

The king blinked his eyes. "Wait, if I understand, you are the pirates who brought Chuva back to Sequin, right?"

"Indeed. And you are?" the puffin asked.

"Father!" Everyone turned to see their other parakeet friend arriving.

"Chuva!" Alex beamed happily.

"Wait...Father?" Lazaro asked as he putted two and two together. Widening his eyes, he stepped back from the elder parakeet. "Wait! So it mean you're the king?!"

He nodded. "I was ready to die. This boy arrived and saved me." The king gently putted the spix macaw down on the floor. "He defeated Risky Boots. What strength."

Jewel was the first one to rush at her boyfriend's side, putting his head on her lap and gently caressing his head. "Is he gonna be alright?" she softly asked.

"He has been poisoned by Risky Boots. But I don't know, this doesn't seem to affect him," the king admitted.

"I'm still gonna give him some pills just in case," Alex said with reaching into his backpack.

"We're also gonna have to heal his wounds. Yours too."

Dominic suddenly allowed himself to fall against the wall right next to Jewel and his best friend. "You shouldn't stay here, Chuva. You should go back to the large square and make a little speech."

"I agree with him," Apollo said with a nod. "I think they await you now that the rebellion's over."

"You're right. I want to present you to the people," Chuva responded with a smile.

"This is not a good idea, Chuva," Lazaro said with shaking his head. "We're enemies of the Naval Forces now; we can't allow ourselves this kind of ceremony." Most of his friends nodded in agreement.

"And I'm super hungry," the little Alex said with rubbing his stomach.

"We'll wait for you near the palace; we're all tried," Jewel added with letting out a long yawn.

Chuva and the king smiled and nodded before walking away from the team of pirates. Once they were out of sight, the though Lazaro finally allowed himself to collapse on his back, tiredness finally catching up to him. His friends all did the same, finally getting a well-deserved rest.

* * *

Back to the main square, all the people looked at the unconscious Risky Boots in disgust while mumbling about hoe she was the one who caused the war and insulting her. They stepped aside, however, as Kamiki arrived with her men, glancing down at the purple bird.

"I just learned that a ship producing artificial rain was found at the rim of Sequin with dance powder." She narrowed her eyes. "Risky Boots, leader of the secret society Booty Works, member of the Seven Warlords, by the powers that are given to me by the Naval Forces, I remove you from your title and privileges of Warlord. You are under arrest."

And so, the Naval Forces loaded up every Booty Works agent they could find alongside Risky Boots. Yet, even with the rain coming back and ending all the problems of this country, the people couldn't help but look down sadly, specially Tirofijo.

"What a tragedy," he mumbled. "Not point in lying: we did a big mistake..."

"Tiro...," Chuva mumbled as she looked at him. She then looked down sadly. "I'm sorry, but I don't know what to tell them."

The king putted an hand on her shoulder. "It is normal to feel regrets. Just as it is to feel down after such an event."

All the eyes turned toward him. "Y-Your highness?"

"We lost a lot during this event without winning anything but distresses," he continued. "But we are united again and this is a huge step forward. It doesn't matter that we fought before: all that is over now."

"King...," Tirofijo mumbled.

"Nobody has the power to erase the past! We are all responsible in this!" He looked firmly and seriously at everyone. "We must assume it and learn to live with our wounds!"

Watching this, Chaka couldn't help but smile as he started crying. "What a great man..."

The king rose his arms and shouted: "The Sequin Kingdom must live!" which made everyone cheer in joy.

 _"And so ended two battles. One of them will remain marked in history while the other one will never be marked in any story book..."_

* * *

"Where all this rain comes from? Don't tell me you used the dance powder?"

Colonel Toxic scoffed behind his mask as he was sitting inside Risky Boots' artificial rain producing boat, sitting on the chair of the main control room. He was in presence of another NF colonel.

"Don't say anything; I still know how to difference good from evil. I would never use a powder even the king refused to use during hard times. Don't take me for something I'm not, okay?"

"Sorry; I forgot that the great Colonel Toxic could be human be moments. Didn't you got a bit soft since the last time I've seen you?"

The colonel turned his head to look at his comrade. "Would you mind to care about your own business there?"

"Anyways, don't you think it was a bit exaggerated to mobilize all of our troops in the zone just for one ship? That's a bit degrading. I don't like this."

Toxic scoffed. "No need to make a story out of it."

"You know what? I feel bad for Kamiki: the poor girl must really have an hard time with you."

"Why don't you make yourself useful and bring this boat to the HQ?"

"You think you can give me orders now?"

The colonel just took out a coin from his pocket, tossed it in the air, and let it land on the back of his hand, covering it immediately. "Call it."

His friend just gazed for a moment before sighing. "Heads."

Toxic removed his hand...to reveal it was tails. "Sorry, but you lost."

"You're a big selfish arrogant, you know that? You didn't changed and never will!"

"I know..."

* * *

"It's an order!"

The Naval Forces soldiers looked at Kamiki in shock with wide eyes. They found the sleeping team of Blu in the street, yet Kamiki refused to arrest them.

"B-But Master Chief! This is a golden opportunity we'll never have again! Let's pack them up while they're sleeping!"

"Enough! For the last time, I forbid you from capturing them! You hear me?!" Kamiki firmly said with gazing at her men.

"But why?" one of them insisted. "They're all here! We just need to handcuff them and pack them away!"

The glare that the female eagle addressed him made him understand that he was better to shut it up.

* * *

Back to the large square, as all the wounded were getting carried away, Chuva looked over Tirofijo who was about to get carried away on a stretcher by his men.

"Tiro," Chuva said in concern as she kneeled beside her fox friend. "Your wounds aren't too bad? You're not gonna die, right?"

"Chuva...," he mumbled. "You didn't changed. Always so worried about the others. But don't worry for this stubborn fox that I am. It's gonna take way more than this to keep me down. And besides, I'm not Toto's son for nothing. I'll go see him at Yuba as soon as my injuries will heal. I'll let you know, don't worry."

Chuva just gave him a little smile. "Okay..."

Behind this drama, all the people across the country were celebrating the rain's return, dancing under the downpour and opening their mouths to welcome the fresh water inside. Back at the Yuba Oasis, Toto looked at the dark sky with a smile and tears in his eyes.

"Look, Tirofijo...it's raining! Three years...we only needed three little years of calm and patience. RAIN IS GOOD!"

* * *

 _"With no more interference, rain starts falling down over the Sequin Kingdom once again. To a point it seems like it doesn't wanna stop anymore..."_

This night at the royal palace, Blu's group was welcome into a room filled with beds onto which the guards all laid them so that they could sleep peacefully. Blu and Jewel were sharing the same bed, nuzzling agains one another, Dominic was snoring loudly on his own, Apollo and Vladimir were also on their own bed, and Hernandez was sleeping with both Lazaro and Alex snuggling against his tummy.

As for Chuva, she was sitting near the window to look at the rain falling outside. Eventually, she heard the door opening and turned around to see Chaka entering. "Princess Chuva, you are not sleeping?"

Chuva turned toward him with a smile. "It's not that." She looked back at the window. "I just don't feel like sleeping yet. I wanna stay awake and watch the rain a little longer."

Chaka just smiled before putting blankets over all of Blu's group. "Princess, I wanted to tell you about Piell. I never more honorable and fierce fighter than this old falcon."

At the mention of her fallen friend, Chuva felt a bit of sadness, but the joy of the war being over covered it. "I know. I would have given anything to thank him."

"Regardless of where he is right now, he must be honored of the recognition you're giving him." Chuva nodded and looked at the rain falling in the night...

* * *

The next day, rain ceased to fall and the whole country was now more hydrated. Kamiki returned with her men to Colonel Toxic's ship at the edge of Sequin. The golden eagle stepped forward as Toxic waited for her on top of the boat's stairs with her men behind and the Booty Works agents tied up.

"Hello, Colonel Toxic. I bring back Risky Boots," she mumbled with a tired voice.

"You did good work, Kamiki," the colonel simply said with pushing more smoke out of his mask. "We told me about Gunderson."

Kamiki looked down and clutched her fists. "I am sorry. I made myself accomplice of those pirates by helping them while I could have captured them. I am ashamed of what I did. It wasn't worth of a Naval Forces officer."

"You have no reason to apologize, you hear me?" the colonel firmly said. "Didn't you acted by what seemed right to you?"

Kamiki just kept looking down. "...No, that's not the case..."

"Master Chief?" one of her men said from behind in surprise at seeing his master chief acting like that.

"I acted like this because I didn't had a choice. I couldn't do anything else," the female eagle continued. "I knew which way Risky Boots left, but I wasn't strong enough to stop her by myself. I also knew a canon was going to destroy the large square and once again, I was helpless. My only option was to help them. I didn't had what it took to do what was right to me."

Toxic just glanced at his disciple in silence for a few seconds before talking. "You know, I recently met some people I considered like my fathers, but they all became criminals one after the other. They all know this: if you don't work hard enough on those seas, you have no chance of survival. Struggling or dying. Who wanted to come on this ocean, huh?"

Kamiki didn't answered and instead just climbed up the stairs, stopping as she arived behind the colonel. "Forgive me, but I'm tired. I'm gonna rest in my room."

As she slowly stepped away, Toxic heard a sobbing noise and then hardened his look into a glare. "Little silly! If this traumatize you to the point of crying, I got an advice for you: become stronger!" he firmly said to Kamiki who was trying to hide her tears.

She whipped her tears and lifted her head. "I WILL!"

The colonel scoffed and then turned toward the soldiers. "Take notes: this is a perfect example of determination. Now bring the prisoner on board, quick!"

"YES, SIR!" they all said at unison.

One of them then went to see the colonel. "Colonel Toxic, a message from the Naval Forces' headquarters," he said with giving him a phone.

"Yes?" the greenish bird asked as he unhooked the phone.

"Colonel Toxic? This is the Naval Forces' headquarters," the voice on the other end said. "To reward you for defeating and capturing Risky Boots, the world government decided to give a special decoration for you and Lieutenant Kamiki."

"Our fight?" Toxic asked as if we just insulted him. "I want this to be clear: neither I or Kamiki fought Risky Boots. I told you in my report. Did you even listen?"

"And that's not all," the voice continued as if he didn't listened to anything Toxic said. "You will also both be promoted to the higher rank-"

"Are deaf?! It was Gunderson and his crew that fought and defeated Risky Boots and her organization, Booty Works!" Toxic angrily cut him off.

"You're wasting your time, Toxic; the government will try to hide the reality from the world," the other colonel said. "They refuse to accept that pirates saved this kingdom while the authorities didn't even knew about this threat."

"The reward ceremony will happen at the headquarters in presence of the highest authority figures-"

"Shut up!" Toxic cut him off again.

"Toxic, don't be stupid. Just accept: you'll have big problems if you disobey!"

"We could have stopped Risky Boots, but we failed! Lieutenant Kamiki is crying because of her failure!" Toxic narrowed his eyes toward the phone. "So right now, you're gonna send this message to the headquarters:

"GO FUCK YOURSELVES!"

* * *

 **Yes: there will be bad words in this story. Not to the point that I will have to change it for an M rate, but still XD**

 **As I said, I went back to school today and boy was it long! I'm in for another two years of hard time before really getting into cinema. It will be worth it though as I'm still planning on becoming a great director/scenarist like Peter Jackson and Steve Spielberg.**

 **Except that, the Sequin Kingdom Arc is coming to a close. Just a few more details to tie-in and then we're done.**


	126. Blue Thunder Crew

Suffice to say, this was probably the most peaceful Blu had felt since this whole story had started. Not many would be grateful for passing out in the middle of a crumbling shrine. Even though his body was at rest, his mind was more active than ever, worrying for his friends. For Chuva.

"...Blu...wake up...You're safe now...Blu! Blu!"

Slowly, Blu opened his eyes, coming out of his rest. He wasn't sure how long he slept, but upon opening his eyes, he was met with a huge pain in his shoulders. He blinked a few times before his sight became normal again. To his pleasure, he was greeted by the sight of his loved one sitting beside him. That's when it dawned that he was resting on her lap while he was laying on a soft bed.

"You're awake!" Jewel beamed as she gently rubbed his head. "Are you feeling good?"

Blu blinked his eyes a few times, making sure that wasn't a dream. Once he could confirm it was not, he leaned up with help from his loved one. "I'm better. What happened?"

Blu studied his surroundings. He was in a huge room with many beds - probably inside the royal palace. He was laying in a comfortable bed with Jewel sitting on it. 1-2-3 Coin was laying on another bed to his right with bandages around his torso and right wing and Alex arrived with a warm, wet towel which he putted on his forehead.

"There, this is a little concoction of mine which will make you feel better," Alex said. "The doc did their best, but looks like I make the better medics here, they said it themselves." He then blushed a bit. "Not that it charmed me or anything."

* * *

Meanwhile, Lazaro and Hernandez walked outside in the streets of the city with groceries requests from Chuva in a bag carried by Hernandez. they looked all around to see the people of Alubarna working hard to rebuild the city.

"They have an impressive determination," Hernandez remarked with a smile on his huge beak.

"Of course; they're working for a beautiful princess. I'd do the same at their place," Lazaro said with proudly rubbing his beak with his flipper.

"I don't see the point..."

They then arrived across villagers looking at a series of holes in many walls in a line. "Look at that! Who could have done that?!"

The pelican and puffin widened their eyes as they realized it was the way they took to reach their friends during the war of Alubarna because they were in a hurry. Exchanging a nervous glance, the two friends slowly walked away while whistling innocently.

* * *

Outside the city, Dominic was sitting on a big rock in the zone where Apollo and Alex defeated Miss Merry Christmas and Mr. 4 to meditate. "I must develop my concentration. If I can't upgrade the power that allowed me to cut through Nigel's metal, then I won't have made any progress at all..."

* * *

Back at the palace, king Alkawbra led Jewel to the library where she found many books about navigation and climate. "Wow, you got a lot of interesting books!" she exclaimed with an open book in her hands and many more spread around her. She turned her head toward the king. "You really accept to leave all of them to me?"

"Of course," the king responded with a smile. "I already read them many times, and I'm certain they'll be useful to make you master your climate staff."

"Thanks a lot. This is gonna help me progress quickly," she said with reading the felt a bit funny; a year ago, she was a free spirited bird who didn't cared the least about human stuff, and there she was now, wanting to learn everything about navigation and climate with books.

* * *

Dominic entered the room and smiled upon seeing Blu awake and alive. "You're awake, Blu?"

Blu's face also lightened up upon seeing his best friend. "Dominic! I didn't saw you since a long time! You're alright?"

The golden eagle nodded and walked over to the table to pick up a bottle of wine which he poured into a cup and drank it. Alex walked toward him with a strange unhappy looking face. "What's wrong?"

"You went to train, didn't you?"

"Yeah, what's the problem?" Dominic asked with drinking one shot.

"The problem is that I'm your doctor and you should follow my lead to heal better!" the chick unhappily said with a firm look.

"Don't be a pain in the butt: I'm already feeling better."

The others chuckled at this funny conversation before someone entered the room. It was Chaka with a little kart filled with fruits."Good morning, everyone. Dinner will be ready soon; I hope this will help you to patient until then."

"Oh, you don't have to do that for us," Blu politely said just before his stomach let out a loud growl which made his friends laugh. He decided to pick his favorite fruit, a good mango and took a bite of the juicy flesh. His friends got affected and also started digging into the pile of fruits.

Chaka chuckled. "Don't be modest; we own you war more than that. You saved our kingdom after all." He then turned to leave the room. "I'll come back to get you when dinner is ready."

* * *

By the time dinner came, our heroes were invited into the dining hall and around a very long table which was covered by plates holding tens of different meals. There were royal guards around the room watching as the team was eating with little to no manners at all. Alkawbra, Chaka, Chuva, 1-2-3 Coin and Longcil were present as well.

Blu was swallowing pieces of meat with rice balls and a lot of orange juice. After spending so much time in the desert and almost getting dehydrated to death more times than he could count, the spix macaw no longer cared about his manner sat the moment: he just wanted to fill himself.

"Did you see their manners?!" one of the guards mumbled.

"Yes; there has never been such a noisy dinner in this room!" another one said with a frown.

"Wow! I think it's the first time I see you eating like that!" Jewel giggled after swallowing a piece of lobster. "I like that wild side of yours," she added with a seductive glance which made Blu's round cheeks turn red.

Alex sucked on a pile of noodles to the point of turning his mouth into a bubble before happily swallowing. "I never ate that much! Meat is so delicious! My flock never allowed me to eat meat with them during my time in France!" He started sucking more noodles into his beak.

"Slow down a bit Al; you're gonna choke down," Hernandez said after eating a pile of fish in one shot.

"I never knew there was so many type of fishes and way to cook them!" Lazaro said as he ate one fish after the other at the speed of light, tears of joy in his eyes.

"I'm gonna add my own little touch," Apollo mumbled as he took out some tabasco reserved for his bills and poured it on a rice ball before eating it...and spitting a jet of fire out. "HOT! HOOOOT!"

Dominic and Vladimir were drinking a lot of beer - like A LOT - and were red around their beak, balancing themselves and giggling. "I-I think you're drunk, Yusef!" Vladimir chuckled.

"No, you're drunk!" Dominic said with pushing his friend.

"No, YOU'RE drunk!"

"No, YOU'RE drunk!"

"No, YOU'RE drunk!"

"No, YOU'RE drunk!" Vladimir pushed Dominic so hard that he was sent crashing into the wall, creating an hole. "Oops, sorry!" he apologized with an hiccup.

Dominic popped his head out and was bleeding, but still chuckled and kept drinking.

"Can we get some water here?" Hernandez called as Alex ate his noodles so fast that he ended up choking down.

Chuva laughed a lot at her friends' manners. "How can the princess laugh at such a show?" one of the guards asked in disbelief. However, the more they watched, and the more the guards started finding this funny. Before long, they actually started laughing like Chuva.

For all the dinner, everyone laughed, ate, danced. Heck, even Chaka and the king Alkawbra joined in the fun with the group. Later on, the royal family added another reward for Blu's group by bringing them to the royal baths. These were very special as it consisted of two separate rooms - one for the guys and one for the girls - where warm water source were flowing to create huge bath, in the process creating so much steam that the whole rooms' atmosphere was hot and relaxing.

"Those baths are the pride of this palace. We usually use them only during the rain season," the king explained after he and the other boys removed their clothes and jumped in the warm baths to relax and clean themselves from all the journeys and fighting they went through in the last days.

Blu, Lazaro, Alex and Apollo jumped in the water while the others went inside slightly more calmly. "Listen, I had a great time for dinner," the king admitted. "Usually, it's just a meal with boring conversations, but for you, I feel like every meal is an occasion for having fun."

"Why not? We never know if we will have a next meal," Dominic said as he settled in the water and closed his eyes to relax.

"Al, come here; I'm gonna help you getting clean," Lazaro said and picked up a soap to clean his owl friend's back.

"Thanks, Lazaro," the kid happily said, enjoying getting cleaned.

"You're welcome, little snowball," the puffin laughed a bit. He then turned toward Chaka. "By the way, where are the girls?"

The jackal looked insulted. "Don't even think about it, little pervert! This is disgusting and immature!"

The king suddenly pointed at the wall to the right which had a little space on the upper part. "It is right there."

"SIR!" Chaka exclaimed as the king just laughed.

"What? I can't have my own little naughty side?" Alkawbra chuckled with a smirk.

Lazaro and Apollo rushed and used a little stool to step up and peak into the other room. Jewel and Chuva were there, naked, helping each other to get all clean with soap. Both boys widened their eyes with interest just before Blu stretched his plastic arms to grab their necks and drag them down.

"Hey! It's MY girlfriend that you're spying on!"

The others laughed at his reaction before Dominic decided to bring up an important subject. "You know guys, I was wondering...you're really ready for this? I mean...becoming pirates?"

This question caused all the others to turn their look toward him. "What do you mean? We already are pirates!" Lazaro exclaimed. "Aqua brought us here and now, we're gonna sail the seas to fight bad guys and find the Treasure Planet! There's no other way around!"

The others all nodded in agreement. From the girls' side, Jewel heard that and smiled as well. "You know," Chuva suddenly said to get her attention, "since you're all planning to chase after the Treasure Planet, we asked our crafters to build a ship specially for you. It should be ready right now."

"Really?" Jewel asked with her eyes wide open. "That's great! Thanks, Chuva." She then putted her hand on her chin. "We should also find a crew name, thought."

"Yeah," Apollo said from the boys room. "Aqua said the crew he and Jason were part of was called the Deathless Crew. We should find a good name that fit us and sounds cool."

Everybody thought about it for a moment...before Lazaro snapped his flipper (don't ask me how). "I got it! How about the Blue Thunder Crew? Let me explain: thunder is supposed to be a symbol of strength and power. And since Blu's gonna become the strongest bird in the world someday, "Blue Thunder Crew" would be a fitting name for us, don't you guys think?"

The other all exchanged thinking glances before smiling. "You know, that actually sounds like a pretty good name," Apollo admitted with Alex nodding in agreement.

"It's pretty cool," Dominic added.

"So we are the Blue Thunder Crew now!" Blu said with rising a fist in the air.

"You know, we're probably gonna leave tonight," Jewel then said to Chuva.

"Huh?! Why?" she asked in surprise, not wanting her friends to leave so soon.

"Well, we don't really have any reason to stay here any longer. And with the Naval Forces around, we better leave before they come find us, don't you think?" she explained, making the parakeet princess look down sadly.

"I wanna thank you," king Alkawbra said to the boys.

"We are the ones to thank you for the show," Apollo said with pointing toward the girls room.

"I wasn't talking about that! I meant that you saved us." The king suddenly kneeled and bowed before Blu's group. "Thank you."

"Huh, is it normal for a king to act like this?" Dominic asked with a curious look.

"Majesty, this is serious matter: a king must never kneel down," Chaka pointed out.

"You should know, Chaka, that authority is before all a matter of friendship," the parakeet said while still bowing down. "We are united here and when a king comes to life, it's before all a man. I want to express you with all my heart the recognition I have as a father and civil of this country. Thanks. Thank to you all."

Against a king's recognition, Blu just smiled softly while rubbing the back of his head, Dominic gave a smirk, Lazaro proudly rubbed his funny beak, Alex tried to hide his happy blush with his wings, Hernandez gave a thumb up, Vladimir did a military greet, and Apollo just turned around so that we wouldn't see his tears of joy.

Later on, after taking their bath, it was night time and the Blue Thunder Crew were gathered along with Chuva in pajamas in their room. "What? You wanna leave tonight?" Alex asked Jewel who nodded.

"You know, that's not really a bad idea," Dominic remarked. "We saved the king; nothing holds us back from going after the Treasure Planet anymore."

"I agree; the Naval Forces could come here anytime soon," Vladimir remarked.

Suddenly, Chaka bursted into the room. "Mister Blu! You and your friends need to see this!" he exclaimed hurriedly with showing them page of papers.

The others looked confused as he gave them each a paper. "What is it?" Blu asked.

"The Naval Forces putted bounty on your heads! They must have done it while you were asleep in the street a few days ago!" Chaka explained.

Blu's bounty showed his face with "Tyler "Blu" Gunderson" written as well as a big "A" underneath it. He remembered what Aqua told him about pirates bounty classing in this world. "Wait! So the Naval Forces consider me as dangerous as Aqua?!"

"You're not the only one," Dominic said with showing his bounty. It was a picture of his face with "Yusef "Dominic" Saklov" and a big "A" underneath it. "I just hope it's because I caused some damage and not simply because I have three high caliber sabers."

Jewel looked at hers: "The Gem of the Forest" Jewel. She was ranked D. She grunted a bit as they probably didn't saw her in action with her Wind Waker...and maybe it was better they didn't.

For Apollo: "Sniper Owl" Apollo Bird, rank D.

For Lazaro: "La Furia" Lazaro, rank A.

For Hernandez: "Brazo Derecho del Diablo" Hernandez, rank B.

For Vladimir: "Mr. Kamen" Vladimir, rank B.

And for Alex: "Snowball" Alex, rank F.

"WHAT?!" the kid exclaimed upon seeing his bounty. "How's that I'm ranked F?!"

"You've seen? I'm ranked A too," Lazaro happily remarked.

"Good job," Hernandez said with a little smile.

"That's not really surprising, considering that we took down one of the Seven Warlords and his powerful allies," Vladimir said with looking at his bounty.

"Brazo Derecho del Diablo?" Hernandez mumbled before smiling. "I like the sound of that name."

* * *

Later that night, the Blue Thunder Crew left the palace and ran through the desert with help from the Super Ducks Squad. "I'm gonna miss this country," Alex said as he looked behind while riding on the back of a super duck. The kid then noticed Jewel was looking sad as well. "Jewel?"

"You're gonna miss Chuva, right?" Blu asked with putting an hand on her shoulder. "I know how you two became friends."

She just slightly nodded her head. "At least they gave me these!" Lazaro said with showing books. "With that, I'll have an easier time finding fishes and learning how to cook them perfectly!"

"It has nothing to do with the situation, dude," Dominic simply remarked.

By the time they arrived at the edge of the country and the sea was in sight again, they soon spotted their new ship. It was not too big and made of wood with two mats, canons on the sides, and a macaw head on the front (to give you an idea, it's a bit like the Going Merry, but with a macaw head instead of a goat).

"So this is our new boat?" Lazaro asked. "It looks cool!"

"Yeah; I'm certain we'll reach the Treasure Planet in no time with it!" Blu said with enthusiasm and his friends replying with: "YEAH!"

"Hello, my friends!"

Looking up, they were surprised to see a familiar reptile standing on top of their mat. "CHAMELEON?!" they exclaimed at unison.

"What are you doing here, you bastard?! You want me to kick your ass a second time?!" Lazaro angrily asked.

"Whoa, whoa, is that a way to say hello to your friend?" Chameleon asked with rising his hands in defense.

"Friends? Must I remind you that you were with Risky Boots and you even tried to kill Chuva?" Blu said with his arms crossed.

The reptile sat down on the edge of the ship. "Come on guys, I didn't knew at first. Booty Works no longer exist, and now, they all want my skin."

"Move!" Dominic said with pushing him as he climbed into the ship to get the supplies given to them by the king in after the Super Ducks left back to the palace.

"Okay, supposing that you're no longer our enemy, can we know what you're doing with our ship?" Blu asked.

"You guys don't know what's happening around the island?" Chameleon asked with blinking his eyes. "The Naval Forces are closing all the ports. What do you think would have happened if they would have found your ship?"

"they would have taken it," Blu admitted. "But why did you helped us?"

The reptile showed his thumb with a smile. "Because we're friends of course...and also because I need a lift to leave this island."

* * *

 **Man, that was one of the longest chapter I ever wrote!**

 **Blu and his now have an official crew name and their own pirate ship, as well as bounties. And to help with the translations:**

 **La Furia: The Fury**

 **Brazo Derecho del Diablo: The Right Arm of the Devil**

 **Mr. Kamen: Mr. Stone**

 **The next chapter will officially mark the end of the Sequin Kingdom arc. I hope you all enjoyed it and will love the ending.**


	127. An adventure ends, another starts

**Alright, it's time to conclude the longest story arc of The Dynamic Adventure so far.**

* * *

SPLASH!

"Is he gone yet!" Blu asked as he fought to keep his balance.

"I'm afraid not; they're still on our tails!" Dominic replied as he looked behind.

After finding their ship and started driving away along the coast side, the Blue Thunder Crew got surprised by a float of Naval Forces ships who were now chasing them and shooting cannonballs in their direction. Chameleon jumped on the back of the ship to get a good view of their pursuers.

"Uh-oh, this is not good," he commented as Blu arrived beside him. "Look."

He pointed toward the first NF ship following them and they could see a figure at the head of it. It was an average-sized husky with pink fur and a white underbelly. He had a scar under his right eye and bolts attached to his knuckles. He also wore a Naval Forces cap, a navy blue shirt, orange plaid pants, and brown boots.

"Who's that guy?" Blu curiously asked.

"It's the Colonel "Double Ironfist" Fullbody!" Chameleon responded.

"Another colonel?! How many of them are we gonna meet?!" Lazaro asked while holding onto the ship's mat.

BOOM!

To everybody's surprise, one of the NF ships exploded and sank down. "Wow!" The heads slowly turned toward Apollo who looked at a cannon which seemed like it just got used. "This cannon is more powerful than it looks! I already like it!"

BOOM!

This time, it was a NF ship to the side that shot and touched the middle of the Blue Thunder Crew's hip. "Great! We barely got a new ship and it already gets damaged!" Jewel sarcastically remarked.

"And as if that wasn't bad enough, the ship of their colonel is getting closer!" Hernandez pointed out.

"Everyone, listen!" Chameleon seriously called to get everyone's attention. "I thank you all for saving me from Booty Works! The power of our friendship will never fade away! Those are the words of Chameleon!"

Blu and his friends looked at him curiously. "Why are you saying this-" Before he could ask the question, Chameleon suddenly ran on the edge of the boat and performed a long jump all the way to the NF's ship and landed before Colonel Fullbody. "CHAMELEON! WAIT! COME BACK!"

However, Lazaro putted his flipper to stop Blu from going to help him. "Stop, Blu. You don't understand? He's making a sacrifice to save us all and give us a chance to escape." Lazaro looked more serious than ever. "CHAMELEON! LISTEN TO ME! I WANNA FIGHT YOU AGAIN SOMEDAY! SO STAY ALIVE UNTIL THEN!"

The reptile smiled and replied with a thumb up without turning to look at the puffin as he was ready to engage his fight with Colonel Fullbody.

"Think he's gonna survive?" Alex asked in concern.

"He will! I don't doubt it!" Lazaro firmly affirmed.

"Hey, look guys!" Jewel suddenly called. everybody turned to see she was pointing at the coast where the city of Nonoana appeared into view. The very city they came to when they entered the Kingdom of Sequin for the first time.

As nostalgia was starting to overwhelm them, they started hearing a familiar voice calling for them. Before long, they spotted two figures at the edge of the water. They all widened their eyes.

"Chuva! Coin!" Blu happily beamed as he saw his two friends waving at them. "They came to join us on our trip to the Treasure Planet! Let's go get them!"

"We're not coming!"

Blu's joy was immediately killed, just like the other's as well. They all turned to see Chuva had some tears in her eyes.

"I'm sorry! The journey we had together was really great! I'll never forget everything you did for me and my people! But I love my country too much to leave and everyone need their princess to live with their scars of this war! But be sure that I'll never forget all of you!" the princess called while trying to hold back her sobs. "I hope we'll meet again someday!"

Blu just starred at her. "Chuva! I understand! You-"

He was cut off by Dominic who putted an hand before him. "Blu, wait." He then pointed behind them to the Naval Forces ship still close. "They can hear us. If they learn that Chuva, the princess of Sequin, is friend with pirates and helped them, she will be arrested. I know it's sad, but we're gonna have to leave her in silence."

All the friends on the boat exchanged sad looks as they knew it was true. they all wanted to tell her goodbye, but it was a luxury that would cost them a lot. They all turned their backs to their two friends on the coast as their ship started driving away toward the sea.

On the beach, Chuva finally allowed her tears to come out as she didn't wanted her friends to leave her so soon. But like she said, she was never going to forget everything they did for her country: defeating Risky Boots and Booty Works, bringing back the rain, saving her father and best friend Tirofijo, and more.

1-2-3 Coin wrapped his wings around her for a comforting hug as she cried in his soft chest. The super duck then turned his head and let out a big quack, suddenly urging his crying friend to look forward at the horizon.

Chuva followed his lead and saw...that, still with his back facing her, Blu lifted his arm in the air to show the "X" on his arm which he drawn prior to arriving at Sequin to make sure Chameleon couldn't steal his appearance. One-by-one, all the others did the same, showing their X by rising their arms/wings while their back was facing her.

Chuva immediately understood: it was their way of saying they will always be friends without alerting the Naval Forces. Tears of joy came into her eyes as she also rose her arm to show her X, a gesture 1-2-3 Coin imitated as well. They stood there for a long time until the ship was just a blur at the horizon.

After many long minutes, our heroes also lowered their arms/wings, knowing they were now too far for their friends to see them. "I'll miss them," Alex mumbled as he whipped tears away and Vladimir patted his back.

"Guys, I just thought about something," Apollo suddenly said. "We still need to find a name for our ship, right? Aqua called his one the Polar Tang, so it would be good for us to call our ship as well if we're going to spend a good majority of our time on it."

"That's a good idea," Hernandez said. "How about-"

"Blu's our captain, Hernandez," Dominic interrupted him. "I think it's only fair for him to choose the name of this boat."

Blu smiled at his right arm's loyalty. Rubbing his beak, he started thinking of a name for the ship... Blue Driver? No... Free Ship? Nope... Oh, he got it!

"How about Saldanha?" he proposed. "Think about it: we left for a big journey across the New World, but we started all the way from Brazil. So giving our ship a Brazilian name would be a good way to remember where we're from throughout our journey."

His friends just starred at him... "That sounds lame," Alex finally commented.

"You couldn't find anything cooler?" Lazaro asked to which Hernandez nodded in agreement.

"Come on, guys. I thought hard to find a name with a meaning behind it: it's as simple as it sounds," Blu said on the defensive.

Jewel giggled and pecked her boyfriend on the cheek. "If that's your choice, then we have nothing to say. We'll call our ship the Saldanha," she said to which Blu nodded in agreement.

Blu smiled before slowly walking over to the head of the ship, watching the vast ocean ahead of them and the fresh wind blowing through his feathers. His friends all followed him from behind. They were leaving Sequin and a big adventure behind them, but an even bigger one was waiting ahead. As they stood in silence, every member of the Blue Thunder Crew had his own thoughts:

Blu: "I'm gonna find the Treasure Planet and become the strongest bird in the world!"

Jewel: "I'll make this world the most free as possible."

Dominic: "Hold on, Hawkeye; I'm coming for you soon!"

Apollo: "Hope I'll live long enough to become a great crafter..."

Lazaro: "Just you all watch; I'll show you why the smallest ones are the toughest!"

Hernandez: "I'll make sure Lazaro's dream come true!"

Alex: "Watch well, Yukio: I'm gonna make you proud of me very soon!"

Vladimir: "You'll see, Yusef, one day, I'll be a great leader just like you!"

Blu then turned to face his crew with a confident smile. "Alright everyone! The Sequin Kingdom was just our first step toward our big goal! Like Aqua said, the New World is full of dangers and strong people who'll want to take us down! This is gonna be hard, but we won't back down as long as we have our dreams! TO THE TREASURE PLANET!"

"YEAH!" they all shouted at unison with joy and enthusiasm.

 _"At this moment, our adventure REALLY started..."_

* * *

 **And so ends the Sequin Kingdom arc, my friends. With over 40 chapters long, it's the longest arc for this story I wrote so far. But I already said it.**

 **The Blue Thunder Crew still have a long way ahead of them and big adventures along it - a dynamic one, if I may say. *chuckle***

 **Ona side note, the name of the ship, Saldanha, is a reference to Carlos Saldnaha, our beloved creator of Rio as well as Ferdinand and a few Ice Age movies. Since I made such a big story for his movie, I decided to honor him with an easter egg.**

 **I wanna take time to thank all my friends who supported me up to that point:**

 **Rio2lover100: Thanks for reading and reviewing each one of my chapters without exception.**

 **DextrousCloth31: Same thing, Cut-Man lover.**

 **The Grey Coincidence: I hope you'll give me one of your creative reviews over my arc as a whole to know what I did wrong and what I did right.**

 **Loco Vampire: I'm very grateful that you accepted to make a cover drawing for this story, brother.**

 **Skyler The Elf Owl: Don't worry; I'll continue the Four Ninja Birds' story.**

 **TheDragonSaver: I know you don't read this story, but I know you're supporting e and I'm grateful for that.**

 **Jameson The Phoenix Owl: Thanks for reading and reviewing, owl buddy.**

 **Ricardo The Black Hawk: I know you're still at chapter 2, but thanks for giving me your honest opinion.**

 **Again, the Blue Thunder Crew's adventure isn't over. If you go read my home page, you'll see that I still have plenty of stories to tell on this fanfic.**

 **But for now, I'm gonna go sleep: I got school tomorrow and I'm tired. Alex out.**


	128. The Valley of Peace

**Wow! School is harder than I remembered it was! But now it's time for me to catch a break and start this particular story arc I waited so long to start!**

* * *

It's been one week since the Blue Thunder Crew left the Kingdom of Sequin on their new ship, the Saldanha. The pirates have been traveling across the endless blue sea toward the next island, led by Jewel's navigation skills. The journey has been pretty safe since - well, safe for one day where they went through a storm and almost fell overboard.

"CHEERS!" Dominic beamed as he slammed his beer barrel with Vladimir's and drank it.

For this beautiful day, our feathered friends were having a little party on the desk of their ship. There was no particular reason; they just wanted to have some fun. Blu and Jewel were sharing a little dance together with Lazaro and Hernandez making Spanish music for them. Meanwhile, Dominic and Vladimir were having a drinking contest with the former winning.

"And...fifteen!" Dominic beamed while moving clumsily and throwing his empty beer bottle away.

"Guys, you shouldn't drink that much, you know," Lazaro remarked as he turned away from the spix macaws. "You're capable of doing dumb things when you're drunk. And I'm not even talking about the bad example you're giving Alex."

"Don't worry, Laz," Dominic said with waving his hand. "Alex knows it's not good to drink alcohol."

Just as he said that, a visibly drunk Alex arrived with a beer bottle and glared at Dominic. "What are you looking at?!" he asked with a French accent. "Wanna fight?!" He suddenly slammed his bottle down and aimed it at the golden eagle. "Come on, bring it on, big chicken!" He suddenly collapsed face first on the floor, falling asleep and snoring loudly.

Dominic just starred blankly at him before rubbing his eyes. "Okay, I think I'm gonna stop drinking; I just hallucinated that Alex was drunk and threatened me with a French accent."

"It wasn't an hallucination," Vladimir remarked.

Blu and Jewel chuckled at this, having stopped their little dance. "So, when are we arriving to our next island, Jewel?" Blu asked.

"Yeah, we need new material for the ship," Apollo remarked as he came out from inside the ship. "That last storm left some damages. We're gonna need new wood planks and nails."

"Don't worry; according to the map Aqua gave me and the strength of the winds around here, we should reach a new island that very day," Jewel explained.

"How's this island called?" Apollo asked.

The macaw girl shrugged. "This island doesn't have any name on the map. So I don't know."

"Cool, maybe we can give it one by ourselves after our little trip?" Blu suggested.

Lazaro jumped on Blu's shoulder. "Don't take it wrong, Blu, but with the name you gave our ship, I think I should be the one to name this island."

Blu looked offended. "Hey! What's so wrong with "Saldanha" for a name? It's not bad at all!"

"That's what I talked about," the puffin mumbled with rolling his eyes.

"You're gonna have the chance to start thinking about it immediately; we're arriving," Hernandez remarked as he pointed ahead of the ship.

Following his hand, the others saw that they were getting close to an island. This one seemed to be made of forest and natural growing which made them feel relief as they were not excited to get back to a dessert island like Sequin again. Strangely, there was no port nor boat in sight.

As the Saldanha reached the beach, Apollo tossed the anchor down (with help from Hernandez as it was pretty heavy) to park it there and then everyone jumped down. "Awesome! We got a whole new island to visit!" Blu happily beamed right after his feet connected with the soft sand.

"I don't see any villages nearby thought," Dominic remarked with looking all around. "Maybe we should ask for directions before adventuring any further."

"Like this guy," Vladimir said with pointing at a person busy putting fruits into a basket not too far from there.

This person was some kind of goat with white fur wearing what could be described as an ancient Chinese vest and straw hat on his head with holes for his horns. He was picking one fruit after another with his hooves and putted them into his basket, not having noticed the newcomers.

"Good idea. Wait, I'm gonna go talk to him," Blu said and walked toward the goat. "Hum, excuse-me, my good sir, could you help us?" The goat turned around to look at Blu. "We would like to find a place to buy food and material for our boat."

The goat nodded and pointed in a direction. "The closest village is the Valley of Peace. It's located in this direction; you cannot miss it."

"Thank you," Blu said with a nod before turning to his friends. "Alright, let's get to this Valley of Peace, everyone!"

* * *

As the group of avians advanced, they couldn't help but notice the landscape of the island seemed...Asian-like. Most of the forest they walked across consisted of bamboo and all the little houses they spotted on their way looked like the ones Blu saw in Asian culture books.

"Huh, you're sure we don't came back to the Human World by accident? This looks like Japan-China," Dominic remarked with rubbing the back of his head.

"I don't remember seeing goats with human shapes wearing Chinese vests back in the Human World," Vladimir answered his friend.

"Hey guys, look!" Apollo suddenly exclaimed and pointed ahead of them.

A village came into view. It was a large valley surrounded by a barrier of tall mountains with houses made of rock and markets all around. It seemed affected by China culture with lanterns and Folklore decorations everywhere. The villagers walking all around consisted primarily of rabbits, pigs, geese, and ducks, although sheep and goats could also been seen at times.

"Wow! This sure is different from Sequin," Jewel remarked while looking all around. "But at least, the weather here isn't burning to the point of threatening our lives."

"Let's get in and see if we can find what we need to continue our journey," Blu said and walked in the village followed by his team.

While they didn't made a scene, the group couldn't help but notice that some of the villagers turned their heads toward them, giving them curious looks. "Guys, the people are looking strangely at us," Apollo mumbled toward his friends.

"Gotta believe they're not used to see people like us around here," Dominic answered with a frown. He then noticed a wooden poster on the side of the main street they were currently walking through on which was written: "Mr. Ping's Noodle Shop". "Hey, could we make a quick stop here? I'm kinda hungry."

"It's true that we could afford a little warm meal before getting back on the sea," Blu admitted to which his friends nodded in agreement. "Let's go eat!"

The Blue Thunder Crew entered the shop. The dining area was made of small tables for people to eat and a circular archway served as the entrance. As the group entered, they were met by a male goose with grey and white feathers, brown eyes, and red and gold robe with a noodle-bowl-shaped hat.

"Welcome to my noodle shop!" he happily beamed with a smile and energy despite his visibly old age. "I'm Mr. Ping. Take a seat please," he said with bringing the avians to sit around two tables because they were too numerous for only one. "What do you want from our menu?"

The group took the menu and looked at it...to see it was written in Chinese (or so they thought). Crap! None of them knew how to read or talk Chinese. Exchanging nervous glances, Blu quickly spoke for everyone: "We're gonna take your best dish."

Mr. Ping ran inside the main building where the kitchen was located to cook the meals while the birds waited for the food to come. The crew just sat in silence, trying to ignore the stares from the other customers. Eventually, it was a panda out of all things that arrived with multiple bowls and giving them to the tables.

The panda was a male with black and white fur and a pretty round belly. His eyes were green and his clothing included burlap pants that consisted of patches stitched in, with a variety of different colors and hues. He also wore a red and yellow striped portion of his pants above and gauze wraps around his ankles, and shoes that looked like panda toes, and panda paws on the bottom.

"Sorry for the delay! Here's the food you ordered!" he said with clumsily putting noodle bowls down on the table before all the avians.

"Thanks! This looks delicious!" Blu happily thanked the panda before taking a spoon and started digging into his meal just like his friends. To their surprise, the pleasure they felt in their taste buds upon contact was so intense it felt like an orgasm in their mouth.

"You like it?" the panda asked. "It's my father's famous secret ingredient soup. It's the most liked meal in the whole village."

"And I understand why: THIS THING'S A WONDER!" Lazaro beamed and started eating his food with no manners at all, not caring about the frowns the customers were giving him.

The others did pretty much the same, causing customers to give money and then leave to go eat somewhere calmer. Once they were done, the group sighed and burped. "That was delicious...," Blu said, waiting for the panda to introduce himself.

"Po. My name's Po." The panda then gave them a stare. "Say, I don't remember seeing you guys around. Where are you from?"

"We're pirates from the Human World," Blu replied. "My name is Blu, captain of the Blue Thunder Crew. We came here to get food and some supplies before going back to the sea."

Po gave him a curious look. "You sure? You don't look like pirates to me. Where are your eyepatches and hooks?"

"Cliches...," Vladimir mumbled under his breath.

"And you, Po, you're a cook and painter expert?" Dominic asked, noticing a pretty stylish poster which looked like it was for a Japanese animated movie on the wall.

"Oh, this. It's an old poster from a previous Kung Fu event. It featured my biggest idols of all time, the Furious Five!" Po said with excitation.

"The Furious Five?" Alex asked with a curious look.

"You don't know? It's a group of Kung Fu masters who protect this valley. And they're super awesome! There's Master Tigress, Viper, Mantis, Crane, and Monkey! They actually live up there at the Jade Palace, up the village. But it's on top of a mountain with thousands of steps to climb up, so I never went up there," the panda admitted with rubbing the back of his head.

"Kung Fu masters?!" Lazaro suddenly exclaimed. "Oh my gosh! Hernandez, remember; old Paraguano used to tell us about this martial art! It's our chance to see if he was right!"

The pelican nodded and Lazaro turned toward his captain. "Come on, Blu! Can we go see them?! It would be a dream come true for Hernandez and I! Pleeeease!"

Blu blinked his eyes as it was the first time his little puffin friend was begging for something like that. "Hum, okay, we're not in a hurry. Why not."

"THANK YOU!" Lazaro hugged him so thigh that he choked the wind out of him before running at the entrance. "Let's go! Thanks, Po!"

* * *

 **Yes. This arc will be an adventure in the Kung Fu Panda world, my friends. I waited so long to make this arc; I ADORE this movie. I'm gonna follow the first movie's plot with my own twists of course.**

 **Now for those of you who claim that since my story includes so many different movies and medias, I should turn it into a crossover story instead of a Rio one, allow me to defend myself: no matter how many medias I include, Blu will always remain the protagonist of this story. He's the hero and when he'll accomplish his dream (or die trying), The Dynamic Adventure will be over. Get over it.**


	129. Meeting the masters

Convinced by Lazaro to go see the Kung Fu masters, the Blue Thunder Crew followed the little puffin all the way to the end of the village where a pretty long staircase stood before them. They quickly realized Po wasn't exaggerating when he said that climbing those would be tiring; there had to be at least a thousand steps!

"Why in the living heck would they build a palace so high?!" Blu asked while looking at the steps in awe.

"Kung Fu masters are supposed to be though and train hard," Lazaro explained. "that must be part of their routine: if they want to get up there to learn Kung Fu, they must before all have the will! So cool!" The puffin started running up the stairs with determination.

"Hey, wait for us!" Apollo called and the group ran after their friend.

* * *

Many minutes later, the Blue Thunder Crew finally reached the end of the seemingly endless staircase. It was so hard that by this time, they were already covered of sweat and panting deeply. Even the though Dominic and Vladimir seemed a bit tired from climbing for so long.

"I think I'm gonna puke...," Apollo mumbled. Hernandez had to carry him on his shoulder as the barn owl got quickly tired from the climbing.

"There you are! You sure took your time!" Lazaro said with a smile as he waited for his friends at the staircase's end.

"How can you not be tired of walking so much steps?" Jewel asked with whipping sweat away from her forehead.

"I got the strongest legs in the world, remember?" the puffin proudly stated while rubbing his beak with his flipper.

The others rolled their eyes before noticing they arrived before what looked like palace gates. Sounds of battle could be heard on the other side. The group exchanged looks before Dominic stepped ahead and opened the gates to enter what looked like a walled training courtyard with various training devices scattered around the edges, such as a weapons rack.

But the most noticeable detail was a little person overlooking five animals training in close combat. A little (though visibly old) red panda with orange brown, dark brown, and white fur, two big ears, and a long mustache and beard tied into a knot. He was wearing an orange-brown robe with a belt of the same color.

The red panda noticed the avian group's arrival as he raised an hand to make the five fighters stop. "That's enough," he said. "It looks we have visitors." he said with turning toward them.

"Hum, hello sir, my name's Blu and-" Blu started talking, but Lazaro stopped him with a flipper, deciding to do the talking.

He bowed before the red panda. "Greetings, mister. We are a group of travelers searching for Kung Fu masters and we told us to come here," he explained.

The red panda rubbed his beard at this statement. "Well it seems this information was correct: you are at the Jade Palace and I am Master Shifu. Those are my students, the Furious Five," he said with pointing behind him at the five animals.

"Master Monkey." As his name implied, Master Monkey was a golden snub-nosed monkey with golden fur, brown pants and leather wristbands.

"Master Crane." A male crane with black, white and grey feathers, a long neck and legs, and yellow beak. He was wearing a rice hat on his head and loose blue pants with a purple sash wrapped around his waist in the style of a Shaolin wrap.

"Master Mantis." A little light green mantis with yellow eyes and red irises.

"Master Viper." A female viper snake with apple green scale and a white underbelly. She had two lotus flower clips on her head and brown Chinese along her whole back.

"And Master Tigress." A female tiger with orange and white fur along with black stripes. She was wearing a traditional red Chinese vest with golden vine patterns and black trim, held together with small metal fasteners and a waist wrap. She also had black silk pants and black sandals with soles designed to resemble paw pads.

"Well nice to meet you all," Blu said. "I'm Blu, the leader of the Blue Thunder Crew. This my girlfriend, Jewel," he said with putting her close with his arm as she waved at them. "And my right hand, Dominic."

"Heya," he said with a smile and waved his hand.

"I'm Lazaro, and this big guy is my old pal, Hernandez," Lazaro introduced both himself and his best friend.

"M-My name's Apollo, nice to meet'cha," Apollo said with an unconvincing smile and adjusting his cap, hoping it would make him look cool.

"My name is Vladimir," the golden eagle said with making the military greet.

Alex then jumped on his shoulder. "And I'm Alex."

BONG!

Barely a second after introducing himself, the snowy owl kid found himself caught by Master Viper who nuzzled him affectionately. "He's so adorable!"

"Why do they all react like that?" Alex asked while his cheek was getting nuzzled.

"There's not only advantages to be the cutest of the team, Al," Dominic remarked with a chuckle.

After realizing the sudden outburst she made in front of everyone, Viper quickly let go of the avian kid and slithered back to her group, trying to hide a blush. Master Shifu then cleared his throat a bit before turning back to the crew. "And who are you exactly?"

"We are pirates," Blu answered. "We arrived around two hours ago to get some supplies before going back on the seas."

This earned him confused looks from the masters. "You don't look like pirates," Monkey remarked. "Where are your hats and eyepatches?"

Blu rolled his eyes at this comment. "Why does everybody think pirates dress like that? But anyways, we just passed by to see you, so we should get-"

"We're challenging you to a fight!" Lazaro suddenly exclaimed, causing his friends to look at him in surprise at the sudden outburst.

"Lazaro!" Blu said with giving him a slap on the shoulder.

"What? There's nothing wrong with having a little match to see how far we've progressed."

"Like a bunch of pirate birds could take on even one of the Furious Five," Mantis mumbled in a scoff with Monkey nodding.

This insulting remark caused Blu to turn toward him. "Hey! For the record, we're far from being weak; we saved two kingdoms in less than a year and I'm planning on becoming the strongest bird in the world someday. So I won't have any trouble taking on any of you five!"

"Even Tigress?" Monkey questioned, egging Blu on.

"Is that a challenge?" Blu asked, getting closer to the Five. "Alright." He then pointed at the female tiger. "I'm challenging you to a match just to prove those two wrong!"

"Fine, if you want to get a good beating," Tigress replied, walking over to the circular ring on the courtyard ground.

"Huh, I don't think that's a good idea," Master Crane remarked.

"Yeah, you don't have anything to prove here, Blu," Jewel said with putting a wing on her boyfriend's shoulder.

However, Dominic dismissed her. "Let him go, Jewel. Blu wants to become the strongest bird in the world, so it's up to him to choose his fights."

The group watched as Shifu stood off to the side of the arena to ref the match, watching both the macaw and tiger. "Allow me to set the rules: this match will be decided by who can pin the opponent first; so no weapons or too dangerous attacks."

Tigress took a fighting stance - the Tiger Style of Kung Fu, Blu thought it was called, and decided to also take his own fighting stance. With both fighters ready, Master Shifu gave the signal, making the match begin.

* * *

 **Blu, the captain of the Blue Thunder Crew, will take on Master Tigress, leader of the Furious Five. This is gonna be an epic clash!**

 **But it won't end there as each of the Five will face a member of the Blue Thunder Crew. I let you try to guess who's gonna be against who. And don't worry; the next chapter will be longer.**


	130. Blu vs Tigress

**Sorry for not updating this story for a full week: I was focused on school and my wrestling federation.**

* * *

Tigress wasted no time in starting the match and sent a punch toward Blu's head, forcing the macaw to move sideways to avoid it and reply with a punch to her outstretched paw. He quickly regretted his decision, however, as he felt pain from the attack even for his plastic arm.

"Ouch!" he groaned while clutching his hand. "You got hit and I'm the one to get damaged?!"

"I've trained since I was a cub by punching ironwood trees," Tigress explained. "My arms are now immune to pain and I can break through wood."

"No kidding!" Lazaro exclaimed with widening his eyes in surprise.

"Yup; that's why she's the strongest of our team," Mantis explained with a smile.

"Don't get too cocky," Dominic deadpanned him. "Our captain too some tricks up his sleeve."

Indeed, as Tigress pressed on her attacks, Blu backflipped away from here and stretched his leg to land a successful spin kick into her side, knocking her back. Everyone widened their eyes in surprise at what he just did.

"What?! H-How did you do that with your leg?!" Tigress asked in surprise as she took back from the hit.

Blu smiled at her. "I ate a Magical Fruit and I'm now a bird of plastic," he explained with stretching his cheek for emphasis.

"A Magical Fruit? What's that?" Viper asked with a curious look.

"It's a strange fruit that gives powers to the one who eats it," Alex explained.

"I've never heard about those things," Tigress mumbled to herself before glaring. "But it doesn't matter; it's not a plastic body that will allow you to win."

The battle resumed with the avian dodging the feline's attacks while thinking of a way to come on top of her. Since he couldn't beat her on the physical plan, he instead decided to send his arms backward before shooting them at full power toward Tigress. however, they went beside her and missed.

"You missed me!" she pointed out, ready to attack again.

"Is that so?" Blu asked with a smirk.

The master realized too late what he meant as he grabbed on two trees behind her and then sent himself flying toward her like a rocket. He collided head first into her stomach, knocking the wind out of her body (and also making her spit saliva) and sending the two of them to crash against the courtyard's wall. After the impact, Blu quickly wrapped his plastic limbs around Tigress' body to pin her to the ground.

"I won!" he happily beamed with getting off Tigress. The other Five looked at the macaw in shock as he just defeated their strongest member.

Tigress looked at him in pure shock and confusion as the macaw who defeated her went to celebrate with his friends. She briefly glanced at her master who seemed disappointed before going to join her friends.

"Alright, it's my turn now," Lazaro said with cracking his neck and stepping in the fighting zone. "Who's up for the challenge?"

The warriors exchanged glances before Mantis stepped forward. "Why not? Little guy against little guy should be fair enough."

"Alright. Combatants at the ready," Master Shifu said, rising his hand.

The mantis and puffin took a fighting stance each. The red panda nodded at them both before throwing his hand down, starting the match.

With a battle cry, Mantis jumped forward and delivered a kick which Lazaro tried to block with his flipper. However, by doing so, he felt a big pain jolt through his limb, making him groan and step back.

"I didn't knew bugs could hit so hard!" he groaned while shaking his poor flipper.

"I'm no master for nothing! Everybody think that I'm weak because of my size, but I can actually put on big fights!" Mantis proudly said with a smirk.

Lazaro chuckled a bit. "I perfectly understand how you feel."

While they were fighting, Crane couldn't help but lean toward Monkey and whisper: "Is it me, or do they sound the same?"

 **(Lazaro is voiced by Seth Rogen who also happens to be the voice actor for Mantis in Kung Fu Panda. Big coincidence right?)**

Having heard that, both fighters turned toward him and said at the same time: "Hey! We don't sound the same!" They then widened their eyes and looked at each other. "Jinx! You own me a bowl! No YOU own me a bowl!"

They then broke down in laughters for a moment before getting serious again. "Alright then, it's my turn to show you what I can do!"

Jumping up, Lazaro went for a dive kick which Mantis dodged, the kick creating a crack on the ground. Upon noticing it, the bug seemed a bit surprised.

"Yup, you got that right; my legs are stronger than normal," Lazaro happily said before charging and swinging his legs again.

Mantis had an easy time dodging his attacks thanks to a combinations of his small size and huge speed. He replied a few times with attacks of his own which Lazaro blocked with his legs, not making the mistake of blocking with his flipper again. They continued like this for several minutes, neither gaining an advantage over the other.

The two fought for over an half hour and were now panting heavily with sweat covering their body. And yet, in spite of that, they still seemed ready to keep fighting on.

"You're already tired?" Mantis asked while trying to catch his breath.

Lazaro did the same but also smirked. "Are you kidding? I'm barely getting warmed up!"

As the two were about to clash again, Master Shifu suddenly rose his hand to make them stop. "Enough! It should be clear by now that you are on equal level. If you keep fighting, you'll simply end up draining your energy until you fall from exhaustion. It would be better to end this match right now."

As much as he wanted to fight, Lazaro knew the red panda was right. And besides, Dominic did taught him to not insist on leading a pointless fight. So he just smiled.

"Okay, let's just leave this for now, okay?"

Mantis replied with a nod and then walked back to his group while Lazaro did the same with his team.

"Okay, who's going next?"

* * *

 **Again sorry for not updating for a full week and I hope you enjoyed those fights? Do you agree with the outcomes or do you think Tigress should have defeated Blu and there should have been a decisive winner between Lazaro and Mantis? Lemme know ;)**


	131. Raspberries

**I wanna take this opportunity to thank Loco Vampire for making the cover image for this story! I own you one, Vampire bud :)**

* * *

The next one to step up was Hernandez. The pelican walked into the fighting zone with Master Crane who decided to volunteer as well.

"Come on, Hernandez! Kick his butt!" Lazaro encouraged his big friend who simply replied with a feather thumb up.

"He looks strong," the master of Crane Style mumbled in his head with a gulp.

Master Shifu once again called for the match. As soon as he did, Crane took his fighting stance and charged with many kicks which Hernandez tried his best to block with his wings. Eventually, Crane landed on the ground and swiftly swung his leg to knock the pelican on his back. Rolling away before he could take another shot, Hernandez quickly got back and looked at his opponent.

"You're already tired, big guy?" Mantis called.

"...No," Hernandez simply replied.

"Okay, this guy's not the most talking."

The pelican decided to stop messing around and summoned the red and black armor on his right wing. Crane looked in surprise and he decided to take advantage of it by throwing a punch which his opponent merely dodged, getting a mark on his stomach. Getting his stance back, he panted a bit.

"W-What's this thing?"

"Honestly, even I am not sure," the pelican just shrugged and launched another attack.

The problem with Hernandez being his speed, Crane quickly realized it and swiftly dodged his attack before flying up in the sky, the sun getting behind him. "WINGS OF JUSTICE!" Swinging his wings forward, he shot a powerful gust of wind that knocked Hernandez high in the air, sending him crashing down with a loud thud. Needless to say, he was knocked down for good after that.

"Hernandez!" Lazaro called his best friend in horror.

The pelican groaned in pain from this shot. Crane flew down to check after him. "Are you okay?"

Hernandez groaned but managed to stand up with help from the master. "Yes. Thank you." He walked back to his friends without saying anything else. Crane and the others couldn't help but think about how strange this big guy was.

"HOW COULD YOU LOSE LIKE THAT?!" Lazaro angrily shouted at his big friend. "DIDN'T YOU LEARN ANYTHING FROM ALL OUR ADVENTURES?!"

"...Sorry."

"Cut him a break, Lazaro," Jewel stopped him. "He did his best; you can't blame him for loosing once and a while."

"My turn," Master Viper suddenly said. The master of Snake Style slithered into the fighting zone.

Dominic then kneeled beside Alex and put a wing on his shoulder. "Alright Alex, it's your turn." The kid smiled and nodded before walking over to the fighting zone.

He nicely waved at the snake while everyone else just stared silently. "B-But how old are you, pal?" Monkey asked in confusion.

"Eleven years old," the kid simply responded.

Everybody widened their eyes. "What?! You're not gonna let an eleven-year-old fight!" Mantis exclaimed.

"He's not just a kid," Blu defended him. "He's as strong as all of us and can stand up for himself. Let's go, Al!"

The kid nodded and showed his thumb. "Ok. Thanks, Captain Blu!"

"He's so adorable," Viper couldn't help but compliment him again.

Alex heard that and grinned while also blushing which he tried to hide with his wings. "If you think this makes me happy, that's not the case at all!"

"Yeah, we can see that," Crane sarcastically remarked.

"Combattants at the ready," Shifu called as they both took a fighting stance. "Let the match BEGIN!"

Right after he said that, Alex took something out of his bag; a candy with a balloon drawn on it. He put it inside his back and ate it.

"Huh, you're going to fight with a candy?" Viper curiously asked.

The kid just smiled as his body suddenly turned into a balloon which surprised everyone. "BALLOON CANDY!" he shouted before rolling at Viper like a cannonball.

She managed to move out of the way to dodge him, but he bounced on the wall and charged back at her. He repeated this again and again, forcing the snake to keep dodging until he finally stopped rolling and returned to normal.

"Too bad the effects of my candies only last a few moments," he thought before eating another candy, this one having a muscled arm drawing on it.

"How many of these candies does he have?" Crane asked.

"Many," Dominic replied.

Alex suddenly turned into a muscled bird. "MUSCLE CANDY!"

Viper smirked a bit as she was more familiar with this kind of opponent and started dodging his big fists. As he kept trying to touch her, she eventually grabbed a ribbon with her tail and started spinning around the muscled snowy owl, wrapping her ribbon around him to immobilize his body and make him fall on his back.

He struggled to break free, but the ribbon was too strong for him and he soon returned to normal, his small round body trapped in the ribbon. As Viper stood on top of him, he closed his eyes, expecting her to bite into him...

PFFFFFTH!

To everybody's surprise, she instead blew a raspberry on his tummy, causing him to laugh. Some thought it was because she didn't want to harm the kid even though he was attacking her.

"Hehehehehey!" the kid laughed. "Stop that!"

"Give up then," Viper giggled before blowing another raspberry on his tummy.

She did it again and again, making the kid laugh as he couldn't break free no matter how hard he tried. "OKAY! OKAY! I SURRENDER! I SURRENDER!"

"Master Viper wins the match by submission!" Shifu announced as Viper finally let go of the kid.

"...I didn't expect that," Dominic admitted while Lazaro nodded in agreement.

"You did great, kid," Viper said with a nice smile and patted Alex's head with her tail as he was busy rubbing off the lipstick she left on his tummy.

"Yeah, but I lost," he sadly mumbled.

She patted him again. "Don't worry; you know that most kids can't even do what you did right now? This can only mean you'll become a great fighter someday."

Alex just stared at her before blushing and hiding it. "Don't try to charm me; this doesn't work!"

"What's with him and denying compliments all the time?" Crane asked Blu.

"He's just like that," he replied with a shrug.

* * *

 **Before you say it again, yes it's the same fight I used in "Power Struggle Tournament". But since I read two stories simultaneously, I told myself why not? And besides, it's not like my stories are getting read by the same persons. Safe maybe for The Grey Coincidence and Lionkingfactsguy.**

 **Except that...THANK YOU AGAIN, LOCO VAMPIRE FOR THE COVER IMAGE!**


	132. Like men

Master Monkey being the only master of the Five to not having fought before, he stepped into the fighting zone with a staff in his hands. Noticing this, Jewel decided to step up for the last fight.

"Good luck, Jewel," Blu called at her and she replied with a sweet and confident smile.

"Wow, I'm gonna fight a pretty girl," the primate mumbled with excitement. "You know, I do have a good round with the ladies."

"That's not even true: all the girls you asked on a date rejected you," Mantis called. "Only Ms. Yun is interested in you."

"SHUT UP!" monkey angrily shouted at the bug before turning back to a giggling Jewel.

"Combattants at the ready," Shifu called with rising his hand. "Fight!"

"I'm gonna try to go smoothly with you, miss," Monkey said in a unconvincing gentleman way

Jewel responded by swiftly knocking him down with her Wind Waker staff. "Sorry, but you're gonna have to cut the flirting. I already have a boyfriend."

Kicking up, the primate gave up on the going easy idea and started swinging his wooden staff against Jewel's metal one. Despite the macaw's recent training, she was having an hard time against the visibly more trained monkey. She quickly decided to step back and start sending cool and heat bubbles in the air with her Wind Waker.

"Huh, what is she doing?" Crane asked.

"You'll see. She's full of surprise," Blu said with a smile and his wings crossed.

Monkey could only look in confusion as the bubbles Jewel sent in the air created a big cloud. She then shot a thunder ball into it and the weather took care of the rest. Next thing the primate knew, a lightning flew down right into him, sending volts across his whole body, and leaving him all toasted. He collapsed on the ground, defeated.

"I think it is safe to say you got "thunderstruck"," Jewel giggled before joining her friends with Blu kissing her cheek.

Mantis went to poke at his primate friend's head to get no response. "Wow, he did got some bad hits from girls before, but nothing ever came close to that."

"Those were impressive matches," an old but wise voice said. "You younglings are full of promises."

The Blue Thunder Crew turned around to see a rather strange person heading their way. A male Galapagos tortoise with green and white scales as well as green eyes. He was wearing a green sash around his shell and a wooden staff to walk. Indeed, he looked very old.

"Master Oogway!" Master Shifu and the Five said, quickly bowing in respect.

The tortoise nodded to his students before turning to look at the group of avians. "I sense something special in all of you younglings. What brings you to our temple?"

"Who's the old reptile?" Lazaro mumbled toward Shifu and the Five who all looked in surprise.

"Show some respect!" Shifu angrily deadpanned. "It's Master Oogway, the creator of Kung Fu and defender of the Valley of Peace!"

"My old friend, I can make the presentations," the tortoise said with a chuckle before turning back to the avians. "Indeed, my name is Oogway. Who are you, my young friends?"

"My name is Blu Gunderson, Master. I'm the leader of the Blue Thunder Crew, we are pirates."

"What are seeking out?" the master asked about their purposes.

Blu turned toward where they came from and pointed at the distant horizon. "We're out to explore the seas and find the legendary Treasure Planet, a treasure created by the legendary pirate Archibald Bird. If we find it, then all of our dreams will become true."

The old tortoise just starred at them for a while before smiling. "I can indeed sense something very special in all of you. My young friends, how would you like to train at our temple for a time to further develop your potential?"

Everyone, including Master Shifu and the Five, widened their eyes. "You're serious?!" Lazaro gasped. He then jumped to Blu's face. "Blu! We have to accept! I've heard so much about what people can learn through Kung Fu! It would be a golden opportunity for us to become even better than we already are and get to the Treasure Planet faster!"

"Hum...okay, I guess some training couldn't hurt," Blu stuttered, surprised by his friend's over-enthusiasm.

Master Oogway chuckled again. "Master Shifu will supervise your training tomorrow morning." He then turned toward the red panda in question. "However there is something we need to discuss, Shifu. Alone."

Nodding, the red panda followed his master back into the palace. This left the Crew and the Five alone. "If you follow us, we can show you your rooms," Master Viper kindly offered.

And so, the Five led our feathered friends to an hall of ancient Chinese rooms with paper walls and all. There was enough space to welcome them all. The beds were pretty comfy even for a whole new style of bedroom than what they were used to.

Blu and Dominic shared one room while Jewel slept with Viper and Alex. When night time came, the captain and his right hand decided to have a little conversation. "What do you think of those guys, Dom?"

The golden eagle crossed his arms and looked at the wall. "I'd say the crane has talent, but lacks confidence. The mantis is hot-headed, the monkey is a big joker, the viper is passive, and the tiger... I don't know, something bothers me about her."

"What do you mean?" Blu curiously asked.

"When you fought with her, I could tell she was getting lead by anger. I know it: it's the kind of anger that can lead to your own self-destruction."

"Don't worry; we'll learn more about them tomorrow. Goodnight."

* * *

The next morning started in a rather rough way as Master Shifu surprised the avians very soon, causing them to fall off their beds. While the Five were casual about this, our heroes didn't expect to have to be up so soon. Only Dominic seemed okay with this.

While the Five went to train somewhere, Shifu gathered all the Blue Thunder Crew in the courtyard of yesterday. "You will all gather up quickly and silently at this very spot every morning," he stated as he walked over to a weapons rack and picked up a bo staff. "Master Oogway might be gentle to you, but I will not be. Once this training will be done, you will all wish you have never climbed up those stairs."

Some in the group couldn't help but gulp nervously at the red panda's firm speech.

 **(Now I know this is not Disney, but we're gonna make a little musical scene to make the story move forward, shall we?)**

 **I'll Make A Man Out of You (Mulan OST)**

 **Let's get down to business, to defeat the Huns**

Master Shifu used his staff to swing two vases in the air and smashed them down to shards, making everyone look at him in awe. He then gave them staffs too so that they could train as well.

 **Did they send me daughters, when I asked for sons?**

Blu tried to swing his staff around but only ended up knocking everyone down with it.

 **You're the saddest bunch I ever met**  
 **But you can bet before we're through**  
 **Mister, I'll make a man out of you**

Shifu walked over to Blu and snapped the staff out of his hands before grabbing him the collar and glaring firmly into his eyes, making him smile nervously.

 **Tranquil as a forest but on fire within**

Next, the master brought them to a forest to train at shooting arrows into flying apples with bows. At one point, Lazaro put an apple right into Apollo's arrow, making Shifu thinking the barn owl was cheating.

 **Once you find your center, you are sure to win**

Next, the red panda used his staff to swiftly block arrows shot at him by palace servant gooses.

 **You're a spineless, pale, pathetic lot**  
 **And you haven't got a clue**  
 **Somehow I'll make a man out of you**

The other tried to do the same with minimal success, Dominic and Jewel being the only ones to succeed while the others ended up with blues from the rocks they received.

 **I'm never gonna catch my breath**

We see Hernandez running through a field where fire arrows where shot.

 **Say goodbye to those who knew me**

Dominic fights a huge wooden battle ox who swung his axes at the golden eagle, leaving him with some lost feathers.

 **Boy, was I a fool in school for cutting gym**

Apollo tried to snap a wooden plate in two with his head, only resulting in him busting his forehead open and bleeding.

 **This guy's got 'em scared to death**

Lazaro ran through a field of metal tubes from where jets of fire came out and dodged them before he jumped onto a wood plank to the ceiling and to safety.

 **Hope he doesn't see right through me**

Alex opened a book containing pictures of plants and other ingredients he never heard of.

 **Now I really wish that I knew how to swim**

Vladimir stood in the middle of an island surrounded by water with Shifu jumping out to hit him here and then.

 **Be a man**  
 **We must be swift as the coursing river**

Dominic stands in the middle of the wooden mannequins zone and tries to block the hits, but ends up getting smashed everywhere and knocked to the ground.

 **Be a man**  
 **With all the force of a great typhoon**

Hernandez punches an ironwood tree and regrets it as it hurt his hand.

 **Be a man**  
 **With all the strength of a raging fire**

Lazaro ran through the fire field until his tail feathers got touched and he jumped out to blow on them.

 **Mysterious as the dark side of the moon**

Alex tries to create a new candy with new ingredients, but the potion ends up exploding, making him plant his face into the table and slam his fist out of desperation. Apollo tried to touch a target with a fire arrow but ends up touching the roof of the building. He looked around nervously before walking away.

 **Time is racing toward us till the Huns arrive**  
 **Heed my every order and you might survive**

Shifu makes the avians run up the stairs with water buckets on their backs. Alex collapses from exhaustion and Lazaro goes back to pick him up.

 **You're unsuited for the rage of war**  
 **So pack up, go home, you're through**  
 **How could I make a man out of you?**

As everybody seems on the verge of giving up, they suddenly see Blu, their captain, pressing on to get up the stairs. Putting on determined gazes, they get back up and run after him.

 **Be a man**  
 **We must be swift as the coursing river**

Dominic gets back in the wooden mannequins zone and, though he gets hit, he refuses to stay down and keep fighting.

 **Be a man**  
 **With all the force of a great typhoon**

Hernandez keeps punching the ironwood tree over and over again, making his fist bleed.

 **Be a man**  
 **With all the strength of a raging fire**

Lazaro stands again on the fire field and dodged the jets of fire, one of them almost touching his face.

 **Mysterious as the dark side of the moon**

Alex works really hard to create a new candy, thinking about Yukio, and Apollo works on his archery skills without using his aiming goggles.

 **Be a man**  
 **We must be swift as the coursing river**

After trying time and time again, Dominic ends up easily dodging the wooden mannequins with his eyes closed.

 **Be a man**  
 **With all the force of a great typhoon**

Hernandez throws a punch so powerful that the ironwood tree gets destroyed to shards, making him look at his hand in amazement.

 **Be a man**  
 **With all the strength of a raging fire**

Lazaro easily dance around the fire field, jumping next to Shifu and dusting his shoulder off as if this was childplay to him.

 **Mysterious as the dark side of the moon**

Alex puts a new candy on top of a pile of other ones exactly identical. Apollo easily shoots three flying apples at once with his bow. Jewel manages to run through the field of shooting arrows and Vladimir successfully blocks Shifu's attacks.

The scene ends with everyone taking a pose together with nothing but proudness and shouting: "AH!"

* * *

 **Don't worry; there won't be too much of those Disney musical scenes. It's just that this song always gets me so pumped up and I decided to use it for my story.**

 **BTW, they will make a live-action remake of Mulan, but so far, it looks pretty terrible...**


	133. Dragon Warrior

**Alright, Owl Lovers, it's in this chapter that the movie's plot will be starting.**

* * *

After two days of hard training, the Blue Thunder Crew made a lot of progress and became stronger than before. Even Master Shifu was pretty impressed by the progress they made. However, a huge fanfare took over the Jade Palace as it opened its doors to the Valley for a great event said to be really important.

Blu and his friends sat in the audience of gooses, goats, pigs, and sheeps around an arena that looked like it was for some kind of martial arts tournament. "What's this event about exactly?" Jewel curiously asked.

"I asked about it to Master Oogway," Dominic pointed out. "Apparently, it's to choose a chosen one named the "Dragon Warrior." Some sort of hero to stop a bad guy that escaped from prison."

"Dragon Warrior? We're gonna see a real dragon?" Alex asked with excitement.

"No, Al; it's just a title that Master Oogway will give to one of the Furious Five," Blu explained. "And speaking of which, it's starting."

Indeed, Master Shifu introduced the Five who came down from the sky and took a big pose together with Crane sending a gust of wind that everyone felt. One-by-one, each one of the Five performed awesome scenes with Crane dodging fireworks in the air and Tigress fighting the same wooden battle ox with axes Dominic faced during his training.

"Hey, isn't that the ox you faced?" Vladimir asked with poking at his friend.

"I don't wanna talk about it," he casually replied, pointing his eyes toward the mark in his feathers which had yet to grow back.

Eventually, Oogway called all the five warriors onstage to announce which one of them was to be the Dragon Warrior. All eyes were on the tortoise as he wavered between the masters. The Grandmaster eventually came to an alt and slowly lifted his finger...

BOOM!

Fireworks exploded into the sky, getting all the attention away from the Grandmaster and up there. "Huh? Did Oogway already made his choice and I didn't hear?" Lazaro asked with rubbing his ear with his flipper.

A big ball of black and white suddenly fell from the sky and landed in a heap right in front of Oogway. As everybody chatted amongst themselves, Blu's crew moved forward to get a better view at this person and quickly realized it was a familiar panda.

"PO?!"

After shouting, the group rushed into the arena to check after their friend. Groaning, the panda blinked a few times before opening his eyes. "W-Where am I?"

"Are you okay, pal?" Lazaro asked and helped him back up. "What happened to you?"

"Well, I climbed up those stairs because I wanted to see the tournament, but my dad asked me to bring a noddle cart and then I got locked out and..." He stopped upon realizing where he was and who was starring at him. "Oh my gosh! The Furious Five! I'm so sorry! I just wanted to see you in action and-"

"You," Master Oogway suddenly said, causing everyone to turn toward him, "...are the Dragon Warrior."

"Master, are you looking at me?" Master Tigress asked with stepping forward and Po nodding excitedly.

"No, him," Master Oogway said.

"Who?" Po nervously asked with moving right and left, unable to escape the tortoise's pointing finger.

"You!" he responded with a big smile.

"Him?" Blu and Dominic asked at unison.

"Me?" Po asked.

Oogway then took Po's hand and lifted it toward the sky. "The Universe has brought us the Dragon Warrior!"

"What?" Po said.

"What?" The Five said.

"What?" Shifu said.

"What?" Mr. Ping who justly entered the arena's gate said.

"Oh, this is gonna be fun," Dominic said with a smirk.

* * *

And so, the palace servants carried Po to the Jade Palace (not without difficulties) while Master Shifu ordered his students to go back at the training hall while he was going to _welcome_ the panda in person.

Inside the hall, Crane balanced on the Jade Tortoise with Lazaro, the two exchanging kicks, while Monkey jumped through the Seven-Talon Rings (metal rings with blades balancing from the ceiling), Viper slithered across the field with jets of fire irrupting, Mantis made his way through the wooden mannequins Dominic faced the days before, and Tigress jumped on rolling platforms with spiked clubs swinging at her, using her feline instincts to dodge them.

"I can't believe this panda stole the Dragon Warrior title!" the feline angrily groaned as she smashed a club into splinters.

"Don't be so dramatic!" Dominic responded. He was using a wooden sword to train with Jewel who was using a bo staff. "I'm certain Master Oogway chose him for good reasons."

"So you guys know him?" Mantis asked while still running through the wooden mannequins.

"Yup," Alex responded with a nod. He was sitting on a wooden pillar, watching over a match between Hernandez and Vladimir. "He works at a noodle shop with his father. They make delicious food!" the kid happily said with pressing his wings on his cheeks.

"So he's a cook and not a warrior?" Crane asked.

"Come on, you don't need to be a warrior to automatically know to fight," Lazaro deadpanned. "Take us for example: before becoming pirates, Blu was a companion in Minnesota; Jewel was the daughter of a tribe's chief; Dominic was a soldier and hunter; Alex was a doctor; Vladimir was a soldier too, and Hernandez and I were just wanderers. We become strong through our own ways."

Eventually, the hall doors opened and Po and Master Shifu came through. Upon noticing it, Tigress destroyed a swinging club with a double palm strike and sent a piece of it right into Po's face, making him groan in pain. This earned her a glare from Dominic who knew she did this on purpose.

"Alright, Panda, it is time for you to show what you can do," Master Shifu said after hiding a little chuckle.

Upon looking at the field with deadly obstacles, Po couldn't help but gulp nervously. "Huh...do you have anything easier? Like, let's say...level 0. That's good, level 0."

"There is no 'Level 0' in Kung Fu," the red panda said.

"How about...this guy?" Po said, gesturing to the dummy punching bag dummy in the corner of the hall.

"That?" Shifu questioned. "It's a tool for children to train with and a prop the door open during summer when it gets hot inside. But if you insist."

Po suddenly widened his eyes in surprise as the Five gathered to see him in action, followed by the Crew. "Oh my gosh! The Furious Five. You're way taller than your figurines. Except maybe you, Mantis, you're the same size," he remarked, causing the bug to simply glare.

"Come on, panda. Show us what you can do," Shifu ordered.

Taking a deep breath, Po turned toward the dummy and took a mocking fighting pose. "So, want to face me, huh? Think that look on your face will save you? Well too bad, get ready to feel the THUNDA!"

"Just hit it, Panda!" Shifu said, not tolerating Po's shenanigans.

Po complied and gave a light to the dummy who just bounced and lightly hit Po's tummy. "Maybe you should just give more strength behind your attack," Blu suggested.

"Yeah, come on, dude, kick this dummy's butt!" Lazaro said, encouraging his panda pal.

The Dragon Warrior smiled and gave a bigger punch that made the dummy's head touch the floor. Po looked with a satisfied smile at the masters before the dummy bounced back, hitting him so hard that he was sent flying into the hall's obstacles. The groups were about to help him, but Shifu stopped them with one harm, enjoying seeing the helpless panda bouncing in hilarious but painful ways.

The panda slipped through the Jade Tortoise, burned himself in the fire field, got knocked silly by the wooden mannequins, hit the seven talons rings, and even the swinging clubs. At the end, he landed in a heap before the masters and pirates.

"Congratulations, panda, there is now a level 0," Master Shifu said before putting away a burning tuff of fur on the panda's head.

While the Masters looked either unimpressed or amusing of the panda, Blu's group just looked unhappily at Shifu for being so mean with him...

* * *

 **I won't lie to you; I outright hated Shifu for the way he acted toward Po in the movie. What a jerk.**

 **On a side note, I'm sorry if the dialogues are not like in the movie: I only saw it completely in French.**

 **Also, my story got over 400 reviews! Oh my gosh! Thank you so much, guys! It's the first time I do this since my career started 5 years ago. I think I'm gonna cry.**


	134. Chatting around a meal

Later on that day, Blu's group have been led to a natural hot spring at the back of the Jade Palace that had been converted into a bath house by the palace servants. The feathered friends relaxed in the warm water, letting it melt away the stress from the last days and also cleaning themselves for the occasion. Luckily, the house was divided in two parts: one for the guys and one for the girls.

"Awww, that feels so good," Blu sighed happily, laying in the warm bath.

"Yup. I like Kung Fu, but relaxing's cool too," Lazaro said as he was helping Alex getting all clean.

The friends remained silent for a moment before Jewel decided to break it from her side which was separated with a Chinese sheet wall. "So...what do you guys think of Master Shifu?"

All the guys turned toward her direction. "What do you mean, Jewel?" Blu asked his girlfriend.

"Well...he seems pretty hard with all f us since we arrived. And specially with Po. I mean, I understand he's a Kung Fu master and all, but still."

"It's because he's a big jerk!" Alex said with an unusual mean attitude.

"It seems like it, but I personally think it's because Po got to be chosen as the Dragon Warrior instead of Shifu's students," Dominic said.

"That doesn't excuse what he did!" Alex suddenly exclaimed. "You were firm and hard with us too, Dom, but that was only to make us stronger; you never did anything to humiliate us or low down our confidence (well, maybe except for Lazaro). So this Shifu's just a bad guy!"

Everybody just starred at the snowy owl kid for a while...before bursting out in laughters. "Wisdom comes from the voice of children," Dominic said with Vladimir nodding in agreement.

* * *

Later on, after they finished taking their bath, the Blue Thunder Crew joined the Furious Five in the dining room for a good meal which consisted of tofu and tea. Dominic decided to take this opportunity to tell everyone's backstory. Starting with Alex; he told them how he lost his friend Yukio and wants to become strong enough to make sure she'll hear his name from heaven. This caused the Five (except apparently for Tigress) to feel more sympathy toward the kid.

"She's in a better place. She's your guardian angel, Alex," Viper said with gently stroking Alex's head with her tail while Crane patted his back with his wing.

"Thanks," Alex said with a smile before whipping one tear away.

Dominic then told them the story of Hernandez and Lazaro, how they met, how Hernandez's childhood was, and how they swore to give punches and kicks for each other all the time. In other words, having each other's back.

"Wow, you guys are very close," Monkey remarked.

"Absolutely, I'm here to make sure this big guy doesn't get in trouble," Lazaro said with a smirk.

"And I'm here to make sure he makes his dream to prove little guys can be though become true," the pelican said with a soft smile.

Dominic then told them Vladimir's story, how he took him under his care during their time in the military back in Russia, how he got his Magical Fruit, how Dominic left him one day to become stronger and how he regretted what he did. Of course, he had to explain them how was the Human World to make it clear for them.

"It wasn't your fault, Dominic," Viper kindly said.

"You don't understand; I left Vladimir and my brothers at arm just to follow my personal purpose. That's not worth of a soldier like me at all," Dominic said with rubbing his forehead.

"But you got to look at positive side. Think about it. If you didn't leave Vladimir and your brothers, then you wouldn't be here or meet your friends and us too," Crane pointed out with a nod.

Dominic looked at everyone and smiled. "Yeah, I wouldn't have met my tovarishchi at all," he admitted with looking at Blu.

Apollo then told his story as well, but the others had an hard time understand as he mentioned things like video games, card games and the art of crafting. In the end, the Five just understood that he was really creative and socially nervous.

Finally, Blu and Jewel shared their history from their time in the Amazon to the moment they met and all the adventures they lived with their friends as well as their dreams and ambitions.

Viper giggled as she found them cute. "You really wanna become the strongest in the world?" Crane asked Blu. "You know you're gonna have to become better than Master Oogway for that."

"I know, but it's my dream and I'm gonna do everything to make it come true," Blu declared with confidence, earning a kiss on the cheek from Jewel. "And what about you guys? Have you always been Kung Fu masters?"

"Not exactly," Mantis said. "I used to live in a village where I fought many bandits thanks to my huge speed. however, I got captured and imprisoned by bandits one day and I had to sit around doing nothing for days. This made me understand that I needed patience and good plans to be a good warrior. I managed to escape and followed a career as a doctor before meeting my friends and becoming a master."

"It's true that patience is the key to become better," Dominic pointed out. "Something Lazaro have an hard time learning," he added with a pointing look at the puffin who chuckled innocently.

"As for me," Master Monkey started, "I lived in a village where everybody made constant fun of me for being a goofball. I got back at them by pranking everyone nonstop until the day Master Oogway came and defeated me in a prank battle. He convinced me to help the people of my village and I started a career as a comedian. I ended up joining the palace and become Master of Monkey Style of Kung Fu."

"Is it me or does this guy sounds like Jackie Chan?" Vladimir mumbled to Dominic.

"I was the daughter of Grand Master Viper," Viper said at her turn. "He was known for his legendary Poison Fang Technique which made him the greatest warrior of the Viper Clan. However, I was born without feng at first and therefore couldn't carry on the poison. This made him really sad, so I decided to learn ribbon dance for him."

"Ribbon dancing?" Alex asked curiously.

Viper giggled. "I'll show you tomorrow. I ended up being the best dancer of the village and, one night, during a festival, a giant gorilla bandit attacked our village. Father couldn't take him down because of a strong metal armor he was wearing. I decided to stand up for him and somehow, managed to take him down with my ribbon."

"Like you did with me a few days ago?" Alex asked again.

"Exactly," she giggled.

"What about you, Crane?" Apollo asked.

The avian looked down at his plate. "Well...I worked first at the famous Lee Da Academy which is known for forming great prodigies and masters."

"You trained there?" Apollo asked. "Wow, in that case, you must be-"

"No, no, no," the master of Crane Style interrupted him. "I worked there as a janitor for years. I was constantly pulled down there by the students and masters...well, safe for one. Her name was Mei Ling and she convinced me to participate in a competition which I ended up winning and earning everyone's respect in the process."

"That's cool," Blu said before turning toward Tigress. "And what's your story, Tigress?"

She just let out a scoff. "I don't want to talk about it," she simply said and kept eating her tofu.

Dominic couldn't help but glance at the feline, not really liking this attitude of hers.

* * *

 **If you wanna know more about the Furious Five stories, you should go watch the short movie "Secret Of The Furious Five".**

 **It sounds like hostilities are building up between Dominic and Tigress, don't you think? Maybe a fight between them in the near future?**


	135. Fenghuang

The next day, the Jade Palace residents had the luxury of a day off. While their friends were doing other things, Blu and Dominic walked into the training courtyard to find Po trying and failing to perform even the simplest of Kung Fu moves.

"Not great, dude," Dominic said with helping the panda back onto his foot. "If you wanna progress and become a good warrior, you need to find your inner balance."

"Inner balance? Is that some kind of technique?" Po asked with rubbing the side of his head.

"No, it's finding your strengths in battle and your body to your advantage as well. A bit like Blu's doing with his plastic body," the golden eagle explained.

"But I mostly use knowledge and improvisation in combat," Blu explained. "Do you have any skill at all?"

"Well, I've been cooking all my life at my dad's shop and that's pretty much it."

"Maybe I can help you with something," Blu suggested. "I read some archives about Kung Fu at the palace's library and found something interesting: a fighting style that's all about countering. For short, it requires you to use your opponent's strength against them. Considering that you're a pretty big target, being able to redirect attacks would be an awesome skill, don't you think?"

"Awesome," Po said, getting his paws together in a bow. "So what's the first step?"

"Remember that dummy accident yesterday?" Blu asked. "You just have to do the exact same thing. Your natural body fat gives you a cushion against physical blows, so use it to your advantage."

"Wait, you want me to get hit?" Po asked in confusion.

"Not a good idea," Dominic said with shaking his head. "What you need to do is try to find a flaw in the opponent's fighting style. They throw a punch at you? Dodge and pull them toward you. They trip you down? Fall toward them to pin them under your weight. I've never trained this kind of people before, so it's mostly up to you to figure out your fighting style."

He then positioned himself beside the panda. "But that doesn't mean I can't teach you one thing or two. When you fight, make sure your arms are lifted at chest level," he said with taking a boxing position and boxing his wings around.

* * *

While all this was happening, Alex studied through the palace's archives to search for good medicinal plants and other things for meds and food. Eventually, he came across a rather interesting thing: a special plant called aegopodium that could make great cures.

The only problem was that this plant only grew up in high mountains. Luckily, the kid noticed there was high mountains all around the Valley. He could easily climb up one of them, get a sample of that plant and get back home before anyone noticed he was gone. And besides, he didn't need parental supervision: he was a fighter after all.

So, packing up his things, the snowy owl kid sneakily left the Jade Palace and the Valley to climb up a mountain. The one he chose was snowy and had pretty strong cold winds that made it hard to walk up the way. Luckily he was a snowy owl, making those winds useless against him.

Before long, the kid reached the top of the mountain from where he got a good view across the whole landscape. It was beautiful, but he didn't came for the view. Alex started running his wings across the snow on the ground, searching for the plant he came to get.

"Where it is? Where it is?" he asked himself in his head.

After what felt like tens of minutes, he finally found something interesting: a little green plant that looked like herb and didn't seemed to fit with the natural landscape. It was the aegopodium! Smiling, the kid reached his wing to pick up to plant. He was going to create new meds with it.

PSSSH!

Upon touching it with his wing, the plant released a strange light blue smoke flew out and caused Alex to cough out. "Wow! What was that thing? The book didn't...said anything...about...smoke..."

Alex's head felt heavy and the world was spinning around him. He collapsed on the snowy ground and the last thing he saw before passing out was a figure walking toward him...

* * *

Alex groaned as he slowly regained consciousness. His head was still hurting a bit, but at least, he was still alive. That was a good thing. He had to blink his eyes a few times before properly opening them and scouted his surroundings to see he was in some sort of cave. As if that was not surprising enough, he was even laying in some kind of soft, warm, cozy bed. Who got him in here?

"Finally awake?"

As if on cue, he turned to see someone standing near him. It was an adult owl - a female apparently - with gray feathers, except for the ones on her face which were pure white. She had yellow eyes with violet irises and a little lipstick on her black beak. She was wearing a violet vest with gold trimming.

"W-Who are you?" Alex asked with a confused look.

"And how about you start by thanking me, kid?" the elder owl replied with rolling her eyes. "I could've let you out there to fall prey to bandits roaming around, but I didn't. And what is a kid like you doing all the way out here without parental supervision anyways? We're far from the Valley."

"I'm not just a kid from this village," Alex said, looking slightly insulted. "I'm a pirate from the sea."

The owl just starred at the kid...before breaking out laughing. "Kid, you realize we're not playing games in here, right?" she said with whipping a tear away.

Alex looked even more insulted. "I'm not joking around! I'm part of the Blue Thunder Crew with my friends. We arrived to the Valley Of Peace a few days ago and got to train with Master Shifu and the Furious Five. We even got to see the Dragon Warrior getting selected. He's my friend."

The elder owl widened her eyes in surprise and then looked back at the kid. "Wait, wait, what did you just say? You and your friends got to train at the Jade Palace and the Dragon Warrior has already been selected?"

"Yes," he responded with a nod. "His name is Po and he's a panda."

The owl blinked her eyes, turned away to think for a while, and then looked back at him. "Listen, what's your name, kid?"

"I'm Alex, nice to meet you."

"Alex? Doesn't sound very Chinese."

"It's because I'm not from China: I'm from France in the Human World."

France? Human World? This kid was bringing a lot of questions to the owl's mind, but for now, she didn't really cared. "Anyway, Alex, my name's Fenghuang. I'm gonna bring you back at the Valley IF you promise not to tell anyone of my whereabouts."

The kid tilted his head curiously. "Why you don't want them to know you're here? You're playing a game of hide and seek?"

Fenghuang facewinged herself at the kid's innocence before getting serious. "No, I got...my reasons. But you MUST promise me not to tell anyone, okay?"

The kid just starred at her...before smiling. "Alright, you saved my life, so I guess that's the least I can do for you, Miss Fenghuang."

The elder owl sighed in relief and then turned her head toward the cave's entry from where they could see it was night time and the wind was blowing really hard outside.

"This storm will last for a while. I'm afraid you'll have to stay here until tomorrow before going back to the Valley." She turned toward him again. "You should try to get some sleep."

"Oh? Okay," Alex just nodded and laid back down into his bed, closing his eyes and trying to relax a bit. Without really knowing why, he felt he could trust this lady owl. As he slowly snored into his bed, Fenghuang glanced at the kid. Even though he was a snowy owl, his body was a little small, meaning he could be sensitive to the cold air.

Sighing, she lifted the blanket to get into the bed after removing her robes and wrapped her wings around Alex to keep him warm.

* * *

As she promised, Fenghuang brought Alex back to the Valley of Peace the day after. The kid thanked her as he also got the plant he came to search and made his way back to the Jade Palace. "Strange kid...," she thought before flying back to the mountains.

After climbing up the thousand stairs, Alex finally reached the Jade Palace where he was greeted by Hernandez. "There you are, Alex. Where have you been? We've searched for you everywhere, yesterday."

Alex was about to tell the truth, but remembered his promise to Fenghuang. "Sorry, I went to search for a plant in the mountains, but I couldn't find it even after all this time of work." That wasn't completely a lie; he did had an hard time finding this plant after all.

"Oh, okay," the pelican simply said, believing him. He then looked behind him and back to Alex. "Say, Al, there's something important I'd like to discuss with you."

The kid looked curiously at his friend. "About what?"

* * *

Meanwhile, in the snow-covered mountains far away from the Valley, a snow leopard had recently escaped from prison. Walking through the maze, he stopped as three figures appeared before him.

"So you have escaped, Tai Lung, said one of the figures.

"We have been waiting for your return," said the second one.

"What is your first action?" asked the third.

"The Wu Sisters," the snow leopard known as Tai Lung said. "It is time to take revenge on the Jade Palace and reclaim my birthright. Go and gather the most fearsome of China's warriors. We will form an army. Nothing will stop me from completing my destiny."

"Yes, Tai Lung," the Wu Sisters said, disappearing into the snow.

Tai Lung smiled sinisterly as he started running toward the Valley of Peace, ready to take his revenge.

* * *

 **For those of you who don't know, Fenghuang is a character from the TV series "Kung Fu Panda: Legends Of Awesomeness". While I don't really like this show, I cannot deny it introduced many interesting characters, Fenghuang being one of them. She's gonna play a part in this arc.**


	136. Tai Lung's past

**Before this chapter starts, I wanna point out something: for those of you who found it strange that Fenghuang slept half-naked with a kid, it was only for logical reasons: you really think it would be possible to sleep with a vest on?**

* * *

"OUCH!" While Alex was gone, Master Shifu made Po go through a pretty rough series of training which saw him facing every Furious Five members in one-on-one action. When that wasn't enough to make him give up, Master Shifu himself took care of beating him down and send him fly down the thousand stairs. Of course, the panda still climbed them back up.

Starting to develop a little admiration for his determination, Viper and Mantis decided to help him with his wounds. In the bug's room, he was running across the panda's back to plant needles across it while Viper was holding a drawing of his body for help. Alex was sitting in a corner, taking notice of this form of medicine.

"I thought you said acupuncture would make me feel better," the big bear groaned in pain while looking at Mantis who planted a needle into his shoulder.

"Trust me, it will," Mantis said. "It's just not easy finding the right nerve points under all this..."

"Fat?" Po asked.

"Fur. I was gonna say fur," the bug said before taking out the needle from his shoulder and crawling away on his back. "Who am I to judge a warrior based on his size? Look at me." Po turned to his right to try and look at the master who was on his left shoulder. "I'm over here."

He planted another needle, causing the poor panda to whine in pain again. "Maybe you should take a look at this again," Viper suggested with holding the drawing closer.

"Oh, okay," Mantis said with giving a more inspecting look at the drawing and kept trying to plant the needles correctly without much success as Po kept screaming in pain over and over again, disturbing the masters and pirates in the other rooms.

"I know Master Shifu's trying to inspire me and all, but if I didn't knew him, I'd say he's trying to get rid of me," Po nervously chuckled, causing Viper and Mantis to exchange quick glances and then smile innocently at their panda friend while Alex just rolled his eyes behind his notebook as he knew it was EXACTLY what the red panda was trying to do.

"I know he can seem a bit heartless," Mantis said with jumping back on Blu's shoulder and planted yet another needle into his neck, making him wince in pain again. "But you know, he wasn't always like that."

"According to legend, there was once a time where Master Shifu actually used to smile," Viper said.

"Really?" Po and Alex asked at unison.

"Yeah," Mantis confirmed with a nod.

"But that was before," Viper said.

"Before what?" Po curiously asked.

Before the lady snake could go on further, the room's door suddenly opened and in came none other than Master Tigress. "Before Tai Lung," she completed.

"Huh, yeah, we're not really allowed to talk about him," Master Crane said from the other room.

The feline took notice that their conversation caused the Blue Thunder Crew to come out and listen as well. "Well, if they're going to stay, they should know," she simply said.

"Guys, I know about Tai Lung," Po assured. "He was Shifu's student, the first ever to master the thousand scrolls techniques, but then he turned bad and now he's in jail?" he asked.

"He wasn't just a student," Tigress said and looked down. "Shifu found him as a kid and he raised him as his son. And when the boy showed talent for Kung Fu, Shifu trained him. He believed in him, telling him that he was destined to greatness. It was never enough for Tai Lung. He wanted the dragon scroll, but Oogway saw darkness in his heart and refused."

"Outraged, Tai Lung laid waste to the Valley. He tried to take the scroll by force and Shifu had to destroy what he created...but how could he? Only Oogway's interference ultimately neutralized him. Shifu loved Tai Lung like he never had loved anyone before. And ever since..."

The master of Tiger Style looked down with what looked like sadness for a moment. But then, she slowly looked back at Po with slight irritation. "And now, he has the chance to make things right, to train the TRUE Dragon Warrior. And he's stuck with you, a big, fat panda who treats it like a joke."

Po suddenly did a funny face. "Oh, that's it!" Tigress angrily said and, just as Dominic and Lazaro jumped in to stop her, Mantis also jumped on Po's nose.

"No wait, my fault! I accidentally touched his facial nerves!" Po then dropped on his stomach to reveal his while back was covered of needles. "And may also have stopped his heart," he innocently said with poking at Po's immobilized face.

Alex took notes of this in his notebook.

* * *

It was a dark and stormy night as the palace goose, Zeng, made his way back to the Jade Palace. Up in the dark clouds, it was impossible to see the looming threat overhead: a gang of vultures sent by Tai Lung to dispose of the messenger. Luckily for Zeng, Master Crane was on the job, swooping in to grab the goose from harm.

"You need to be more careful, Zeng," Crane said, dodging the vultures. "There has been more activity from the gangs around China recently."

"That's why I'm here!" Zeng said. "I have an urgent message for Master Shifu!"

Nodding, the master of Crane Style dodged the vultures and eventually made it back to the Jade Palace where Master Shifu, the Dragon Warrior, the Furious Five and the Blue Thunder Crew came to see him.

"Tai Lung has escaped from the Chor-Gom prison! He's on his way here for the Dragon Scroll!" the goose hurriedly said.

"What?!" everyone widened their eyes in surprise. Shifu then frowned. "It will take Tai Lung some time to get here. We must see the village at once."

While the Five and Crew nodded, Po looked a bit hesitant; some big evil was coming and they were expecting _him_ to stop it.

"Okay guys, sounds great!" the panda said, slowly walking back into the palace. "Let me just grab a snack so that I can...huh, build up my Chi."

The Five ignored Po as they went to protect the village. Blu turned to face his friends. "Go help them with the village; I'll stay with Po to guard the palace."

His friends all nodded and Jewel gave him a kiss on the cheek before going down to the village. Blu got back in the palace and closed the big gates behind. He found Po just standing there, looking at him.

"We should find something to do; something tells me it's gonna be a long night," Blu remarked.

"Okay," Po said and walked over the many artifacts displayed across the palace's hall. For the next minutes, Po talked about those artifacts to Blu: Master Flying Rhino's armor which belonged to a legendary Kung Fu master, the Sword Of Heroes which was said to be so cutting that you could get cut just by starring at it, and the Sarcophagus of Su Wu which was said to have imprisoned many famed criminals in the past.

"...And finally, here is the Dragon Scroll," Po said, pointing at a beautiful scroll trapped into the jaw of a metal dragon on the roof standing over the water pool at the end of the hall.

"What's so special about this Dragon Scroll?" Blu curiously asked while starring at it.

"Honestly, I have no idea. I guess it's something with the prophecy of the Dragon Warrior," Po just shrugged.

"Oh, okay. Say, Po, I wanted to ask you something: your father's a goose, so does that mean you have been adopted? If you don't mind me asking of course."

Po just starred at Blu before rubbing his chin and looking up. "I think so, but I never really asked my father about my origins. Guess I'm just happy with the way my life is going."

"Oh, okay," Blu said. "It's because I never actually met my biological parents either. And I've also been adopted by a human who served as my mother for fifteen years."

Po blinked his eyes curiously. "What's a human?"

"Oh boy, I forgot you guys didn't knew about them... Well, imagine big monkeys with no fur and peach-colored skin."

* * *

And so, for most of the night, Po and Blu just chatted about a lot of things: from what they liked to funny moments of their lives. Blu even told Po his adventures starting from the moment he met Dominic to his adventures as a pirate and saving the Sequin Kingdom.

Suddenly, the roof of the palace started shaking, causing Zeng to run in . "Intruders!" the goose yelled. "Intruders in the palace!"

Soon, boars started coming down from the ceiling with smaller ones fighting bare-fisted and bigger ones wearing battle axes.

"W-We need to defend the artifacts from those thieves!" Po exclaimed, going into a typical Kung Fu fighting stance.

"Alright," Blu said, rising his plastic fists.

* * *

 **Tai Lung's past got revealed and Po and Blu are on their own to protect the Jade Palace. Will the Blue Thunder Crew captain and Dragon Warrior protect the artifacts?**

 **Also, yes, I'm following both the movie and video game's plot lines. I did so with Legend Of The Guardians, why couldn't I do it with KFP too?**


	137. The Tortoise Village

**Alright, time for Blu and Po to battle the intruders!**

* * *

The battle began with Blu easily beating the boars, knocking the smaller ones together and kicking the axes out of the bigger ones. Po also leapt into action, using the basic moves he knew (punches mixed with kicks) to dispatch most of the boars.

"Good job, Po!" Blu praised with a smile and stretched his plastic leg to whip many boars in one shot.

Eventually, after many waves of boars and some close calls with the artifacts almost getting stolen, the duo got a break from fighting. It was short lived, however, when a huge sword (which looked more like a big knife) dropped from the ceiling and a massive pig came down as well. This pig was even bigger than Po in terms of height.

"You dare to challenge the BLACKHOOF BOAR CLAN?!" shouted the boar at the two heroes.

"This guy has a ridiculous voice," Blu remarked which made Po chuckle and nod.

Starting this battle against the Boar Clan leader, the duo dodged as he came at them with his sword. Surprisingly fast with this weapon, the two friends had to take some distance before counter-attacking. Taking a risk by ducking the sword and rolling behind the boar, Blu sent his winged arms behind and sent them to slam right into the boar's back with a Power Slam.

Po took his turn next, running forward and, in the split-second of an idea, launched himself like a ball to roll directly into the boar, sending him across the hall and onto the floor, unconscious. "Skidoosh!" Po cried, doing a little victory dance.

"Awesome, dude!" Blu complimented his panda friend with a smile. "Creating your own moves is a good way to become a great warrior. That's what I do with my own attacks. How are you gonna call it?"

"How about the 'Panda Roll'?" he suggested.

"That actually sounds pretty cool," Blu said with showing his thumb-up.

At that moment, Shifu walked through the front of the palace, quickly noticing the unconscious boars laying around everywhere.

"What happened here?" the master asked.

Zeng, coming out of his hiding place, simply pointed toward Blu and Po who were both smiling and doing Kung Fu poses.

"I see. You did...well, panda," Shifu said with a reluctant tone.

"I did?" Po said. "I mean, yeah I did! Cuz, you know, I used my 'super, bamboo, panda awesomeness'! And Blu was 'unstoppable plastic hit' and..."

Shifu could only hold his head as Po continued to drone on. "FOCUS!" the red panda yelled, snapping the Dragon Warrior out of his speech. "I need you to focus. While we were in the village, we heard that the Croc Gang has invaded Lotus Lake. Word is starting to spread about Tai Lung. We've got to do something. You two need to go and assist the villagers."

"Whoa!" Po exclaimed. "The two of us and Master Crane?! Oh, WAHOO! I need to pack my stuff! This will be so cool!" the panda said, running off to his chamber.

Crane just starred at the panda before turning back to Blu. "You really wanna come too?"

"Of course, If I'm to accomplish my dream and become the strongest bird in the world, I gotta face every challenge!" Blu declared with optimism.

* * *

After one hour of walking (or flying in Crane's case), the trio arrived at Lotus Lake which revealed itself to be a pretty calm and peaceful lake with a lot of water, some mist and rocks all around. It wasn't that surprising, considering they were on top of a mountain.

They were greeted by the leader of the village, a tortoise woman who looked like Master Oogway, but feminine version. "Master Crane!" she happily said before turning to the other two. "And you must be Po and Captain Blu. We've heard about you! Thank goodness you're here!"

"What's the problem, mam?" Blu asked her.

"It's been awful! The crocodiles! They're everywhere! They're trying to steal our eggs," the woman said.

"Strange," Crane said. "I don't see how stealing eggs would help Tai Lung in his revenge against the Jade Palace."

"Crocs?" Po asked nervously. "Huh, boars are more my things, but I'm certain Crane and Blu can deal with them."

Crane cleared his throat. "Master Shifu said this for _all_ of us to do, Po."

"My! You must be experienced warriors," the village chief said.

"Well, I've been fighting for two years now, but Po...," Blu said with rubbing the back of his head.

"But you have years of training!" the woman insisted.

"Well, actually, I only started training a few days ago," Po said with rubbing the back of his head, Crane nodding in agreement at that statement.

"Okay then, how good are you at finding eggs?" the chieftain asked.

"Eggs? Me? Top!" Po said, giving a thumb up.

"Okay then, that's the plan," Crane said. "You guys are on foot, and I'll search overhead. Good luck." With a tip of his hat, the waterfowl flew off to look for the eggs.

"Okay then, goodbye my friends. I'll meet you on the other side of the lake," the village chief said, swimming away into the lake.

"Let's go," Blu said. For the next minutes, the panda and macaw jumped on lily pads to get on every part of the lake and collect the eggs spread across it. Po used his big arms to hold all of them while Blu used his plastic limbs to catch the eggs.

Before long, they found all the lost eggs and got to the other side where the village chief waited for them. "Egg Master Po!" the woman said, seeing all the eggs and hatchling the duo gathered.

"Um, I really wish you wouldn't say that out loud," Po said. "It's kinda not Kung Fu-y sounding, ya know?"

"Too late for that," Blu chuckled. "Ah, there's Crane."

Indeed, Master Crane came down to meet with the group, landing next to Po. "I see that you have found all the eggs," he said. "I scouted ahead and found out where the croc's leader is."

"The Crocodile Queen has set up her lair in the town plaza," the village chief explained. "You must get there fast!"

Before anything else could be said, the ground shook as if an earthquake was happening. Everyone felt its effects, making Po fall on his stomach.

"What's happening?!" the panda asked.

"No, it can't be!" Crane exclaimed. "This area doesn't get earthquakes! The only thing that can cause one like this is the Scared War Hammer of Lei Lang! The Five and I had found it on one of our missions and kept it in the Jade Palace for safe keeping. One of the boars must have escaped with it and brought it here!"

"Then let's stop them before the whole village is destroyed!" Blu said and started running across the lake by jumping on lily pads.

Crane turned to Po. "Po, if you want to help, then you'll need some other way across. I don't think I can carry you because of your..."

"Weight? I know, I'm fat," the panda replied with a pouting look.

"I can take you across," the chief offered and got into the lake. "Just jump on my shell and I'll swim you across."

"Alright then, see you at the town plaza," Crane said, flying off to catch up with Blu.

* * *

When the heroes gathered near the town plaza, they found the Crocodile Queen sleeping with a baby tortoise in her clutches.

"There's the queen, but where's the hammer?" Blu asked.

Crane shrugged and failed to notice Po jumping on the plaza to sneak and grab the baby tortoise free, but also waking the queen up in the process.

"Who dares wake me up?" the Crocodile Queen demanded with an irritated voice.

At that, Po rushed back at the others, only to be blocked by a massive crocodile holding a war hammer in his hands. "Whoa, huge croc," Po mumbled, slowly stepping back to his two friends.

"Ah, Lidong, my loyal and highest-ranked soldier," the queen said. "Do your queen a favor and whip these pests for me? I might just make you my new king for it."

"Whatever you say, my liege," Lidong said. Jumping into the water, the crocodile held the Sacred War Hammer high in the air and brought it down on the water, causing a giant wave that towered over the entire plaza form.

"Guys, this is bad! Really bad!" Po panicked.

"We need to get out of here! Crane?" Blu asked, and then turned over to see Crane was frozen, looking at the huge wave with a look of terror on his face.

"Your friend is too scared to do anything!" the queen laughed. "And now, you will die because of him!"

"Crap!" Blu mumbled in panic. "Everyone! Get behind me! I'm gonna turn into a balloon and try to put the effects of this wave down as much as possible!"

Crane stood still, but then looked at the blue macaw - a pirate - who was ready to give his life to protect them while he, a Kung Fu master, was too afraid to act. Stepping forward, Crane felt something new yet familiar, something that his friend taught him a long time ago.

Confidence.

"I won't let my fears get to me! Not when my friends need my help!" the bird shouted. Taking a deep breath, Crane reached out his wings and, with one move, made the wave break in two, falling on either sides of the group.

"What?!" Lidong and the Queen exclaimed at unison.

"H-How did you do that?!" Blu asked, pretty much surprised as well.

"I-I don't know...I just felt I could do it," Crane responded with looking at his wings.

"That was awesome!" Po exclaimed with grabbing the crane into a bear hug, crushing his ribs a little.

"Enjoy your little victory," Lidong said. "As long as I wield this hammer, I'll bring this whole lake down on you!"

"Only if you can catch us first!" Po said and grabbed the baby tortoise before running to the edge of the lake. As he jumped toward a lily pad, Crane came overhead and picked the panda up, using his newfound water abilities to boost themselves in the air.

"Lidong, after them, I'll deal with this one," the Queen said, turning to face Blu.

As she jumped toward him, Blu simply rolled out of the way and shot his two arms backward. "POWER SLAM!" Hitting her under the jaw with all of his strength, Blu managed to sent her away from the plaza and crash into the mountain. "I don't have time to play games with you."

* * *

The blue macaw then left to go see if his friends were okay. He found them at the feet of a waterfall with the chieftain holding the baby tortoise in her hands and Po and Crane laying down in exhaustion.

"Egg Master! You saved my grandchild!" the chieftain happily said. "You are a true hero."

"Um, I-I helped, you know," Crane said with getting up and adjusting his hat.

"That's true," Blu nodded. "So what happened to Lidong and the Sacred Hammer? I took care of the Crocodile Queen."

"Sorry, but the Hammer fell down the waterfall alongside Lidong when he tried to catch us," Po explained. "It's probably at the bottom of the lake by now."

"Then we'll fish it out and return to the Jade Palace to tell Shifu that we saved the village," Blu said with an optimistic smile.

* * *

 **Man, two 2000k chapters in one day! I'm drained out!**

 **The Dragon Warrior and Blue Thunder Crew captain stopped the Blackhoof Boar Clan and protected all the artifacts safe for the Sacred Hammer of Lei Lang (which is from Legend Of Awesomeness as well as Lidong too). For you who wonders how Crane stopped the water, you'll know very soon, don't worry.**


	138. Chi and hidden powers

Arriving back at the Valley of Peace, the heroes were greeted by Master Shifu, the other Furious Five, and Blu's friends. The three bowed in respect as Crane presented the Sacred War Hammer to Shifu.

"The Imperial Golden Croc Army has been defeated, and we have recovered the Sacred War Hammer of Lei Lang that had been stolen from the Jade Palace," Crane explained.

Shifu took the hammer and looked at the heroes, seeming almost impressed. "Good job, Master Crane. You did a good job leading those warriors on your mission. I trust that those two have behaved themselves?"

"Um, actually Master, it was Po and Blu who did most of the work," Crane admitted.

"Come on, take some credit, dude," Po said, giving a friendly nudge to Crane. "After all, you saved us by stopping this huge wave with your power."

This statement got everyone's attention. "You stopped the water?" Mantis asked.

"You unlocked your Chi powers, Crane?" Shifu asked.

"Chi powers?" Lazaro asked.

"The Chi is a life energy that flows across every living being," Crane explained. "Some can materialize it under an elemental form, most of the time under fire, wind, water, ice, or even earth. In my case, it seems like it's water."

"Maybe we should take this conversation inside," Shifu suggested. "I'm sure you would all like to tell us more about your mission."

Jewel walked over to Blu and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "I sure hope you didn't took too much risk, my little blueberry."

"Come on, Jewel, cut him some break," Dominic said with rolling his eyes. "You really think he would be our captain if he couldn't take care of himself?"

"True," Jewel giggled as Blu nuzzled her cheek affectionately.

Alex then came and poked at Blu's leg to get his attention. "Guys, there's something I'd like to tell you."

"What is it, little Al?" Lazaro curiously asked.

"Well...when I went to get a plant in the snow mountains, I met a friend. She's an owl and...well, she's gonna come to meet me at the mountain behind the Jade Palace tonight. I'd like you to come to meet her."

Everybody looked curiously at him. "A friend you say? What's her name?" Dominic asked.

"She doesn't want me to tell you her name. Don't worry; she'll tell you everything once you'll see her."

The Blue Thunder Crew exchanged gazes before looking back at the kid and smiling. "Okay sure, we wouldn't mind meeting your friend then," Blu said.

"I just hope it won't be too late tonight; you know Master Shifu starts our training very soon," Apollo said.

Alex nodded and then walked over to Po, grabbing his paw with both wings to get his attention. "Hey, Po, are you gonna make us your awesome noodle soup for dinner tonight? Please?"

Po chuckled as he couldn't resist Alex's cute eyes. "Of course, little buddy."

* * *

Later that night, the Blue Thunder Crew were led by Alex on top of the mountains behind the Jade Palace. The group was standing in silence, looking up at the stars.

"So where's your friend, Al?" Apollo asked with a big yawn. "Let's meet her quick so that we can go back to sleep."

"Don't worry, she should be around here...well, I think," the kid said with rubbing the back of his head.

Suddenly, a flapping noise was heard and a figure landed behind Alex. He turned around and saw a familiar grey and white owl standing there before him. "Fenghuang!" he happily beamed and rushed to hug her. This caused her to look down at him unsurely as she wasn't really used to hugging.

"Well, hello there, kid," she said with simply patting the top of his head before turning her head to the group.

Blu was the first to step forward. "So you're Fenghuang, right? Nice to meet you, I'm Blu, the captain of the Blue Thunder Crew" He held his winged hand out to her for a shake.

The lady owl just starred between his hand and his face alternatively. She then looked back at Alex. "Wait, so this wasn't a joke. You guys are really pirates?" She then rubbed the back of her head. "Strange, I don't see any of you wearing bandanas, eyepatches or hats."

This statement caused everyone to facepalm collectively. "Why they all think pirates dress like that?" Lazaro asked in annoyance.

"But back to the main topic, can you tell us how you met Alex, Lady Fenghuang?" Vladimir asked.

"First off, no 'lady', it makes me feel old. Second, didn't your friend told you? I saved him after he was left to die in the cold of the mountains because of a plant that made him fall asleep," the elder owl explained.

"What?!" Lazaro exclaimed, turning to look at Alex. "Is that true?! You went out there by yourself without telling us?! You little imprudent-"

Dominic raised his wing to stop the angry puffin. "Cut him a break, Lazaro. Alex might be a kid, but he's still a member of this crew and can make his own decisions." He then turned toward the kid in question with a less happy look. "That being said, it's true that you should have at least told us; that way we would have come looking for you if you were gone for too long."

"Sorry, guys," the kid sincerely said with rubbing the back of his head.

Dominic just smiled and then looked back at Fenghuang. "Thank you for watching after this little snowball. So why did you wanted to meet us here?"

"Well, Alex told me a lot about you and I gotta admit you were sounding pretty special," the owl admitted. "So I wanted to meet you in person to see if that was true."

The group introduced themselves at turn and then showed each of their unique abilities: Blu's body of plastic, Dominic's sabers, Jewel's Wind Waker staff and her ability to cause a thunderstorm, Apollo's crafting and shooting skills, Alex's metamorphosing candies, Lazaro's strong legs, Hernandez's wing armor, and Vladimir's rock powers.

"Wow," the elder owl blinked her eyes in surprise. "So you really have strange powers." She looked at Blu. "You say you got these powers after eating a 'Magical Fruit'?"

"Yes, it's a kind of fruit that can give random powers to someone. No ways to know which powers it will be thought."

Fenghuang nodded and then looked at Dominic. "I gotta admit what you said about sensing something in your sabers interest me."

Dominic nodded and showed his Sabord saber. "I've been using this saber for years. I don't know how, but I felt a connection building between me and it. The same goes for Eau De Mort and Snow Run: I can...feel them."

"Strange indeed," Fenghuang said with rubbing her chin. "Anyways, I'm gonna ask you all to gather around me as I'm gonna check something."

The crew obeyed and gathered around the elder owl. She then rose her wings and focused really hard. Suddenly, a strange purple aura dome appeared around the whole group, causing them to look curiously.

"What's that? What's that?" Apollo nervously asked, hiding behind Vladimir.

Fenghuang just kept her eyes closed and eventually allowed the dome to fade away, opening them once again. "That was...interesting..."

"What did you just do?" Jewel asked with a confused look.

"I scanned your spirits to see if you possessed Chi."

"The same Chi Crane talked about earlier?" Lazaro asked.

"Yes," Fenghuang nodded. She then walked over to a little lake and placed her wing on the surface of it, creating ice. "As they probably told you, Chi can manifest into physical form for some warriors. In my case, it's ice. From what you told me, I think your friend's Chi have the form of water."

"And did you see our Chi forms?" Alex asked.

The owl lowered her head. "It's...complicated. I did see something, but it didn't felt like Chi to me." She looked at Blu. "The energy in saw in you was burning red - something I've never seen before." She then looked at Dominic. "Yours was purple and felt a bit...scary." To Alex. "Yours took the form of a golden helmet."

"A golden helmet?" Alex curiously asked.

Fenghuang nodded before turning to Apollo. "Yours took the form of deep yellow eyes. I'm not certain what this means." To Lazaro. "For you, I saw fire, but it wasn't the type of Fire Chi I know." To Hernandez. "Your energy took the shape of a white and red arm." She then looked at Jewel and Vladimir. "I'm sorry, but I couldn't sense anything into the two of you.

This statement caused the two of them to look down in disappointment. "But what all those things you saw mean? Do we have super powers sleeping in us?" Lazaro asked curiously.

Just as Fenghuang was about to answer, she was suddenly blindsided by Master Shifu and the Furious Five who jumped to hold the owl down. "Everyone, get back!" the red panda ordered. "Fenghuang is a powerful opponent even all of you can't face!"

"Hey! What are you doing?! Get off her!" Alex shouted, running to push Shifu off the owl as Dominic did the same with Tigress, Lazaro kicked Mantis back, Hernandez pushed Crane away, Jewel grabbed Viper and tossed her away, and Blu did the same with Monkey. "Fenghuang, are you okay?" Alex asked with helping her back up.

"Well, I've been better," she admitted.

"Wait, you know this fugitive?" Shifu asked.

The Blue Thunder Crew exchanged gazes as Shifu gave them a furious look, same for the Five. "Fugitive? What are you talking about?" Blu asked.

However, before anything else could be said, he along with the rest of his crew and Fenghuang were knocked unconscious in a split second by none other than Master Oogway who appeared.

* * *

 **Not good: the Blue Thunder Crew got spotted with Fenghuang and got captured by Master Oogway. Let's hope nothing too bad will happen to them.**


	139. The palace's dungeon

_"Blu...Blu...BLU!"_

Blu groaned as he slowly regained consciousness. Rubbing his head, he scouted his surroundings to see he was in a cell inside some kind of dungeon with his hands chained to the wall and his friends in the exact same position. He couldn't see Fenghuang, but saw a sarcophagus that looked like it was from ancient Egypt and was shaped like an owl with holes for the person inside to see. Also, beside this sarcophagus was a little metal cage into which Alex was locked, sitting against the cells with a sad look.

"Jewel! Guys, are you alright?" Blu asked, checking on his girlfriend for any sign of wounds.

"I'm okay, Blu," Jewel assured.

"This old tortoise knocked us out and locked us in here," Dominic said with pointing his head toward the out of the cage where Oogway, the Five, and Shifu were standing. "They took all the weapons we had to make sure we wouldn't escape."

"Let us go, you bunch of cowards!" Lazaro angrily screamed while struggling against his bonds to break free in vain while Hernandez just sat down, not saying anything.

Meanwhile, Viper slowly slithered to Alex's cage to look at the kid. "Alex, are you okay?" she asked with reaching her tail to gently pat his cheek.

However, the kid just pushed it away with his wing. "Why do you care? I'm your prisoner."

"Not so, my young friend," Oogway said. The tortoise walked over to the little cage and kneeled to get a look at the kid. "I can sense a strong pain in you. What is it?"

Alex just briefly looked at the master before turning away, not wanting to listen to him. Oogway sighed. "To understand why we've locked you in here, I think you first need to know the history Shifu and I had with Fenghuang."

everyone turned toward the tortoise to listen his story: "Fenghuang was once one of my students at the palace and a member of the original Furious Five. I had recognized special skills in her and decided to personally train her. However, as she grew stronger and stronger and eventually became the stronger in the Five, the recognition she got caused her heart to grow dark."

"One day, Fenghuang approached and challenged me to a fight, believing that she deserved to be the new master of the Jade Palace. However, I had anticipated this and built this cafe that you see, but I still had to fight and defeat her in order to get her inside it. After a long and fierce battle, Fenghuang found that she couldn't defeat me. But before I could contain her, she flew away from the palace. I've never sen her again since."

The whole crew just starred at him. Jewel then turned her head toward the owl-shaped cage. "F-Fenghuang, is that true?" Since she didn't answered, the group understood it meant yes.

"But that's impossible!" Apollo suddenly exclaimed. "If she's supposed to be evil like you say, then how come is it that she saved Alex's life in those mountains, barely tow days ago?! It's no logical!"

"I know the answer," Dominic suddenly said with a calm tone. "She must have changed since she had left the Jade Palace: spending time in solitude have this kind of effect on people: I know it, that's what I went through. I spent a lot of time traveling the world alone, but now, I cherish every moment with my new crew." He then narrowed his eyes at Oogway. "so I have to ask you this: how can you put so little faith into your student and plan on their turn to evil instead of trying to help her finding another path?"

"I had a friend that sought out power as much as Fenghuang did. He turned onto a path he could never return from, and I vowed to never let that happen again." the master then chuckled a bit. "Just because there are no accidents does not means we do not make poor decisions. Perhaps I was a bit pragmatic with my assessment of Fenghuang, and I drove her trust away from me. but the wonderful thing about life is that the past is behind us and we all have the choice to move on."

Oogway then turned to Fenghuang's cage and did a strange pattern on the front, the spots he touched glowing with Chi until the cage opened, letting Fenghuang falling out onto the floor.

"Thank goodness, I could barely breathe in there!" she gasped and then looked at Oogway with distain on her face.

"Master! What are you doing?!" Tigress asked in disbelief. "You can't just let her get away! She's a criminal!"

Fenghuang then turned her head toward the feline. "The leader of the new Furious Five. You have strength, I'll admit it. But I sense something lurking within you. Did you get a raise out of fighting?"

"I don't have to answer a traitor like you!" Tigress snarled with a growl.

"Now I see why the great Master Tigress always fight so hard," the owl said with a smirk. "You do this to get attention, don't you? You think by being the strongest, you can get recognition from Shifu, but all you get is this pitiful excuse for praise as a student instead of as his daughter."

She must have touched a bad point because Tigress let out a loud growl of anger. "SHUT UP!" Rushing toward the owl who was still feeling weak from being locked into the sarcophage, Tigress unleashed her claws, ready to cut her throat open.

"NO!"

SLASH!

The whole dungeon became silent after everything that happened in a split-second. Blood was slowly flowing out on the cold floor with some of it tainting Tigress' claws. the owl was bleeding a lot from the cut given by Tigress. However, this owl wasn't Fenghuang...

It was Alex.

Blu saw the cage in which he has been locked was open - surely did he escaped by picking up the lock like he taught the whole crew to do. Jumping just in time to protect Fenghuang, the kid took the attack for her and now had a very deep cut into his stomach which was spilling blood on the floor underneath him.

The kid was just standing there, slightly trembling and with his eyes closed. It took several seconds before his friends reacted.

"ALEX! NO!" everyone screamed in horror as Alex slowly collapsed backward and got caught up by Fenghuang's wings just in time.

Even the Five - mostly Viper - were shocked to see a kid getting hit like this and bleeding to death. Tigress stepped back and stuttered: "I...I...I wasn't aiming for him!"

Blu and Dominic, having broken free from their chains by picking them up with their talons, rushed to their hurt comrade and looked as his was visibly getting weaker with every once of blood escaping his body.

"No, no, no!" Blu panicked. "We gotta do something!"

Fenghuang quickly reached her wing down and created ice over Alex's wound to stop the bleeding, but he clearly lost too much blood from the weak look on his face. "Alex. Why? Why did you do that?!" Dominic asked, clearly on the verge of tears. "Why'd you do something so stupid?!"

The kid coughed and weakly looked toward Fenghuang. "I already...lost...Yukio... I...couldn't...loose someone else..."

Everybody was visibly shocked. The whole crew, including Vladimir and Lazaro, started crying a bit. "Guys...promise me...to accomplish...your dreams...," Alex said, his voice getting weaker by the seconds. "I'll be...watching you from up there...with Yukio..." Giving a little smile, Alex then closed his eyes one last time forever.

The Jade Palace warriors looked as the whole Blue Thunder Crew started crying for their lost friend. Even Fenghuang had some tears in her eyes and Viper couldn't help but do the same: he was just a kid after all. He still had his whole life before him.

After crying for a long moment, Dominic slowly rose his head and turned it toward Apollo who managed to escape his chains prior and was standing next to all their weapons. "Apollo...give me my sword," he said in a whisper that sounded pretty deadly.

Nodding, the barn owl whipped his tears away and grabbed Dominic's Sabor saber and tossed it at the golden eagle who grabbed it in his hand. As Apollo went to free all of his friends from their chains one-by-one, their looks of sadness and pain turned into ones of anger and hate.

Dominic slowly turned around toward a still visibly shaken Tigress, unsheathing his saber and pointing it at her.

"You're not leaving this dungeon alive... On my friend and student's honor, I swear that I'm gonna rip your eyes out of their pockets and shove them down your mouth so that you can see me cut your throat open!"

* * *

 **Oh my god! Tigress killed Alex! Even if it was involuntarily, YOU'RE A MONSTER! Let's wish that Dominic avenge him by taking Tigress down!**

 **On a side note: I admit I took a bit from "Phoenix of Yin, Dragon of Yang" from by friend TheDragonSaver. I hope you're not mad at me, buddy.**


	140. Conflict at dinner

**Time for Dominic to face Tigress in hopes of avenging Alex!**

* * *

Pushing a cry of anger, Dominic charged at Tigress and swung his saber at her. The feline tried to dodge as best as she could, but ended up getting a little cut across her stomach. Though it was far from being as worse as Alex's.

After dodging for a while, Tigress blocked with her paws and knocked the sword out of the golden eagle's hands. "Alright, bare handed then!" Dominic said with rising his fists, ready to attack once again.

"Dominic, wait!" Apollo suddenly called.

Dominic stopped and turned around to see Master Oogway holding one hand over Alex's cut stomach and created some green energy that healed the wound quickly. Before long, Alex found his colors again and let out a cough as he blinked his eyes open. "W-What happened?"

Master Oogway smiled. "I gave you some of my life essence to bring you back from the dead. Your friends were very affected to see you gone and you're a bit too young to leave right now." He then turned toward Fenghuang. "You really care about this little owl just as much as he cares for you. This confirms what I thought: you're no longer the evil owl you were upon leaving the palace."

This made the elder owl smile before hugging Alex tight into her wings. Then, one-by-one, all of his friends joined in the hug, glad to see he was okay. Though Lazaro gave him a little slap on the shoulder.

"Don't you ever dare do this kind of suicidal move, you hear me?! I almost had an heart attack!"

"Sorry, Lazaro," Alex apologized and rubbing his cheeks innocently.

Even Viper couldn't resist going to nuzzle the little out of relief. The other Five were happy to see the kid was okay as well. Dominic smiled and kneeled before the snowy owl. "You don't got much in that round skull of yours," he said before smiling and patting his head. "But you got a lot in your heart."

"First, stop it; that doesn't make me happy at all," Alex said with a blush. "And second, it's because I got an awesome teacher."

Everybody chuckled happily. Blu then turned toward Master Oogway. "What are you gonna do with us now, Grandmaster?"

The tortoise smiled and looked at Fenghuang. "I think it would be best to let you back here at the Jade Palace as a master."

"What?!" Shifu said in disbelief. "But Master, we can't just let her back in after what she did!"

"As I said, she is no longer the evil owl she was upon leaving the palace," the tortoise calmly said. He then turned back to Fenghuang. "Now then, you can teach Chi, correct? Then I believe it would be advantageous for the Five to learn and master their respective Chi as well. It would be useful before Tai Lung's arrival."

"Yes, Grand Master," Fenghuang said with a nod before eying Shifu cheekily. "Hear that, Big Hears? We'll be sharing students."

Dominic smiled before turning his head toward Tigress in a glare. She replied with a glare of her own before he went to pick up his sabers.

* * *

The next day, Fenghuang took charge of training the Furious Five while Shifu and the Blue Thunder Crew trained with Po. By the time dinner rolled around, the Five were exhausted from their training. While none of them had really mastered Chi, they discovered that Mantis had Earth Chi and could strengthen his strikes to hit harder, Viper had Wood Chi which allowed her to summon vines that she could use as ribbons and had the added effect of healing minor wounds. Luckily for everyone, Po had made some of his father's noodles which they all enjoyed.

"This is really good!" Mantis exclaimed after taking a sip of his soup.

"No, c'mon," Po said, a faint blush on his face. "You should try my dad's secret ingredient soup. He actually...knows the secret ingredient."

"What are you talking about? This is amazing," Viper complimented him.

"It's almost better than fish," Lazaro said with a nod.

"I like it," Hernandez simply said.

"Wow, you're a really good cook," Crane said.

"It's a pure delight!" Alex beamed, cutely sucking the noddles in his beak and chewing on them.

"You should take more credit; it can only make you feel better," Dominic said with patting Po on the back.

"This makes me feel glad I left the Amazon to explore the world," Jewel said.

"Tigress, you've got to try this," Monkey said.

The tiger didn't say anything and instead ate the tofu side-dish. "It is said that the Dragon Warrior can survive months at a time on nothing but the dew of a single gingko leaf and the energy of the universe."

No one said anything, just letting her slightly harsh statement sink in.

"I guess my body doesn't know it's the Dragon Warrior yet," Po said. "I'm gonna need a lot more than dew. And, huh, universe juice." The panda then picked his own bowl and took a good sip from it. When he lowered the bowl, some of the noodles were stuck on his face, causing Mantis to snicker.

"What?" the panda asked.

"Oh, nothing...Master Shifu," Mantis said.

Everyone (except Tigress) laughed at this. Realizing what he looked like, Po picked a pair of chopsticks and used it as a make-shift staff while adopting a grumpy face.

"You will never be the Dragon Warrior unless you lose five hundred pounds and brush your teeth!" the panda said, imitating the red panda's voice and demeanor.

Everyone else laughed again, but Tigress remained silent.

"What is that noise you're making? Laughter? I never heard of it! Work hard, panda. And maybe someday...," Po picked up two empty bowls and held them on top of his head, "...you'll have ears like mine."

Everyone cracked up at that, until they saw Shifu and Fenghuang enter, the red panda holding Oogway's staff strangely.

Confused that the laughter stopped, Po starred at everyone with his back facing the two masters. "Ears? It's not working for you? I thought they were pretty good," the panda said in his normal voice.

"It's Shifu," whispered Monkey.

"Of course it's Shifu. What do you think I'm doing?" Po said, still not getting a clue about what was happening.

Rolling his eyes, Lazaro pointed behind Po where Shifu was fuming and Fenghuang had a face that could be described as both amused and annoyed at the situation.

Taking the hint, Po turned around to see the two masters. "Oh! Master Shifu! Master Fenghuang!" The panda ate his mustache and put his arms down, the bowls getting stuck on his chest, making it look like...a female chest. Everyone chuckled again (and again, Tigress said nothing).

"You think this is funny? Tai Lung is on his way and you're acting like children!" Shifu berated.

"What?" Po said.

"He is coming for the Dragon Scroll and you're the only one who can stop him," Fenghuang calmly said.

The statement sinking in, Po let the bowls fall to the floor and laughed nervously. "And here I am saying you have no sens of humor. I'm gonna stop...Tai Lung..." Everyone starred dead serious at him. "What?! You're serious?! And I have to...huh...Master Oogway will stop him! He did it before, he'll do it again."

"Oogway cannot!" Shifu shouted. He sadly looked down at the staff. "Not anymore..."

Everyone quickly realized what it meant: Master Oogway had passed on. It was sad for everyone to learn the creator of Kung Fu had passed on. Even the Blue Thunder Crew: it was thanks to him that they even got to train at the Jade Palace and get stronger.

"Our only hope...is the Dragon Warrior," Fenghuang said. "Probably," she added under her breath.

"The _panda_?!" Tigress said incredulously.

"Yes, the _panda_!" Shifu insisted.

Having enough of this, Tigress stood up from her chair. "Master, please! Let us stop Tai Lung! This is what you've trained us for!"

"No! It is not _your_ destiny to defeat Tai Lung! It is _his_!" Shifu said, pointing in the air where Po used to be.

"Who? The wall?" Alex innocently asked.

"Were'd he go?" Shifu asked with running away to go find the panda while Fenghuang remained to take charge.

"I know that these times without Oogway will be though, but the best we can do is respect his wishes and let the Dragon Warrior defeat Tai Lung," she said with giving a pointing look at Tigress. "All of us must simply endure his endeavor and make sure he's ready for it."

After the elder owl left, Alex decided to make a stand, jumping on the table and getting to Tigress' face. "What was that?!" he asked with a big angry look on his face.

"What was that, kid, is that we were all trained for this day, and then some...goofball cook and a bunch of pirates come into our palace and make a mockery of us and everything that Kung Fu stand for!" the feline angrily replied.

Alex hardened his wings' fists harder and frowned even more. "You're really getting on my nerves! You think that just because you've been training your whole life means you're entitled to a destiny that was never yours?!" Alex then let out a fake laughter. "You wanna know why Po's failing that much? Because you and your mean guys don't give him any chance! Ever since he came to this palace, you're treated him like a scum for absolutely no reasons! The people at the village dare call you a hero while in reality you're nothing but a big bully and a BITCH!"

Everybody in the room gasped as Alex just gave a bad name to the master of Tiger Style. She looked very surprised too, but then returned to her glare.

"You know what, kid? You're getting on my nerves too! You think you're some kind of superhero, but that's not the case! You're just an annoying little brat thinking he can change things simply because you're young and cute. That's probably because of this behavior of yours that your friend ended her life!"

Everybody gasped even louder as Tigress mentioned the subject Alex was the most sensitive to. The kid looked at her with his eyes wide open in shock...before slowly looking down and sadness. Getting down from the table, he slowly walked out of the room without saying anything.

"Alex, wait!" Lazaro called and was about to run after him, but was stopped by Hernandez. instead, he turned to glare at Tigress. "¡¿Qué mierda ?! (What the fuck?!) Why did you say that?! You know he's sensitive about Yukio!"

SMASH!

Before the tiger could answer, Dominic, having enough of her behavior, jumped from his chair and gave her a violent punch right across the face, knocking her to the floor, and surprising everyone. Not stopping there, the golden eagle got on top of the tiger and started giving her multiple punches in the face. The Five wanted to interfere, but were stopped by the pirates. After 6 punches, Tigress was bleeding from the mouth and Dominic stopped as her blood was on his fist.

"You. Ever. Hurt Alex physically or emotionally again. And I won't stop, you hear me? I'LL PUNCH YOU UNTIL YOUR FREAKIN' HEAD POPS!" he shouted in anger and punched her face once again. Panting deeply, he turned toward the other Five with a dread look. "You know what. If China's supposed to be defended by a bunch of heartless bastards like you, then Tai Lung can already consider himself the new ruler. For as far as I'm concerned, you're not worthy more than him.

He then turned toward his friends. "Go back up our things; we're leaving this island tonight. I'm gonna go get Alex."

Soon, everyone left after Dominic as well. Only Tigress stayed behind, rubbing her paw across her face that was bleeding and a bit bruised. "This darn eagle thinks we're not worth more than Tai Lung?" she growled to herself. "I'll show him. By tomorrow, he will be brought to justice by me. Not this false Dragon Warrior or those disgraceful pirates."

* * *

 **Man, that was the most intense part of this story arc I think.**

 **For those of you who think I'm going too hard on Tigress, you cannot deny that she kinda deserved to get knocked down a bit for the way she treated Po. At least, the other Furious Five are trying to be nice with him, but she's acting cold and bullying with him just because she didn't got the Dragon Warrior title.**

 **And if you think Dominic overreacted, you should know that he doesn't sit around and watch his friends getting hurt physically and emotionally without doing anything. If you don't know that even after 140 chapters, then you're a bit slow XD.**

 **But seriously, you know what the proverb says: "Hurt me, I hurt you back. Hurt the people I love, no one will find your corpse." And Tigress kinda pushed Dominic to his limit, don't you think?**

 **On another note, do you think I'm going well with Alex's character development? I sure hope so.**


	141. Arrival of a cat

**Tension is rising amongst the Jade Palace warriors and the Blue Thunder Crew wants to leave the island. Will they be able to get on the same page and face Tai Lung and his followers together?**

* * *

The next morning, Master Shifu left with Po to train the panda to become the Dragon Warrior. The Five went missing and Alex was currently sitting next to the Sacred Peach Tree, watching the sun slowly rise. His feathers were a bit soaked from crying all by himself.

Dominic was watching him from behind and slowly approached his friend, sitting down next to him. "Hey, Al, you're doing fine?" He received no answer from the kid who just kept watching the distance. Dominic sighed. "Look, I'm sorry if I overreacted last night. But I don't like when people hurt you-"

"It's not that," Alex softly mumbled. "It's just...I don't understand why people get to by so mean. I mean, even when I'm really mad, I still don't want to hurt anyone."

Dominic didn't responded and just starred at the son with his friend. Eventually, he decided to stand up. "I'm gonna go join the others down the village and help them pack up our things. I'll come back to get you once we're done, okay?"

Alex just responded with a little nod as Dominic walked away, leaving him alone.

* * *

At the Thread of Hope, a long, winding bridge that connected between two towering peaks, Tigress arrived to meet Tai Lung on the other side. The two cats starred each other down before Tai Lung roared and ran across the bridge on his four limbs. Not wasting any time, Tigress used her claws to slice through the ropes holding up the bridge. She wasn't fast enough, though, as Tai Lung leaped at her and pushed her back some ways, cutting the bridge himself to give neither of them a means to escape.

"Where's the Dragon Warrior?" Tai Lung asked.

"How do you know you're not looking at her?" Tigress asked, folding her arms.

This only made Tai Lung laugh. "You think I'm a fool? You're not the Dragon Warrior." The snow leopard slowly approached the tiger. "I heard how he fell out of the sky on a ball of fire...that he's a warrior unlike anything the world have seen."

"He is but a shame to Kung Fu and a mistake to Kung Fu," Tigress said. "Oogway should have never chosen Po. It was supposed to me."

"So that is his name...Po," Tai Lung said with a smile. "Finally, a worthy opponent. Our battle will be legendary!"

With a growl, Tigress lunged at the leopard who simply caught her punch and twisted it, throwing her to the ground. Tigress got up and tried again, this time having a bit more success, but Tai Lung kept pushing her back with counter-strikes and hits. Eventually, the snow leopard had enough and pushed Tigress back with a strange purple energy that seemed to hold her down in pain.

"Surprised?" Tai Lung asked, holding her face up to him. "This is my own Chi. One that put my opponent's own strength against them. The more you struggle, the more it will hurt you. Unless, of course, you turn against the Jade Palace and submit to me."

"Tigress!" Crane called, he and the other Five arriving to help.

"Guys, stay back!" she said. "Tai Lung has some sort of Binding Chi!"

Suddenly, a chunk of earth came up and blocked Tai Lung from Tigress. "Don't hurt our friend!" Mantis shouted, taking a stance next to his teammate.

"That's right," Monkey said, standing next to Mantis. "As the Furious Five, we have to stand together!"

"We're more than a team," Viper said. "We're a family."

Crane nodded as they stood together.

"Guys," Tigress said, looking at all of them in surprise.

"Oh, how sweet," Tai Lung sarcastically said. "You all see yourself as a family. But family makes you weak, gives you false hope and break you."

"You're wrong," Crane said. "We're stronger which is something you'll never have."

Growling feral, Tai Lung attacked the group as they defended Tigress. Crane and Viper used their Chi to disable the leopard, with Crane shooting water balls at his face while Viper created vines to tie him down. Not slowing down with his attacks, Monkey and Mantis attacked next, with Mantis going for quick strikes while Monkey used his staff to keep Tai Lung at distance. Again, their attacks did nothing but enrage the leopard as he knocked them all back with his Binding Chi.

"Enough of this!" he yelled. "You are nothing but petty replacements that Shifu made in place of me! None of you mean anything to him!"

Before the vilain could say anything else, a pulsation of Chi suddenly hit him in the face, pushing him back. Fenghuang landed between both sides, ice forming at her feet.

"Hello, Tai Lung," she said.

"Ah, the strongest of the original Furious Five," the snow leopard said. "Have you come to join my army?"

Fenghuang chuckled darkly. "Oh, you wish that was the case. But considering you're tormenting my students, that makes us enemies." Forming knives of ice, she turned toward the Five. "Get out of here and return at the Jade Palace! I'll hold him back!"

* * *

Meanwhile, back at the Valle of Peace, Alex was still sitting near the Sacred Peach Tree, watching the sun and lost in his thoughts. Eventually, he felt an hand getting put on his shoulder and a soft voice spoke: "Are you okay, kid?"

He turned around and saw the intruder was a female asian golden cat with light brown fur and dark brown stripes. She had yellow eyes with white facial marks. She was wearing a black vest with teal colored clothes and a bo staff tied to her back. She honestly looked pretty cute.

"W-Who are you?" Alex asked with jumping on his feet.

"Don't be afraid; my name's Mei Ling," she introduced herself. "I saw you crying from here and came to check after you. What's wrong?"

Alex quickly whipped his tears away. "It's a bit long to explain but..." He stopped and blinked his eyes at the girl as a detail popped into his mind. "Wait a second, you said your name is Mei Ling? Like Master Crane's friend?"

"Yes!" the golden cat. "You know him? He's my old friend. I came to see him. You know where I can find him?"

"Well, last time I've seen him, it was during dinner but-"

Alex didn't got to finish his sentence as a cutting thing suddenly came flying between the two of them, forcing them to jump back. They then turned around to see three leopards standing before them, each holding a three-bladed wind-and-fire wheel. They were all wearing grey ninja-like dresses and were apparently females.

"It seems we have opponents," the one on the left said.

"Which means we get to fight," said the one on the right.

"Patience, sisters," said the one in the middle. "I don't believe we've met those warriors."

"The Wu Sisters!" Mei Ling said, narrowing her eyes and taking out her bo staff. "They are searched criminals!"

"In that case," Alex said, taking out a Muscle Candy and eating it to become super muscled, surprising the four girls.

Not getting distracted by this, the Wu Sisters came in for an attack, striking with speed and synchronization. Alex and Mei Ling stayed close to each other, using their fists and staff to fight them back, but it was a bit hard as they were two against three.

"Mei Ling, do you have any Chi powers or something?" Alex asked after throwing and missing a punch at one of the sisters.

"Well, I tried, but I can't us it yet," the golden cat replied.

"Enough of your talking," one of the sisters said. "Let us finish this with our signature attack."

After she said, the three leopards pulled back and each took a hold of the wind and fire wheels, quickly spinning around and charging at the two heroes.

"Crap! I'm gonna have to use my new candy for a chance to win!" Alex said with reaching into his pack.

Before he could do anything, however, Po and Master Shifu jumped out of nowhere and landed right in the middle of the spinning sisters, with Po grabbing one of them and Shifu kicking another one behind the head. As the sisters' attack came to a sudden ended and realizing they were outmatched, they quickly ran away on all four.

At the same time, having heard the noise, the Blue Thunder Crew rushed in the palace. "Alex! Are you alright?" Blu asked.

"I'm fine," Alex replied, returning back to normal.

"It was foolish to face the Wu Sisters alone," Shifu said. "But I commend you for holding them off as long as you did." He then turned toward Mei Ling. "And who are you, Miss...?"

"Mei Ling, Master Shifu," the golden cat replied, giving a bow. "I came from the Lee Da Academy. I was friends with Master Crane and came to visit him."

"Well the Five are currently not here," Shifu said. "But you are welcome to stay here when they come back."

"Huh, isn't that them?" Alex asked, pointing at the distance.

Coming in for a landing, Crane and Fenghuang arrived with all the other non-flying masters. They all collapsed on the ground as the Five were still feeling the effects of Tai Lung's binding Chi.

"They're dead?!" Po asked in horror. "No, they're breathing! They're sleeping?! No, their eyes are open..."

"Viper, are you okay?" Alex asked as he looked at his snake friend who nodded.

"And you, Mantis?" Lazaro asked, helping the bug back up.

"I've been better..."

Crane let out a gasps as he weakly said: "We were no match for his Chi attacks..."

"He has gotten stronger," Fenghuang remarked, brushing off her clothes. "I held him off while the others escaped, but even then, he didn't seem to break a sweat."

"Who? Tai Lung? Stronger?" Po asked, some fear in his voice.

"His mastery of a new form of Chi is...unnatural," Fenghuang remarked.

Lazaro then gave a glare toward Tigress. "There was a reason Shifu said to let the Dragon Warrior take care of it."

Tigress looked down, ashamed of her actions. "I thought I could stop him...," she said in a unusual soft voice.

Lazaro just starred at her for a moment...before pretending to cry. "Boo-hoo, I lost and my master is never proud of me!" The others looked at the puffin, surprised by his mean act. "Yeah, I know I'm the asshole now, but I don't care!" He glared at Tigress again. "We all lived hard moments in our lives, but that's not a freakin' excuse to put the people around in danger, even less to hurt their emotions!"

"Why did you come back?" Shifu suddenly asked. "Didn't you decided to leave?"

"I wanted to," Dominic said, "but my captain insisted on staying to help until Tai Lung is defeated."

"Is that true?" Po asked, looking at Blu.

"Of course! If you can't count on the Five or Shifu's support for this task, then you can count on us!" Blu affirmed with the rest of his crew nodding in agreement and Alex smiling happily.

Po smiled too before looking down. "Thanks...but honestly, I'm pretty scared."

"You can defeat him, panda!" Shifu affirmed.

"Are you kidding?" Po said. "If they can't..." He gestured to the Five and Fenghuang. "They're six masters and one of them have many years of experience. I'm just one me."

"But you will have the one thing that no one else does," Shifu said.

Po's eyes widened as he realized what he meant: the Dragon Scroll!

* * *

 **The final battle is getting closer. Will Po be able to fulfill his destiny with help from his friends?**

 **And Mei Ling joined! If you don't know who she is, go check Crane's story in Secret Of The Furious Five.**


	142. Oogway's last words

Inside of the Jade Palace, all of the masters and pirates were gathered near the reflecting pool, with Shifu holding Oogway's staff as he approached the water. The red panda bowed his head, eyes closed, then raised the staff over the head, whirling it around as peach blossom petals rose in a flickering spinning up from the pool. The petals flew up to where the Dragon Scroll was resting, the petals loosening the scroll from the dragon's mouth and causing it to fall. At the last second, Shifu reached out to with the staff to catch the scroll on the end of it. He then turned toward Po, holding it out.

"Behold. The Dragon Scroll, it is yours," he said.

Po slowly reached out toward the scroll, but then pulled his hand back. "Wait...what happens when I read it?"

"No one knows, but legend says that you will be able to hear a butterfly's wing-beat," Shifu said.

"Whoa! Really? That's so cool!" Po said, amazed.

"Yes, and see light in the deepest cave. You will feel the universe in motion around you," Fenghuang added.

Po started bouncing in anticipation. "Wow! Can I punch through walls? Can I do a quadruple backflip? Will I have invisibility-"

"Focus...focus," Shifu said.

"Huh? Oh, yeah...yeah," Po said, calming down a bit.

"Read it, Po, and fulfill your destiny," Shifu commanded. "Read it...and become the Dragon Warrior!"

Po nodded in excitation. He took the scroll and tried to pull the top off. Unfortunately, it didn't budge. "It's impossible to open," Po grunted, straining to open it. "Come on, baby. Come on..."

Shifu then held out his paw into which Po putted the scroll. The red panda popped the top off; it turned out to be a pull off, not a twist-off. He handed it back to Po.

"Thank you," the panda said. "I probably loosened it up for you though... Okay, here it goes."

Po started to unravel the scroll, a golden light shining on his face as everyone looked at him with a smile of anticipation on their faces. Po let out a scream...but then gave a mortified look.

"It's blank!"

" _What?!_ " everyone exclaimed in surprise.

"Here! Look!" Po said, holding it up for everyone to see. He was right: despite the shine of the paper, nothing was written on it. Now everyone was mortified.

" _Blank?!_ " Fenghuang questioned.

"I don't...I don't understand," Shifu said, shaking his head.

Po just stood there before saying: "Okay. So like, Oogway...was just a crazy old turtle after all?"

"No. Oogway was wiser than us all," Shifu said.

"Oh, come on!" Po exclaimed. "Face it. He picked me by accident. Of course I'm not the Dragon Warrior. Who am I kidding?" The panda just sat on the floor in disappointment.

Blu rubbed his beak as he thought about this whole situation. He then snapped his fingers. "Of course! Oogway's a genius for putting the scroll in such a prominent role."

Everybody starred at the macaw with curious looks. "What do you mean?" Jewel asked.

"Think about it: by putting the scroll here, he convinced Tai Lung that he needs it to be the Dragon Warrior. But that's not how the title works: a master of higher status has to give it to you, and Oogway gave _you_ the Dragon Warrior title, Po."

The others all realized what he meant and Dominic hit his fist into his palm. "I get it! We have the advantage. As long as we keep Tai Lung away from the scroll, we can keep him on the run, making him predictable."

"When I held him off, I froze him in a block of ice," Fenghuang informed, preening her feathers. "We have a day to prepare for him before one of his followers frees him and they get here." She then turned to Shifu. "You know what we must do."

Nodding, the red panda turned toward the Five. "Evacuate the Valley. We must protect the villagers from Tai Lung's rage."

Blu then turned toward his crew. "Alright guys, we're gonna try and help as much as we can and beat Tai Lung's army!"

"Oi!" they all responded at unison.

* * *

Later that night, as everyone tried to rest and get ready for the big battle of tomorrow, Alex was sitting alone in the courtyard with a lantern next to him, looking up at the sky and lost in his thoughts.

"Alex?" Crane called, coming out of the palace with Mei Ling. "We wanted to make sure you're okay."

"I'm okay," the kid responded with turning toward them. "I was just wondering of Yukio was watching me from up there. How are you two going?"

"We're fine," Crane said with a smile before blushing a bit. "Actually, despite this huge battle coming up, I'm quite glad Mei Ling's here."

"I'm glad to be here too," the golden cat said. "It's been so long since we've last seen."

Alex just starred at how the two adults were looking at each other. "Funny, Blu and Jewel always look at each other this way. Have you become boyfriend and girlfriend?" he innocently asked.

This caused the two of them to blush, though Crane hid his face with his hat and Mei Ling giggled at Alex's innocence. She then kneeled at his level.

"You know what Alex, your friend, Yukio, must already be very proud; any kid of your age would be afraid to get into battles like this," she remarked.

"I am afraid," Alex said. "But I know all my friends will be here with me all through it. What about you, Mei Ling? You still have to learn your own Chi, right?"

She turned away a bit. "I do, but it doesn't make sense. I've trained in all the ways Fenghuang told to, but I can't manifest it as anything."

It was then that Apollo rushed out to say something. "Alex! Apollo offered us a special cooking book! Think you could take a look at-" In his rush, he accidentally bumped into Crane's back, causing him to stumble forward and made his beak connect with Mei Ling's mouth. "Oh, sorry."

While Crane was surprised and tried to pull away, he eventually gave in and held Mei Ling close, kissing her passionately. When the two finally parted ways, panting for breath, they noticed Apollo looking at them with his eyes wide open and Alex smiling cutely.

"What? Why are you looking at us like that?" Crane asked.

"So you really became a couple after all!" Alex happily chirped.

"Alex," Mei Ling said, throwing her paw in his direction in a dismissive way. To everyone's surprise, a gust of wind slightly pushed him back and knocked Apollo's hat off his head.

"Wow, so you have Wind Chi," Crane deduced. He then widened his eyes. "Wait...but then that means...?!"

"Yes, Mei Ling said. "I've thought about through all the times we've been apart, and I want to be more than partners in combat, but also in love."

The two held each other close, smiling and blushing. Apollo then cleared his throat. "Oh, huh, should we leave you alone for a bit?"

* * *

As morning broke the next day, Fenghuang and Shifu stood on the palace's steps, watching as the others evacuated the Valley.

"Shifu, I know what you plan to do when Tai Lung comes, and I also know I cannot stop you," Fenghuang said. "However, I believe you need to know what Oogway told me before he...past on."

* * *

 _"Fenghuang, I need to talk to you," Oogway said, calling the owl. The time was soon after she was allowed to stay at the Jade Palace. The two were standing near the peach tree of wisdom._

 _"Yes, Grand Master?" Fenghuang replied, standing next to the tortoise._

 _"I know that you sense what is to come," he said, "and that I have not told anyone yet."_

 _"...You're going to die," she simply said._

 _"Yes. Unfortunately, my time has come, and there is so much you and the others must accomplish on your own," Oogway said. "However, that is not why I called you here. Did you ever wonder why I made a cage for you?"_

 _"It was because you feared my power, that I would turn to the darkness," Fenghuang said. "The owl then turned away. "Which you were...right about. It's because of my alone time and a bit thanks to Alex that I returned to the light."_

 _"Perhaps," Oogway said. "But the true reason I made that cage was I could not bear to lose someone close to me again. After all these years, it still pains me that I had to banish my brother and that there was nothing I could do to save his soul. It may have been brash, but I thought that by holding you, I could talk reason into you."_

 _"But why?" Fenghuang asked. "Why not just talk to me?"_

 _"Because we both were at fault with one of the greatest obstacles we must all face: pride. You with your power, myself with my judgement. Though now, with what little time I have left, I can believe that I can admit something to you that not even Shifu knows..."_

* * *

"What was it?" Shifu asked as the owl concluded her story.

"He...He saw us as a family," Fenghuang said. "And he did everything for us because of his love for us."

Neither of them said anything, just starring out at the rising sun.

"Shifu," the owl said. "We are the masters of the Jade Palace now, which means we must carry on Oogway's legacy. I don't know if we'll ever reach his level, but I fo know that the chance he gave us, we must give it to our students." She smiled. "And I think for you that starts by accepting a certain Tigress."

With that, Fenghuang flew off, leaving the red panda to contemplate her words.

* * *

 **That was the last chapter before the final battle against Tai Lung? Who will survive, who will fall, who will win?**

 **I hope you appreciated Alex's character development so far and our new couple too. Yes, I like Crane X Mei Ling as I think they're very cute together.**


	143. The final battle: Hernandez vs Lidong

**It's now time for the final battle to start!**

* * *

As the sun finally came up, the defenders of the now empty Valley of Peace were all in positions and ready to welcome Tai Lung's army. they came up with a plan: the Blue Thunder Crew got positioned at the Valley's entrance, a bit farther from the village, to be the first ones to face Tai Lung's army and hopefully cause some damages in their ranks. The reason was that they didn't wanted the village to get too much damaged for the villagers.

The avians were getting ready together, Dominic cleaning his swords, Apollo and Alex making sure they had all the equipment they needed, Hernandez, Vladimir and Lazaro doing some warm ups, Jewel swinging her staff a bit, and Blu looking at in the distance.

"Okay, everybody remembers the plan?" the captain asked, turning to face his crew. "We try to take down as many of them as we can. And then, when we can no longer, we retreated into town and finish them off with the others. Got it?"

They all replied with a "Oi!" Dominic then looked at the distance and frowned a bit.

"Something's not right," he mumbled. "They already have arrived around here. Where are they?"

CRASH!

As the ground trembled, the whole crew turned around to spot a familiar croc towering over them. "Lidong?!" Blu exclaimed in surprise.

"You know this reptile?" Lazaro asked.

"Yeah; he's the one Po, Crane and I faced at the Tortoise Village!" Blu said. "But I though he was dead..."

"Well you were wrong; I survived," the croc said with a smirk. "And if you wonder why Tai Lung's not with me, then it's that you're dumb enough to think we would attack head on by the entrance. No; we decided to cross the West mountains and attack the village from there."

Blu widened his eyes. "This means...?!"

"Yes. As we speak, my comrades are already attacking the village," Lidong confirmed.

The whole team widened their eyes in surprise. "Crap! We gotta return there now!" Lazaro said.

"You really think I'm simply gonna let you through and not do anything?" Lidong asked, blocking the returning path to our heroes.

"Move your big ass from there!" the puffin angrily shouted and rushed in for a kick.

However, the big croc just grabbed his leg in one hand and brought him up to his face. "As if you could do anything against it. You're but a midget who can't even hope to hurt me. You're as useless as your team of amateur chicks."

"What?!" Hernandez angrily said with a low voice.

Swinging him around, Lidong tossed Lazaro away for Hernandez to catch him in his wings. Dominic stepped forward, dragging his saber out. "Alright, looks like we're gonna have to fight our way through.

"No!" Everybody turned toward Hernandez who looked more serious than ever. "You guys need to go ahead."

"What are you gonna do, Hernandez?" Jewel asked her friend.

The pelican narrowed his eyes at the croc. "I'm gonna fight him."

"What?" Blu exclaimed, widening his eyes in surprise. "But Hernandez, I faced him and-"

"Captain, please!" Hernandez cut him off. "You heard what he said: Tai Lung and his army are attacking the village. If we don't go back, our friend will be hurt and we'll really be just a bunch of amateurs. I'm the best one here to take on this croc, so I'll do it! I wanna repay back for not being of a great help back in Sequin. Please, let me do that, Captain."

Blu just starred at his pelican friend. It was the first time he was that serious. "You...You sure you can do it?"

"Yes. Don't worry, I got a new trick up my sleeves." Hernandez took something out of his pocket: a little plastic cube containing three bubbles gums, a green, a yellow and a red one.

"Hernandez...?!" Alex mumbled with his eyes wide open.

Blu just starred at it...before nodding. "Okay, but you join us as soon as you're done with him, okay?"

And with that, the team ran away back toward the village. "I won't let you pass!" Lidong screamed and was about to attack them, only for Hernandez to stop him with a smash from his armored wing that knocked him back.

"I'm your opponent! So focus on me!" the pelican said and took the green gum ball out of his little cube to put it in his beak. "I hope this will work, Alex," he thought to himself."

* * *

As the team was still running toward the village, Dominic turned his head toward Alex. "Say Alex, what were those bubble gums Hernandez took out?"

The snowy owl kid looked down. "Well...after I returned from the northern mountains, Hernandez came to see me and told me how he felt useless to our crew during our time in Sequin. He asked me if I could make him something to boost him up and I made him three candies with a special property each."

The kid then frowned a bit. "Hernandez, whatever you, don't use the red bubble gum..."

* * *

"I'M GONNA SQUASH YOU!"

Rushing at full speed, Lidong charged into Hernandez. However, the pelican rose his wings and managed to stop him, though he got pushed back a few feet away in the process.

"So you think?" he asked before lifting him by the waist and tossing him away into a tree. "The bubble gum I just ate give me a boost in strength. It will make me feel tired later, but let's focus on the fight right now."

Summoning his wing armor again, he launched an attack at the croc who rolled out of the way, letting him destroy the tree instead. Not giving up, he shot a jet of energy again and this time, Lidong rose his hands to block it. Though he succeeded, it still left a burning mark on his limbs. Seeing an opportunity, Hernandez jumped with his fist raised, ready to squash the croc.

Unfortunately, the croc saw it coming and delivered a palm strike into the pelican's stomach, sending him flying backward and crash with a loud thud. "You're annoying!" Lidong shouted and rushed forward just Hernandez got back up to give him a violent punch in the face that made him spit blood.

"For someone as big, I think you're pretty pathetic to side with side a bunch of small weaklings," he added with giving a knee strike underneath Hernandez's beak which made him bleed more and fall on his back.

Grunting in pain, the pelican slowly stood up on his trembling leg and glared at the croc. "You're wrong... Out of every member in our crew, I'm probably the weakest... Sure, Apollo's got little physical abilities, but at least he's smart enough to find a way out."

The pelican took out his cube again and pushed the yellow bubble gum out, putting it into his beak. Not wanting to give him time to prepare another attack, Lidong charged. However, Hernandez smirked and lifted his right wing which suddenly grew up in size and became big enough for him to whip the croc away with only one swing.

"What...the...heck?! How'd you do that?!" he asked in pain.

"This candy Alex made for me temporally allows me to grow up any part of my body and seriously whip some butt!" the pelican rose his leg and made it grow up before slamming it down, trying to squash the croc.

Lidong rolled out of the way before getting whipped away by Hernandez's big hand. Pressing on his attack, the pelican jumped in the air and boosted up his whole torso, ready to crush Liding. "Okay, enough playing!" the croc said and suddenly rose his arms, sending big stones out of the ground to crash into Hernandez's torso, knocking him away.

The pelican coughed a lot before weakly looking at Lidong. "H-How'd you do that?"

"After your captain defeated me, I was so angry that I unlocked my Chi powers. It manifested itself into Stone," he said with making little stones come out from the ground and dance around his hand.

He then walked over to Hernandez who tried to make his wing grow again, only to find out the candy's effects had faded away. The croc started giving him violent kicks in the stomach, making him groin in pain.

"Even with help from your friend, you couldn't take me down. You're a pathetic excuse for a big guy," Lidong said as he kept kicking him down. "Once I'm done tearing you to pieces, I'll go squash your dumb puffin friend!"

As he said that, something snapped inside Hernandez's head. Gathering his remaining strength and fighting through the pain, he reached into his plastic cube and took out the last bubble gum he had - the red one - and pushed it into his beak.

An energy explosion suddenly knocked Lidong away. As he struggled to get back up, and understand what happened, he looked up and gasped as Hernandez's appearance changed. He had now two big wings made of light blue energy in his back which had the shape of butterfly wings.

"Butterfly Candy!" he said in a loud voice with looking up at Lidong with a glare.

The croc was surprised, but then shot stones at the pelican who easily blocked them all with his wings. He then dashed at an incredible spin to smash him in the stomach so hard that he spat blood and fell onto the ground. Hernandez pinned him under one foot while charging a lot of energy into his wing armored fist.

"That's for mocking Alex's gum balls... For threatening to kill my captain... But most of all," he glared down at the croc. "...For mocking Lazaro!"

"No wait!" he panicked, but Hernandez still rose up his energy charged fist.

"BOMBA DE MARIPOSA!" he shouted at full lungs before smashing his fist directly into Lidong's stomach, the force making him spit a lot of blood and creating a butterfly-shaped crater underneath him. After this attack, the croc was laying down, defeated, and Hernandez returned to his normal.

"No one...will mock my crew...specially not my captain...and Lazaro...," Hernandez panted before he felt a sudden pain in his chest and coughed out blood. "Crap... Alex told me using those three bubble gums was going to be dangerous...but I didn't though it would be that painful..."

Trying to fight through the pain and the tiredness from his fight, Hernandez pushed himself in the direction of the Valley. However, he only managed to make a few steps before his legs gave in and he let himself fall against a tree in a sitting position. His heart was hurting him with each beat and seemed to get slower. His whole body was hurting him. Hernandez could feel life slipping away from him.

"Anyway, take it easy, son. Don't give up on making friends just yet. You just need a bit more time. You can endure it a bit longer. You don't need to be worried. Soon someone will stand by your side. Someone will pick you up when someone else knocks you down. And they'll never leave you. You can trust me on that, Hernandez."

The pelican could hear his father's voice echoing in his head. As he started thinking of all the people that got into his life since then, he couldn't help but smile weakly.

"You were right, Dad...I made myself plenty of friends..." Hernandez allowed one tear to come out before closing his eyes...

* * *

Back to the others who were still running, Lazaro pushed a gasp and widened his eyes as he felt a terrible feeling in his heart. The puffin slowly turned his head to look behind without stopping to run.

"...Hernandez?! What have you done?!"

* * *

 **Oh my gosh! Hernandez gave his life to beat Lidong. I'm crying a lot in real life right now. Descansa en paz, hermano! (Rest in peace, brother!)**

 **I hope Lazaro won't be too sad upon officially learning it...**


	144. Lazaro vs Kuza

The Blue Thunder Crew was still running as fast as their legs allowed them toward the Valley of Peace. While Hernandez had remained behind, they had to focus on returning to the village and help their friends. Their pelican friend will catch up with them later.

Right now, they had reached the bamboo forest which, as its name implied, had many bamboo trees all around. Blu suddenly stopped dead in his tracks and forced his friends to do the same. "What's wrong, Blu?" Apollo asked.

However, he got his answer as there was someone in their way: a black spider with pretty long legs and red eyes. "What's up with that guy?" Alex asked.

"Hehehe...," the spider chuckled as he narrowed his eyes at the group. "This should be a goos bit of entertainment... I'll thank Tai Lung for allowing me to come here later..."

Lazaro narrowed his eyes. "Hmph... Leave this one to me."

"Lazaro... Are you sure?" Blu asked his puffin comrade.

"Remember what Hernandez said: if we waste time here, we'll never get back to the Valley in time," Lazaro said. "I'm certain I can take down a little spider, but you must not waste more time. Just go; I'll be right behind you."

"Okay, let's go everyone," Dominic said, forcing all the others to run forward. He turned toward Lazaro and said: "You catch up with us as soon as you're done, understand?" before turning around and running after the others.

"Hmm?" the spider said with a confused look. However, he then smirked. "Heheh, oh well, I'll have with the others another time. I'll dispose of you in three minutes or less," he declared with getting into a fighting stance.

Lazaro also took a fighting stance. "Really? Come and show me what you got, big dumb spider!"

"I'm not a dumb spider, my name's Kuza, bird!" the spider named Kuza said with a frown and suddenly spat a web shot with his mouth which Lazaro managed to dodge with a cartwheel. However, he didn't got the same chance as the second shot connected with his legs, pinning them to the floor. "Don't even bother squirming up, little mosquito; my webs are made of a special Chi that makes them super strong. It would require the strength of two elephants to break them up."

Pushing a cry, Lazaro managed to force his legs out of the webs, snapping them off. He then rushed toward the visibly shocked spider with a smirk. "You must be surprised that I broke free. The reason's simple: my legs are more powerful than two elephants!"

Before he could do anything, Lazaro unleashed a storm of kicks right into the spider's face and torso again and again until he knocked him right through a bamboo tree, causing it to break in two. Thinking he had won, the puffin took a cool pose before turning around to go catch up with his friends.

"...Not bad."

Stopping dead in his tracks, Lazaro slowly turned around and was shocked to see the spider standing up with some kind of golden armor over his body. "W-What the heck?! What's that?!"

The golden fabric slowly fell down from the spider's face, revealing his smirk. "Well, well, that was close. I think only one of your kicks would have been enough to hurt me bad. You keep me on my toes, kid."

"That material, where did it came from, you parasite?" Lazaro asked with a glare.

"Impressive yes? That sticky golden liquid is actually a solid metal that solidifies immediately upon entering in contact with air," the spider explained with making the material form on one of his legs for emphasis.

"I see, no wonder he managed to stand up after all my kicks," Lazaro though.

"My webs won't work against him and fighting in close combat is out of question' Kuza though. "I'll just have to keep my distances with him and look for a dead end..."

As Lazaro charged in for a devastating kick, the spider jumped up into the trees and out of sight. The puffin turned his head in every direction but couldn't spot him anywhere. "Sneaking away, huh? Come out here and fight, if you're not a coward!"

Right after he screamed this, little arrows made of the same golden fabric as Kuza's armor came out of nowhere, flying into his direction. He started by dodging them, but soon, more and more came out. As he couldn't dodge them all, he instead stood on his flippers and performed a tornado kick which pushed all the arrows away.

"Wow, he wasn't kidding when he talked about his legs being powerful," Kuza though before smirking. "Alright, I'll just add webs to my arrows so that his body will get slowed down."

Adding web ropes to his arrows, the spider resumed jumping all around and shooting at the puffin. If he managed to dodge and block them like before, the webs got his body tangled and made him loose quickness more and more. Eventually, he got so slow that one of the arrows rubbed over his left shoulder, leaving a cut that bleed a bit.

"It works!" Kuza though with a smile as he pressed on his attacks.

"Darn it!" Lazaro swore in his head as he tried to get the webs he was trapped in away, but before he could succeed, golden arrows were shot at him again, forcing him to get back on the defensive.

He managed to stand for a few seconds before receiving an arrow right into his back, briefly knocking the wind out of his lungs and spitting blood. The puffin refused to go down and pushed himself to keep dodging and blocking the arrows, getting more and more web onto him. Eventually, one arrow pierced through his twig, causing it to release his head feathers to fall free on his shoulders. Two more arrows flew into his back afterwards, making him groan even more.

By the time Kuza finished attacking, Lazaro was laying on his stomach with six arrows planted into his back. Smiling satisfyingly, the spider turned around and started walking away. "That wasn't too hard finally. I just had to keep my distances and attack until he ran out of energy."

However, a groan and noise caused him to stop walking. "Huh?" Turning around, he saw in surprise that Lazaro somehow managed to stand up despite his injuries. "What?! Impossible! How can he stand up after receiving six of my arrows in the back?!"

His look of surprise soon turned into a grin. "Well them, I guess I'm gonna have to turn it up an inch." Spitting webs and creating some golden metal, Kuza combined all those elements to fabric a big bow with the front made of golden material and the row of web. He also created a bigger arrow with a sharp end and a web connected to the back for full effect.

"I thank you for entertaining me for so long, but I got serious things to attend to. So we'll have to end it there," the spider said and charged the arrow, aiming it at the puffin's heart from behind. "100% power arrow!" He released his arrow which went to fly at full speed toward the puffin's heart...

CRASH!

The attack was so powerful that it created a cloud of dust. Once it faded away, the spider saw that his arrow connected with the floor, leaving a big crater. But not without piercing the puffin prior to this. However, a detail bothered him; the arrow went through his shoulder and, while he did look in pain, it didn't touched his heart.

"He managed to move out of the way at the last second?" the spider deduced before letting the web connected from his mouth to the arrow go down. "Nice reflex, but you won't have the same chance next time, kid."

As Kuza was preparing his next attack, Lazaro was groaning both from pain and anger. "Crap... Luckily I learned about balance and reflex at the Jade Palace. Still, I'm totally getting my butt kicked right here. How are the others gonna take it, if they learn that I let them down?"

"The only problem is that I cannot fight back since he's attacking from an hiding spot..." Suddenly, a detail popped into his mind. "...?! Could it...? Yes, it's complete suicide, but I don'T see any other option. I'm gonna give it all in one last shot!"

"DIE!" Kuza released his arrow, sending it flying at full speed toward Lazaro. The puffin saw the attack coming head on and closed his eyes, bracing himself for the impact.

CRASH!

The arrow pierced right through Lazaro's waist before crashing through many trees, making him fly back a bit and spitting out a lot of blood. As his back connected with a bamboo tree, his body laid limp, dead.

Kuza smirked. "Ehehehe, thanks for amusing me so long, little bird-"

Right after he said that, Lazaro suddenly grabbed the web still connected to Kuza's mouth with his flippers. Rising his head with blood flowing out of his beak, he pulled at the web with all of his strength, causing Kuza to be dragged at full speed toward him.

"DON'T UNDERESTIMATE ME!" the puffin shouted at full lungs and, once the spider came flying into view, rushed toward him with all the strength of despair. Jumping up, he delivered his most violent kick to date right into his torso, breaking some bones and making him spit white blood.

Not stopping there, Lazaro then started delivering kicks to the spider to the point they reached the forest ground and created a crater getting deeper with each kick. He finished his combo with a violent axe kick that made a big impact and sent him flying back away, landing on his back and keeping him there since the pain of his injuries were getting felt.

Kuza coughed in pain as he tried to crawl out of his crater and looked up at Lazaro. "Wha-What is this...power...?"

Lazaro looked back at him. "Even if my enemy is far stronger... Even if my body fails me... I cannot lose!" He coughed a bit before continuing. "I might be a small bird...but my friend call me a badass...and I won't let them down!"

"Ugh!" the spider spat a little more blood in discuss. "Go ahead... Try all you want... It's too late for you to stop it now... Tai Lung will get the Dragon Scroll and take his rightful place as ruler of the Jade Palace..."

Lazaro trembled, the lost of blood starting to take effect, but remained firm. "No... There's someone who can stop him."

"No, impossible... Tai Lung is too powerful to-"

"He will!" Lazaro angrily cut him off. "You can do it, Blu. I know you can. You just need to work with the Dragon Warrior to end this madness once and for all."

"Talking rubbish right up to the end..." Kuza then spat blood one last time before collapsing and closing his red eyes.

Lazaro smiled as he had won...before feeling a huge pain and spitting out a lot of blood. Knowing his end was close, the puffin looked up at the sky with a weak smile.

"Hernandez... I sensed something happened to you... I'm gonna join you now, buddy..."

The puffin then closed his eyes and allowed himself to collapse on the floor, the sun shining over his still smiling face...

* * *

 **Man, first Hernandez, now Lazaro! WHYYYYY?!**

 **At least, the two friends are together now in a better place. Let's hope their sacrifice won't have been pointless and that our heroes will stop Tai Lung's army!**


	145. Alex vs Vulture Leader

**The fight rages on! Give your prayers to the Blue Thunder Crew!**

* * *

Blu and his friends exited the bamboo forest, meaning they were getting closer to the village. With some chance, they'll get there before too much damage gets done.

"You know guys, I'm a bit worried for Lazaro," Apollo admitted while running. "I got a bad feeling about this spider he's fighting with."

"Don't worry. You know him; he always find a way to win," Vladimir tried to reassure him.

Blu got alerted by a sudden shadow that flew across them. Looking up, he saw a bird figure flying by and landing before them. It was a vulture who had a collar of feathers around his neck, black pants, a circular metal shield on his left wing, and some kind of gauntlet with a blade on his right one.

"Alright, we know the drill. Who's gonna take this one?" Dominic asked.

"I'll do it," Alex said, stepping forward. "I'm getting a bit tired of running nonstop. I need to stretch myself a little bit."

"Alright, but be careful and just like I said to the others, join us as soon as you're done with him okay?" Blu said before running along the others.

The kid just gave them a thumb (well, feather thumb) up before turning toward the vulture with a glare. "Seriously? they a kid stay back to fight me? How irresponsible," the vulture remarked.

Alex just ate a Muscle Candy to become super strong. "I don't have time to play around; I wanna end this quick!"

Yelling, the owl charged and went for a punch. In response, the carrion rose his shield to block his fist. Strangely, the impact didn't made him flinch at all.

"Huh? What's that shield?" the kid asked himself.

"Surprised?" the Vulture Leader asked with a smirk. "This is a special shield to allows me to absorb the power of impact and send it back. Like THIS!" Smashing his shield into Alex's stomach, he released the punch he blocked previously, making him spit some saliva and getting knocked back by his own punch.

"So he can basically send me my own attacks back? This is no good," the kid though before charging for another punch.

"And that's not all," the Vulture Leader said with a smirk as he dodged the attack and cut into the owl's left leg with his gauntlet blade.

Alex groaned in pain and held his limb with his hands. to his surprise, the skin around the wound started turning purple and spreading around. "W-What's that?"

"Surprise, surprise," the vulture said with a smirk as he showed his blade, a strange purple liquid dripping from the tip of it. "This blade is dipped into a deadly poison. With the cut I gave you, I infected 15% of your body. When your body will reach 100% of the infection, it will be too late for you."

Alex groaned and realized it was better not to use the Muscle Candy in that case. Reaching into his bag, he took out his Clone Candy to create two clones of himself and started running all around the vulture, confusing him out. He tried to reach for the three kids with his talons but in vain as they ran around too quickly.

Eventually, he had enough and tossed his shield (Captain America style) toward one of the kids. Alex smiled as he took out a chewing gum which he ate and blew out a gum balloon with his beak before dragging it out of his beak. "Gum Gum Shield!"

The gum shield blocked the shield and sent it back right at his owner. The vulture took it right into his beak, briefly stunning him and making blood come out of his nose. "Your damn little prick!" he angrily said with taking his shield back up.

"Alright, it's my chance to use my new candy," Alex said with taking out another candy: this one was purple with an orange flame design. "DUEL CANDY!" Putting the candy into his beak, he chewed on it before his wings suddenly turned purple and on fire.

"What's that?!" the Vulture Leader asked in confusion and surprise.

Alex charged and grabbed the rapace's leg with his burning wing, roasting him at this very spot. The Vulture Leader let out a scream of pain before angrily stabbing his poisoned blade int Alex's back - not deep enough to touch his vital organs, but enough to make him let go and retreat away.

"With this stab, it makes 42% of your body that's infected," the Vulture Leader said as most of Alex's back turned purple. "And just wait, I'm gonna turn as purple as a grape!"

Alex skillfully avoided another stab and managed to make a mark on his wing by grabbing it with his burning one. The Vulture Leader shouted in pain before Alex had to let go and jumped away. His wings returned to normal, but they were hurting him a lot. "That's the big default with this candy: while it turns me on fire, it also causes damage to my wings upon ending.

The kid rushed to a nearby river to plunge his wings into it which caused a little relief feeling. "Don't turn your back to the enemy!" the Vulture Leader screamed as he rushed and swung his poisoned blade.

Alex managed to move out of the way, but still got a pretty deep cut into his right side. He fell on his back as he felt the burning poison course through his body, making his body turn even more purple.

"You're now at 87%. Another shot and it's the end," the Vulture said and walked toward the visibly weak kid. "That was fun fighting you, kid. I must apologize for underestimating you. Allow me to get forgiven by giving you a quick death," he said with closing in, ready to give the finishing blow.

Refusing to go down without a fight, the kid rolled out of the way and then reached once again in his bag to grab his last resort and ate it. "REINDEER CANDY!" Turning into a reindeer, the kid kicked the vulture away with his hooves.

"That's it, I'm giving it all into one last attack," Alex mumbled, bringing his hooves together. "ROSE HOOVES!" Charging at full speed, he hit his attack right into the vulture's shoulder, leaving a mark and sending him flying backward.

Before he could celebrate his success, Alex felt the effects of the poison and spat a purple liquid out of his beak, collapsing on his knees and returning to his normal form. It was getting hard to breath, his eyes were swollen and his muscles were hurting badly. Feeling his strength leaving him, the kid looked up to see the Vulture Leader standing up, hurt from his attack, but not taken out entirely.

"...Sorry, Blu... I said I'd catch up with you...but looks like I won't be able to after all..."

The Vulture Leader angrily walked toward the defenseless kid, ready to take him out once and for all...

"WATER BALL!"

SPLASH!

Out of nowhere, the rapace was knocked aside by a big water ball coming out of nowhere. Upon getting back up, he saw none other than Master Crane coming down from the sky and land right next to Alex.

"Don't touch him! He's my friend!" the Master of Crane Style said with getting in his fighting stance.

"Oh, the great Master Crane," the Vulture Leader sarcastically said before smirking. "I don't need to touch him anyways; my poison will make work of him."

"You poisoned my young friend?!"

The vulture froze upon hearing this familiar voice. He slowly turned around to confirm his fear and be met by a visibly unhappy lady owl.

"You'll pay for that! THUNDERING WIND HAMMER!"

Spinning at quick speed, Fenghuang shot a ball of green energy with the palm of her wing. The Vulture Leader looked to block with his shield...only to find out it has been knocked down after receiving the water ball from Crane. The attack knocked him away and down for good, mainly because Alex did most of the work.

With the enemy defeated, Fenghuang quickly turned her attention to her friend. "Alex!" she said with gently picking the kid who was purple like a grape in her wings.

"It's not good," Crane said with putting his wing on the coughing kid's forehead. "He has been affected by a violent poison. Clearly above 80%. If we don't treat him quickly, he will die!"

Fenghuang did not wanted that: the kid already got close to die once and she wouldn't let that happen again.

"Quick, let's go!"

* * *

 **No, no! Alex, please don't die! It's already hard losing Hernandez and Lazaro! NOT YOU TOOOOOO!**

 **Side note: don't worry; it was the last fight before going back to the village.**


	146. Battle for the Valley Of Peace

**The fight is raging on!**

* * *

At last, the remaining Blue Thunder Crew members - Blu, Jewel, Dominic, Apollo and Vladimir - arrived at the Valley of Peace. To their horror, it was chaos with bandits destroying everything all around.

"Cheese and sprinkles! We're too late!" Blu exclaimed with shaking his head. He though of a plan before turning to his comrades. "Okay guys, you're gonna split up and try to find the others to help them protect the village!"

"What are you gonna do?" Vladimir asked.

"I'm gonna go up to the palace and make sure Tai Lung didn't got the Dragon Scroll yet! Be careful!" His friends nodded at him before he went to run up the staircases.

"You heard him, let's go!" Dominic said and went to run his own way while Jewel and Apollo went in their respective ones - though not without Apollo calling them as he didn't wanted to be left alone.

* * *

Apollo ran by himself across the destroyed town, taking down multiple bandits on his way. "Is someone here? The Five?! Hello?!"

CRASH!

His call was answered when Master Monkey suddenly came crashing into a little house. "This is for my father!" the Blackhoof Boar Clansman yelled, charging toward the primate with his big knife-like sword.

"Geez, I'm stuck!" Monkey groaned while trying to break free from the house's rumbles.

Seeing no other options, Apollo gulped before grabbing his slingshot and shooting a pepper bill to the side of the boar's face, making him cough a bit and blink his left eye.

"Listen to me, you big ugly boar!" the barn owl called to get his attention. "My name is Apollo Bird! And I'm one of the most dangerous pirates across all the seas! I'm so dangerous that even the legendary Kraken fears me!"

"Huh, you sure? Your legs are trembling," the boar remarked.

Apollo realized it was the case (as always)...but still putted on a determined look. "No matter! Even if I'm in the face of despair, even if I end up dying alone on a desert island, my courage won't fade!"

The boar scoffed and charged, bringing his sword down toward the barn owl who rolled out of the way, letting his weapon getting stuck into the ground. At the same moment, Monkey managed to break free.

"Monkey! Your Chi is supposed to be Metal, right?" Apollo called. "Think you can use it to take this pig down?"

Monkey nodded, running up to the boar and kicking him away, picking the sword up for himself. The master spun it around a bit, taunting the clansman as he did a few tricks with it.

"Hey! Give that back!" the boar squealed, running at Monkey.

The primate dodged every punch, flipping and laughing at his opponent's attempts to stop him. Eventually, Monkey threw the sword some ways away, causing the boar to run after it. However, by doing so, it gave Apollo an opening to shot an explosive pill behind his head, knocking him down for good.

"Nice shot, Apollo!" Monkey complimented the barn owl and exchanged an handshake with him.

"Thanks, Master Monkey. But looks like we're not done yet," Apollo responded with pointing at some bowmen up on the buildings shooting arrows all around.

"Let's take them down then go back at the palace!" Monkey said to which Apollo nodded and putted on his aiming googles, ready to shot.

* * *

In another part of the Valley, Jewel found Viper and Mei Ling fighting against a Great Gorilla. "Need some help?" she asked with taking out her Wind Waker.

"That would be nice," Mei Ling responded with a smile and taking out her own bo staff.

"So you're Crane's friend from his academy days?" Viper asked, slithering around the gorilla as he swung his massive arms at her.

"Yep. We trained together until he went to become a part of the Furious Five," Mei Ling replied, using her staff to hit the foe from distance.

Viper went in for the attack, using her Wood Chi to summon vines and wrap around the Great Gorilla's arms, tying him to the ground.

"Ugh! Get these off me!" the gorilla shouted, pulling at the vines to free himself. "I will not be defeated by a punny snake again!"

"Again?" Viper questioned. "Wait a minute, you're that jerk that I defeated all those years ago!" The snake glared at her enemy, her Chi flaring as the nearby plants seemed to bend toward her.

"Viper! We need to focus," Mei Ling said. "If you let your anger get the better of you, you won't be able to fight properly."

Viper took a deep breath, calming down as she starred at the enemy. "Alright. Let's do it together!"

The two warriors shared a nod as they came together, Viper wrapping herself around Mei Ling's staff as the golden cat jumped over Great Gorilla, using her Wind Chi to knock the vilain over and using her staff as a launcher to get Viper onto their adversary. Using her Constrictor Control Technique, Viper wrapped vines around the gorilla's arms, making him punch himself silly.

"Move over, girls!" Jewel called. While the other two were fighting, she used her Wind Waker to create a dark cloud and then sent a thunder ball into it. "Thunderbolt Tempo!"

Viper and Mei Ling moved out of the way in time as a thunderbolt came down from the cloud and stroke the gorilla, sending jolts through his body and making him scream in pain. Once the attack was done, Great Gorilla was all toasted up and collapsed down onto the floor, unconscious.

"Great job," Mei Ling said, watching as Viper used her Chi to hold the gorilla down with tree roots.

"Girls rule!" Jewel said and held her feathered hand for a high-five shared with Mei Ling and Viper.

"Now, how about we make sure Shifu doesn't get killed by Tai Lung?" Mei Ling suggested.

"Good idea!" Viper nodded.

The girls ran back at the Jade Palace with Mei Ling picking up Viper and using her Chi to make longer jump and Jewel doing the same with her Wind Waker.

* * *

Meanwhile, Dominic ran up to the Jade Palace courtyard. He had separated from Vladimir who went to help Master Mantis fight off wolf ninja bandits and since he couldn't find any threat around, he decided to go up and check after his captain.

"Well, well, who do we got here?" a voice asked.

Dominic stopped in his tracks as his path was blocked by three female leopards, each hold fire-and-wind wheels. "Who are you?" Dominic asked, his hands on his sabers' handles.

"We are the Wu Sisters," the one in the middle said. "And you shall not interrupt our master, Tai Lung, from completing his destiny."

A smirk formed on the golden eagle's beak. "in that case, I'll just kick your butts and go take care of your master after."

As the three sisters charged for an attack, Dominic took out Eau De Mort and Snow Run to clash them against their wheels. While he actually managed to hold onto his own pretty well, the three-on-one handicap was leaving him with little room to fight back, specially since those three leopards were pretty fast.

Eventually, one of them managed to break through his defense and cut him on the leg, making him groan. He received another wound as a sister threw her wheel to cut him right into his right shoulder, sending blood flying up. Eventually, the pirate had no choice but jump away, panting and suffering.

"Just give up, you cannot defeat the three of us together!" Su Wu said as her sisters gathered with her.

"Apparently not," he mumbled to himself before smirking. "Looks like I'm gonna have to use the Three Sabers Style," he deduced with picking up Sabor and putting it into his beak while taking a pose with his two other sabers as well.

"Huh? What is he doing with his third sword?" one of the sisters asked.

"No matter; it won't change anything!" the second sister said and, followed by her two siblings, went on for the attack again.

However, this time and thanks to his new style, Dominic managed to fend off the three leopards and even managed to land on a few counter-attacks of his own. No matter how quick they span, Dominic always managed to put a blade in time to counter.

"Enough of this!" Su Wu angrily said as she gathered with her sisters. "We go in for our ultimate attack!" Grabbing each a part of a wheel, they started spinning together at incredible speed and charged toward Dominic.

"Going all out, heh? Fine, I'll do the same!" Dominic started Eau De Mort and Snow Run together while pointing Sabor forward. "TRI-SLASH!

Both side rushed at full speed and clashed with a big SLASH! The felines and avian stood still...

...

...

...

...

...

...until jets of blood came out of both Wu sisters safe for Su and Dominic too. The former two collapsed while Dominic just smirked.

"Two out of three...not a complete success, but not bad either..." He then collapsed because of his wounds.

Su Wu looked after her two sisters before glaring back at the fallen eagle. "My sisters! You'll pay for that!" She walked over to Dominic, ready to finish him off with her claws...

However, she was interrupted by a kick to the side of the face which pushed her back. To her surprise, it was another feline with orange fur that jumped in.

"T-Tigress...?!" Dominic coughed. "I didn't knew you'd still want to save me after what happened..."

"I know, but someone's gotta stop those criminals," she responded with taking her fighting stance.

Annoyed, Su Wu got back on the offensive, charging and clashing her wheels with Tigress' claws. At one point, Po and Tai Lung came out of the palace in a blur, rolling down the stairs together. However, that did not stop the two felines from fighting. At one point, they ran back into the palace through the gate previously destroyed by Tai Lung and Tigress kicked Su Wu into a pillar.

It was then that Tigress noticed a visibly beaten Shifu laying on the ground. "Master!" she said, running over to pick him up from the floor.

"I'm fine, Tigress," Shifu said. "I just need to rest. Tai Lung took a lot out of me."

"Tigress!" Blu suddenly called.

Having recovered from the attack, Su Wu jumped back up and charged at the feline, looking to cut her down with her wheel. Shifu saw it coming, though, and jumped in the way to deflect the attack. Shifu fell to the floor with a big cut in his stomach, Tigress and Blu widened their eyes in horror, and the rest of the heroes arrived in the palace.

"SHIFU!" everyone exclaimed as Tigress was holding him down.

"Master...," she said, visible sadness in her eyes.

"Tigress," Shifu mumbled, clutching his wound. "I know this look bad, but we can get through this. I never told you this, but I was always proud of you. I just feared that I would do the same mistake that I did with Tai Lung." He coughed a bit. "Instead, I just pushed you away which was worst. Whatever happens next, I just want you to know you _always_ made me proud, my daughter..."

As the red panda fell into unconsciousness, Tigress putted her adopted dad down and faced Su Wu. "You hurt my master...No. You hurt my FATHER!" she said, a glow starting to form around her. To everyone's shock, Tigress' form was lit up with a brillant white fire. "In the name of Kung Fu and the Jade Palace, I WILL STRIKE YOU DOWN!"

With a speed that had unseen by her before, Tigress charged the snow leopard with a savage palm strike, burning her with multiple hits and attacks.

"What the heck is that?" Blu asked in surprise.

"It's one of the most powerful Chis I have ever seen," Fenghuang, whom arrived with a visibly sick Alex remarked. "I never thought I'd see it again: it's the Sacred Fire Chi!"

Su stood no chance as Tigress easily used her new power to defeat her. As her opponent laid defeated, her Chi aura faded, Tigress falling to her knees from exhaustion by using this Chi so much.

"That was the last of Tai Lung's generals," Blu remarked. He then looked around to see Vladimir carrying an unconscious Hernandez on his shoulder, Mantis doing the same with an equally unconscious Lazaro who had two big holes in his body (and was curiously missing his ponytail), a purple and coughing Alex in Fenghuang's wings, a slightly un-clean but okay Apollo and Jewel, and Dominic who had cuts across his torso.

As Fenghuang used her Ice Chi to cool down Shifu's wounds, Blu looked at everyone. "Guys, can you take care of my crew-mates?"

"What are you gonna do?" Viper asked him.

"I'm gonna go down the village and help Po with Tai Lung!" he responded with determination.

"You sure you can do that?" Jewel asked her boyfriend.

Blu smiled and kissed her cheek. "Don't worry, guys: I'm not the captain of this crew for nothing. And besides, the Dragon Warrior got more chance of success by teaming up with the future strongest bird in the world, right?"

His friends all responded with smiles and nods before he ran out of the palace to go help his panda friend.

* * *

As Blu arrived down in the valley, he found Po laying on the ground, covered in Tai Lung's Binding Chi and the leopard holding the Dragon Scroll.

"Finally...oh yes...the power of the Dragon Scroll is...mine!" Tai Lung shouted, opening the scroll. His face turned to confusion and then to anger when he saw the blank surface. "It's NOTHING!" the leopard roared.

"Talk about a let down," Blu chuckled a bit to himself, helping Po standing up.

"It's okay, I didn't get it the first time either," the panda said.

"What?" Tai Lung asked in confusion.

"There is no secret ingredient. It's just you," the panda said, looking down at the golden scroll and his reflection with a smile.

Tai Lung roared, tossing the scroll away and charging at Po, only for Blu to throw a plastic punch at this face to knock him aside.

"Don't mind having some help in accomplishing your destiny?" Blu asked with bringing his plastic arm back.

"Not at all," the panda said with a smile. "It's funnier to beat bad guys with friends."

"In that case, this cat is gonna face the Dragon Warrior AND the captain of the Blue Thunder Crew!" Blu said, cracking his plastic knuckles.

Tai Lung recovered from Blu's hit and rushed at Po with his Binding Chi again. However, instead of its intended effects, the panda just giggled. Confused, the leopard hit him again and again and again and again...each time having the same effect.

"Stop! Stop it!" the panda laughed. "I'm gonna pee! Don't! Don't!"

Frustrated, Tai Lung punched Po with both fists, only for the hit to ripple up the panda and Po hit Tai Lung back. "Nice counter," Blu complimented before throwing his fists back. "FISTS STORM!" He shot his fists so fast that it looked like multiple shots hitting the snow leopard who got knocked back.

"Nice attack!" Po said with excitation.

"Thanks," Blu replied, showing his thumb up.

"Enough of this!" Tai Lung shouted, charging at Po again.

It was futile, though, as Po used his newfound unorthodox Panda Kung Fu Style, using his body in various ways to redirect attacks and throw his weight around. He even managed to get Tai Lung to bite his own tail. After hip checking him, Po prepared for Tai Lung to attack him again, meeting the leopard with a belly bump that propelled him into the sky, with the two heroes watching until he came crashing back to the ground into a crater.

Tai Lung wasn't done yet, crawling out of the crater and weakly saying: "You...can't defeat me... You...You're just a big...fat...panda!" With a final lunge, the leopard went to strike Po, only to be caught by the finger.

"T-The Wuxi Finger Hold?!" Tai Lung gasped.

"Oh, you know this hold?" Po said, calling back to what Shifu told him on his first day.

"You're bluffing... You're bluffing!" Tai Lung said in fear. "Shifu didn't teach you that!"

"Nope," Po said with a smile. "I figured it out. Skadoosh!" He lifted and dropped his pinky as a wave of golden dust exploded from the technique. The dust went over the whole valley, with everyone seeing it, from the villagers to the Furious Five.

When the dust settled and the villagers returned, everyone looked as Po walked out of the smoke, with Blu looking at him from the distance.

"Look! It's the Dragon Warrior!" one of the villagers shouted.

Soon, everyone was cheering at Po's victory, even Blu who couldn't be happier for his friend.

"That's my boy! That big, lovely Kung Fu warrior is my son!" Mr. Ping said in tears from how proud he was of his son.

"Thanks, Dad," Po said, giving his father a hug.

After the two released from the embrace, Blu walked up to Po, being joined by the Five and Mei Ling.

"Hey guys," Po softly said.

Tigress stepped forward, giving a bow to the panda. "Master," she said.

The others followed suit, bowing and saying "Master" to Po.

"Master?" Po said, modest but a bit pleased. He then remembered something. "Master Shifu!"

Everyone made their way back to the Jade Palace, where Fenghuang was tending to Shifu's wounds in the main hall.

"Master! Shifu! Shifu! Are you okay?" Po asked, running to the red panda's side.

Shifu opened his eyes at the voice. "Po...you're alive...," he weakly said. "Or are we all dead?"

"No, Master, I didn't die. I defeated Tai Lung!" Po said.

"You did?" Shifu said in astonishment, Fenghuang giving a look of surprise as well.

"Wow... It is as Oogway...foretold... You ARE the Dragon Warrior. You have brought peace...to this valley...and...and to me. Thank you... Thank you, Po... Thank you..." He slowly closed his eyes, causing everyone to get visibly worried.

"No...Master! No, no, no! Don't die, Shifu, please-"

"I'm not dying, you idiot-huh, Dragon Warrior," the red panda suddenly said. "I'm simply...at peace. Finally..."

"He should be fine after a week of rest," Fenghang informed. "We're lucky that weapon didn't cut any deeper."

Blu smiled before remembering a detail. "Hey, are my friends alright?"

Fenghuang nodded. "Don't worry; they sure took a beating, but they'll survive."

Blu smiled as he feared he would lose his crew and family. He then looked up. "Another victory..."

* * *

 **Man, that chapter was long to write. But hey, the heroes have won! Tai Lung's army has been defeated and peace has returned to the Valley Of Peace!**

 **Only one chapter left to tie in the last details and then, the Valley Of Peace arc will be over.**


	147. Celebrations in the valley

**Alright, it's time to conclude the Valley Of Peace arc.**

* * *

At the Jade Palace's infirmary, Blu, Po and everyone else were holding company to their injured friends. Hernandez was laying on a bed with healing vines from Viper wrapped around his body. The pelican managed to survive his intern damage and would recover soon.

For Lazaro, though, it was another story: it took the healing skills of Fenghuang, Viper, Crane, and even Zeng to heal the holes in his body as well as the wounds his organs sustained. He almost did not made it out alive.

Alex was also laying on a bed with a towel of water on his forehead. The kid recovered his colors (white) and coughed a lot of purple liquid during the last two days as his body rejected the poison. At least, he'll make it out alive.

Jewel and Apollo only needed a few plasters for a few marks while Dominic needed bandages around his whole torso and was forced to lay on a everyone was alive and that was all Blu cared about.

"...and then, Po finished him off with the Wuxi Finger Hold! It was awesome!" Blu finished telling his friend with enthusiasm.

"I'm sure it was," Jewel giggled and kissed her boyfriend on the beak, causing the others to look with cute looks.

"Don't worry, mister Hernandez, you'll be back up by tomorrow," Zeng said with putting another wet towel on the pelican's forehead.

"And don't ever take that kind of risk again, big guy!" Lazaro angrily said with slapping his friend from the bed to the side. Though he was hiding how happy he was.

"Like you can talk," Mantis said as he hopped onto the puffin's bed. "You almost committed suicide to win. I hope you didn't do that just to avoid facing me again."

"Tss, you wish," Lazaro replied with a scoff and a smirk.

Meanwhile, Fenghuang was standing next to Alex's bed. Smiling, she gently patted the kid's slightly hot forehead with her wing. "I have to congratulate you for bringing the Vulture Leader down, kid." Her happy look then turned to a serious one. "But seriously, didn't you listened when I told you not to take such risks?"

Alex weakly chuckled. "I'm a pirate; that's the work's risks. I can't just stay back while my friends put their lives on the line."

"Just give him a break, Master Fenghuang," Viper said and gently nuzzled the kid. "He did a lot for us; we should be grateful." Alex blushed a bit as she nuzzled him with affection.

"You did great work out there, Apollo," Monkey said with giving a nudge to the barn owl.

"Aww, thanks Monkey," he replied before taking a cool pose. "But those scums couldn't do anything against two heroes of the seas!"

Jewel giggled before Mei Ling putted a paw on her shoulder to get her attention. "Say Jewel, you're a navigator, right? Think you could tell me one or two things about how the wind works?" she asked. "To help me master the Wind Chi?"

"Sure, I got many books and advices that should help you," the macaw replied with a smile.

Vladimir sat beside Dominic's bed. "You're doing okay, Yusef?" he asked.

Dominic just smiled at his friend's concern. "Yeah, don't worry. You know me; it's gonna take way more to keep me down."

Vladimir nodded with a smile. Tigress then stepped forward, having something to say. "Guys. Dominic, Alex... I wanted to tell you something."

This got the two avians' attention, looking at the feline. "What is it?" Dominic asked, wondering what the Master of Tiger style could tell them.

"...I'm sorry," she said with getting her head low. "Sorry for everything I did and say. I'm sorry for getting you mad, Dominic." She then looked over at Alex. "And Alex...I'm sorry for almost killing you out of rage and...hurting your feelings. I regret everything I have done..."

Dominic and Alex exchanged looks. They could tell she was sincere by her voice. Dominic just closed his eyes and replied: "I can I talk for us both when I say we forgive you."

Tigress looked up again, surprised at how easily they accepted her apology. "R-Really? I mean, I selfishly hurt your feelings and almost killed you once."

Alex giggled. "Tigress, you did something wrong, you recognized it, and now you apologized for it. So as far as I'm concerned, everything's cool between us now."

Tigress couldn't help but gently smile. "Hey guys, how about we go celebrate our success at saving the valley at my father's noodle shop, when you're all up."

"YES!" every Blue Thunder Crew member beamed at unison.

* * *

And so, after the Blue Thunder Crew recovered, celebrations were held in the whole Valley of Peace. At Mr. Ping's noodle shop, the heroes were celebrating their victory with food, drinks and dances as well as just enjoying each other's company.

Blu got into an eating contest with Po, the panda filling his belly naturally while the macaw filled himself to the point of turning into a balloon. He wasn't the most greedy in the world, but those noodles were WAY TOO DELICIOUS!

Dominic and Fenghuang were having a similar contest, but with drinks instead of noodles. And they were pretty much on equal level.

"Are you full already?" Fenghuang asked with a giggle, her face blushing and throwing an empty beer barrel onto a pile of other one.

"Are you kidding?" Dominic replied, blushing a lot too and throwing his own empty beer barrel onto his own pile. "I'm barely getting warmed up! *hiccup*"

Apollo was telling his 'heroic adventures' to the kids who were impressed and saw the owl as a true hero. Viper performed a dance with her ribbon and Alex joined in as well, having a lot of fun with her.

Vladimir and Hernandez took benefit of their huge size to make the children fly around like planes while Lazaro was showing them the awesome thing he could do with his legs. Crane and Mei Ling shared a dance together as they were now an official couple. Blu and Jewel did the same after the former was done with Po.

For short, they had a lot of fun.

* * *

After two days of celebrations, it was time for the Blue Thunder Crew to hit the sea again. With help from their new friends, they brought all the supplies they needed on the Saldanha and were ready to settle off once again.

"So it is time for you to go?" Master Shifu asked. He and his students as well as Fenghuang were standing on the beach in front of the crew.

"Yes," blu replied with a nod. "We had a lot of fun with you guys, but we still have a long way to go to reach the Treasure Planet. So we better leave as soon as possible."

The red panda nodded, respecting their choice. "I just want you to know that it has been an honor for me to have you as my students. Even if I have been a little rough and unfair with you by moments."

"Just a little?" Lazaro asked, getting a nudge from Alex.

"I never thought I'd say this, but I'm gonna miss you guys," Mantis said. "You'll come back to visit us someday, right?"

"Of course, I still wanna have a rematch with you," Lazaro said with a smile, exchanging a pump-fist with the bug.

"I'm gonna miss you, Viper," Alex said with a sad look at his snake friend.

"Me too," she sadly said too before smiling. "But I promise we'll meet again someday. In the mean time, make sure you accomplish your dream and make your friend proud of you," she said with giving him a kiss on the forehead, causing him to giggle and blush cutely.

"I'm gonna miss you too," Fenghuang said, patting the kid on the head. "Have it not been for you, I would never have returned to the Jade Palace and reunited with Oogway."

Alex's eyes trembled and he suddenly ran to hug the elder owl. "And because you saved my life!"

The elder owl couldn't help but feel touched and returned the hug to the kid who changed her life. After many seconds, they broke and Alex whipped his tears away.

Getting back to her cool self, Fenghuang looked at Dominic. "You're gonna keep an eye on him for me, alright?"

The eagle just chuckled. "I'm planning on it." He then turned his attention to Tigress and got serious again. "Tigress, the other day, you apologized to me for the wrongs you did. Well, today I think I am the one who should apologize for almost punching you to death."

"It's okay; I deserved it," Tigress assured. "And besides, I saved your life, so that makes us even," she said with extending her arm for an handshake which Dominic gladly accepted.

"Also, I'm sorry for Tai Lung," he added. I know he was like a brother to you." Tigress nodded with looking down sadly.

"Goodbye, Jewel," Mei Ling said with hugging the spix macaw. "And thanks again for all the tricks you shared with me: I'll become an air-bender in no time."

"Don't mention it. And make sure you treat your new boyfriend right," Jewel replied with a smile. The golden cat just giggled and kissed Crane on the cheek, causing him to blush and cover his face with his hat.

"Thanks for everything, Blu," Po said. "It's thanks to you and your friends that I saved everyone."

"No, you did it because it was your destiny and because you're an awesome Kung Fu master," Blu responded with a smile. The two friends then exchanged one last hug. "Now you make sure to keep your Valley safe with your new friends, okay?"

"Of course. And you, you make sure to reach your goal and become the strongest bird in the world, right?"

"I'm counting on it."

It was then with heavy hearts that the Blue Thunder Crew got on the Saldanha, lifted the anchor, and started driving away. The Kung Fu masters waved at them from the beach which they gladly returned until they were out of sight.

"Aw, man, it's never easy to say goodbye to the friends we make on each new island," Apollo said with whipping a little tear away.

"Yeah...," Alex nodded from the top of Vladimir's head, whipping a few tears away too.

"I'm not sad at all! I'm just really proud of having defeated yet another big bad guy!" Lazaro shouted, trying to hide the tears in his eyes. Dominic just sat against the ship's mat with his eyes closed and his arms crossed.

"Don't be sad!" Blu suddenly said. "We'll come back to meet them again someday, and when that day comes, we'll be even stronger than we already are!"

His friends all whipped their tears away and nodded with smiles. Blu then turned toward his girlfriend. "Alright, what's our next destination, Jew?"

"I tell you that in a moment," she said with a smile and getting back inside the ship...

* * *

 **And that concludes the Valley Of Peace arc, my friends!**

 **This arc was fun to write. Now I just want you to inform you of something special: the next three our four arcs will follow characters out of the Blue Thunder Crew. I know you wanna know where they'll go next, but trust, those next ones are important to the plot as well.**

 **Special thanks for my friends like Jameson The Phoenix Owl and TheDragonSaver who allowed me to take inspiration from his story to make this arc. Thank you, phoenix owl and raven buddies!**

 **I hope to see you all when "The Dynamic Adventure" continues...**


	148. Special episode: Spreading News

**Before we move on to the next arc, I'm gonna make a special episode to see what's going on around in the world.**

* * *

On a little island in the middle of a sea in the New World, a familiar boat was approaching and parked down before a falcon carrying a huge black sword on his back slowly stepped foot on the island. It only took a few seconds before many pirates came to block his way.

"Hawkeye! What are you doing here?!"

The Warlord didn't replied and just starred with his intimidating yellow eyes. "Shut up. Where are your superiors?" One of the pirates immediately ran away in fear. "Tss, camping on such an island. He's way too casual..."

Before long, the pirate returned with a _human_ out of all things. It was a male with blond hair and green eyes who was wearing a military t-shirt with a brown jacket, half-blood cap on his head and biker gloves.

"Yo, Hawkeye," he casually said. "Long time no see. I'm not feeling really good right now. You came for a match?"

"I have no interest in facing one of the four Great Emperors right now," Hawkeye simply replied. He then took some papers out of his jacket. "However, I came across a group of interesting young birds. I though you might want to see this."

He gave the papers to the human who took it and saw those were the bounties of the Blue Thunder Crew.

"...Hey, isn't that Aqua' little brother?" the man said. "So he finally came to the New World after all!" The human chuckled before looking up at Hawkeye with a smirk. "Well in that case, Hawkeye, I can't just let you go like that..."

He suddenly grabbed a wooden barrel and filled it with a bottle of beer. He laughed loudly and handed it to Hawkeye. "C'mon, drink it up, Hawkeye! Drink! Drink! We're gonna party today!"

The falcon jsut picked the barrel and looked at the human. "You seem to have already done so, Gio S. Duke."

"Don't mind me. This is a time to celebrate!" Duke insisted. When Hawkeye just rolled his eyes and drank, he broke out laughing of good heart...

* * *

Meanwhile, back in New York, the Four Ninja Birds were busy training in their lair with Master Yoshi, when Ryker suddenly rushed in. "Guys! Guys!"

Master Yoshi groaned annoyingly as the burrowing owl interrupted their training _again_. "What is it, M. Ryker?"

He gave papers to the four ninjas. "Some bird gave me this up to the surface. He said it was from Aqua."

"From Aqua?" Lilly asked, taking the papers and sharing them with her siblings. They all widened their eyes as those were the Blue Thunder Crew's bounties.

"It's Blu and his friends!" Sky exclaimed. "They have bounties now?"

"Looks like," Lilly confirmed. "And if I remember correctly, the A rank means the Naval Forces take them pretty much seriously."

"Wow, you girls weren't kidding when you said your brother is a real though," Kowalski remarked.

"Yup," Sky nodded, smiling with her sister before looking at Blu's bounty. "He's getting closer to achieving his goal..."

* * *

Back in Rio de Janeiro, Pedro was laying on a bird-sized gym's floor, panting and sweating from exhaustion. Ever since returning to Rio, he has been training really hard in the art of boxing in hopes of one defeating Mr. Sandbird of the WVBA.

"How...long...did I hold this far...?" he asked while panting.

"...Five minutes," Nico remarked with a chuckle. "You still have a long way to go before you can get higher than King Hippo."

It was then that a yellow macaw entered with a note. "Nico, Pedro. I got a note for you; it's from Blu."

Getting back up, Pedro watched as Nico opened the note and took out papers of the crew's bounties as well as a note explaining everything. This made the canary widen his eyes and remove his bottle cap.

"What is it?" Pedro asked curiously.

Nico turned toward him. "Blu and his friends have become pirates."

* * *

In the Amazon rainforest, the spix macaw tribe received the exact same papers from a mysterious bird. Needless to say they were surprised by the news as well.

"...My daughter has become a feared pirate in this New World," Eduardo mumbled in awe.

"My little flower has grown up so much!" Mimi beamed, tears of joy coming out of her eyes.

Roberto was holding Blu's bounty and smiled. "Congratulations, Hario..."

* * *

In Ga'Hoole, it was the Band who received their friends' bounties. "So they really have saved another country?" Twilight asked in surprise.

"Looks like," Digger said with a smile. "Man, they did so much since the last time we've seen...just like us."

"They're still following their dreams," Gylfie happily said. "Right, Soren?"

The barn owl nodded and looked at the papers. "Keep it on, guys. I'm certain you'll reach your dreams in no time."

* * *

And in another part of Rio, Linda was busy ordering the books of her new bookstore, when Tulio rushed in. "Linda! Linda-" In his run, he slipped on the carpet and ended up falling on the floor like a clown.

"Tulio! Are you okay?" Linda asked, helping her husband back up.

"Yes, yes, I'm alright," he said as he got back up and re-adjusted his glasses before handing her a package. "Linda, this is incredible! You need to see this!"

Confused, Linda picked the package and took what was inside. It was the same thing: bounties and a message reading what was happening. The book girl was surprised...but then smiled softly.

"That's my big brave boy..."

* * *

 **Well, that was short, but we got some news about everywhere around my world. And I introduced a new character: Gio S. Duke (or just Duke for short) which is an OC of my good old friend SuperDuke1000.**

 **The next arc - the Inazuma 11 arc - will start next chapter. See you then ;)**


	149. Team Raimon

**Alright, it's time to start the Inazuma 11 arc! I hope you'll enjoy it.**

* * *

"And it's 13-0! Victory for the Royal Academy!"

"I'm sorry, but you lost. I think you know our ways of dealing in case of victory."

"Y-Yes, sir..."

"Loosers don't have their word to say. This field is now our property. You're gonna be nice birds and leave it right now."

* * *

Meanwhile, in a little independent state of the United States, a familiar spix macaw was flying with excitation across the sky and toward a special spot made specifically for birds to play.

Yup, this macaw was none other than Polie.

Blu and Jewel's friend decided to move on to USA prior to the formers leaving to go on pirate adventures and brought Adam, Star, Alicia, and his sister Brooke with him. The reason being that he wanted to start a football career with a team of his own and that the United states seemed like a good place to do so. Not only did his friends follow him, but he even was lucky enough to meet some spix macaws who were exporte to the USA thanks to the Blu Sanctuary's program who were willing to join his team.

He arrived into a small bird-sized wooden house behind a tree in an open area in the middle of a park on which there was a sign reading: "Football team's local." Opening the sliding door, he adjusted the orange headband around his forehead and gloves for his wings he had gotten upon forming his team and picked up a bird-sized soccer ball in his wings with a smile.

"Alright guys, let's go training!" he said with enthusiasm...

...only to get no responses from his team.

There was Jack Wallside, a big male macaw with hair in a "mushroom top" hairstyle and black eyes. He has a large figure compared to his other teammates. Despite his size, he is a really bashful, shy and timid bird. He was currently busy eating a Brazilian nut.

There was also Todd Ironside, a male spix macaw who had chipmunk-like features with round black eyes and exaggerated buck-teeth (don't ask me where it came from). His hair is also styled to match his facial features,and kept short with the exception of his sideburns, which grow past his invisible ears. His hair forms a spike atop his head, making it look like a chestnut. He's very energetic and positive, always praising members and raising the overall mood and spirit of the team. Right now, he was busy throwing a ball that bounced on the wall and back at him.

Not too far from him was Steve Grim, a male macaw with short, messy hair. His eyes are a shade of dark brown. He has a fair light blue skin, with an average height. Steve is kind, caring and optimistic, yet a little lazy. He was just reading a book in his corner.

Next is Tim Saunders, a very small spix macaw with black eyes which look like crosses and long brown hair tied in a big ponytail. Apart from this ponytail, there is one bang in front. The little bird loved to prove he could be a great player on the field despite his size. He was practicing warm up exercises just for the fun of it.

Then, there was Sam Kincaid, a taller macaw with a strange orange afro that covered his eyes. He also has freckles on his cheeks. His look earned him the nickname of "Carrot". Tim is versatile and often does a little of everything. He's also a nice person, he loves soccer and always thinks for the best of the team. He was watching Todd playing with his ball.

The last in the room is Kevin Dragonfly, a macaw who's pretty tall in height with a muscular build. He have sharp black eyes. He is a typical hot-headed guy, with a sharp tongue, but deep down he can be quite nice. Right now, he was just laying back on a chair.

"Alright guys, let's go training!" Polie repeated, but didn't got anymore response. He lowered the soccer ball and frowned. "Come on guys, since the time we didn't trained, it would make us some good."

"You managed to get us the field this time?" Kevin nonchalantly asked with a side look.

"No...," Polie admitted before smiling. "But I though about asking the rugby team to give us some space."

"Of course," Steve said with rolling his eyes.

"So that they'll mock us once again?" Todd asked while still throwing his ball.

"They're gonna tell us again that we're only seven and that the tennis field will be enough," Sam remarked.

"It would be better to wait for the field to be free," Steve added.

"I agree with him," Jack said, chewing on another nut.

"Except that it never is," Tim said with stretching to the side.

Seeing his partners' pessimism and laziness, Polie frowned and pushed a cry. "We're a team and we need to train!" He then pointed at a poster on the house's wall which showed a football cup. "Specially since we've got a tournament to participate in soon, remember? The Football Frontier! I'm sure we can get in final this time, don't you guys think?"

"Well, to have a chance, we'd need to be eleven players. Bad luck," Todd remarked with catching his bouncing ball in his wing.

"Come on!" Polie insisted. "If you joined this team, it's to play football, right? What's the point of being a part of a team if you never play?" The macaw then angrily left the little wooden house in a sour mood.

"I don't understand why he put so much heart into it," Steve remarked.

"There's no point in training anyways; we have yet to win a big match," Kevin added with turning his head away.

Meanwhile, Polie angrily walked away while kicking in his soccer ball. "Polie!" He turned around and saw his sister arriving. This made him smile and turn toward her. "Hi, Brooke, how's it going?"

"I'm sorry; I still couldn't convince the local bird to leave you the training field," she said with rubbing the back of her head.

"Oh, it's not bad, sis'."

"And where are your friends?"

"They don't wanna train, as always," he replied with rolling his eyes.

This caused Brooke to narrow her eyes toward the wooden house. "Want me to go try and convince them?"

"No need. You'll see, they are gonna want to play again sooner or later." He then kicked the ball up in his wings. "I know them well: they are all passionate about football just like me."

Brooke smiled and nodded. "I bet you're gonna go at the field near the river again. But you really think training only with children is enough?"

"Well, they have a lot of potential, you know. Come with me; you'll see for yourself."

* * *

Later that day, Polie got at a soccer training field near a river and a bridge and got to train with some young birds living near. They shot the balls while he protected the net with his wings. Brooke watched with a smile and encouraged her brother as he gave the kids advices while blocking their balls.

At the same moment, a dove passed nearby and turned his head to look at the birds play. He had long and sharp head feathers which resembled to flames and he had zigzag eyebrows and black sharp eyes.

"Michelle, you did a great shot to Hence earlier," Polie told a young duck chick as she drank a water bottle and rested a bit.

"Thanks, but you know, Polie, that if we're making such progress it's thanks to you," she said with a blush.

"I'm also learning while playing with you, Michelle," Polie assured. So if it makes you better too, then it's only a plus!"

"Alright, enough playing!" another duck kid, Hence, said. "You wanna see me get serious, Polie? Just watch!"

He kicked into the ball so hard that it flew away and barely missed two male crows that walked by. "Hey! Who shot this at us?!" one of them asked with picking up the ball.

Polie rushed at them and rubbed the back of his head. "Sorry, I'm really sorry for that! It was an accident. Could you give it back-OUF!"

The other crow kicked him right in the guts, causing him to fall down and clutch in pain. "Polie!" Brooke called while the kids watched in fear.

"Give you what? This dumb ball?" the crow asked with sitting on it. Unknowns to them, the male dove was glaring at them from the side. "Football is a dumb sport for dumb birds."

"How about we show them how to really kick into a ball?" the other suggested and spat on the ball, causing everyone to gasp.

The other bird then kicked the soccer ball which was sent flying right toward Michelle. The little duck looked in horror before lifting her wings, ready to feel the impact. However, the dove suddenly rushed in, jumped, and performed a beautiful backflip kick that sent the soccer ball right back into the crow's face, causing blood to spill out of his nose. Needless to say Polie was absolutely surprised by this scene.

"Hey! What's wrong with you?!" the other crow asked with looking at his knocked down friend. However, the dove only responded with a glare that caused him to run away in fear.

"Thanks a lot," Michelle thanked the dove who looked at her with a friendly smile before walking away.

"Hey! Wait!" Polie called, running up to him. "That was an awesome shot you did there! You're playing football, right? What team are you part of? If you mind, just come train with my team. We are called Raimon."

The dove just gave him a sideways look before walking away. Polie just starred blankly as did his sister.

* * *

Later, as night time fell, Polie and Brooke returned to the nest they shared with Adam, Star and Alicia. They were currently sitting around a good dinner of exotic fruits, but Polie was barely eating as he couldn't take his mind off the dove his saw in action earlier.

"Polie, eat! You've been training all day long; it's important to keep your stomach full," Star told him.

"Sorry... It's just that I met a dove during my training with the kids today. He did this amazing kick with the ball, but he refused to talk to me."

"A dove you say?" Adam asked with sudden interest. And you say he did an amazing kick with the ball? Maybe it was Axel Blaze."

"Axel Blaze?" everyone asked curiously.

"It's a renewed football player known across the whole country for being a very promising player," Adam explained. He then rubbed his chin. "Though we didn't saw him play for a while now. I don't know why."

"Axel Blazy huh?" Polie asked and then smiled. "Alright, I'll make sure to meet him again tomorrow!"

* * *

After a good night of rest, Polie quickly ate his breakfast, putted on his gloves and headband, and flew out of the next in search for this Axel Blaze. It wasn't long before he stopped him walking into the streets.

"Hey, Axel!" he called and flew down, catching his attention in the process. "I'm sorry, with all the rumbling going yesterday, I forget to introduce myself. My name's Polie and I'm the captain as well as the goalkeeper of the team Raimon. "Would you like to join my team? One of my friends told me about how talented you are and I understand better how you did that kick, yesterday."

However, Axel just looked down and turned his head away. "Sorry, but I don't play anymore. I definitely stopped playing football."

"What?!. Polie asked with a surprised look. "You stopped football? Why?"

"This is personal," Axel simply said and flew away.

Before Polie could fly after him, Steve suddenly arrived in a hurry. "Polie! Polie! It's an emergency!"

"What's wrong, Steve?" Polie asked him.

"Polie, there's a team that came to have a match with our team!" he said. "It's the Royal Academy!"

Polie widened his eyes in shock. "What?! The Royal Academy?! Like in the best football team in the whole country?!"

"Yup; not only the best team in the USA, but also the only team to have won the Football Frontier in the last 40 years from what I've heard," Steve confirmed, fear in his face. "And that's not it all; they added the stipulation that should we lose, the field of this zone will belong entirely to them!"

"What?!" Polie exclaimed in shock too. "That's out of question! We're gonna beat them!" He then though about a detail. "But we're gonna need four more members if we are to stand a chance against them..."

* * *

 **And yes, my friends! The Inazuma 11 arc will follow Polie and his team, Raimon, as they participate in football matches! Surprised?**

 **Before you go and tell me: "Hey! We came to see birds fighting like in the other arcs! Not playing some sports!", I have something to say for my defense: this is not sorely a story of birds fighting: I created the Dynamic Adventure world because it gives me thousands of opportunities. And I wanna try new things.**

 **My reason for going to a change of theme and place is because I felt guilty of leaving Polie, Adam, Alicia, Star, and Brooke out for almost 100 chapters while I introduced them early as main characters.**

 **And I also, I recently saw a football cartoon on television and this is what gave me the idea for this arc. It's not bad from taking a break of all the fights and turn toward sports, is it?**

 **Anyways, Polie and team Raimon are gonna need to find 4 extra members if they are to take on the Royal Academy and keep their training field (even if they practically never get it XD). Do you think they're gonna do it? And why did Axel Blaze stopped playing?**

 **Stay stunned to find out...**


	150. One day before facing the Royal Academy

Almost immediately after learning the news, Polie went to Raimon's team house to share it with them...and saying that they were surprised would be an understandment.

"And so...you told them we were going to play this match?" Todd asked, dropping his bouncing ball while he trembled and had his eyes wide open.

"And we're gonna play it!" Polie firmly said. Brooke was standing beside him. "There's no way in the name of football I'm gonna let them take our training field! I'll find a way to gather eleven players!"

"But even then, we're up against the Royal Academy. It's impossible," Sam pointed out, hiding his whole face behind his orange afro.

"They're not just going to beat us; they're going to humiliate us," Tim added.

"We can pack up our things and go back home," Jack said.

It was the limit for Polie who glared at them with fire in his eyes. "Listen to me, guys! If you love for football is really strong, I'm certain we can accomplish the impossible! We're not gonna give up without even trying!"

* * *

And so, Polie started flying across the whole city in search of four members to join Raimon. Unfortunately, nobody was interested in it. By the time the sun started setting at the horizon, Polie flew up to a little park where he used to train by himself with a little soccer ball. Upon arriving, he was surprised to see Axel Blaze standing there and admiring the view the park on the hill gave over the city.

"Hey, Axel!" he called and ran toward him. The dove just gave him a brief look before starting to walk away, only for the energetic spix macaw to jump before him with a smile. "The view we get here is awesome, right? It's my favorite spot since I've came to this city. Oh, and did I told you? My team's soon gonna face against the Royal Academy."

This news caused Axel to widen his eyes in what seemed to be surprise. "But we got a problem: there's not enough players in our team. I asked all the birds around if they wanted, but there was not one of them who wanted to help us. Maybe I should find another way to approach, don't you think?"

Axel just turned and kept looking at the horizon. "You know, I still wonder why you decided to stop playing football. I mean, if you really hated it, you wouldn't have done this awesome kick yesterday. Oh, but I'm certain you have plenty of reasons for stopping, right? It's just my opinion."

Axel turned to look at him with a little annoyed look. "My gosh, you're a big chatty boy," the dove remarked.

"If I'm telling you all this, it's because I would like to play football with you. I'm certain we'd make a great team!" Polie insisted with showing the soccer ball he brought.

"Forget about, wouldya?" Axel asked and turned, looking to leave again.

"But if you don't like soccer, why did you kick in this ball, yesterday?" Polie asked, impatience starting to get the best of him.

Axel gazed at Polie...then at the ground and walked away. "Just leave me alone." And with that, he flew away, leaving Polie to stare at him once again.

The young macaw just looked at the ground, then at the horizon for a moment, feeling somehow sad that such potential got to waste. Specially when it belonged to a good bird like Axel. However, he soon shook those thoughts out of his head and turned toward some bird-sized tires laying near a tree.

"Alright, let's get to work!"

Using ropes to tie one of the tires to his back, he tied a second one to a tree branch and made it swing in his direction so that he could try to block it with his wings. It was a special training he followed since coming to the USA to get stronger. so far, the tire always knocked him back, but the macaw refused to stay down and kept trying to block the tire in order to become a better goalkeeper.

After getting knocked down by the tire for the 100th time, Polie groaned on the ground as the tire tied to his back felt heavy. It was then that he saw someone walking up to him. "You're always working so hard?"

He looked up to see none other than Nathan Swift, one of the rare other local bird interested in football. He is a male spix macaw and has aquamarine hair tied into a ponytail with a red band, with bangs that cover his left eye. He has light brown eyes.

"Oh, hi, Nathan," Polie said.

"That's the strangest training I've ever seen," Nathan said with helping Polie back up on his feet.

"It's a special training my grandfather taught me," Polie explained. "I didn't met him; he died before I was born. But since he was the one to create the Raimon team, he came up with many special trainings he left to his son and also to me. The Royal Academy players aren't your regular players: they are strong and fast. And so I decided that the only way I'll be able to stop their shots would be with his training ways."

Nathan just tilted his head to the side. "Seriously? You think you guys have a chance to beat the Royal Academy team?"

"Of course," Polie simply replied. Nathan just starred at the young macaw for a moment...before suddenly smiling and holding his wing out to him. Polie looked at it curiously. "What are you doing?"

"I like your spirit, Polie. You convinced me to join your team!"

This statement caused Polie to widen his eyes...and then to smile widely before shaking his wing. "Thanks a lot, Nathan!"

The macaw smiled friendly before turning around. "Okay, I'm with him, guys. What do you decide?"

Polie blinked his eyes in confusion. "Who are you talking to? There's no one but us in here...?"

It was then that Polie realized the whole Raimon team was hiding in the park's bushes. "Hello, captain!" Jack said with coming out from behind a tree.

"Guys?" Polie was so surprised that the tire caused him to fall on his back. Luckily, Jack and Todd rushed to help him.

"You're not hurt, captain?" Todd asked in concern.

"You're not planning on getting injured before our match with the Royal Academy, are you?" Kevin asked seriously.

"Don't worry, Kevin; I'm fine," Polie said with a reassuring smile.

"They've been looking at you for a while now," Nathan informed. "In fact, they arrived way before me."

"Really?" Polie asked in surprise.

"Yeah; seeing you trying to convince all those birds to join our team really touched us," Steve admitted.

"Well, SLIGHTLY touched," Kevin said with a cough in his usual hard head attitude.

"And then we saw you follow this hard training! This really succeeded in motivating us, captain!" Todd declared with whipping tears away.

"Can I follow the same training as you, captain?" Sam asked.

"Me too!" Tim added.

"Can we train all together?" Jack asked.

"Of course! You know there's nothing else that could make me happier!" Polie replied with tears of joy in his eyes. "You have no idea how happy I am! LET'S TRAIN!"

"YES, CAPTAIN!" the whole Raimon team replied at unison.

And so, the Raimon team started an intense training in each of their respective style in order to get better before their match with the Royal Academy...

* * *

The next day arrived and team Raimon came to the local football field, ready to face the Royal Academy. But before that, Polie held a little team reunion for a special detail.

"Guys, I'd like to present you to someone," Polie said and pointed to a spix macaw standing to his side. It was a male with light blue feathers, round black eyes, and a pink and dark blue cap on his head. "His name is Maxwell Carson and he's gonna play with us today."

"But you can call me Max; it's shorter," the young macaw said with a friendly smile. "When I saw your captain trying to recruit birds, I though it would be a good chance to have some fun."

"Have fun, you say?" Kevin asked with the most serious of all looks. "Today's match has nothing of a game: it's extremely serious."

"Okay, okay; it's the first time I play football, but I learn really quick. So don't worry," Max assured.

"I'm sure you'll make a great work, Max," Polie said with a gloved wing on his new friend's shoulder.

"But captain, even with Max, we're only nine players," Steve pointed out.

"Ten you mean."

Steve jumped and turned around to see a pretty tall spix macaw with long head feathers hiding his eyes that made him look like a ghost. "Oh, sorry, Jin; I didn't saw you were there," Steve quickly apologized.

"Jin joined the team too," Polie happily said.

"I joined this team because I wanted to come out of the shadows and make sure people finally notice I exist," Jin sinisterly said, making Steve laugh nervously.

"Guys! They're here!" Brooke called from the outside.

The Raimon team members exchanged looks before rushing outside and in the middle of the field where they saw a group of birds had indeed arrived. The species were varied, but their leader was a scarlet macaw wearing a superhero-like cape around his neck, a pair of blue and grey googles over his eyes, and his head feathers were braided and tied.

"Can you tell me why we came here? I feel like we're wasting our time with such a group of amateurs," a member of the team told the leader.

"No don't worry; something interesting's gonna happen," he said with looking at the distance where he spotted Axel Blaze resting against a tree and watching the scene.

"Hello, my name is Polie and I am the leader of team Raimon," Polie introduced himself. "I wanna thank you for offering this match against us."

He then handed his wing for a shake, but the scarlet macaw turned his head. "My name's Hurricane Helms. It's our first time on this field, mind if we train a little before the match?" he simply asked.

"No, not at all; do as you please," Polie accepted.

Moving to the sides, Raimon watched as the Royal Academy team performed amazing advanced moves on the field. They moved fast, hit strong, and had a great team work.

"Don't tell me we're gonna face those guys!" Kevin exclaimed as he was as shocked as the rest of his team.

During the training, Hurricane Helms stole a glance at Polie and noticed a bandage on his left wings he got from training too hard the night before. Smirking, he suddenly kicked the soccer ball at full speed in his direction.

Widening his eyes in surprise, he rose his wings to catch the ball and actually managed to stop it. However, the shot was so strong that smoke came out from the ball after he dropped it.

"Captain!" his friends exclaimed in shock.

"Polie, you're okay?" Kevin asked.

Polie slowly looked down to see the shot he blocked had left burning marks in his gloves. He looked up toward Hurricane Helms who smirked at him...and then, he smiled.

"This is gonna be an awesome match!"

* * *

 **Why is the Royal Academy interested in Axel Blaze? Will Raimon be able to defeat this elite despite the difference in level? Stay stunned to find out!**

 **Also, this is the 150th chapter for this story! Man, I never believed I would get this far. This calls for a little dancing victory!**


	151. Face-to-face with Royal Academy

**It's time for team Raimon to face team Royal Academy!**

 **Raimon members:**

 **Polie (team captain)**

 **Nathan Swift**

 **Kevin Dragonfly**

 **Maxwell Carson**

 **Jin**

 **Jack Wallside**

 **Todd Ironside**

 **Steve Grim**

 **Tim Saunders**

 **Sam Kincaid**

 **Royal Academy members:**

 **Hurricane Helms (leader)**

 **...and we don't know the others yet XD**

* * *

"I'm so excited!" Polie happily beamed despite having burning marks on his gloves after blocking Hurricane Helms' shot. "Guys, this is our chance to show them the payoff of our full day of training!"

"...I have to pee!" Jack suddenly said and flew away from the field.

"Jack, wait! It's not the right time!" Polie called after his friend.

"Say, what are you planning to do?" Hurricane Helms asked, causing Polie to turn toward him. "Even if your big friend comes back, you're still only ten. You lack one player. So, think you'll find a eleventh player?"

"Polie! Wait!" He turned his head and saw Brooke running his way with a little spix macaw who was wearing glasses for some reason. "This boy says he's willing to join your team!"

"Isn't he a bit small to play football?" Max asked with rubbing his cap.

"Yup, totally," Kevin said in agreement.

Brooke and the little macaw arrived before Polie. "His name is Willy something."

The little macaw adjusted his glasses in a professional way. "Yes, my name is Willy Glass. Nice to meet you." He then looked all around with observing eyes. "It seems that no one except me was willing to volunteer. It makes me your last hope."

Polie smiled. "Alright then, welcome in the team, Willy."

The little macaw smirked and adjusted his glasses. "A good choice done, my friend..."

Meanwhile, on the sides of the field, Adam noticed that Alicia had a look of concern on her face. "Is something wrong, Alicia?" he asked.

"I'm just wondering...why would the Royal Academy want to face such a low level team as Polie's?" she admitted with turning toward her boyfriend. no matter how much I think about it, I can't figure it out."

"We'll probably understand once the match have begun," Adam deduced.

"What is keeping you from starting this match?!" the referee, a yellow macaw wearing a black and white referee shirt, asked as he rushed at Polie.

"Well, we're waiting for our friend, Jack, to return from doing his little needs," Polie replied.

"Well go get him now! We can't keep our guests waiting any longer!" the macaw urged the captain of team Raimon.

"Oh, yes sir!" Polie replied. "Let's go!"

every member of team Raimon flew off and started searching for their friend all around. But no matter how many times they called for him and searched, they couldn't find him. "Did you guys found Jack?" Polie asked as he reunited with his friends.

"Nope; he's not anywhere," Kevin responded with shaking his head.

"I found him!" Todd suddenly called.

The rest of the team followed their friend's call and found him standing next to the feet of a tree in which Jack was apparently jammed. "Jack?! What are you doing in there? Come out: the match's about to start!" Polie ordered.

Jack slowly came out of hiding and lowered his head in shame. "I'm sorry, captain. I decided to hide there because I was scared..."

Polie just shook his head and placed both wings on his hips. "Jack, you don't solve your problems by running away from them. If you start running away now, you'll run away all your life. You want this or you prefer fighting back?"

Jack whipped his tears away and looked with determination. "I'm sorry, captain. I won't run away again! I'll give everything I have!"

* * *

And so, Raimon returned to the playground and face-to-face with the Royal Academy. Many birds gathered around the fiel to see the match.

"You think they have a chance?" Alicia asked.

"Of course! I don't doubt Polie for one second!" Star declared, speaking high for her boyfriend.

"Attention please!" the ref called. "The match between Raimon and Royal Academy is about to start: we're gonna proceed with the draw to determine which team will start with the ball."

"No need," Hurricane Helms suddenly interrupted. "They can have the ball; we don't mind."

"We're about to start! The Royal Academy is about to face team Raimon in a friendly match!" a green parrot holding a microphone said.

"Huh, who are you?" Adam asked with a confused look.

"Huh, my name is Chester Oz Jr., but you can just call me Chester. I'm the one charged to comment the football match you're about to see," the green parrot explained with a smile before turning back to the field. "But it's no time for presentations: it looks like both teams are in place and the ref is ready to give the starting call! The match's about to start!"

"Oh, I can't believe it! I'm finally gonna become a football star!" Willy happily beamed.

"That's an awesome sensation; it's the first time so many birds are looking at me," Jin remarked. "They finally realize that I exist."

"You guys are very courageous: I'm so nervous that I can't stop trembling," Todd remarked.

"I'm counting on you guys! Give your best!" Polie called to his team from the goal.

Before long, the ref gave the whistle shot to announce the start of the match. Willy started by kicking the ball and giving it to Kevin who at his turn gave it to Max and started running with him.

"It started! Kevin Dragonfly starts by giving the ball to Maxwell who give it back as Kevin charges straight for the enemy's goal!" Chester commented.

Two Royal Academy members tried to stop Kevin's moment by sliding on the floor and to his legs. However, the macaw smirked, caught the ball between his ankles, and jumped pass them. "Incredible! Kevin Dragonfly avoid the defense and goes right for the goal!"

"If we keep playing like this, I can say we're good for victory!" Kevin said with confidence.

"I'm here! Pass it!" Nathan called from Kevin's right.

Obeying, Kevin gave Nathan the ball and let him rush forward. "Nathan Swift is getting dangerously close to the Royal Academy's goal!"

However, Nathan got blocked by a defender, forcing him to pass the ball to Kevin who at his turn kicked to Max and then to Sam. The carrot head ran to one side of the goal and kicked toward Steve who pretended to go for a kick...only to let the ball pass, leading the opposite team into error. Instead, Kevin jumped with a confident smirk and kicked the ball as hard as possible, going straight for the goal.

"Wow! What a shoot! Even the world's best goalkeeper would have an hard time stopping such an attack!"

However, the goalkeeper just smirked and jumped to block the ball before it could reach the goal. "What?! Impossible!" Kevin said, widening his eyes in shock.

"Incredible! That was a perfect stop from the goalkeeper!" Adam gasped.

The goalkeeper then simply threw the ball back to Hurricane Helms who smirked and slowly turned his head toward team Raimon. "Alright, time to show them how we REALLY play football."

He then kicked the ball so hard that it flew across the field, pass all of team Raimon and straight for their goal. Polie was shocked, but still rose his wings to block the ball. To his surprise, the ball was so strong that even by putting all of his strength, he was knocked back into the goal with the ball. The ref was surprised as much as everyone else, but still gave a whistle shot to announce a goal.

"I-Incredible! In the blink of an eye, the Royal Academy scored one goal! A simple attack with so much speed and power!"

"Polie!" Star, Alicia, Brooke and Adam shouted at unison.

* * *

 **Wow! Things look bad here: the Royal Academy scored a goal with a mere attack. You think team Raimon got a chance against them? Well...**


	152. Face-to-face with Royal Academy part 2

"Captain!" Team Raimon rushed to Polie who was still laying down in the goal after trying and failing to block a mere shot from Hurricane Helms.

"I'm really sorry, guys. I couldn't stop it," he apologized.

"What can we do against such a strong and fast team?" Steve asked, visibly on the verge of panicking.

"We don't have the level to face them!" Todd added.

"What are you saying? The match barely started!" Polie said. "We're gonna give all we got!"

Unfortunately, that wasn't enough. Not only did the Royal Academy kept marking goals, but they even shot the ball so hard at Raimon members that it actually hurt them. And they did it on purpose! Before long, the ref called the end of the match's half-running time. At this moment, Royal Academy was leading with 10-0. Team Raimon was gathered on the sides, laying down and panting in both exhaustion and pain.

"Guys, you okay?" Brooke asked as she checked after her little brother.

"You saw that?" Nathan asked, pointing to the opposite team which barely looked tired. "How are they doing this? They don't even seem to break a sweat!"

"I'm not even surprised: we're the ones who ran after the ball," Tim remarked with trying to rub the pain off his back. "It's as if they were playing with us like toys."

Polie angrily groaned. "Well it's over! They won't get away like this! We will make THEM run during the second half!"

"And how are we supposed to do that? We can barely stand on her legs," Todd remarked, laying on his back.

"I'm not even sure I'll be able to run," Sam nodded.

"What's wrong, guys? It's barely half time!" Polie said with turning his head to look at his companions.

"I don't even the point of playing the second half time," Jack moaned while laying on his back.

"Jack's right; it's a lost cause," Tim said.

Seeing his team loosing fate, Polie suddenly shot up on his feet with a firm look. "What's wrong with you?! You know very well that as long as the match's not ever, nothing is decided! We don't know on which side luck will be for the second half time! Come on, show some motivation!"

The ref then called for both teams to return on the field for the second half time. While walking, Hurricane Helms stole a glance into Axel's direction and smirked.

"And here we go for another 45 minutes of game! How will team Raimon try to catch up with their delay against the Royal Academy?" Chester commented.

The ref whistled and it was the Royal Academy team that started with the ball. Hurricane Helms held the ball under his foot and smirked. "Alright, time to show them the Triangle of Doom! We need to do everything to force this guy to come out!"

Kicking the ball up into the air, three members of his team jumped up and span together to form a triangle of purple energy. "Triangle of Doom!" They kicked the ball simultaneously and sent it flying at full speed with purple energy toward the enemy's goal.

Polie once again rose his wings in an attempt to block it, but this shot was even stronger than the ten previous ones and easily knocked him back into the goal. "Don't stop! Keep pressing on until he comes onto the field!" Hurricane Helms ordered with a sinister grin.

And so, for the many next minutes, the Royal Academy members kept marking goals and voluntarily hurting the Raimon members. Despite their best efforts, there was nothing they could do. Before long, every Raimon member was laying down in pain and exhaustion, except for Polie. Despite being visibly hurt and tired, he refused to step down from the other football players who were mocking him.

"Come out of hiding now!" Hurricane Helms called. "No? Alright, but I warn you, if you don't come out now, we will go on with him (points at Polie), the last one standing until he goes down!"

And so, the Royal Academy members started kicking the ball at turns into Polie in different parts to physically hurt him. They weren't even trying to score goals: they just wanted to hurt Polie!

"STOP IT!" Star screamed and was about to jump in to help her boyfriend, only for Adam to hold her back.

"Star, don't do this," he said. "I know Polie too well: football is the biggest passion he has in the world. And as such, he wanna protect his goal at any cost. If you interfere, you will cause a disqualification and will make him feel more bad than anything else."

"They can't...do that...!" Nathan weakly mumbled while trying to stand up. "THAT'S NOT FOOTBALL!"

He jumped in the way just in time to receive the ball right in his face, saving Polie in the process. "NATHAN!" the whole team exclaimed simultaneously in shock.

"Nathan!" Polie said and rushed to his friend who was laying down after taking the shot. He then slowly turned toward Hurricane Helms with a glare. "...I understand: you wanted to help me." He helped his friend getting out of the way. "Don't worry: I'm gonna protect our goal at any cost..."

Helms just spat in disgust. "Yeah, but so far, you totally failed to protect it." He kicked it again. Again Polie tried to block it, only to be knocked back into the goal for a 19th point.

"And a 19th point for the Royal Academy! By this point, it seems hopeless for team Raimon! All the players are knocked down except for Willy Glass! Will he turn the situation around?"

However, the little glass-wearing macaw was just trembling in fear at this desperate situation. "I-I don't wanna play anymore!" he shouted and ran away from the playground in fear.

"Oh no! Willy Glass is leaving the field and his team! Raimon will now have to play with only ten players!"

"That's a sad show," Hurricane Helms said with looking down at Polie. "Just give up, you,ll never make one goal against us," he added and started mocking the team once again with his comrades.

That was it for Axel. the dove felt the blood boil in his veins and couldn't just stand there and watch. "Julia, forgive your big brother for playing just this time."

And with that, he rushed to the playground, immediately getting all the eyes turned to him. "What? am I dreaming? no! It's truly this young dove who participated in the Football Frontier tournament of last year and got noticed for his incredible shots! It's Axel Blaze!"

"It must be for him that the Royal Academy wanted to make this match!" Adam deduced. This was confirmed by Hurricane Helms' smirk.

"Wait! You're not part of team Raimon!" the ref shouted while rushing, only to be stopped by Hurricane Helms.

"It doesn't matter for us: he can play if he wants to."

The ref just blinked his eyes. "Very well then, if Royal Academy is okay with it, I accept the team changing for Raimon!"

"A-Axel...," Polie mumbled while trying to stand up, but fell back and got caught in time by Axel.

"Are you okay?" the dove asked.

"Y-Yes." But Polie then smiled widely. "About time you decided to get in!" Axel just chuckled in response.

This caused every Raimon member to get back up with hope. "Our real mission just started," Helms mumbled. "We came here for him. Go for the Triangle of Doom again!"

Obeying, the three birds jumped up with the ball, going for their super powerful attack once again. "Here we go!" Axel said with running across the field, dodging the ball, and toward the enemy's goal.

"What's he doing?!" Helms asked in pure confusion.

"Is Axel Blaze giving up on his team?"

Polie gave a glare of determination. "I got it: he's going in advance because he have faith in me! He thinks I can stop the shot! He wants me to stop it and send him the ball!"

Hardening his fist, a strange golden energy started emanating from Polie's body. Pushing a battle cry, he gathered all this energy into his wing and pushed it forward to create a golden hand that somehow managed to stop the Triangle of Doom shot.

All the watchers gasped in surprise at this. "Incredible! Polie managed to stop the Royal Academy's Triangle of Doom with a new technique!"

Unknown to them, someone was watching this from the shadows. "No doubt: that was the Celestial Hand; a technique used by the leader of the Inazuma 11. I thought she had disappeared over 40 years ago..."

"I-I did it!" Polie happily beamed. "Come on, Axel: it's your turn!" he shouted with throwing the ball at his new partner.

The dove caught the ball and kicked it up in the air before jumping as well. "Eat that! FIRE TORNADO!" Spinning quickly, he set his foot on fire and kicked the ball which also caught fire. Unable to catch it in time, the fireball flew right into the goal.

"AND IT'S A GOAL FOR RAIMON!" The whole audience who watched the match cheered. "Raimon finally marked a goal against the Royal Academy!"

Needless to say this made all the Raimon members smile widely. "We did it!" Polie mumbled to himself in joy.

Hurricane Helms just scoffed before going to say something to the ref who looked surprised. He blew into his whistle. "Your attention! The Royal Academy decided to retire! Therefore, I announce this match over!"

Hurricane Helms glared at Axel before leaving the field with the rest of his team. "What? The Royal Academy left the field? But then...it means that Raimon wins via forfait!"

As he flew away, Hurricane Helms took a moment to turn around and glance at Polie with a smirk. "Polie, heh? What a surprise; I wasn't expecting that at all."

The whole team gathered to cheer and beam in joy. "Thanks, Axel. It was really awesome and we own you a lot," Polie said with holding his wing out to Axel. "Say, we can count on you now?"

However, the dove shook his head. "No. Sorry, but it was only for today." He started walking away again.

"B-But Axel..." Polie shook his head and smiled. "It's okay, thanks for your help again."

"You're not keeping him, captain?" Jack asked.

"No, it's not bad," the captain replied before looking up at the score which showed 19-1. "Look at this, guys. You see this goal? Well, this means a whole new start for team Raimon! And the start of something great for our team!"

He held a pointing feather up toward the sky **(like in Fairy Tail)**. The rest of his team cheered and imitated the gesture, all pointing a feather. Adam, Alicia, Star and Brooke decided to do the same as well.

"It's today that the legend of Raimon starts..."

* * *

 **Wow! I know it sounds a bit cliché, but Raimon won thanks to their determination...and also because team Royal Academy was too coward to keep going on after one goal.**

 **So what do you think of this arc so far? Are you firmly behind team Raimon or are you already tired of football and want to go back to the Blue Thunder Crew? Lemme know ;)**


	153. Searching for the best technique

**Get ready for the next chapter of the Inazuma 11 arc!**

* * *

One week have passed since team Raimon won against Royal Academy thanks to the intervention of Axel Blaze. Today, Polie, the captain of the team, decided to hold a reunion inside their personal little wooden house. The whole team was sitting down as Polie was standing up next to a board.

"I know what was our problem, when we played against the Royal Academy," he said.

"It's that they were way too strong for us," Max nonchalantly said while resting against the wall. This statement brought a depressing atmosphere for the team. "Oh, did I say something wrong?" he asked with adjusting his cap.

"Just continue, Polie. We wanna hear your explanation," Nathan said with rubbing the back of his head.

Polie took a pencil and started drawing over the board. "Well, we visibly need to consolidate our team and this is why I thought about this new formation." He moved aside to show numbers marked over a football field to represent each player's position. "This is what I came to after reading my grandfather's notes."

"What?" Willy said with adjusting his glasses to get a better look over the plan. "I'm no longer in the center?"

"You ran away from the field like a chicken last time, remember?" Steve remarked.

"It was a strategic action that changed the match," he defended himself with adjusting his glasses in a professional way.

"In the sense that it lowered our chances of winning, you moron!" Kevin annoyingly remarked.

"Say, captain," Sam suddenly said, "are you planning on bringing Axel Blaze back?"

This question earned him a sneaky glare from Kevin. "Not a bad idea: despite all of our disadvantages during the match, we managed to score one goal thanks to Axel Blaze," Willy remarked.

"I agree that none of us would be able to perform such a shot," Jack added.

"Stop it! That was all but foot!" Kevin suddenly said in a angry manner with standing up. "I can show you what REAL football is!"

This caused all the eyes to turn toward him. "N-No need to get mad, Kevin," Todd softly said.

"Is Axel Blaze gonna play in our team or not?" Kevin asked his captain, ignoring Todd's remark.

"Well...true to be told, nothing is decided yet," Polie admitted.

"Admit it, Polie: you really need him?" Kevin asked, his angry tone never leaving.

"W-What? No!"

"We can do the same! We just need to have more faith in ourselves!" Kevin insisted.

Suddenly, the door opened and in came none other than Alicia. "Hey guys-Oh my gosh! It smells in there!" she said with waving her wing before her beak.

"Alicia? What are you doing here?" Polie asked.

"I just came to announce you that your team have already another match planned for next week."

Every Raimon members widened their eyes in surprise. "W-We have another match planned?!"

* * *

Meanwhile, in somewhere we don't know, the Royal Academy members led by Hurricane Helms were training really hard. The reason being that they didn't really swallowed their 'defeat' against Raimon very well.

"Say Helms, you heard about Raimon?" the captain got asked by his comrade as he sat on the bench and drank a water bottle.

"No, heard about what?" he asked at his turn.

"Since we faced them, rumor began spreading that they became a great team. Notice, it's not that surprising: not many teams managed to defeat us. However, it caused us some problems: people start thinking we got taken down by only one goal."

Hurricane Helms just smirked. "They can say what they want. We are the best team in the whole country and there's nothing else to say."

"That's true," his comrade nodded in agreement. "Though it wouldn't have taken a lot of time for team Raimon to be selected for their next match. You think we should try to discover who are their opponents?"

"It won't be necessary: let's leave those pathetic amateurs have some fun."

* * *

"That's awesome! Our next match has already been decided!" Todd beamed in joy.

"We got this far!" steve said with a wing on Polie's shoulder.

"Yes, our dream's coming true! We will finally play with the big boys!" Polie nodded.

"And this time, I will be the star of the team," Willy confidentially said.

"I'm gonna make sure people start noticing me," Jin positively said.

"So who's gonna be our opponents?" Polie asked Alicia.

"The Occult League and it's in one week," Alicia replied.

"The Occult League?" Polie and Steve asked simultaneously.

"Yes," Alicia nodded. "And if you win this match, your team might have a chance to qualify for the Football Frontier tournament. Good luck, guys," she said with leaving.

Everybody just looked with wide eyes. "Guys! We have a chance to earn a spot in the Football Frontier tournament!" Polie exclaimed.

"This is too awesome! Playing in the country's biggest tournament with the best football teams!" Jack said with a huge smile.

"I'm super-motivated for the next match!" Todd said with confidence.

"They will no longer see us as a loosing team with only seven players!" Steve added with throwing a fist in the air.

"Let's not cheer up too fast: if we lose the next match, we're done for it. so stay focused!" Kevin deadpanned them.

"We know and this is why we must win the next match at any cost," Polie said with hitting his fist into his wing. "Let's all get to train!"

"YEAH!" the team beamed at unison.

* * *

And so, team Raimon gathered at the training field near the river. Strangely, through the course of the training, Kevin seemed more agressive than usual, violent taking the ball away from his team mates and even grabbed Jin by the back and knocked him to the ground to take the ball.

"Hey, Kevin! You didn't had to do that!" Steve called from the sidelines.

Ignoring his friend's comment, Kevin kept running until Nathan caught up to him. "Kevin! You're getting rough!"

Kevin replied by pushing his team mate out of the way and kicked toward the goal. The ball flew quick, but only touched the upper part of it, making it a miss. Kevin then fell to his knees, panting and covered of sweat.

"What is wrong with you, Kevin?!" Polie asked as he ran up to his friend alongside Sam.

Kevin started hitting his fist on the ground. "It's pointless!"

"Come on, Kev'. You don't think your game's a bit too agressive?" Sam asked.

"Mind your own business!" he angrily replied.

"Guys! Guys!" Everyone turned around to see Star arriving in a rush. "I heard terrific stories about the Occult League!"

This statement caused everyone to turn toward her. "Terrific stories about the Occult League? What is it?" Polie asked.

"Well, one time, a team facing the Occult League got hit by a sudden and mysterious flu right in the middle of a match," Star said.

"Really? A sudden flu?" Max asked, looking pretty surprised.

"Probably one of the players was sick and infected the rest of his team," Polie suggested.

"This isn't a joke!" Star seriously said, causing her boyfriend to step back. "Another time, when a team was about to defeat the Occult League, a strong storm hit the field out of nowhere and when the players tried to move, their legs couldn't move any longer."

This statement caused Jack to tremble in fear as he started imagining scenarios where he would get cursed by voodoo or something. "Huh...captain, I need to go do my needs...," he said and walked away.

"A curse?" Jin asked.

"Y-You think those stories are true, captain?" Sam asked.

"Nah, those are just stories," Polie nonchalantly replied.

"B-But if Blaze refuses to join our team!" Tim said in fear.

"And it's sure he's gonna refuse," Todd said pessimistically.

"Don't say anything!" Kevin yelled at his two comrades. "Even if Axel doesn't help us, you know you can count on me! We don't need another attacker, got it?"

"W-Well said, Kevin," Steve nervously said. "We're getting tired of hearing about Blaze and his accomplishments all day long." the others slowly backed away from Kevin and his angry glare.

"We must before all be ready to stand for ourselves and give our best, don't you agree?" Max asked.

"Yes, you're right!" Polie nodded.

"Maybe, captain, but we cannot deny that had Axel not came to help us, we would have lost the match, our playground and...," Sam said with rubbing his wings together.

"You said yourself that this match is important and we cannot afford to loose," Tim said. "If the Occult League can confuse us before the match, how will it be during it?"

Polie just smiled. "You need to have faith in your comrades, if you wanna be a winning team. Come on, let's go training!"

"YEAH!"

* * *

 **We're starting to see Kevin's dark side. Will his rage be enough for team Raimon to step up to this Occult League team they're supposed to face in one week? I sure hope so.**


	154. Searching for the best technique part 2

As the sunset rolled around, Polie got up the park on the hill to train with the tires again. While it was hurting his wings, he managed to push the swinging back multiple times.

"Still there?" asked Nathan who arrived at the park.

"Huh? Nathan!" Polie asked, but as he did so, turned his attention away from the swinging tire that came back and smashed him in the face.

The two friends took a moment to sit down on the bench and drink some water. "You're doing overtime?" Nathan asked while searching in the bag he carried.

"Yup, and I did a lot of progress. Thanks," Polie responded with taking the water bottle Nathan offered him and drank some of it.

"I find that Kevin gets a bit rough during our trainings, don't you think?" Nathan asked with looking down.

"Yes, I never thought he would do such things," Polie replied after finishing his sip and looked down.

"I know our friends are putting their faith in Blaze and after seeing such an impressive shot, I understand what they're feeling." Nathan frowned. "We need to train hard and be ready for this match."

Polie just starred at Nathan and smiled a bit. "It's a good thing all the others think the same way you do... Only..."

"Guiding and motivating the players, it's the role of the captain, isn't it?" Nathan asked with turning toward him.

"...Yes, of course." Polie stood up from the bench. "But I think they're a bit naive. They believe having Blaze in our team will grant us automatic victory. We cannot forget that football is a sport where eleven players face eleven know, we cannot exclude the possibility that Blaze joins us, but before anything, we need to respectively give our best to progress as a team. You understand?"

* * *

The following day, Polie did a little fly over the city as he needed some fresh air to clean his head from all the events that happened recently. As he was lost in his thoughts, he soon spotted a familiar dove flying not too far.

"Hey, That's Axel." Curiosity getting the best of him, Polie decided to follow him while being careful as to not get spotted. After a few minutes of flying, they arrived at the local aviary and Axel entered by the front window. "The aviary? Why?" Polie wondered.

Sneaking inside the building, he walked around, looking for the dove. However, he lost sight of him and simply wandered into a corridor. "I don't understand: I saw him go this way-"

As if on cue, a door he passed by opened and it was Axel who came out. They both looked at each other in surprise. "It's you?" Axel asked.

"Oh, huh...I was just..." Polie stopped talking as he took a glance into the room behind Axel and saw a little female dove laying into a bed, her eyes closed.

However, Axel closed the door behind him. "What did you came here for?"

"Huh...well, I've seen you enter in here and I thought you got hurt. So I was worried and decided to come and see if everything was okay," Polie explained. Axel just starred at him. "I know, it's dumb. I'm sorry..."

"...The person in this chamber, it's my little sister," Axel suddenly said.

Polie looked in surprise. "Your little sister?"

"Come on, enter," Axel said and simply opened the door.

Polie just starred at him before walking inside the chamber. He looked at the young dove girl sleeping into the nest. She looked so peaceful.

"It's Julia, my little sister," Axel said as he walked beside Polie. "As you can see, she's in the coma." He turned his head toward Polie. "I prefer explain you why she's like this before you shoot me with a storm of questions."

"Julia's in the coma since the day of last year's Football Frontier. She didn't awoke since."

"You mean the day of the match with Royal Academy?" Polie asked.

"Yes. Julia was so happy that day. She said she was going to assist the match and that she would encourage my team to win the match. It was the last time I saw her with her big, bright smile. After that, she ran toward the stadium...it was then that we informed me that she had a car collision right before the match."

Polie widened his eyes as Axel looked down sadly. "And then, you...?"

"Yes, I left to go see her. We brought her here as fast as we could with the humans helping us." He reaching his wing to gently pat the head of his sister. "I'm feeling guilty because none of that would have happened, if I didn't played foot. Because of Julia's state, I couldn't just keep playing and pretend nothing happened. And this is why...I decided to not play again until she awake."

A little smile formed on his beak and he turned to look at Polie. "Only...I don't know what happened that day. I don't know what pushed me to stand up: I no longer had control over myself. Seeing you keep defending your goal despite all the odds being against you caused something in me."

"It's really terrible," Polie mumbled. "And me who was going to beg you to play with us without knowing all that. Forgive me." He smiled softly. "Don't worry; I won't tell anyone about this," he promised and walked toward the exit.

"What happened after the match?" Axel asked without turning around.

"Well, we have been qualified for the next encounter. Thanks to your legendary shot, everyone's motivated and working really hard. Thanks a lot!"

* * *

The very next day, all of Raimon's team members arrived on the training field to find Kevin on his four limbs, sweating like a bird in the desert and panting as if he ran a marathon.

"Kevin, stop putting so much pressure on yourself," Polie told him.

Kevin turned his head toward his comrades and stood up. "Polie?" He then gave an ironic smile. "It's pointless. no matter how many times I try, I cannot score a goal. True to be told is that I'm a true calamity on the frontline..."

Polie asked all the team to run around the field while he laid on the grassy hill with Kevin. "You should manage yourself: if you keep pushing like this, you'll end up hurting yourself."

"Says someone training with heavy tires," Kevin simply said with his head resting on his wings and his eyes closed.

Polie chuckled. "To be honest, it makes me very happy to see all of you putting so much heart into training. It makes me feel like we're a true big football team." He turned his head back to Kevin. "What do you think?"

He opened his eyes again and sat up. "Honestly, what I'm feeling right now is jealousy."

"Jealousy? Why?"

"Because of Axel Blaze. When he jumped onto the field, he made us feel like he wasn't an ordinary player and I understand why the others want him so badly into the team," Kevin admitted. "And when he scored the only goal, I would've given anything to be at his place. I wanna be as good as him, you understand? I wanna make goals as memorable as his!"

Polie just starred at him before getting up with a smile. "In that case, we'll work to perfection your shot! The shot that will take down the Occult League!"

Kevin just looked down. "It's impossible: the match's in one week. We can never be ready in time."

Polie wrapped one wing around Kevin's shoulders. "Justly, we must go all for it!"

"Easy to say for you, Polie, but not for us."

"You don't have to be a second Axel Blaze; you're the one and only Kevin Dragonfly. Show us the real player in you and try to have faith in your own skills!" Polie encouraged his teammate.

Kevin just starred at him...before putting on a look of determination. "I'll show them how big of a player I am!" He jumped up with an optimistic smile. "Yes! I'll show them the attack that will bear the mark of Kevin Dragonfly!"

And so, the whole team jumped into the training field and helped Kevin perfect his shooting skills. He kicked the ball toward Polie who noticed a light blue energy forming around it before blocking it with his gloved wings.

"Good, Kevin! Your attacks are getting stronger!" he said with sending him the ball back.

Kevin kept trying again and again. Eventually, he managed to wrap this blue energy around the ball before kicking it. It was sent flying at full speed toward Polie with some kind of blue dragon aura appearing behind it. Just as Polie was about to block it, it suddenly flew to his side and right into the goal.

Everybody looked in surprise and Polie was completely confused. "W-What was that?!" Sam asked in awe.

"This shot was different from the other ones!" Todd said.

"Did I dream or I really heard a dragon scream when he shot?" Steve asked.

"No; I heard it too!" Tim said.

But Kevin was the most surprised one, his eyes wide open. "Kevin!" Polie beamed as he ran before his friend. "You did it! You did a unique shot!"

Kevin looked down at his trembling wings. "I...I did it...!" He then smiled widely. "I found my shooting technique!"

"Congratulations!" All the others gathered around Kevin to congratulate him.

"So, how are you gonna call this technique?" Polie asked.

Kevin rubbed his chin for a moment before snapping his feathers. "I got it! The Dragon Crash!"

The others all found it sounded cool. Polie smiled and laughed before noticing someone walking toward them. "A-Axel?!"

This caused all the eyes to turn toward the dove who slowly walked before them with a serious look. "...Say, Polie. Can I...play in your team?"

This question caused everyone - particularly Polie and Kevin - to widen their eyes in surprise. However, the captain's beak soon curled into a smile.

"Yes! Of course!"

* * *

 **Yes! Kevin created a new technique and Axel decided to join team Raimon! Their chances of beating the Occult League are now higher than ever!**


	155. Raimon vs Occult League

**It's time for team Raimon to face the Occult League!**

* * *

"The big day has finally come! Today, team Raimon will face the Occult League! Ever since their triumph against the Royal Academy, the young, fresh football team has received many invitations from competitor teams! We are all excited to see what Raimon is planning to do! I am Chester, the commenter for this match!"

As team Raimon was doing their warm ups on the sidelines of the playground, ready for their match, Hurricane Helms and one of his comrades had sneaked in to watch as well. The sky was pretty dark with threatening clouds this day.

"Well, seems like Blaze really joined team Raimon," Helms' comrade noticed, looking at the dove getting ready with the spix macaws.

"Here they are!" Steve called to the rest of his team as the Occult League arrived.

And saying that they looked dark would be an understandment. Their leader was some kind of scarlet macaw wearing a purple bandage around his face with a red eye drawn over it. The rest of the team behind it were also dressed in scary ways, looking either like vampires, mummies - heck, there was even one of them wearing a hockey that looked right out of Friday The 13th.

"...They are sinister," Jin remarked.

"You're the one talking?" Steve asked with rolling his eyes.

"Come on, guys! We're gonna beat them!" Polie said to cheer his team up.

Jack was trembling really hard out of fear. "C-Captain? I-I need to go do my needs."

"Not again...," Polie moaned with face-winging himself.

Seconds later, both teams were standing face-to-face in a line with Polie facing the captain. Soon, a crow with purple squares on his cheeks stepped forward and eyed Axel. "So you are Axel blaze, huh?" he asked, getting his attention. "My name is Jaild and I am the coach of the Occult League."

He rubbed his chin. "I've seen your accomplishment during the match with the Royal Academy. The goal you scored was impressive and I sure hope you'll do the same against my team today."

Kevin, who was standing beside Axel, frowned and stepped forward. "Hey! Your team is not facing only Blaze! We're eleven players, got it?"

In response, Jaild smirked at him. "Let me tell you something, kid: if we invited your team to face ours, it's only to face Axel Blaze and nothing else. A team as pitiful as Raimon doesn't interest us the slightest."

"What?!" Kevin exclaimed, looking as if he was ready to pounce on the coach.

However, Polie put his wing on his shoulder. "Let it go, Kevin."

Jaild then turned his back to them. "As for you, young birds, make sure you don't disturb Axel Blaze's game, alright?" He then walked away.

"You heard what he said?! He dares call us a pitiful team?!" Kevin said in fury.

Polie smiled. "In that case, show him how wrong he is to think of us that way."

"Yeah, good idea."

And so, both teams took place on their respective side. "The recent addition of Axel Blaze in their team is a major plus for team Raimon. They are going to face Tasman, the captain of the Occult League, who, with Burt Wood and Troy Moon, forms a deadly trio. We have a captivating match awaiting us today!" Chester commented.

"Let's go, team!" Polie shouted from the goal and his comrades responded with a "YEAH!" at unison.

The ref giving the whistle to start the match, it was the League that started with the ball. The player who was a bat charged and dodged Mac at first, only for Tim to slide and kick the ball away from him. This didn't stopped one of his comrades to take the ball and dodged Jack, running directly for the goal.

"Let's see if you can block my Ghost Shot!" he said before jumping up with the ball. "Ghost Shot!" Upon kicking the ball, it multiplied into many purple ones flying right for the goal.

However, Polie did not plan to let them get through. "Celestial Hand!" Charging his wing with energy, he summoned his big hand that successfully block the Ghost Shot.

"Raimon's goalkeeper had no problem countering Troy Moon's Ghost Shot!"

"Nicely done, Polie!" Nathan called.

"Thanks," he responded with throwing him the ball. "Let's not get cocky, guys!"

"Yes, captain!" the team responded.

Nathan ran with the ball and gave it to Tim who wanted to give it to Axel, only to see he was blocked by three guardians. "Tim! Here!" Kevin called.

Nodding, Tim gave him the ball and ran toward the goalkeeper who was wearing a hockey mask. "Eat that! Dragon Crash!" He kicked the blue energy filled ball with a dragonic aura, making the goalkeeper miss it as it went straight into the goal.

"Goal! Dragonfly scores a goal for his team with his new technique!"

"What?!" Jaild exclaimed in surprise from the sidelines. "Impossible!"

"So that's the Dragon Crash?" Jack asked.

"Yup," Nathan nodded.

Kevin beamed in joy as Polie ran to him and exchanged a high-five. "Nice job, Kevin! We're now leading 1-0!"

"Yup," Kevin nodded.

"It's now 1-0 for team Raimon," Chester commented.

"That was impressive!" Alicia beamed.

"So that's Kevin's new technique Polie told us about!" Brooke remarked.

"Yup, it's true that I have a thing to find technique names," Willy, who was standing on the sidelines, remarked with adjusting his glasses in a professional way.

"You're the one who found its name?" Star curiously asked.

"In the end, this team isn't as dangerous as we thought," Todd remarked.

"Yup, looks like we got bad blood for nothing," Tim said in agreement.

"And now, we're plunging to victory!" Steve beamed with a fist in the air.

The match restarted and Troy Moon started with the ball, only to get blocked by three players, forcing him to kick the ball at Tasman, his captain, who immediately lost it to Max. This last one kicked it to Kevin who ran to the goal and went for his technique once again.

"Dragon Crash!" Just like the previous time, the draconic ball flew pass the goalkeeper and into the net, marking a second goal for Raimon.

"Strange; we had nothing about this technique in our infos," Jaild remarked.

"Second goal!" Steve happily beamed.

"Hey, Polie," Nathan called, "looks we'll win the match!"

"Yup!"

Axel, however, didn't seemed so confident. As the ref whistled for the match again with the Occult League having the ball, Jaild suddenly stood up. "I don't know where Raimon got such attackers, but now it's over. they aren't going to win like this!"

The coach suddenly started mumbling incantations which caught the attention of Raimon. "What's he saying?" Sam asked in confusion.

"It looks like he's praying," Todd remarked.

Suddenly they saw the Occult League charging at them with the ball. However, the players strangely started switching places out of nowhere, as if they were teleporting. "Huh? What the...?!" Max mumbled with rubbing his eyes.

He and Tim then blocked two players of the enemy team. "What are you doing?!" Polie suddenly called. they were then surprised to see those two players were in fact Steve and Sam.

"W-What's going on?!" Max asked in panic.

Meanwhile, the captain and his two attackers reached the defense zone. "Don't panic! Stay focused on their actions!" Polie instructed as he, Jin and Jack were ready to protect the goal.

However, Tasman smirked. "It's pointless: Spectral Block!" Doing gestures with his wings, purple energy suddenly appeared over all of Raimon's players legs, preventing them from moving.

"M-My legs!" Jin exclaimed.

"I can't move!" Jack said.

"That's the Spectral block power!" Tasman said before jumping in the air with the ball. "Ghost Shot!" Polie tried to move, but the Spectral Block prevented him which allowed the ball to easily reach the goal.

"Tasman scored a goal for the Occult League! Looks like the team is ready to make a comeback with a score of 2-1!"

"W-What was that?!" Polie mumbled in confusion.

"What happened?" Axel asked.

"No time: we gotta score another goal!" Kevin said and took the ball away from the dove, running straight for the opponent's goal.

"Kevin, wait!" Axel called.

Ignoring his partner's calls, Kevin dodged the defenders and aimed right for the goal. "Take that! Dragon Crash!"

He once again shot his draconic attack. However, the goalkeeper did moves with his wings which created a little purple hole in which te ball got dragged for him to pick it up. "Distorsion!"

"What?! Impossible!" Kevin exclaimed in disbelief.

"How did he do that?" Axel asked.

"It's my Distorsion technique: no one in the world can break through it," the goalkeeper explained before sending the ball back to Tasman.

Before they could get to retreat, the captain once again used his Spectral Block to neutralize all the players and ran straight for the goal. "Not again!" Polie groaned as Tasman simply kicked the ball into his goal for another score.

Few minutes after, and the Occult League scored yet a third goal thanks to the Spectral Block. It was now 3-23 for them and the ref called for the end of the first half-time.

"What's going on?!" Polie nervously mumbled.

* * *

 **Things don't look good for Raimon. Will they find a way to counter this sorcery technique, or will they loose to the Occult League and kiss the Football Frontier tournament goodbye for good?**


	156. Raimon vs Occult League part 2

Following the end of the first half of the match, Raimon gathered in their wooden house for a reunion before the next half of the match.

"What happened, back on the field?" Nathan asked.

"I don't know; I couldn't move my legs," Steve said.

"I'm sure they cursed us," Jack nervously said.

"Don't worry, guys; we still have all of the second period to get back on head," Polie optimistically said.

"But if we keep playing, this curse will stick to us forever!" Jack panicked.

"Don't panic, Jack," Sam stopped him.

"This curse story isn't true," Nathan assured.

"Then why were we paralyzed?!"

Polie looked down. "I have no idea... But I'm convinced there's an explanation for it. Actually, I didn't noticed supernatural with the Occults before their coach started mumbling those incantations."

"You think this could be the reason?" Brooke asked.

"No idea, but in the meantime, if any of you catch the ball, give it immediately to the attack, okay?" Polie instructed. "We're only one goal behind and we can easily get the advantage back."

"Yes, okay!" Jack said, taking his courage in his wings.

"Cool. Kevin, we're counting on you!" Polie said.

"Of course, I'm gonna score the next goal," he replied with confidence.

* * *

Minutes after, everyone returned to the playground as the second half of the match started. Axel started with the ball for his team. However, instead of going right for the attack, he kicked the ball back to Tim.

"What are you doing?! Why didn't you used the Fire Tornado?" Kevin asked.

"We must not act too fast as long as we don't know what's up with those guys," Axel said with a focused look.

"You're just a coward! Tim, give me the ball!" Kevin said and ran ahead, only to be blocked by two defenders.

This forced Tim to pass to Steve instead. He managed to kick the ball above the two defenders and allowed Kevin to run ahead and catch it. Unfortunately, another defender kicked the ball out of the zone.

"Darn it!" he angrily mumbled.

Todd, Tim and Sam turned toward Steve with angry looks. "Why didn't you shoot to Axel when you had the chance?!" they asked at unison.

"He didn't wanted to score! Why should I give him the ball?" Steve defended himself.

"I'll score next time! So don't hesitate to give me the ball, okay?" Kevin instructed and his friends all nodded.

Going out of the zone, Sam grabbed the ball and gave it to Tim who immediately started running. "Here, Tim!" Kevin called, running not too far.

Tim was going to pass him the ball...before changing his mind and giving it to Axel instead. "Tim! You were supposed to give the ball to Kevin!" Steve called.

"I couldn't: all the defenders were after him!" Tim responded.

"If Axel cannot mark against them, I don't see who can!" Todd added in agreement.

Kevin frowned in bigger anger. "Give me the ball! NOW!"

"Stop it, Kevin! I'm trying to find their weakness!" Axel said.

Not listening to him, Kevin angrily kicked the ball away from him and ran ahead all by himself. "KEVIN! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" Polie called.

"Dragon Crash!" Kevin went for his strongest technique once again.

"Tss, as if it was going to be different. Distorsion!" the goalkeeper simply said and blocked the attack with his purple hole again. "You can try as many times as you want; your technique simply cannot break through mine."

Kevin widened his eyes and then fell to his knees in defeat: he simply could not break through. "Alright, time to end this! Finish them off with the Spectral Block!" Jaild ordered from the sidelines.

Nodding, the goalkeeper sent the ball back to the attackers who all ran forward. "Oh no! They're gonna do it again!" Polie said in horror. "Everyone! In defense! Quick!"

"Spectral Block!" Tasman shouted, paralyzing everyone yet again.

Jaild smirked at this and kept mumbling his incantations, making sure his team would win the match...

WHACK!

The raven suddenly got knocked into unconsciousness by a shield belonging to none other than Adam. "Think you can just paralyze my friend's team and get away with it? Mistake," the macaw said with a smirk.

Just then, Tasman jumped up and went for another Ghost Shot. However, Polie felt himself being free and smiled. "Explosive Fist!" Curling his wing like a fist and charging it with energy, he smashed the ball away, preventing it from entering the goal.

"Polie managed to stop Joan Tasman's shot!" Chester called in surprise.

Confused at first, Polie turned his head to see Adam had knocked Jaild out and showed him the thumb up. "Thank you, Adam!"

Axel smirked a bit. "Time to see what these guys can really do now!"

"Let's get on the attack!" Polie called with throwing the ball at his friends. "But Kevin's shot still can't do anything!" Tim said.

"Listen to me, Tim!" Polie said, more serious than ever. "Jaild was right when he talked about us: we ARE a terrible team. And this is why we need to be strong; so that each can give the other the strength to keep advancing! I'm there to stop the balls! You are to pass the ball and to score! Each one of us must give its all: that's what'll make us a united team!"

"Yeah...We must be a united team...," Kevin mumbled with looking at his captain.

"LET'S GO, EVERYONE!" Polie shouted with all the power of his lungs.

Nodding, Tim ran forward and, once the defenders got near him, kicked the ball to Kevin. With renewed determination, the macaw dodged all the defenders and soon arrived near the goal. The goalkeeper readied his Distorsion technique once again.

"Axel!" Kevin suddenly called, getting the attention of his partner. "I know all the mistakes I did: you were actually trying to find a way in while I only thought about scoring goals! but it's over! Dragon Crash!"

To everybody's surprise, he didn't actually aimed for the goal; instead he shot his technique up in the air. Axel got the clue and smiled. "It's not a shot; it's a pass!" He jumped in the air and charged his foot with fire. "Fire Tornado!"

Combined with Axel's technique, the ball already charged with Kevin's attack became even more powerful with the draconic aura becoming flame colored and flying at full speed. the goalkeeper widened his eyes in surprise as he tried his Distorsion technique again, but the shot was too powerful and broke into the net.

"Wow! Axel and Kevin's combined attack was so strong the Jones was sent flying back into the goal! The Occults and Raimon are now tied 3-3!"

"Was that the Fire Tornado?" Todd asked.

"Yes, but associated with Kevin's Dragon Crash," Sam remarked.

"That's a whole new technique!" Tim remarked.

"Indeed, this was an hybrid technique the goalkeeper could not block," Willy remarked from the sidelines and once again adjusted his glasses in a professional way. "By combining Axel's Fire tornado and Kevin's Dragon Crash, it give the shot an incredible power. We should call this technique the Dragon Tornado."

"You already found a name for it?" Star asked in surprise.

Not too far, Hurricane Helms turned around, ready to leave. "You don't wanna see the end of the match?" his comrade asked.

"No need; the end is already settled..."

Kevin and Axel repeated the same process once again and scored a fourth goal for their team. The ref whistled for the end of the match with the final score being 4-3 for team Raimon. Needless to say the whole team and Jaild (when he awoke) were disappointed to have lost.

Later on, the sky cleared and the sunset came as team Raimon gathered in the middle of the field. "I can't believe it! We won the match!" Jack happily said.

Polie putted his gloved wings on Kevin and Axel's shoulders. "Good job, Kevin and Axel. You both taught us something today: when we work together, we can accomplish things we cannot do by ourselves."

Kevin briefly smiled before giving a pointing look toward Axel. "Let's make this clear; it doesn't mean I'm gonna let you be the big star of this team."

"You're still stuck on that?" the dove simply replied with an amused smile.

"You know what these means?" Polie asked with an excited smile. "We're all going to the Football Frontier Tournament!"

"YEAH!" everyone beamed at unison with throwing their fist in the air.

Axel looked away with a smile. "I'm gonna win for you, Julia..."

* * *

 **Yes! Raimon defeated the Occult League (thank you, Adam, for knocking this wizard out with your shield) and is now qualified for the Football Frontier tournament! Are you happy for this?**

 **Also, nope, Kevin didn't turned his back on team Raimon. Well, not for this time at least...**


	157. Inazuma 11 explained

"Today's a great day!" Polie announced his team who all beamed in anticipation. "The Football Frontier tournament is about to start!" The captain whipped away some tears of joy.

"So? Who's our first opponent?" Nathan asked.

"Our first opponent is...I have no idea!" Polie seriously replied, causing everyone facewing themselves.

"It's the team Wild," Adam said as he entered the wooden house. "does this name rings any bell?"

"Yeah; last year, they arrived in final of the Football Frontier, but lost to the Royal Academy," Star pointed out.

"Cool! We're gonna face a super strong team!" Polie beamed in joy.

"Try not to get eliminated in the first round: it would be sad after all the work you did," Adam said. "Oh, and another thing."

Suddenly, a pretty tall scarlet macaw entered beside Adam. "Hello, everyone! My name is bobby! Nice to meet you! I'd like to be a defender for your team!" he beamed.

"You must really be a football maniac, if you want to join a team as pathetic as this one," Adam remarked before walking away, causing Polie to glare at him.

"Bobby?!" Star asked in sudden surprise.

The newcomer turned his head in her direction and smiled. "Star! I didn't knew you were here!"

"Wait, you know each other?" Polie asked.

"We've met a long time ago," Star explained.

"Oh?" Polie shook it off and instead shook Bobby's wing. "Welcome in the team! We're gonna give our best and win it!"

"Huh, we're gonna face the Wild team; I wouldn't be so optimistic, if I were you," Bobby deadpanned.

"And what is that supposed to mean, new guy?" Kevin asked with rising an eye brow.

"Actually, I did face them once, with my previous team," Bobby explained. "They have an incredible strength and speed which would grant them a spot in the finals. And the worst is that they could jump higher than any of us."

Everybody was surprised by this. "I-I gotta pee!" Jack said with getting up.

"You're not gonna pee yourself even before the match, are you?" Kevin asked, making Jack sat back down.

"It doesn't matter if they can jump high!" Polie said. "We got plenty of techniques like the Fire Tornado, Dragon Crash, Dragon Tornado, Explosive Fist and Celestial Hand!"

"You don't seem to understand," Bobby deadpanned again. "The Wild team can easily stop even the Dragon Tornado: they'd just have to jump above it and kick it to the ground."

"It's impossible," Kevin said.

"He says true," Axel said while resting against the wall, causing everyone to turn toward him. "I faced them once too. In the air, they are as strong as the Royal Academy. Their jumping skills give them a big advantage over us."

"How are we gonna do then?" Tim asked.

"It's not bad!" Polie said. "We just need to find a new technique! Let's go training!"

* * *

And so, team Raimon followed a special training which saw Polie getting up on a tree branch - a very high one - and toss down balls for his teammates to try to kick after jumping. But so far, they didn't had a lot of success.

"Working hard, he?" Polie looked down to see an old spix macaw coming.

"Oh, hello, Mister Sabatelli," he greeted him.

The old macaw smiled. "Seeing you all work so hard really warms my heart up. It's almost as if the Inazuma Eleven has returned."

"Inazuma Eleven?" Polie asked with a curious look.

This caused M. Sabatelli to look in awe. "Oh, you're the grandson of Rodrigues and you don't know anything? You really never heard about the Inazuma eleven?"

Curious getting the best of them, team Raimon decided to sit around Mr. Sabatelli and listen to his story. "Inazuma Eleven was the name that wore team Raimon, forty years ago. It was a legendary team. However, just when they were about to win the Football Frontier tournament, something terrible happened..."

"What?" Polie asked.

"No, forget that. What I can tell you was that this team was incredible. They could have defeated any team in the world, you can believe me."

"B-But this is awesome!" Polie beamed in excitation.

"Polie, the blood of this legendary team flows in your veins," Sabatelli said. "Your grandfather was the trainer for Inzuma Eleven and I never met anyone who loved football as much as he did."

This made Polie smile and stand up. "It's decided; I'm gonna do everything to become like Inazuma Eleven! Just like my grandfather!"

"You're gonna do that by yourself?" Nathan asked, causing Polie to turn and look at his whole team.

"Of course not! We're gonna do it altogether! Right?" he asked to which everyone responded positively. "From now on, our purpose to reach the same level as Inazuma Eleven!"

* * *

 **I know, this was a short chapter, but now, you know why this is called the Inazuma 11 arc. It was the name of a legendary football team of which Polie's grandfather was a part of. Cool, right?**

 **On a side note, do you enjoy this arc so far or do you think it's boring AF?**


	158. The Thunder Trampoline

Team Raimon gathered at the training field and tried to come up with new techniques, only to fall short and, to some point, even look dumb in trying to. "Okay, it's getting exhausting," Star said with rolling her eyes. "You think they,ll come up with a new technique before the match?"

"Honestly, I don't know," Polie said with rubbing his forehead behind his headband.

After the disastrous of trying and failing to find a new technique, Polie and Nathan walked with Axel in the streets. "It's a disaster! At this rate, we won't find any technique before the match," Nathan said.

"It's not time to get down," Polie tried to cheer him up.

"I didn't meant that. Not at all. But we need to face every possibilities, even the worst ones."

Axel nodded. "And even if we were to find a new technique, we would need time to practice and master it."

"We'll try to improvise on the field," Polie said with a smile and rested his head on his wings. "How about we keep this talk around some food? I'm hungry."

* * *

The three Raimon members flew over to Nico and Pedro's club for a snack at the bar. their canary and cardinal friends were absent today as Pedro worked hard on his boxing training. They all sat at the bar were the bartender, Lenny, gave them bowls of fruits along with fruit juice cups.

"We're about to face the team Wild and we still don't have new techniques. What are we gonna do?" Nathan asked.

Polie finished swallowing many grapes before responding. "By having faith in our comrades. New technique or not, I'm certain we can win this match," he optimistically said. "Have you already forgot? We're gonna be the new Inazuma Eleven!"

"The new Inazuma Eleven...," Axel mumbled as Nathan resumed eating.

"My grandfather knew a ton of techniques. Wish I could learn one or two of them...," Polie mumbled while resting his chin on his wing.

"Inazuma Eleven had a secret notebook and it still exists," Lenny suddenly said while cutting an apple with a bird-sized knife.

This caught the attention of the three boys. "A secret notebook?!" Polie and Nathan asked at unison.

Lenny nodded and walked behind the counter before returning with a bird-sized notebook in his wings. "Your grandfather used to write his techniques in this. However, this is only one in a series of notebooks your grandfather used to note his techniques."

Polie looked at the notebook with excitation. "Really? I want it!" As he reached to grab it, Lenny pulled it away.

"I must warn you; what's inside this notebook could cause you a lot of trouble. You sure you still wanna read it?" Lenny asked with a sudden sinister look.

Polie blinked his eyes before putting on a determined look. "Of course I want to!"

Lenny smirked and gave him the notebook. "Good luck then."

* * *

the day after, Raimon gathered at their little wooden house once again and Polie opened the notebook Lenny gave him...only to find out it was filled with words impossible to understand and badly made drawings.

"Huh, is that supposed to be a coded language?" Kevin asked.

"I bet Polie's grandfather was just not good at writing," Nathan deduced.

"So it's impossible to read then?" Jack asked.

"We're not more advanced than before," Nathan sighed.

He and Kevin then noticed Polie was just reading the notebook. "Polie, you listen?!" he and Kevin shouted at unison.

"Too cool! He explains the Celestial Hand technique!" Polie beamed in joy.

Everybody looked at him in awe. "Wait, you can read it?" they all asked in unison.

"Yup; it's the same way I'M writing. At first, it was hard, but I eventually managed to understand his writing," he explained with a smile before sitting down and turning the pages until he found something interesting. "Hey, this seems like a good technique to dominate the skies: the Thunder Trampoline."

"Thunder Trampoline?" Tim asked.

"This sounds really cool!" Jack beamed.

"Let me read it: this technique requires two players; one does VROOM! and then jumps on the second to spin and VLAM! The secret technique of the Thunder Trampoline," Polie read.

Everybody just looked at him in complete confusion. "And what does "VROOM!" and "VLAM!" means?" Jack asked in confusion.

"Okay, your grandfather never learned to write correctly, did he?" Nathan asked to which Polie shook his head nervously.

"There's gotta be more explanations!" Kevin insisted.

"No: my grandfather wasn't the kind to mess around with techniques. If he says this is the secret to master the Thunder Trampoline, then that's it! We just need to understand what it means!" Polie said with fire in his eyes.

"You look optimist," Axel said with a chuckle.

* * *

While Kevin was training the rest of Raimon by throwing big tires at them like Polie did, the latter was trying to understand the notebook of his grandfather. Axel came to him.

"Say Polie, You got a minute? It's about the secret technique," he said.

"What is it?" Polie asked.

The dove picked up a stick and started tracing marks in the sand. "I wonder if that's not what your grandfather meant: the first player jumps, the second follows and the first bounces on him like a trampoline, allowing him to get even higher, and then, when he gets to the higher point, makes a do you think?"

Polie looked at the drawing...and then smiled in excitation. "Axel! It can only be that! And you understood all that by yourself? You're a genius!"

"Thanks. So, who do you think would be able to do this?" Axel asked.

"I know only one person who can do it!" Polie pointed at the dove. "You! We just need to find who's gonna be your trampoline." He then smiled. "And I know who will be the perfect candidate."

* * *

Moments later, Jack was standing with Polie, two tires tied around his large waist. "Huh, what's that? Is that part of the training?" he asked in confusion.

"Yup," Star nodded. "You need to jump as high as possible, or your comrade won't be able to get to your level and you will both get hurt. So this is why you need to learn how to jump higher. Okay?"

"Okay, but with this...," Jack tried to jump, only for the tires to bring him back down, "I can barely get off the floor."

"Don't worry; it will come," Polie said, two tires tied to his waist as well. "Yup, I need to work on my jumps as well. We're gonna train together."

And so, while Axel trained on his jump and backflips, Polie trained with Jack to jump higher. This lasted until night fell by which time everyone was tired, covered of dirt, and at their limit. However, it wasn't for nothing: they all did tremendous progress and would probably get to the Thunder Trampoline before the end of the week.

"The Wild team can't get ready for us!" Polie said with throwing a fist in the air.

* * *

 **Next time: team Raimon will face team Wild in the first round of the Football Frontier. Let's hope the Thunder Trampoline will come in handy.**


	159. Raimon vs Wild

**Time to practice the Thunder Trampoline!**

* * *

Today, at the football training field, Polie watched as Axel and Jack were trying to jump as high as possible in hopes of mastering the Thunder Trampoline technique before their match with team Wild. While Axel was doing his backflips perfectly, Jack was always falling on his butt, no matter how hard he tried.

"Okay, you're having some reception problems, Jack, but you jump high enough," Polie remarked. "You guys should be ready for the Thunder Trampoline now."

Axel nodded and looked at Jack. "Ready for it, Jack?"

"Huh...yeah," he replied with a nervous look.

Polie throwing a ball in the air, Jack and Axel jumped together into the sky...just before Jack looked down, panicked, and fell on his butt, causing the technique to fail.

"Are you okay Jack? What's wrong?" Axel asked as the big spix macaw curled down and trembled in fear.

"I don't understand; everything was going perfectly," Polie said.

"I-I looked down! I shouldn't have! I...I got the fear of heights!" he stuttered.

This caused everyone to look at him in surprise. "You should have said so earlier," Jin remarked.

"You closed your eyes and trembled. This is why I missed my jump, when I landed on your shoulder," Axel explained.

"I understand why you always land on your butt now," Polie remarked.

"Don't look at the ground then; stay focused on Axel and everything will be fine," Star remarked.

"O-Okay, I'm gonna try!"

The duo jumped once again for the Thunder Trampoline...only to get the same result as before with Jack getting scared and falling on his butt.

"Oh, Jack...," Polie mumbled with rubbing his forehead out of desperation.

"S-Sorry! I tried to focus on Axel, but after a while, I looked down and got scared again. Sorry," Jack apologized with sitting down again.

"If it keeps going this way, you'll never be ready for your match with team Wild," Alicia remarked with rubbing the back of her head.

Polie just smiled optimistically. "It's okay! I have faith in my team: Axel and Jack will master the Thunder Trampoline before our match!"

"If you say so," Alicia just said with a shrug.

"Hum, captain, I' touched you have so much faith in me, but...," Jack mumbled.

"Don't worry, Jack; I'm sure we'll find a way to help you deal with your fear of heights!" Polie said with throwing a fist.

"Okay..."

* * *

And so, team Raimon tried many ways to help Jack overcame his fear of heights which included standing on a springboard, getting down a slide, climbing a tree and even standing on a pile of human cans. Unfortunately, everything ended with failures, Jack being unable to overcame his fear.

"Come on, Jack; with courage and determination, everything's possible!" Polie told his friend in the wooden house.

"That would surprise me; if that was the case, you would have the courage to stand up to Star," Jack replied, making all the others in the room laugh out loud.

"...that's another subject!"

"Without this technique, we won't be able to defeat team Wild," Nathan remarked. "All the team counts on you, Jack!"

"Stop putting pressure on me!" Jack said, hiding his big head in his wings.

Polie just starred at him...and then smiled. "You're right; I can't ask you to carry this match all by yourself. We're all gonna work even harder to be able to face our opponents!"

"We're gonna be at our best for the day of the match!" Nathan beamed, causing everyone to cheer positively.

* * *

And so, everyone left for the training field and worked really hard under Polie's supervision with him shouting at them to work harder. While she watched, Star was joined by Bobby.

"Hello, Star," hew greeted her with a smile.

"Oh, hello, Bobby. You're not training with the team?" she asked.

"Well, since I just recently joined, I don't think they're gonna let me play the next match," he admitted.

Alicia, who was standing beside, just shrugged. "Personally, I don't understand why they find it so exciting to run after a ball. It sounds a bit dumb."

Jack tried (and failed) again to perform the Thunder Trampoline with Axel. "I can't do it! Every time, I look down!" he whined while panting on his knees.

"Let's try it again," Axel simply said, barely showing any sign of tiredness.

"I-I don't know if I can..."

"Don't say that, Jack," Polie said. "You must not wonder if but how you're gonna do it."

"Easy to say," Jack mumbled with imagining himself falling from high once again. "I'm telling you I'm scared!" Polie and Axel just sighed as the big guy cried in his wings.

* * *

Later on, as the sun started falling at the horizon, Jack slowly walked up to the park all by himself. "I'll never make it. We might as well throw the match right now..."

He suddenly heard a "OOF!" not too far. Curious, he followed the noise and was surprised to see Axel alone, jumping and trying to stand on a little piece of wood tied to a rope itself tied to a tree branch. "A-Axel?"

He suddenly saw Polie arriving. "Still there, Axel? I'm impressed by your hard work. Your training yourself to jump on an unstable surface?"

"Yes. Thanks, Polie," the dove replied while panting, covered of bruises.

As he looked at his dove friend training hard under his captain's encouragements, Jack felt something form at the pit of his stomach. _Guilt_.

Getting back home, he looked up at the tree he lived in and forced himself to climb it up in hopes of overcoming his fear.

Meanwhile, Axel visited his unconscious sister at the aviary. "Julia, at first, I didn't wanted to play football by guilt of seeing you like this. but now, I'm gonna make you a new promise: I won't lose a single match until the day you awake..."

As for Polie, he stood on top of the tree he lived in and watched the sunset. "Our match is for tomorrow, Grandpa. I promise you me and my team will give everything we have!"

* * *

The following day, team Raimon reached the playing ground they were instructed to get to. To their surprise, it was actually in the rainforest with a playground built right in the middle of it.

"Wow. I knew we were going to face team Wild, but I didn't knew it was gonna be right into the forest," Polie remarked with rubbing the back of his head.

Team Wild then arrived. It was a group of different birds who all acted like monkeys, jumping all around. "Let's not let those morons beat us, alright?" Kevin said.

It was then that they saw birds all around the field, cheering loudly. "You've seen all those supporters, guys?" Polie asked in excitation. "The championship is truly starting! I'm so pumped up! Let's give our best and not disappoint our supporters!" he said with throwing a fist in the air.

"Huh, I think you're wrong: those birds came to encourage team Wild, not us," Nathan deadpanned.

This caused everyone to drop their head before Polie pointed away. "Not ALL of them! Look!" Three young spix macaws came and cheered loudly for team Raimon. Jack recognized one of them.

"H-Hey! It's Zack, my little brother!" he said.

"Come on, Jack! We came to cheer you on!" the young, chubby spix macaw, Zack, shouted with joy. "Look everyone, it's my big brother! He defeated the Royal Academy!"

Seeing his little brother cheering for him with so much hope caused Jack to tremble nervously. "I...I have to pee!"

"NO!" his comrades said with holding him back before he could leave the field.

Moments later, both teams were now in position on the field. "Ladies and gentlemen, Chester in direct of the first round match for the Football Frontier Tournament between team Raimon and team Wild!"

"In direct? But we're not even on television," Jack remarked.

The ref whistled and Raimon started with the ball. Nathan ran with it and got blocked by two players, forcing him to pass the ball to Kevin who kicked it up to Axel who jumped and got ready to attack.

"Fire Tornado!"

"Nope!" the Wild leader, a military macaw with red head feathers dressed like a mohawk, jumped up and kicked the ball away before Axel could kick. "Nobody can jump as high as me!" he said before kicking the ball away to one of his partners.

This last one ran with tremendous speed toward Raimon's goal, dodging Tim and Nathan, and rushing toward Polie. He jumped up with the ball and kicked it at full power toward Polie.

"I got it!" he said, ready to block the shot.

However, another player jumped in and kicked the ball in the opposite direction. Polie widened his eyes in shock as he was about to miss the ball. "Explosive Fist!" Luckily, his technique touched the ball and he managed to push it back before it could get into the goal.

"Polie managed to stop the ball in time! Team Wild's combination attacks are not done surprising us!"

As he got the ball, Nathan looked at his opponents nervously. "We trained really hard...but we still can't keep up with those guys?"

* * *

 **Things don't look good for team Raimon. Let's hope they will reverse the situation to their advantage. Can they do it even without help from Jack who's too afraid of heights?**

 **Also, on a side note, the next chapter will be the last one before ending the first part of the Inazuma 11 arc and switching to another one.**


	160. Raimon vs Wild part 2

**The match between Raimon and Wild continues!**

* * *

"Team Raimon tries a new offensive, but Axel Blaze gets blocked by three defenders from team Wild!"

"Axel! Here!" Kevin called.

Axel gave him the ball as he dodged the defense and ran toward the goal. "You're strong in the air, but let's see what you're worth on the ground. Dragon Crash-"

However, before he could hit his technique, a defender rolled into him like a bowling ball, knocking the ball away and him to the ground.

"Kevin! You're okay?" Polie called as his friend twitched on the ground, holding his leg in pain. "My knee! My knee!"

Star and Brooke rushed to him along with the captain to see if he was okay. "I'm afraid it's a sprain," Star said, holding Kevin's leg. "He cannot play like this."

"We're gonna have to call for a remplacement," Polie remarked.

"Hum, Bobby, can you go," Willy asked the newcomer with a nervous look. "Not that I'm afraid or anything," he said with turning his head away and moving his glasses like a professional.

"My chance," the newcomer said with a smile as he stood up and got to the playground.

"We got a changement in team Raimon's side! Bobby Shearer came to the defense while Jack Wallside took Kevin Dragonfly's place on the offense!"

"W-Wait, guys! Why am I the one to get on the offense?" Jack nervously asked.

"With Kevin out, we can no longer use the Dragon Tornado. We can only count on the Thunder Trampoline," Axel explained.

One of the Wild's players got the ball and passed Steve, only for Bobby to come in the way. "I'm not gonna let you pass. Tackle of Doom!" The macaw performed an amazing ground tackle which took the ball away from the player.

"Nicely done!" Polie beamed at his new player.

"And Bobby Shearer gets the ball!"

Axel looked in surprise. "T-That's a technique from the Royal Academy!"

"Surprised, Axel? I am from the Royal Academy!" Bobby thought with a smirk. He then kicked the ball up for his comrade.

"Let's go, Jack!" Axel called. Nodding, Jack jumped up alongside him and got ready for the Thunder Trampoline. Unfortunately, the big macaw once again got scared at the last second, causing Axel to botch and miss the ball while he landed on his butt.

"What happened? Jack Wallside missed his clue and fell down with Axel! And now, team Wild got the ball back and chains the combos!"

For the many next minutes, Polie kept blocking one attack of the Wilds while Axel and Jack kept trying and failing to perform the Thunder Trampoline. By the time the first half of the match was done, Polie's wings were hurting him and it was still 0-0.

Sitting on the benches with his team the captain removed his gloves to see his slightly burned wings. "Congratulations, guys. I'm proud of you."

"Are you kidding?" Nathan asked in disbelief. "You have no reason to be; they dominated us for all the match."

Polie just smiled. "But they didn't scored once despite giving their best. You can count on me for blocking all of their attacks. You just have to score a goal with the Thunder Trampoline."

Jack just looked down. "Captain, please let me go back to defense."

Polie looked curiously at him. "What are you talking about?"

"Or just replace me: I cannot perform the Thunder Trampoline no matter how hard I try. I don't want us to miss another chance of scoring."

Polie shook his head. "That's out of question! You won't go back to defense and I refuse to replace you. I'm gonna keep sending you the ball until you score." He then kneeled next to Jack. "I know you got the fear of heights; you told us days ago. But you worked hard all week long to overcome your fear. So I won't let you give up. We're gonna keep passing you the ball and you're gonna keep trying to perform the technique. Got it?"

"B-But I...," Jack mumbled, not knowing his little brother was watching him with a sad look.

"Big brother..."

"It's time for the second half of the match to start! Team Wild brings the ball to the middle of the field! Speed rushes on the enemy side and Maxwell tries to intercept him! Blocked, Speed gives the ball to Snake who slide on the right!"

Snake Breath!" the Wild player shouted, kicking the ball charged with green energy toward Raimon's goal.

"Explosive Fist!" Polie managed to stop the shot at the cost of hurting his already damaged wing. "Darn! My wing's on fire! Come on, guys!" he shouted with kicking the ball to his team.

"Jack! Help!" Axel called.

"I tell you it's pointless," the big guy whined, falling to his knees.

This allowed team Wild to regain control of the ball as Axel couldn't get it back. The team attacked over and over again with Polie fighting through the pain of his wings to protect the goal while Axel kept failing over and over again at scoring.

At one point, his wings were hurting so much that he felt unable of stopping the next shot. Getting desperate, he threw himself and received the ball right in his face to stop it, causing his nose to bleed.

"Polie!" everybody exclaimed in shock.

Despite the pain of his nose and the mark left on his face, Polie weakly stood up with determination. "As long as I'll stand up...you won't score in this goal!"

Jack looked with tears forming in his eyes. "Why do you keep fighting? This fight's done."

Nathan groaned and turned toward the rest of the team. "Polie won't be able to hold on for long! Let's give everything we have!"

Everybody replied with nods and started working together to prevent the Wild players from reaching their goal at any cost. "They must continue like this!" Willy remarked from the bench to which Kevin nodded in agreement.

"But our friends will quickly get tired at running like this in all directions. And with all the energy they burned during the first half-time, I doubt they can hold like this for long," Kevin said with sweating nervously.

"Come on, guys! We can do it!" Polie shouted despite their apparently hopeless situation.

Jack starred at him and then looked down in fear. "Jack! For god's sake, open your eyes!" Axel suddenly said as he stopped beside him.

Jack looked at his friends. "...They're all tired, but they keep fighting on. The captain keeps blocking the balls despite his wings hurting him a lot. None of them is willing to give up. I don't understand, why are they all doing that?"

"Because they have faith in us and they believe we're gonna score," Axel explained. "While, when you're closing your eyes and running away from your fears instead of facing them, you betray all the people who believe in us." This statement caused Jack to widen his eyes and look at his friends fighting for them while he was just laying down, not doing anything.

Meanwhile, in the goal, Snake once again went for a Snake Breath shot. Polie glared at it with determination. "Come on; my friends are giving it their all! I must stop this ball!" Feeling a familiar rush of energy in his wing, he unleashed it to create a but energy hand. "Celestial Hand!"

Pushing his technique forward, the Raimon captain managed to block the ball without hurting himself too much. Seeing his captain working this hard caused Jack to feel determination rise in himself and slowly stood up on his feet.

"CAPTAIN!" he shouted. "GIVE ME THE BALL!"

Polie was surprised to see his big friend up and ready to fight. Smiling, he kicked the ball to him. "He wants me to go on because my captain and all my team believe in me! I cannot let them down!" he thought with determination before kicking the ball and then jumping up with Axel.

Thinking about all of his comrades who in their all, Jack pushed a battle cry and pulled out his large torso for Axel to jump on it and get higher. "THUNDER TRAMPOLINE!"

Axel did the rest by kicking the ball with all of his strength, sending it fly right into team Wild's goal before the goalkeeper could touch it. Axel and Jack marked the first point of the match just as the ref whistled, marking the official end of the match.

"And the ref calls the end of the match! With a score of 1-0, team Raimon defeats team Wild and wins the first match of the Football Frontier!"

Axel smiled and putted a wing on Jack's shoulder. "Congratulations, Jack. You mastered a new technique well to yourself."

"You did it, Jack! Congratulations!" Polie beamed.

This caused the big macaw to let out tears of joy. "It's thanks to you, guys!" He ran and exchanged a high-five with Polie...who then immediately groaned in pain. "Oh, sorry, captain. I forgot your wings were injured."

Polie removed his gloves to reveal his red wings to blow a bit on them. "It's nothing." He then smiled. "You overcame your fear of high heights and thanks to you, we won the first match of the Football Frontier!"

Everybody cheered and congratulated Jack who blushed a bit. "And get your game on, my friends, 'cause this was only the first step in her victory for the Football Frontier!"

* * *

Meanwhile, in an unknown spot, a mysterious bird was being given infos by another mysterious bird.

"So the Thunder Trampoline really returned? Interesting. I can't wait to see more of this "Raimon" team..."

* * *

 **Okay, we're gonna leave the Inazuma 11 arc here for now. Honestly, I don't think this was my best arc so far, but I enjoyed it while it lasted. And also, you can't say I left Jewel's friends from the Amazon in the dust.**

 **We still have three more arcs to do before going back to our Blue Thunder Crew, but don't worry. I'll make sure you'll enjoy them and don't make them too long.**


	161. Snow Kid

**Alright guys, it's time for a new arc to start! Now, this one will use chapters from other story "Angry Birds Snow" which I decided to stop and continue in here.**

 **Before you start shouting at me, yes, the Angry Birds Movie will be a part of my story. You ca tell me how this movie sucked: I will always say that it was a funny movie that did not lived to its full potential. And since "The Dynamic Adventure" is a place for second chances, I won't prevent myself.**

 **Another good argument is that Rovio and Blue Sky Studios once teamed up and made a crossover between Rio and Angry Birds for a game called Angry Birds Rio. It's available as a app on on little consoles as well as on the Angry Birds Trilogy game.**

 **But enough with fighting against the Angry Birds haters and let's get this story started!**

* * *

Snow Kid groaned as his alarm clock started ringing, forcing him out of a pleasant dream. Reaching his hand to turn it off, he was tempted to just turn over and try to get back to sleep. But he was awake now; might as well get up. The sun rays already came through the window of his room, meaning the day already started.

Sitting up on his bed and pushing a loud yawn, he stretched his body which made crack many of his yet young bones. Afterward, he found the strength to get up and drag himself to his living room and eat a good breakfast consisting of exotic fruits and a good cup of milk. Once his belly was full, he went to the bathroom and took a good shower to look nice and clean.

Upon exiting the shower and drying himself with a towel, he took a good glance at the mirror and his reflexion. His fluffy feathers were white like snow (from where his name) with some black spots, making it look like the feathers of a snowy owl. His eyes were light blue and reflected his kind but restrained nature. That was enough to bring a good smile on his black beak. However, there was one thing missing from the package: his black toque. Reaching on the counter, he picked his little hat and putted it over his head, covering his messy head feathers. For reasons he never himself understood, Snow Kid treasured this toque more than anything. Probably because he's been wearing it since he was a kid.

Anyways, he was now awake, dressed up and ready to start the day. So he headed out of his house to find himself into the happy Bird Village of Bird Island. Birds of all size and colours were walking around, leading their kids to school, going for groceries, or simply having fun with their friends and family. Just to see them happy like this was enough to make the young bird smile.

Speaking of which, he too had to go make some groceries for today as his fridge was starting to get a bit empty. So he started making his way to the market place, passing before the puffy bird who gave free hugs and looked at all those passing with puppy eyes and putting on a disappointed face, every time they ignored him. Honestly, Snow Kid couldn't handle his adorable face and decided to give him an hug anyway. If this could make the silent bird happy, why not?

So, once that was done, the young boy arrived at the market place where birds were buying food and other stuff from the tens of markets all around. Checking up the grocery list he brought under his toque, Snow Kid started by going to buy a few worms at the first market on the right. Next, he went to the fruit market - the most popular one of the village - and bought some fruits and vegetables gathered into a plastic bag.

As he went to go buy some mushrooms, the young boy heard someone calling for him. "Mister Snow! Hey, Mister Snow!" Turning his head, he saw that the one calling him was none other than Miko, a blue macaw-styled bird. He had light blue feathers with green eyes, but his most notable feature was the orange headband he was wearing around his forehead. He was behind the counter of the noddle shop he was owning. This shop was actually very popular in the village as his noddles were absolutely delicious.

"Oh, hey, Miko," Snow Kid greeted him back and walked over to his shop. "Sorry that I didn't see you sooner."

"No problem, Mister Snow," he said with a polite bow. That was Miko's strange habit: he was always talking with an exaggerating amount of respect to everyone in the village, even his closest friends. "Are you busy?"

"Well, I came to make my usual groceries, but I'm not pressed. What's up, except that?"

"Nothing special; my business is going very well as you can see," he said with giving a pointing look toward many birds sitting at different tables, eating bowls of noddles coming from his shop. "There are advantages to be the only bird knowing a special recipe in the village," he admitted with a chuckle.

"I can see that," Snow Kid replied and shared the chuckle. "I should be going now, if I want to get my groceries before everything gets buy."

"I understand, Mister Snow. Go finish your groceries," he said with another polite bow that caused the snowy owl to raise an eye brow.

"Miko, come on, man. You don't have to be so polite and always call me 'Mister'. We're friends after all."

"Sorry, but it's an habit of mine. My parents always told me respect was gold," the macaw replied and blushed a bit.

Snow Kid simply rolled his eyes. "Anyway, see ya later," he said and waved at his friend before walking away.

Before long, Snow Kid's bags were full and he was starting making his way back home while carrying them all in his face. This caused everyone else to wonder how he could walk without bumping into someone by accident. Well, actually, it ended up happening as he accidentally bumped into someone and lost his balance, but quickly regained it before he could drop everything.

"Sorry! My fault!" he quickly apologized before turning to get a look at the person he collided with. To his surprise, it was Lovia, a female grey bird with a white belly who was wearing a black toque like his, a grey jacket slightly unzipped, blue pants, and black fingerless gloves. The reason was that, unlike most birds of the village, she didn't really liked showing her body. "Oh, hi, Lovia."

"Cheese, Snow Kid!" she groaned and rubbed her head. "Couldn't you be more careful? What's the idea of walking when you can't even see where you're going?"

"Well, I just try to trust my instincts," he replied with a small chuckle. "So, what's up?"

Lovia slightly passed her fingers in her grey hair after removing her toque. "Well, nothing very special; I'm still trying to finish working on that boat I talked to you last week." Indeed, Lovia's passion was building and upgrading mechanical stuff, which was why birds of the village called her a mechanician. She specially had interest for the machines that the pigs brought them during their short time at the village. "What about you?"

"Well, nothing special either outside of the fact that my arms are getting tired and excited to get those groceries home," he replied with a chuckle which Lovia shared this time.

"Well, in that case, I won't hold you back any longer. Bye." She waved at him and then walked away.

The snowy owl tried to continue his way to his house, but encountered another person on his way. "Snow Kid!" He once again stopped in his track and turned to see who was the person. This time, it was Natasha, another girl Snow Kid knew. She was a Lady Amherst pheasant with a white body, green head, red long hair, dark blue and yellow wings and a brown tail. She had ruby eyes and a very beautiful figure.

Natasha was the most known of the village and for good reasons; ever since she was a chick, dance has been her passion. All of her years of practice have made her the best dancer of the Bird Village. She knew all known dances to the birds: breakdance, samba, hip hop, belly dance, tongo, Hawaiian dance, etc. Her beauty made that a lot of boys asks her on a date. Not that she was arrogant, but she was pretty shy and always refused.

"Oh, hey, Natasha." Snow Kid greeted her with a smile. "I didn't saw you."

"With those bags, it's a bit understandable," she pointed out with a giggle. "You come back from groceries?"

"Yup and I was on my way home. What about you?"

"Oh, I was going to visit Matilda today," the pheasant replied. "I give her dance lessons and she already mastered samba and tongo. Today, I'm gonna teach her belly dancing," she said with doing a tummy roll for emphasis.

"Cool," Snow Kid replied, trying not to gaze too long at her and look like an obsessed guy.

"Hey, why don't you accompany me? Would you like to learn dancing as well?" she proposed.

"Sorry, Natasha, but in all honesty, I think belly dancing is more for girls," he honestly replied.

"That's not true; there's a lot of boys around who like to practice it."

"But I'm not one of them. Now, not that I don't like talking to you, but I'd like to get my groceries home before my arms turn into noodles," he said and gave a polite bow before walking away.

Yes, it's true; Snow Kid was not the most sociable bird of the flock. Not that he didn't liked the others' company, but he sometimes just felt like being alone. And anyways, he didn't had that much friends either-

"Hello." Snow Kid's heart jumped a beat and he dropped all his bags on the ground because of the whispering in his ear. After taking back from the shock, he saw that the intruder was Ocia, a female short-eared owl with dark brown feathers on her back and light brown on the front. She also had black facial marks around her yellow eyes. Unlike most of the other birds, Ocia was really hard to describe. She had the strange habit of jumping on people without warning among others.

"For god's sake, Ocia! Don't jump on me like that! I almost had an heart attack!" the snowy owl exclaimed as he picked his food up.

"At least you're not gonna fall asleep," she said and giggled a bit before running away, like a kid who just did a prank.

"Strange girl...," Snow Kid mumbled to himself.

"You tell me." This time, it was Rakonto, a male long tailed tit with white feathers and some black around his head. He had red tribal marks on his cheeks and chest and wears a crossbow along a bag full of arrow on his back. The reason was that, prior to coming to the village, he lived alone in the forest part of the island. That was until the day Snow Kid found him while camping and brought him to the village. "This girl will always remain a mystery to me."

"You know that she also likes to spoke kids off by turning her head around thanks to her owl body." Snow added with a chuckle.

"Yup. Have you ever done it too? I mean, you're an owl too." The long-tailed tit asked.

"Nah, I don't like turning my head in the wrong direction." He said with an head shake. "Except that, what's up? Are you still living in your hut next to the village? You should come here and get a good house."

"No thanks, Snow." He politely declined. "I'm used to my old wild life style. By the way, I heard you talking with Natasha; she's not wrong. You may not know it now, but there's quite a few girls with a crush on you, from what I've heard."

"There is?" Snow asked in surprise with a blush in his face.

"Yup; they don't stop saying you look cute and handsome with your feathers, toque and attitude." He said with a chuckle. "Why don't you propose one of them on a date?"

Snow Kid looked all around, feeling a bit uneasy. "Huh, I've never really been on a date before. And I'm not really planning on having one anytime soon."

Rakonto simply nodded before walking away. "Well, I've gotta go make my dinner. Bye." He said and waved his wing at his friend who would've returned the gesture, had his hands not been full.

With that being done, the young snowy owl finally arrived home and putted his groceries down before sitting down on his couch and watching TV. Yes, Snow Kid's life was well-arranged and simple. But things were about to change.

They were about to change a lot...

* * *

 **BAM! Cliffhanger!**

 **This chapter was principally to introduce the characters of my story. So how do you find them? Does Snow sounds like an interesting character? I sure hope so, 'cause you'll be stuck with him for all the story :)**


	162. Chatting with Stella's group

Snow Kid sat up and yawned as the sun rays came through his window to shine in his face. This seemed to announce another beautiful, sunny day for him and the whole Bird Village. He did his usual routine before getting out of his house as he planned to go pay a little visit to his good friend Earl today. As he came out, he got meet by none other than Judge Peckinpha.

"Good morning, Mr. Snow Kid. I hope you are doing well," he warmly said. However, the snowy owl didn't returned the feeling at him.

"Hello," he dryly said before walking away before the old bird could say anything else. See, Snow Kid didn't really liked the Judge Peckinpha - some could even say that he outright HATED him. The reason was that the owl found that the old bird was super unfair with every bird that ended up in court. Specially one bird in particular: Red.

While he may not have spent as much time with him as Chuck, Bomb or the other birds in anger management class, Snow Kid knew that Red was a very good guy despite having anger problems. But that was not his fault if all the birds gave him an hard time before he saved the eggs and became a hero. Red always told him how the kids mocked his eye brows, when he was a kid, and how he broke out at the green birds family because the father was a real jerk. And while Peckinpha could have easily told those birds to be nicer with Red, he accused him and forced him to take anger management class because of those IDIOTS.

Seriously? How much of an idiot did you had to be to make such stupid decisions? Snow Kid sometimes wondered how this old pigeon became judge at all. Not that he regretted that Red made himself new friends or became a hero, but there still was limits to be an a**hole. So he simply did not like the old judge and did everything he could to stay away from him.

Snow Kid still remembered the battle with the pigs. How Red led the assault on the city as they all attacked with their powers and the giant slingshot which, ironically, has been given by the pigs themselves as a gift. Snow Kid took part in this battle as he got catapulted after Mime Bird and used his personal power to cause some damage. He also helped the others escape the city until Terence arrived with his truck an drove them out. Thank you, big guy.

Anyways, the point was that Snow Kid knew Red was a good guy and never deserved hate from the start. But for now, he was just going to pay a little visit to Earl and decided to shake all those bad memories off his head.

"Hey, Snow Kid!"

Getting out of his head, the snowy owl looked around, searching for the source of the voice that called him. He eventually spotted Stella and her friends having lunch at a restaurant table. He actually met them before he verbally engaged Red and was friend with them, despite his low social level. Smiling up, he walked over to them. Earl could wait a moment.

"Hey, girls. And Luca," he added as the hatchling was the only boy in the group.

"Snow Kid! How you doin?' Poppy the cockatiel asked with her usual cheery attitude.

"I'm doing fine, thanks for asking," he replied with a smile. He was going well along Poppy as he too loved music - not as much as her, but pretty much. "How about you?"

"I'm super fine!" she answered with an unusual excitation. Snow gave a little smirk in the corner of his beak.

"Let me guess; it's because the new album of Shakira Bird came out yesterday?"

"Yes!" the cockatiel answered and showed it on her Ibird (parody) which had the album's cover. "It have all my favourite songs: Waka Waka, Wherever Whenever, and even Try Everything! Did you get it yet?"

"Nope. But I'm planning on getting it soon," Snow Kid replied with a nod.

"Except that, what have you done else, darling?" Gale asked at her turn. Quite frankly, out of Stella's whole group, Gale was the one he less liked. Why? Because she was always openly judging and criticizing others' habits and appearance. That was VERY annoying.

"Just the usual; nothing too special," he replied with placing his wings behind his head. He then noticed that the purple bird rolled her eyes. "What?"

"It's just that your life is so boring."

Snow Kid slightly frowned at this remark. "What are you talking about? There's nothing borings about my life," he said in defense.

"Even the fact that you're never doing anything outside of visiting friends and going at the beach?"

"That's still better than just being obsessed by shining things and dressing well," the owl wanted to reply, but kept this and changed his answer. "I like relaxing; is that a crime?"

Before Gale could argue any further, Dahlia stepped in. "It's not totally false, you know, Snow. Doing more activities outside of your house would be good for your health."

Snow Kid couldn't help but smile at his owl friend's care. While he wasn't very close to her, mainly because he was very FAR from having her intelligence level, he did quite actually like Dahlia. More than Gale, anyways.

"What do you suggest then, Dahlia?" he asked.

"You must have a passion of some sort, right?" Willow asked with a smile. Out of Stella's group, Willow was the one Snow Kid liked the most because of her shy and kind personality. This made her super cute and also the fact that she was drawing masterpiece after masterpiece all the time. And maybe a bit because she was wearing an hat just like him.

Snow Kid rubbed his chin with two fingers. "Well, I do like chocolate," he pointed out which made the girls (and Luca) laugh as it didn't do much to advance them.

"So you would be interested to become a chocolate maker?" Luca asked with a little smile. Snow Kid actually liked Luca too, not only because he was the only boy in Stella's group, but also because he was full of a life and a good person to be in presence of in general.

"I don't know. Making my favourite sweet and not having the right to eat it would be cruel, don't you think?" he answered and shared a laugh with the young chick.

"Come on, Snow," Stella insisted. "Everyone have a passion: for me, it's sports, Dahlia likes science, Willow likes to paint and draw, Gale loves fashion, and Luca likes to play and have fun. Surely you have a passion of your own."

Snow Kid once again putted his hands behind his head and looked at the sky. "Well, Natasha saw me yesterday and offered to teach me dancing, but I refused."

"Why? Dancing is super fun!" Poppy pointed out. "There's awesome music and you just let it take control of your body."

Snow Kid chuckled again. "Yeah, but dancing is one thing and loving music is another one. And beside, you really see me belly dancing? Cause that's what Natasha was going to teach Matilda."

The female cockatiel gave a smirk. "Actually, that wouldn't be bad to see." This remark caused Snow Kid to widen his eyes in surprise and blush madly, making the girls giggle.

"What?! Are you serious?!" he shouted which made the girls laugh this time.

"Yeah, I bet you'd like pretty handsome in a dancing dress," Willow remarked with a sweet smile which made the owl blush even more, even though she was being sincere.

Once the laughs passed, Snow Kid sighed and decided to change the conversation's subject. "So, Stella and Willow, I heard you girls started dating Chuck and Bomb?"

This time, it was their turn to blush a bit. "Yes...," the blue pidgeon quietly said. "He's so kind and caring...," she admitted and hide behind her hat which made the girls go 'aww' and Luca to frown in disgust.

"And Chuck is very nice and handsome too," Stella added with a dreaming look.

"And athletic," Poppy said with a smirk. "Everybody knows you have a sweetspot for athlete guys." This made Stella blush again which was barely visible behind her pink feathers.

"Can we change the subject?" Luca begged, having enough of the loving stuff, making the girls and Snow Kid giggle again. "I'm sure Snow Kid would go see his own girlfriend, if he wanted to chat about those kinds of things."

At this remark, the owl rubbed the back of his head. "I...don't really have a girlfriend, Luca."

"What?" the chick said in surprise. "How come someone as cool as you don't have a girlfriend?"

Snow Kid chuckled at the compliment and rubbed Luca' head. "Don't worry, little Luca: I have a calm life and cool friends, and for me, that's more than enough." He suddenly realized that, with all the chatting, he forgot that he was going to visit Earl before seeing them. "Hey, I completely forgot that Earl was waiting for me. I'm gonna go now. Bye, girls."

He walked away and waved at Stella's group as they all told him 'goodbye' with hand waves. This little chat actually putted him in a good mod. Many minutes later, he arrived in the middle of the market place where he came the day before. And it didn't changed at all.

BOOM!

In a split-second, Snow Kid found himself all disorientated as an explosion happened in the middle of the place, right next to where he has been standing. What the duck? What just happened?!

Upon getting back to his senses, the young snowy owl saw that the explosion created a lot of dust and caused the birds around to run away in fear and confusion. Upon getting back up, Snow Kid saw that there seemed to be a strange little green light in the middle of the dust caused by the explosion.

And he immediately regretted to see who it was.

Because out of the dust came a green pig. But not a small or chubby pig like the army they defeated and regained their eggs from, a few months ago. No, this one was a massive pile of muscles with long arms and strong legs, looking ready to squash anything in his way.

"HULK PIG SMASH!" He shouted which caused the birds that haven't ran away because of the explosion to do it now.

"Crap..."

* * *

 **Hu-ho, looks like trouble's coming for the Bird Island villagers. How are they gonna deal with this Hulk Pig (which is from Angry Birds Evolution, by the way)? And what is Snow Kid gonna do? Stay stunned to find out!**


	163. Snow Kid's team vs Hulk Pig

"HULK PIG SMASH!"

Snow Kid could only look in horror as the giant muscle mountain pig screamed and glared in his direction. It was only then that the snowy owl realized that he was the only bird remaining in the arena as he didn't ran in fear like the others. Well, maybe he SHOULD have.

As the giant pig swung his big arm toward him, Snow Kid rolled out of the way just in time to avoid the fist that went crashing down into the ground, forming a crater. Unfortunately, the muscle mountain didn't stopped there and ran toward the boy again. He had no choice. He was going to need to use his power to stop this monster - or at least, hold him back until Red, Stella, or anyone else arrived to take care of it.

He lifted his wing and shot a jet of ice energy which hit the pig's shoulder, covering it with ice. Yup, Snow Kid had the power of ice. It was not like having super strength, speed, capacity of exploding, shooting missiles from the butt, or even flying like a boomerang, but it was better than nothing.

Unfortunately, his attack's effect didn't lasted long as the Hulk Pig used his other fist to break the ice and this time went for a double axe handle smash that Snow Kid dodged again, but still made a bigger crater in the ground. He then used one wing to shoot ice and create an ice slide on which he could surf **(a bit like Iceberg from X-Men does)**. Then, moving around the giant pig, he used his other wing to shoot a continuous jet and soon, the monster got trapped into a big wall of ice.

"Have an ICE day!" the young snowy owl teased as he though he defeated the beast all by himself.

How wrong.

The ice cracked and the pig broke out out of it, grabbing Snow Kid's head into one hand, much to this last one's surprise. Glaring with pure anger into his prey's eyes, Hulk Pig started hardening his grip of his head, making it crack and causing the boy to scream in pain. He tried to shoot ice randomly, but that didn't helped and his skull was about to break. It was the end for him.

Or so he though. The Hulk Pig received a sudden kick right across the face, causing him to drop Snow Kid on the ground where he held his hurting head. After taking back from the kick, he saw that the responsible one was none other than Miko, the noodles seller, who justly grabbed Snow Kid and brought him out of harm's way.

Snow groaned and looked up at him as blood was flowing a bit from his head. "M-Miko?!"

"Yes. Don't worry, Mr. Snow. I'll take care of this pig!" he said with a determined look as he walked toward the beast.

"W-Wait! He's too strong!"

"Do not worry: I know Kung Fu," he said and took a Kung Fu stance in front of the giant pig.

This last one growled and tried to grab the blue bird who slipped between his legs and deliver a spin kick to the back of his head, backflipping away in the process. The angrier monster was about to give him chase, when he suddenly received a ball in the eye, giving him a black. Rubbing the pain away, he saw that it was none other than Lovia with her baseball bat, smirking with a lollipop in her beak.

"Been a while since we've last seen a pig around here! Sorry, but you guys are no longer welcome here!" she remarked and grabbed another ball which she smashed with her bat, sending it in the pig's face again.

Before he could run after the grey bird, he received an arrow into his back from none other than Rakonto, the wild bird who was holding his bow in his wings and a bag of arrows over his shoulder. Natasha joined in the party as well by using her super long tail feathers to slap the monster in the face. Finally, Ocia, the crazy short-eared owl, jumped on the giant's shoulders and lowered her turned around head into his face before giving it a peck and jumping away.

"Luckily I brought some back-up," Miko remarked as he and the others were all ready to fight.

Hulk Pig pushed a giant growl before trying to smash all the new birds in vain as they all moved around and attacked him in turn fashion with Natasha slapping him with her tail feathers, Lovia shooting her balls, Miko delivering Kung Fu attacks to different parts of his body, but mostly his head, Rakonto shooting arrows from the top of an house, and Ocia jumping on him to bite and peck like a crazy.

Eventually, all those attacks tired Hulk Pig out and he fell on one knee, looking defeated. Miko smirked and charged forward, looking to finish him off once and for all with a strong kick. However, the monster suddenly shot his eyes open and grabbed his leg into one big hand. Before he could regret his move, Miko found himself getting smash so hard on the ground that it created a crater and made him bleed from the beak and nose.

"MIKO!" the others screamed in horror.

As the Hulk Pig lifted a foot, looking to stomp the blue bird, Lovia charged and smashed her metal bat into his arm which did interrupt his attack, but also allowed him to grab her bat, spinning her around and threw her right into Rakonto, sending the two birds to crash into a fruit market. Upon getting up, they realized they were covered of all kinds of fruit, making them groan in embarrassment. Luckily no one was there to see it.

With those two birds out of the way, Hulk Pig was now free to squash Miko once and for all. Of course, the others wouldn't let that happen and Ocia jumped onto his head to scratch him with her talons while Natasha quickly grabbed the martial arts artist on her shoulder and started running away, looking to put him out of harm's way.

Unfortunately, Ocia didn't lasted long and also ended up being thrown away into an house that made her bones crack. He then gave chase to the Lady Amherst pheasant who could only look in horror as the monster was about to smash her down like a pancake. She closed her eyes, ready for the impact.

Which never came as Snow Kid, with newfound energy, jumped in the way, somehow blocked the fist which instantly got covered in ice, from the fingers to the shoulder. Natasha along with the Hulk Pig were in pure shock as they both though Snow Kid couldn't get back in the fight, but he still did.

"Nobody touch my friends..," he mumbled with anger in his voice before suddenly charging his other wing with ice and smashing the giant's face with it, breaking the ice in the process. Not stopping there, he created two small ice pillars on the ground before using his power to destroy them, sending many little shards of ice into Hulk Pig, forcing him to protect himself with his arms.

"Now!" Snow Kid though as he ran forward as fast as his legs could allow him to, performed a roll and hit an ice-charged uppercut right under the giant's chin, sending his head upward. "And that's not all! WINTER BLAST!" He continued by charging his hands with energy and shot a small blizzard on the giant pig who almost instantly got covered of frost. "AND TO FINISH IT ALL, ICEBERG HAMMER!" This time, he charged his energy into his foot and did a spin before hitting his foot right on top of Hulk Pig's head, slamming it onto the ground which also created a small ice explosion.

The snowy owl was sent flying back because of the explosion, which created some ice on the ground, and actually landed on his feet. He panted in exhaustion, some steam coming out with his breath, and saw that the Hulk Pig returned to the form of a normal pig. As crazy as it looked, he actually defeated this monster. He was so surprised that he failed to see that his friends were back up along with some of the villagers arriving on the scene.

"Snow Kid!" Natasha called with a smile as she gently gave Miko to Rakonto and Lovia. "You did it! You gave this monster a good correction! But how did you do that? I never saw you make use of your ice power like this!" She then looked in surprise as Snow Kid's breathing became louder and louder until he suddenly started loosing his balance. "Snow? SNOW!"

She quickly grabbed him before he could collapse on the ground and held him in her wings. Stela's group arrived on the scene along with Judge Peckinpah. "Where is the monster pig the villagers talked about?" he quickly asked.

"He's there," Lovia answered with pointing at the unconscious pig. "Snow Kid took him down, but now, he's completely out."

The old bird was rather surprised, but immediately believed it after seeing all the ice on the ground. "Quick, take him to the village's infirmary! As for the pig, put him on a small boat and send him back toward his dirty island!"

* * *

 **Snow Kid and his friends defeated the Hulk Pig! Did you enjoyed this battle? I sure hope you did so :)**


	164. The birth of a new flock

Snow Kid groaned as he slowly regained consciousness. He blinked a few times before opening his eyes and looked around to see he was laying in a bed in the infirmary. Then, in a flash, he remembered everything that happened: the Hulk Pig arrived, hurt his friends, and he took him down with his ice power before passing out. Before he could call at the nurse, Miko erupted into the room and dashed at him.

"M. Snow! You're alive! Thank the gods for that!" he said with bowing quickly.

"Miko, stop calling me like that; it makes me feel old," Snow half-groaned half-chuckled before noticing that his face was slightly damaged and that he was wearing plasters on it. "Are you okay? This giant got you pretty well."

"Do not worry; it's minor and should heal in two or three days," the blue pigeon explained.

"Same for us," Lovia said as she suddenly entered with Rakonto, Natasha and Ocea too. She rested against a wall and putted a lollipop in her beak. "That was some fight you putted back there, pal."

"Yeah," Rakonto said as he walked to Snow'd bed and kneeled. "You know, I always knew you were pretty strong with your ice power, but not to that point."

"To be perfectly honest, Rakonto, I'm myself surprised that I was able to win," he replied with looking at his hand. "I don't know where all that strength came from."

"And yet, you still defeated someone the strength of Terence," Ocia said before smirking a bit. "Though he was more attractive with all those muscles..." Needless to say everyone gave her confused gazes after this strange remark.

"That was very courageous, Snow," Natasha softly said and gently patted his arm, causing him to blush which was visible behind his white feathers. "I didn't saw you doing such things since the battle with the pigs."

"Stop, you're making me blush!" the owl groaned as he covered his face with his toque, making his friends laugh. The door then opened and it was the doctor who allowed Stella's group to come in and check on their friends.

"Are you alright?" Willow asked with concern.

"Well, I almost got my skull pressed like a fruit and I drained all my energy to beat a monster, but except that, I'm fine," Snow Kid replied with a chuckle.

Luca suddenly went to hug his tummy, catching him by surprise. "You scarred me! I though you were going to stay unconscious forever! Don't do that again!"

Snow Kid could only smile and hugged the chick back. "Don't worry, little guy; I might supposed to be nocturnal, but I'm not."

"How did you do that with this monster?" Poppy asked. "I mean with your ice power? We never saw you do that before. That was awesome!" She excitedly said which made Snow Kid roll his eyes.

"I already said it, but even I don't know; it just came naturally, that's all."

"Well that was dangerous, darling." Gale broke in. "You shouldn't take so much risks that could put in life in harm's way."

Snow Kid simply gave an annoyed glare. If she though he would let her scold him like a kid, she was wrong. "I don't see what's wrong with helping people who needs help, Gale, so stop talking to me like a mom."

As if having Gale in the room wasn't enough, the Judge Peckinpah suddenly came as well, having to get down from Cyrus to go through the door. "Mr. snow!" He said and walked rather quickly toward the injured bird. "I heard of what happened! You saved us all!"

"Come on, Your Honour (he said that part with a bit of sarcasm), if it wouldn't have been us, I'm sure Red or anyone else would have done the job."

"Who are you modest for?" Lovia asked with a grin and gave Snow a friendly punch on the shoulder. "Take some credit, pal. Otherwise, someone else could take it at your place." She added with a good laugh.

"Excuse-me, everyone." Natasha said to get everyone's attention. "With the doctor's permission, I'd like us all to meet at the beach by sunrise. I have a little surprise for everyone."

Snow Kid rose an eye brow in curiosity. "A surprise? What is it?"

Natasha giggled. "If I tell you, it won't be a surprise anymore, silly."

* * *

As Natasha instructed, Snow Kid, Miko, Lovia, Rakonto, and Ocea all went to the beach where Natasha was waiting for them in the sand. She gave a huge smile as she saw everyone arriving. "Hey, everyone! Thanks for coming."

"You know we like to make you happy, girl." Lovia declared with a smile as she moved her lollipop in her beak. "So? What is it you wanted us to come here for? To enjoy the sunset?" She asked, referring to the sun that was slowly drifting at the horizon, turning the sky orange.

Natasha giggled. "No, Lovia. It's for something more important." She retired her hands from behind her back to reveal that she was holding many bracelets made of seashells that seemed like it took her many hours to make as they were made with great care and attention.

"What are these?" Rakonto asked as the group gathered around them to look.

"Those are our bracelets of friendship." Natasha declared with a smile that earned her confused looks.

"Bracelets of friendship?" Miko asked. "What is it, Ms. Natasha?"

"It's the little objects that will testify of our newfound friendship and unite us forever. I know we don't need anything material to be friends and be bound by friendship, but it could be a souvenir for the day we became a flock ourselves." She explained.

Snow Kid widened his eyes. "A flock? You mean like Red and Stella's ones?"

"Exactly!" Natasha replied with excitation. "If you're okay with this idea that is." She said with putting one of the bracelets around her own wrist.

Lovia gave a thinking look before smiling. "Yeah, why not." She picked one of the bracelets and putted it on her wrist, smiling as it looked actually good.

Rakonto picked one too and also putted it on his own wrist. "Cool. I can already feel a bond forming between us." He declared with a little smirk.

Ocea grabbed one and putted it around her ankle instead of her wrist. "Huh, Ocea, this is supposed to be for your hand." Natasha pointed out.

"I know, but it looks funnier like this." She said with giggling strangely as she wiggled her toes while looking at her new bracelet.

"It looks great, Ms. Natasha!" Miko complimented while looking at his own bracelet and taking a pose with it.

Finally, Snow Kid took the last one in his hands and looked at it carefully. He knew that putting it on would mean accepting to be a part of a flock forever, which he honestly never though about before. Rising his head, he saw all his friends smiling as they waited for him to put it on. Without really knowing why, he felt that he really, REALLY wanted to form a flock with his friends.

"It's settled then," Snow Kid said with putting his bracelet on. "we are officially forming a flock from now on!"

"I'd like to add a condition, though." Rakonto interrupted. "I think Snow Kid should be the flock's leader, just like Red and Stella are."

The snowy owl looked in surprise. "Me?"

"Yeah." Miko said with a nod. "Out of us all, I think you're the best suited to lead the flock."

"And clearly, it's not gonna be Ocea." Lovia added with pointing her thumb toward her owl friend.

"Yup, it's clearly not gonna be Ocea." She said, not realizing that Lovia insulted her.

Snow Kid hesitated for a moment before smiling. "Alright then, I'll be this flock's leader!"

This made everyone cheer in happiness. And so came the birth of a new flock consisting of the ice bird, the martial arts practicer, the bat girl, the dancer, the wild bird, and the crazy owl...

* * *

 **Snow Kid's flock is born! These chapters were to form the flock, but I'm planning on using the next ones to develop the characters further, don't worry :)**


	165. The tickets

**I noticed something strange happening: in the last few days, my number of favorites and follows went from 18-15 to practically 30. Is that normal?**

* * *

One morning, Snow Kid and Rakonto were busy helping Red out in the forest. They had both been hard at work gathering a lot of apples for the village. Luca was enjoying a little ride on top of Snow Kid's toque.

"Nope, nope, nope...," he muttered as he tossed bad apples from the basket Snow Kid was carrying.

"Thank you for helping me out, Snow Kid," said Red. "I bet Chuck that I could get all those apples back to the village before lunchtime. If I win, he's gonna walk on the village's main street with a girl dress." He chuckled at the idea.

"No problem at all, Red," said Snow Kid. "I'm glad it's almost lunchtime. All this work is making me hungry."

"I know, right?" Luca said as he tossed an apple at Snow's head. This caused him to give the chick a glare to which he gave apologetic smile.

"Of course, Luca," he groaned. "You've been lounging on my head all the time while WE worked. Where's Rakonto anyway?"

"This should seal the bet for ya, Red," said Rakonto as he arrived next to Red, pulling several four-wheeled wooden freight cars loaded to the brim with the remaining apples that they needed to come to a stop.

"Did anybody call for the Rakont Golden Delicious Express?" the blue bird asked with a proud smile.

"Excellent!" Red said with excitation. "Now that's what I'm talking about! But huh...where did you get that train?"

"I made it myself, back in my forest days," Rakonto replied. "I've been waiting for years to finally put it to use. I can carry almost anything, even a giant bird like Terence in this."

Red and Snow Kid laughed and exchanged a high-five as he pulled his train toward the village. Red chuckled as he knew about Rakonto's love for the tools he crafted during his time in the forest and was glad he enjoyed himself.

"Now why can't you be creative like Rakonto," Snow Kid said to Luca, "we're all working really hard."

The hatchling gave a guilty look, so Snow Kid simply patted him on the head. "Just kidding, don't do that face. I guess we just have to go get some good food."

Just as he said that, Luca started digging into the basket, looking for a good apple. "Nope," he mumbled, "a worm in this one, a-ha!" Luca pulled out a large, shiny red apple. Snow Kid could feel his beak getting filled with water at the sight.

"Wow, Luca, this looks delicious," Snow Kid said, eager to take a bite from the fruit before Luca devoured the entire thing into his beak.

"Luca!" Snow Kid mumbled in annoyance and disappointment. "have it been Miko, I'm sure he would have gave it to me without a second though!" he said in his head.

"What?" Luca innocently asked as he let out a loud burp. Suddenly, a message was dropped from the sky before he and Rakonto. Snow Kid took it in his hands before opening and reading it.

"Dear Snow Kid, his honour, Judge Peckinpah (Snow Kid frowned instantly) is proud to announce the Blue Moon Festival to be held in the party center of the Bird Village, in 21 days...bla, bla, bla, cordially sends an invitation to Snow Kid, Red, and a guess of the former's choice."

Snow Kid and Rakonto just smiled excitedly. "The Blue Moon Festival!" they said in excitation.

Meanwhile, Red had just finished stashing away all the apples, got plenty of grumbling from Chuck, and had just arrived back to his friends were and hopped up and down excitedly with Luca between the two.

"What's up, guys?" he asked curiously.

"The Blue Moon Festival!" they shouted at unison.

"Oh yeah!" Rakonto added with letting out a jungle scream (like Tarzan).

"Nice," Red said with a smile before looking puzzled. "What's the Blue Moon Festival?"

"It's a traditional event held every year to celebrate the moon which turns blue. During this festival, birds go together and dance together, chat at tables, eat and have fun together," Rakonto explained.

Just then, another paper flew down from the sky (don't ask me where they come from) and Snow Kid took three tickets out of it.

"Look, three tickets," said Luca and Red saw that one of them was addressed to him.

"Sweet!" he exclaimed as he grabbed his ticket in his wing.

"Wow, great!" said Snow Kid. "I've never been to the festival. Have you, Luca?"

"No, and I plan on keeping it that way," the chick answered. "It might be good for my friends, but I'm not interested in all those things of dancing with girls and all that."

"Hey, boys like you like to go too, Luca," Rakonto assured before softly saying: "It's a great opportunity to get a date." He smiled to himself as Snow Kid spoke.

"Come on, Luca, a dance would be nice."

"I never really went to this festival. Not only because I never got invited, but it's also because everyone hated me back then and I didn't wanted to be seen," Red admitted.

"As I said, a dance would be nice," snow Kid said with a smile before looking up. "I think I'll ask Natasha to go with me. I wonder if she'll accept."

"Nice?" Rakonto said as he got some chuckles out of his system. "It's a heap more good than just nice. I'd like to go. Land sakes, if I had a food stand set up, all the birds would be chowing my tasty sweets until the cows can no more. Do you have any idea of the money I could make with that?" As he spoke, he looked up at the sky and dreamed of long lines of birds coming to his stand.

"You could go bank, as the term goes," Red pointed out.

"Exactly," answered Rakonto. "Why, with all that money, I could finally build the treehouse I want to have since childhood. We could use it as headquarters for our group with Natasha, Lovia and all the others." Images kept flying in his mind as he did a little dance of joy.

"Why I'd give my old wooden bow to go to this festival," Rakonto finished. Snow Kid and Red exchanged smiles.

"Well, in that case, would you like to-"

"WHOA!"

Just when Snow Kid was gonna ask Rakonto if he wanted to go with them, a certain blue bird came crashing down on all three of them, knocking all the apples Snow Kid and Red carried in their baskets to the ground.

"Do you have anything better to do than dive bomb at us, Miko?!" Red asked as he got to his feet.

"Ugh," Miko groaned quickly before he was back on his feet as the other three were slowly getting up. "Are we talking about the Blue Moon Festival?"

"Miko," Rakonto snapped as he rose to his feet, "you told me that you were too busy to help us with the apples. What were you busy doing? Spying on us?"

"No, I was busy meditating," Miko said and Red noticed a pillow and a blanket on a nearby tree branch. How that was here and they never noticed it was was beyond him and he rolled his eyes. "And I just happen to hear you have an extra ticket?"

"Yes, but-"

"YES!" Miko cut him off before Snow Kid could continue which was strange as he was usually the calmest of the group. "This is extraordinary. The sport experts perform at the festival every year. I can see it now. Everyone will be watching at them. Their eyes riveted on the greatest athletes on this island, but then, I will come, MIKO!" He began picturing the scene in his head.

"I will draw their attention with my super combos," he continued, hearing the cheers from the crowd "then I would mesmerize them with my Final Kick attack! The birds will go wild!" In his fantasy, he performed the greatest martial arts moves ever and even the greatest athletes' jaws dropped.

"Don't you see, Snow Kid and Red?" Miko said excitedly. "This could be my one chance to show 'em my stuff. You gotta take me!" Miko was suddenly interrupted by a tug against his tail which dragged him backward.

"Hold on just a picky little minute here," Rakonto said with a spit to the ground, "I asked for the ticket first!"

"So?" Miko shot back. "That doesn't mean you own it."

"Oh yeah?" Rakonto retorted. "Well, I challenge you to a wing-wrestle. Winner gets the ticket."

They found a nearby stump and began groaning loudly as they tried to out-strength the other. Snow Kid moved them appart.

"Guys, they are my, er, OUR tickets," Snow Kid told them firmly, "We'll decide who gets it, thank you very much. Whoever has the best reason to go should get the ticket, don't you think?" He looked at Red as well who nodded with a smile.

"Building the tree house of my dreams?" Rakonto proposed.

"A chance to audition for the big sports team?" Miko proposed.

"Money t'fix the apple trees in the forest?" Rakonto added.

"Living a dream?" Miko added. Snow Kid and Red just exchanged nervous looks.

"Wow, those are all valuable reasons, aren't they?" he concluded, looking at Red.

"Yeah...they are," Red replied slowly. Then, both their stomachs started to rumble and they chuckled at each other.

"Listen to that, I'm starving and Red seems to be hungry as well," Snow Kid said as Luca climbed on his toque again. "I don't know about you, but I can't make important decisions with an empty stomach."

"I agree," Red said, "I think better with a full stomach anyway. So we'll think about it over lunch and get back to you two, okay?"

"Okay," Rakonto and Miko sadly responded. Once Snow Kid and Red left the forest, they exchanged a glare and wing-wrestled each other again.


	166. The tickets part 2

**Here we go for the second part of the Ticket!**

* * *

"Man, this festival must really be something if even someone like Miko gets excited by it!" Luca said. "So who are you gonna give the ticket to?" Luca asked just as they arrived back at the village.

"I don't know, Luca," Snow Kid said as they came to a stop near a building where they sold candies and sweets, "but I REALLY can't think straight when I'm hungry. So where should we eat?"

"Well," Red said with looking around, "there's this café where Chuck, Bomb and I sometimes go to-"

CRASH!

Suddenly, something Red could describe as an overexcited owl came barrelling into them at full speed. The quick impact made the tickets float out of Snow Kid's hands and landed on Ocia's beak.

"Ha! Bats! Help!" Ocia shouted as she dashed around and came to a stop in front of the tickets as she gave a good look to them. "Wait, aren't these...tickets for the Blue Moon Festival, the most incredible amazing tremendous super-fun party in all this island! I've always, always ALWAYS wanted to go!" Ocia began to image the festival in her head and started singing a song to herself.

"Oh no..." Snow Kid muttered with rolling his eyes. Ocia just continued ranting like she usually did:

"With the decorations like streamers and fairy-lights and pinwheels and pinatas and pin-cushion. With goodies like ice cream and chocolate and thousand of other. And I can get to play my favourite games like hide-and-seek or put the tailfeathers on the bird!"

"And here we go again," Snow Kid muttered again, rubbing his forehead.

"Oh, thank you, Snow kid," Ocia happily said, "it's the most wonderful gift ever." She then nudged herself into Snow Kid. "And you can be my date, handsome."

The snowy owl fell on his back only to jump up with a clear blush on his face. "What?!"

"GASP!" a bird startled Luca from behind. He turned around to see it was Natasha who gasped. "Are these what I think they are?!" she asked.

"Yes, yes, yes!" Ocia answered. "Snow Kid is taking me to the Blue Moon Festival. And he's gonna be my date," she added with nuzzling her beak under his chin.

"Wuh-wuh-wuuu?!" Snow Kid stuttered.

"The festival?!" Natasha exclaimed. "I design clothes for the festival every year, but I've never had the opportunity to attend it. Oh the dances, the music, the moon! It's where I truly have to go! And then I can go with him!" she said the last word with a dreamy tone, thinking about the handsome Brad Pitt-like bird whom we saw a few times in the first movie.

"Oh please," Snow Kid mumbled under his breath, "he's not THAT amazing."

"Oh, Snow Kid, I can't believe you would invite Ocia so that she can...party, and prevent me from spending the night of my dreams!" she said with an insulted look.

Before Snow Kid could answer, another blur passed by and snatched the tickets from his hand.

"Hey!" Snow Kid called out as the blur stopped to reveal...Lovia. She caught the tickets while driving the motorcycle that has been given to them by the pigs and that she have modified herself.

"Wow!" Lovia exclaimed. "Those are perfect!"

"Huh, listen, guys, I didn't decided who I am gonna give my extra ticket to," Snow Kid nervously explained.

"You haven't?" Ocia and Natasha asked simultaneously.

"Yo, Kid," Lovia said as she came beside Snow Kid, "mind if I am the one you choose to go to the Festival?"

"You?!" Natasha exclaimed. "To be honest, you were one of the last persons I expected to be interested by the festival."

"Yeah," Lovia responded, "I never really talked about it, but I've always been interested to play as the DJ of a party. And this festival sounds like the perfect opportunity to let my musical artistic side to flow," she started imagining herself playing music at the festival with a DJ board.

"Gee, Lovia, that sounds...fun," Snow Kid said, unsure of himself.

"It's true that it would be funnier with good music," Luca pointed out.

"Not so fast, my friends," said a familiar voice. Everyone looked up to see Miko staring down at them from the top of an house.

"Miko!" Snow Kid exclaimed, impatience starting to build up in his voice as the blue bird jumped down from the roof. "You were following us? Like a ninja?"

"No, Mr. Snow. Huh, maybe, yes," he mumbled. "Look, it doesn't matter, I couldn't risk a twos-hoes like you..."

"Excuse-me?" Snow Kid retorted offensively.

"...giving that ticket to just anybody," he finished, ignoring Snow Kid's angry eyes.

"Wait just another minute." This time, it was Rakonto who appeared beside Snow Kid.

"Rakonto," the snowy owl sternly said, "were you following me too?"

"No," he replied quickly, "I was following THIS one to make sure he didn't try anything funny. Still trying to take me the ticket?" he asked in Miko's direction.

"YOUR ticket, Mr. Rakonto?" Miko retorted.

"But Snow Kid is taking ME," Ocia shot back, "and he's gonna be MY date!"

"What?!" Snow Kid exclaimed, stunned. Before he could protest, his friends started arguing over each other. Their voices getting louder and louder, nearly smothering the snowy owl before this last one had enough.

"STOOOOOOOP!" he screamed as he jumped a little too high.

"And then I asked to get more chocolate with-" Ocia suddenly stopped as she realized the argument has stopped. the others gave her 'What's the link with the situation?' glances.

"Guys, there's no need to argue like this," Snow Kid pointed out. "This is MY ticket so I'm the one who will chose who gets it, okay? Just give me some time. Now, I'm really hungry; I'll get back to you about it later.

* * *

So, Snow Kid went to eat at the café he sometimes met with his friends before going back home and playing video games along with listening to some music to help him think. His friends spent all day waiting impatiently to know his answer as they all wanted more than the other to go to the Blue Moon Festival.

Finally, by the time the sun started settling down, the flock leader walked out of his house with the most serious of all looks.

"So?" Miko asked with excitation.

"Did you made a decision, darling?" Natasha asked.

But Snow Kid simply walked pass them as if they didn't exist. The others were curious as to why he would ignore all of them and followed him. He simply walked to the village and over to Judge Peckinpah's house with this last one justly sitting down outside.

"Oh, Mr. Snow, what can I do for you?" he asked.

Snow Kid simply held the two tickets toward him. "I came to give you back those tickets," he announced which surprised everyone. "One of the biggest joys of having a flock is sharing your blessings with its members, but when there's not enough blessings for everyone, having more than your friends can make you feel like a total jerk. So, though I appreciate this invitation, I have to return you those tickets.

"Snow Kid! You don't have to do that!" Rakonto protested.

"Are you absolutely sure, Mr. Snow Kid?" Peckinpah asked in surprise. "Those are thanking gifts for saving us from this Hulk Pig, a few days ago."

"No, I made my mind, you can take them back," he said and gave them to the old judge who picked them in his hands. "If all my friends can't go, I won't go either," he sternly affirmed.

The others were shocked, but also touched that their leader was doing that and putted him into a big group hug with chuckles. Then, Ocia gave a one-on-one hug.

"I know you're thinking about all of us, but admit that you're super disappointed that we won't have our date at the festival," she giggled.

"You asked Ocia to be your date for the festival?!" Miko asked in surprise to which Lovia and Natasha cooed.

Snow Kid blushed madly. "That's not it at all! SHE is the one who decided that we would go! But I never accepted!" he denied with shaking his hands.

Before the conversation could go any further, Judge Peckinpah suddenly returned from inside his house. "My friends, why didn't you say so in the first place? After all, you ALL did contributed to protect the village. Here are SEVEN tickets for the festival," he said with holding the tickets for the whole flock.

"Now we can all go!" Snow Kid happily said and then cheered with all his friends as they all picked a ticket each.

Ocia then battled her eyelashes at Snow Kid. "And we can have our date."

His whole face turned red. "I ALREADY SAID THAT WAS NOT GOING TO HAPPEN!"

Everybody present broke out laughing at the owl's reaction...


	167. Dining with the judge

**I don't know what to say for the opening author's note, so...enjoy :)**

* * *

Today, in the Bird Village, Hal, Bubbles and Bomb were making an audition at the show stage with some birds coming in line to show some talents. The Judge Peckinpah noticed it as he passed by and decided to go see what was going on.

"Good day, younglings, what is going on?" the old bird kindly greeted and asked them.

"Oh, hello, your honnor," Bomb said with waving his wing at him. "We're holding an audition for tomorrow's night show."

"For what?"

"Well, our group also includes Snow Kid and Chuck, but Chuck fell ill this morning and we need to find a replacement for him," Bubbles explained.

"I'm sorry for him. Hey, would you like me to join your group; I know a lot about making classic songs," the old bird proposed.

The three young friends exchanged glances before looking back at him. "Hum, I don't think that would ber a very good idea, your honnour," Hal replied with rubbing the back of his head.

Peckinpah looked curiously. "Why's that?"

"Well...Snow Kid doesn't really like you," Bomb replied.

"He doesn't? Why's that?" the judge asked, a bit surprised by this revelation.

"I don't know for sure, but we know that he doesn't like you," the boomerang bird said before Peckinpah left them to continue their audition as he walked away.

* * *

He decided to go over at Snow Kid's house to talk to him and find out why he disliked him. As he arrived at his house, he stopped near his letters box and wait until he comes out to confront him directly.

He just had to wait for a few minutes before the snowy owl walked out and over to his letters box to take out his letters. He apparently didn't noticed the judge's presence.

"Hello, M. Snow," he happily greeted.

"Oh, hello, your honnor," he nonchalantly greeted back with a clearly annoyed look on his face.

"Big coincidence that we meet like this at your home's entrance, don't you think?" he asked, trying to get a conversation going.

"Well yeah..." Snow kid replied with still no interest whatsoever. "Well, you'll excuse-me, I have some cleaning to do," he obviously invented an excuse and then walked back into his house even before the old bird could object.

"The kids were not exaggerating," he though as he saw how much Snow Kid didn't liked him.

* * *

Later on, Peckinpah got to a dressing store and putted on a very elegant red necktie which he adjusted to fit him perfectly and checked himself in the mirror. As he did so, Miko passed by and noticed him.

"Hey, your honnor, what are you getting all dressed up for?" he questioned.

"I am going to invite Snow Kid to a night out," he answered as he finished tying his necktie.

"But I though that he...hum, hated you. How did you convinced him to go?"

"I found a way," the old bird replied with a smile.

Not too long after, Snow Kid arrived at a restaurant with many birds sitting at table and his feathers all well-cleaned up.

"Mister Snow! Over here!" Peckinpah called from a table which caused the snowy owl to look with wide eyes.

"You?! B-But where's Natasha?" he asked, clearly surprised as he walked over to his table.

"Well, she's not coming. I wrote you that because I knew you would never come if it was from me. But hey, I planned a great night and we're gonna have a lot of fun," he assured with his most convincing smile.

"Seriously?! I-I though she really had feelings for me!" Snow Kid exclaimed. "I made myself all handsome to please her," he groaned with sitting down.

"Do not worry, M. Snow, I'm certain a good steak will fill that up," the old bird assured.

The two birds commanded a steak which got served to them and slowly ate. A long awkward silence ruled as Snow Kid simply ate his meal without giving a look at his host.

"So, who's gonna give us some good water around here, he, he," the old bird asked, hoping to break the silence, but Snow kid didn't answered.

"Look at the size of those steaks! What are they serving us, tyrannosaurus rex?" he asked again.

"Not likely," Snow simply answered and kept eating his steak.

"Hey, what if I would just drank this whole bottle of ketchup?" Peckinpah asked with taking a bottle of ketchup and pretending to drink it with a laugh.

"Well, that would kinda ruin it for the next person who wants ketchup," Snow simply said and kept eating.

"So...," Peckinpah mumbled, trying to find another conversation subject. "What work are you doing at the village? I'm curious."

"I own a creamery."

"Well, that must be interesting. What do you do in a creamery?"

Suddenly, Snow Kid finally rose his head and looked at the old bird. "What you do in a creamery? You want me to explain you what work you do in a creamery?" Snow asked, looking as if he just got insulted.

"Hum, yes?" Peckinpah answered, unsure.

"You wanna maybe just go?"

"Come on, M. Snow Kid, I'm trying really hard here," Peckinpah finally said. "I'm just trying to be friends with you, but you don't want anything to do with me. How can you not like me?"

"You want to know why I don't like you?" Snow Kid asked to which Peckinpah nodded. "Fine, I'll tell you why, but I warn you; it could hurt your feelings."

Taking a deep breath, he started talking:

"You are the worst person I know. Some guy does absolutely nothing to harm you physically or emotionally and how do you treat him? You act like an absolute unfair jerk with him simply because of his eye brows. His FREAKIN eye brows! And to add insult to injury, you give him the village's worst sentence simply because he accidentally fell into an egg during a fight which this green guy started. Have you ever heard of the word "accident"? Clearly not.

And you're such a sponge: you pay for nothing, you're always saying: "I'll own you that," but you never own anything. And what really bothers me is that you pretend to be the nice guy who never does anything wrong which is totally false. I know that I'm not in position to judge as I too did mean things in my life, but at least, I am honest enough to recognize it!

And I don't treat people as horribly as you do, like with poor little Cyrus. He's always sick and tired all the time, and you still use him as an accessory to look tall. You want me to tell you, you do look big on him, but not as much as your ego. God, you're pretentious! And you delude yourself for a great judge while you're in fact an unfair junk who shouldn't have any power at all. I can understand why you give so much praise to Mighty Eagle; you're an egomaniac just like him.

Oh, oh, and what I hate the most about you is the way that you treat different people of this village. Punishing Chuck simply because he's an happy-go-lucky guy who runs fast without hurting anyone. Doing the same with Terence simply because he's a larger version of Red who accidentally walked on a few objects. And what have YOU done to help them? As the leader of this village, it's YOUR responsibility to help fix their problems.

But you haven't done anything! We're lucky there are people like Matilda willing to help. But you know, I could forgive all of that. Yes, I'll be willing to forgive all that, if. You. Were. Not. Such. A. JERK!"

Snow Kid then took a deep breath as he finished emptying his bag to the point his cheeks started getting red. "Thanks for the steak," he simply said and walked away, leaving a visibly shocked and slightly hurt Judge Peckinpah to his table.

* * *

 **Well, Snow Kid told ever reason why he hates Peckinpah. Do you agree with him?**

 **Sorry if this chapter was short, but I tried to make it fun.**


	168. Dancing lessons with Natasha

It was another lovely day on Bird Island and Natasha was at hard work at her dance studio. Her home also served as the studio where she taught birds to dance. She was particularly busy those days as the Blue Moon Festival was getting close and many birds wanted to learn to dance for the event. She just finished teaching the Blues' mother how to perform a duo.

"You were great, miss. I'm sure your husband is gonna enjoy your dance," Natasha complimented her.

"Thank you, Natasha," the blue bird said before leaving the studio.

The lady pheasant then sighed and sat down on a chair. Sure, dancing was her passion and she couldn't live without it, but these times, she danced and taught dancing so much that her body needed to rest a bit. "Looks like this is gonna be the time of my life."

KNOCK! KNOCK!

"Now who could that be?" Natasha asked since she only had one dancing lesson to give today. She was surprised to see Snow Kid outside with many bags in his hands.

"Hey, Natasha," Snow Kid said," I remembered last night that you said you had a lot of work to do and though you would get tired because of it. So...I went to make some shopping to the village's main place for you. I took some food and other stuff."

This made Natasha smile as she wouldn't need to go make groceries and could focus on her work full time. "Ooooo! Snow Kid, you're a lifesaver!" she exclaimed. "This puts me ahead of my schedule and will give me a lot of time to rest. Oh, how can I ever thank you, darling?"

"No need, Natasha," Snow Kid said kindly, "I was glad I could offer you some generosity for a change. Plus, I had to go shopping anyway."

Natasha just smiled as she got an idea. "You know, Snow Kid, I've seen your tastes in music and I'm very impressed. You know the Blue Moon Festival is approaching very fast. Would you be interested...in a little...dancing lesson?"

Snow Kid's eyes widened. "Why...sure...I mean...I've never danced before but...I guess I could try..." he stuttered, not sure if he had the credentials for this opportunity. But Natasha didn't seemed to be worried.

"This is why I'm gonna teach you. So, you wanna learn how to belly dance after all?" This question caused Snow Kid to blush madly before she giggled. "Just kidding. I'm gonna teach you how to perform a duo as it is the most performed song at the festival." She took Snow Kid's wings and dragged him to her studio.

* * *

Meanwhile, back in the village's market place, Miko was running his noodle shop, giving bowls of noodles to many birds as his shop was rather popular to say the least. As he was done serving a bowl to some random bird, the next ones to come were Hall, Bubbles, and Terence.

"Hey, Mr. Hal, Mr. Bubbles, Mr. Terence!" Miko greeted them. "How are you doing today?"

"Really fine," Hal replied with a smile. "And please, stop calling us 'mister', Miko."

"The Blue Moon Festival is getting very close. And we still have to find ourselves partners to go with us," Bubbles admitted with a sad look.

"Do not worry, my friends, I'm certain someone will want to go with you," Miko assured. "What can I serve you today?"

"I will take your famous tofu noodles soup," Hal said to which his orange friend nodded in agreement as he wanted the same.

"What will it be for you, Mr. Terence?" Miko asked.

The giant red bird pointed at Miko's menu which was hanging on top of his stand. He precisely pointed at one meal which caused Miko to widen his eyes.

"Y-You want my fire noodles soup?!" he asked in surprise to which Terence nodded with a smirk.

"But Terence! You can't be serious! This soup is so spicy that it can make you spit fire!" the boomerang bird tried to stop his big friend who didn't listened and kept pointing at the meal.

"Okay, them, I'll pray for your soul," Miko said with making two tofu noodles soup and one fire noodles soup for Terence. He gave them their commands and prayed for the big red bird.

* * *

"Seriously?!" Lovia asked in surprise.

"Yes, Terence seriously commanded my fire noodles soup without any hesitation," Miko replied. "I wonder if he'll survive it."

Soon, they arrived at Natasha's dance studio. they headed there as they were searching for Snow Kid and heard that he got there to give groceries to Natasha. That didn't surprised them coming from their leader. So, they knocked at the door, but didn't got any response. After a few seconds, they heard what sounded like music coming from inside which surprised them as Natasha was supposed to rest for the remaining of the day.

The two friends exchanged a look before deciding to open the door and enter the studio...to see something rather surprising. Snow Kid was currently dancing a duo with Natasha with her having her arms around his neck while he had his hands on her hips. And they were pretty good.

"Remember to always keep your hands on your partner's hips at all time," Natasha instructed to which Snow Kid nodded. She then smiled. "You're pretty good at it for your first time. You must be a natural. Whoever your partner will be, I'm sure she'll be lucky."

Snow Kid blushed and nodded. "Thanks, Natasha," he said with a wave of his wing and headed at the exit, when he noticed Niko and Lovia. "Guys? What are you doing here?"

"We just came to see how you were going," Lovia answered with a smile, " and I must say that you're a pretty good dancer."

"You're with Natasha now?" Miko curiously asked.

"No! It's not what you think; she just taught me how to dance for the Blue Moon Festival," he quickly explained himself.

"So you're planning on getting a partner after all?" Miko asked.

"Well...maybe," he admitted with a shy smile before suddenly seeing a fire explosion on the other side of the village. "What the frost was that?!"

"Looks like Terence did eat my fire noodles soup after all..."

* * *

 **Do you think there's something between Snow Kid and Natasha? Do you believe Terence survived the fire noodles soup? Lemme know.**


	169. Blue Moon Festival

**Alright folks, it's time to conclude the Angry Birds Snow arc. Let's end it on a bang, shall we?**

* * *

Today was finally the big night. It was the night of the Blue Moon Festival and everyone was excited, especially a particular short-eared owl as she bounced up and down on a trampoline.

"Ahh!" Ocia shouted as she went up and down. "I...can't...believe...the...Blue...Moon...Festival...is...tonight!" Snow Kid was sitting nearby, watching his friend jump up and down with a smile on his face. Since they became a flock, he had learned to tolerate Ocia's random antics a little better...and even enjoying some of them as well.

Soon, she invited her flock captain to bounce on her trampoline as well. They tried to see who could bounce the highest when Natasha suddenly came out of her house.

"Ocia! Snow Kid! Stop that right now," she said in a motherly tone. "It's time to prepare for the festival and I refuse to let you put on your new dress and Snow his new suit when you're all sweaty." The short-eared owl stopped bouncing and got down from the trampoline with a pout. Snow just bounced one more time, performed a 450, and landed on his feet perfectly.

"I was going to take a shower before putting my suit on," Snow explained. "But I don't think the sweat can be helped; I'm a bit nervous," he admitted as his cheeks changed in color.

"You don't need to worry for the sweat, darling," Natasha quietly said. "Everything will be fine, just be your handsome, charming self and you'll sweep all the girls off their feet." Needless to say Snow blushed even more after that.

* * *

By the time Lovia, Rakonto and Miko joined them, everyone was getting ready inside Natasha's house. Well, the girls were getting ready while the boys were locked outside.

"Come on, you guys, let us in," Rakonto impatiently said.

"Sure thing, Rakonto," Lovia answered, wearing a towel over her head as she was about to pen the door, only for Natasha to get in the way and stop her.

"Heaven's no! We're getting dressed!" she protested.

"Dressed?" Lovia said. "Huh, beg pardon, Natasha, but, huh...we don't normally wear clothes." Natasha gave a loud groan as she opened the door.

"I'm sorry, boys, but some of us have standards." The boys just smiled and walked in as Lovia walked up to the edge of the door.

"Coming in, Snow?" she asked.

"Huh...in all respect to your privacy..."

"Oh, quit being so timid, Sugar cube," Natasha said. "We're just doing hair and makeup here. Nothing more."

"Wel...okay," Snow said, feeling it safe to be in the same room as the rest of the girls.

"Can you guys believe it's already the Blue Moon Festival?" Rakonto asked as he turned on one of the showers and started cleaning himself.

"Yes. This is gonna be very fun, I have no doubt," Miko said as he also turned a shower on and started cleaning himself. The girls then noticed Snow Kid did not do the same.

"You're not getting yourself clean, Snow?" Ocia asked.

"Huh...I'd rather not," he simply said with rubbing the back of his head.

"Come on, dude," Rakonto said. "Just take your toque off and-"

"No! No one touches my toque!" he suddenly bursted out with holding his dear piece of clothe with both hands. Everyone looked in surprise at his reaction and he then blushed a bit in embarrassment.

"Alright then, just let me at least preen you a bit," Natasha nicely offered and invited him to sit down on a chair while she took a brush. Snow Kid obeyed and sat down in the chair as his lady pheasant friend started cleaning his feathers with her brush. Only a few minutes later, her work was done and the others were impressed as their friend's snow white feathers were all clean and shining like gems.

"Wow! This is...awesome," Snow said as he admired himself and smiled at Natasha.

"Thanks, Snow Kid. You're very sweet," Natasha said with a giggle before picking up a ribbon. "Now let's get you dressed up so you can make all the girls at the festival blush as much as you right now."

The other chuckled as Snow tried to cover his red face under his toque.

* * *

By the time night rolled around with the beautiful light blue moon rising up in the sky, the whole village gathered at the beach. There were tables for the birds to sit around and others to lay food on them.

At one table, Chuck was sitting with Stella, Bomb was sitting with Willow and Matilda was sitting with Terence. Chuck was wearing a yellow tuxedo with a black tie, Stella was wearing a pin, yellow and fuchsia dress with a red bow on her head, Bomb wore a black tuxedo with a white bow, Willow had a light blue dress along with her usual hat. Terence only wore a brown bow while Matilda wore a pink dress with white roses.

They were soon joined by Red and his new date, Ruby. The village's hero was wearing a brown tuxedo with with a black bow. As for his date, she had a yellow bow along with a ruby dress. They sat down and all the friends chatted with each other and having fun.

"Hello, everyone." The Snow flock arrived. They didn't wore anything out of the usual, but were visibly cleaner than before and it made them look very good. Most of the eyes turned toward Natasha who looked very beautiful with her tail swinging elegantly behind her or Rakonto with his very manly appearance. Lovia, Ocia and Miko didn't got too much attention, but their presence was still enjoyed.

That was until Snow Kid came into the picture.

With his now cleaned up feathers the black bow tie decorating his neck, he looked more handsome than before and the girls didn't failed to notice it. even the boys were impressed by his appearance.

"Wow, Snow, you look great tonight," Bomb remarked with an impressed look.

Snow blushed. "Come on, Bomb. you guys all look charming. And you girls are very beautiful too," he assured.

This caused most of them to blush bashfully. Chuck the used his super speed to bring chairs all around the table for them. "Come on! Sit down, guys!"

The flock did just that and joined their friends. the night started with the friends chatting about everything and anything. Snow couldn't help but notice some girls around were starring at him in awe, even getting distracted by his mere presence.

"Why is everyone starring at me?" he asked. "It's embarrassing. I thought only our group would be starring at me."

"Maybe because you're the most handsome guy around here, sugar cube?" Ocia suggested, causing Snow Kid to blush again.

"How about we got get some food? I'm getting hungry," Chuck said as his stomach was growling.

And so, the group went to get food at the table. There was many different fruits across it along with some milk and chocolate milk bottles along with cheese coming out of Snow's own creamery. He gladly accepted to contribute to the festival. There was also a few bowls of Fire Noodle Soup, courtesy of Miko, but not many had the courage to get near them and preferred picking the ordinary noodle soup bowls.

* * *

After eating and chatting for a while, it was time for the dance. Chuck took Stella to the sandy dance floor while Willow took Bomb, Terence and Matilda walked together as well as Red and Ruby. Snow Kid looked at Natasha who didn't seemed to have any partner. Taking his courage into hand, he stepped toward her.

"N-Natasha?"

"Yes?"

"Would you like to..." He took a deep breath and extended his hand to her. "...dance with me?"

The lady amherst pheasant widened her eyes and smiled. "With pleasure, darling." She took his hand with hers and followed him to the dance floor.

As they arrived in the middle of the floor, Snow and Natasha were the last couple to catch up with the others. they looked into each other's eyes before preparing to dance. He carefully pulled her close by the waist and held her hand with the other while she placed her free wing on his shoulder. As they started moving, they glanced into each other's eyes.

The couple cleared their heads of any negative emotion and just enjoyed the dance. Snow admired all of Natasha's body - from her deep, ruby eyes to her green head feathers, her slender, curvy figure and long tail that danced elegantly with them. He couldn't help but reach one hand to caress her long red back head feathers that formed a long ponytail.

As for the lady pheasant, she admired her partner as well: his deep blue eyes, adorable face, the way some of his head feathers was peaking out of his black toque and dancing in the wind, and how his fluffy body was keeping a good composure through the dance. Then, lost in the moment, she reached her hand to touch his cheek and was about to remove his toque to see what was underneath it.

Realizing what she was about to do, Snow stopped her hand. "Wait..." He marked a pause to look down. "...You really wanna see this?"

She just gave one of her beautiful smiles. "Yes, Snow. Don't be afraid, I'll put it back on, if you don't like it." She reached her hand once again and gently removed Snow Kid's toque...and widened her eyes.

Snow Kid's head feathers were pretty long with the back ones reaching his shoulder length and the front ones curling to cover his right eye. Some birds nearby took notice of this as well and were surprised to see Snow Kid without his toque.

"I know, I look dumb like that, don't I?" Snow said with rubbing the back of his head.

"Not at all." Natasha suddenly grabbed Snow's face and pulled him into a kiss, most to his surprise. He blushed madly, but soon leaped into it, enjoying the kiss as well. When the two broke off, they noticed most of their friends looking at them with knowing grins.

"I knew something like this would happen sooner or later," Lovia said with a grin and crossing her arms.

Snow and Natasha blushed before exchanging a quick look. Snow looked up at the blue moon that was shining over all of them and feeling the fresh salty sea wing blowing through his feathers. He then looked at all of his friends - his flock - and showed his seashells bracelet on his wrist to which they responded by showing their owns. They WERE a flock now!

 _"Snow Kid and his friends had a lot of fun that night. More fun than they ever had before. But little did Snow Kid knew was that he was going to become part of a bigger picture..."_

* * *

 **Alright, that's all for the Angry Birds Snow arc. I sure hope you enjoyed it. But don't worry, as the mysterious voice said at the end, I still got plans for Snow Kid and his flock.**

 **For the next arc, we'll go back to the four ninja birds. Are you happy?**


	170. Titan Owl

**Alright, guys! The Angry Birds Snow arc was fun, but now, it's time to go back to our beloved four ninja birds, Lilly, Skyler, Kowalski, and Sparky for the third part of their arc which I dubbed the Underground Mysteries arc.**

* * *

 _"Nope, you haven't tuned into the wrong show. That's me, Sparky, under the cape and cowl. The flying dude up in the sky, his name's Silver Sentry. We're in the middle of our first superhero type team up - he just doesn't know it yet. You'd think an earthbound elf owl like me would have a rough time keeping up with a guy who can soar through the sky like an eagle, and you know what? You'd be right."_

* * *

Many weeks have passed since the four ninja birds defeated Blood Talon and his Foot Clan. Ever since, the city of New York has been relatively calm. But that didn't meant Master Yoshi wanted his four kids to let themselves go. During this dark night, the siblings sneaked out of the sewers and made their way behind an alley wall as to not get spotted.

"Remember; tonight's training is to master the art of being invisible," Lilly mumbled to her siblings.

Nodding, they all stick to the shadows and silently made their way across the empty street, making sure to not get spotted but anyone. Not that there was a lot of people active during night time anyways.

"Have you noticed how much safer the streets are since we put the smackdown on that Blood Talon dude?" Sparky asked as the team came to an halt. "Looks like we really accomplished something for the greater good."

Lilly, Kowalski and Sky just exchanged a brief look...then started laughing.

""Greater good"? Puh-lease," Lilly mocked.

"What are you, running for office?" Sky asked with giggling.

"Get over yourself already," Kowalski said with whipping a tear away.

"Fine, make fun. But I still think we could be doing a whole lot more to help people," Sparky said, visibly not amused.

Suddenly, the sound of a police siren caught their attention. The four siblings quickly went into hiding spots as a police car passed by. Curiosity getting the best of them, the ninjas decided to follow it from the roofs and were shocked to see it stop beside many other cars before a building that was on fire.

Even from their distance, the birds could feel the heat as the firemen were shooting water at the burning building and they spotted a little girl called for help from the top window, visibly trapped.

"We need to help her!" Sparky exclaimed, about to jump into action.

"No wait!" Lilly said, holding her little brother back. "The firemen got this. We would get noticed."

"But we must-"

"No, don't worry; it will be fine," Sky assured.

"But what if the firemen can't get to her in time?!" Sparky insisted.

"Well, _he'll_ take care of it," Kowalski said with pointing up at the sky.

Looking up, the group saw a human coming down from the sky. He was an African-American male with black hair. But his most noticeable attribute was the Superman-like silver costume with a blue eagle drawing on his chest he was wearing. His black cape was flowing in the wind behind him, giving him an impressive look.

"It's really him?! The Silver Sentry?!" Sparky asked as the superhero flew down to grab the little girl and brought her back down in the streets where she got reunited with her parents. The building then exploded and Silver Sentry flew up to take a deep breathe and blew a strong wind that cause the flames to go off. The humans cheered for him as he waved his hand at them and flew away into the night.

"See? Now that's what I'm talking about. There's a guy who doesn't have to stick to the shadows and look what he's able to do!" Sparky said and marked a pause...before hitting his fist into his wing. "Hey, that's it! We should become super heroes!"

the others turned to look at him with risen eye brows. "Excuse-me?" Sky asked.

"Yeah yeah! Go out on nightly patrols, thwart crimes, help the helpless, rescue the...rescueless!" Sparky said, trembling with excitation.

"I think you've got your mask on too tight, Sparky. The oxygen's not making it to your brain," Sky remarked.

"Don't you get it? We'd have secret identities to protect ourselves. We could work out in the open."

"Reading way too many comic books, Sparky," Kowalski deadpanned with shaking his head.

* * *

Later on, back at their lair in the sewer, the four siblings sat in a square shape in the training zone with the lights turned off.

"The best weapons at a ninja's disposition are the position and surprise effect," Master Yoshi explained. "Tonight, we will work on a move that combine both of them." He then turned his head toward his daughter. "Lilly! The Invisible Flying Dragon!"

The falcon charged at his daughter who performed an impressive flip to jump pass him. "Kowalski!" The Barn owl succeeded at doing the same. "Skyler!" The young elf owl did it as well. "Sparky!"

However, the old falcon noticed his son was not paying attention to the training and was instead drawing something in a notebook. "Sparky!" he exclaimed, slamming his staff on his son's shoulder, making him wince in pain. "What are you doing?"

"Huh, nothing," he quickly said with an innocent smile, hiding his notebook in his back.

"Really?" Kowalski asked and snapped the notebook from his brother's wings.

"Hey! Give it back!" the elf owl angrily called, only for his brother to give it to Lilly who opened it, revealing a group of four birds wearing super hero costumes.

"Hey, check this out," Lilly said as Kowalski and Sky came to check it.

"What is that? The _Ninj_ ustice League?" Kowalski asked with a chuckle.

"More like the _Feather_ tastic Four," Sky said with a giggle.

"The Legion of Sewer Heroes!" Lilly suggested and laughed with her two siblings.

"Well, hardy har. Even our level-headed leader gets a funny in," Sparky said in annoyance, causing his siblings to stop laughing.

"C'mon, Sparky, don't tell me you really wanna become a super hero," Lilly said with showing him the drawing.

"And why not?" Sparky asked with snapping his notebook back. "Super heroes don't need to stay hidden out of fear to be spotted. We should take credit for all the right we're doing."

"Your intentions are very noble, Sparky," Master Yoshi said. "But you must not forget who you are. And you are a ninja - ninjas act in shadow."

"Couldn't we do WAY much more in the light?" Sparky asked.

"There are many paths, my son. You must choose the one that's true to yourself," the old bird simply said before turning toward his children. "Let's get back to training, my kids."

Sparky looked at them, then down at his notebook. "Pardon me, Sensei, I need to go clear my head," he said and walked into the elevator that led up to the surface.

* * *

Sitting down in the old garage where they kept the Feathered Plane, Sparky kept looking down at his drawing. "Okay, what does it take to be a superhero? A mysterious origin: got it. An original vehicle..."

He turned his head toward the Feathered Plane. "Nah; too cheesy." He then noticed some ropes and hooks laying on the ground...which gave him an idea. "Grappling hooks...yeah, I like that!"

* * *

Once his grappling hooks were ready, Sparky got out into the city and on top of a building. "Alright, now, I need someone who needs help." He began scooting the landscape and it wasn't long before he spotted a human women getting her bag stolen by a thief.

Taking out his grappling hook, he swung it and tossed it down at a satellite Antenna before jumping down Tarzan-style. As he got the ground, he managed to kick the human thief in the face, knocking him into a trash can and making drop the bag.

"Yeah! Gotcha-" Unfortunately, the satellite Antena broke and Sparky was sent flying into a building's wall. "Ouch! Okay, I need to work on my style," he groaned with rubbing his head and getting up. "But at least, my mission is a success," he said with picking up the bag.

"Time to get my reward," he said and walked over to the human girl, handing her her bag.

"Oh, thank you little birdie," she said with picking up her bag, patting Sparky on the head, and simply walked away without doing anything else.

"...That's all?" Sparky asked in disbelief. "'Thank you'? I can't even get a little piece of cheese?" He then looked at his reflection in a window glass. "Maybe I should find myself a costume that'll make me look more serious."

He thought about it...and then snapped his feathers. "I got it! I'm gonna make myself a superhero costume!"

* * *

Later on, Sparky went to Tiny's home and share his thoughts with her. they were currently in the shop she owned and Sparky was talking.

"...and I think that, if I want people to see me as a superhero, I need to dress up like one." He gave her his notebook so that she could get a look at his drawing. "You must probably think this is ridiculous," he admitted with rubbing the back of his head.

"Not at all," tiny said with a smile and shaking her head. "You're right for wanting to accomplish your dream."

Sparky looked at her in surprise. "Y-You're serious?!"

She nodded. "We just need to find you a good costume."

And so, Tiny made Sparky try many different costumes until they found one that fit him very well: a red hoodies cape with a brown glove on his left wing, a turtle-shaped shield on his left one, a pair of large brown boots, and his grappling line tied to his belt. "Here comes Titan Owl!"

Tiny smiled. "Wow! You look super cool, Sparky!"

* * *

And so, Titan Owl climbed another rooftop, the full moon shining behind him as he scooted the streets for any more crimes. Eventually, he spotted a little seagull standing in the middle of street, apparently not caring about the cars close to hit him.

"An avian in danger! That's a mission for Titan Owl!" Sparky said, swung his grappling line, and threw it to a place before jumping down and grabbing the seagull before a truck could hit him. "Don't worry; Titan Owl is-ARGH!" They swung too close to the ground and ended up hitting a wall.

"Crap! It looks easier on tv," Titan Owl said before trying to help the seagull back up. His eyes were shining yellow before suddenly returning to orange normal and rubbing his head.

He looked up at Titan Owl in surprise. "B-But who are you? And where am I? Help! I'm attacked by a crazy bird in costume!" he screamed and flew away before the hero could explain anything.

"Attacked?" Sparky asked, feeling insulted. "I just saved you from getting hit by a truck!"

* * *

Titan Owl returned on the rooftops, walking angrily. "What does a superhero have to do to get a little respect in this town?"

CRASH!

The elf owl heard the sound of glass shattering and looked down the rooftop to see a raven breaking a shop's front window and getting in. "A break-in, heh? Another mission for me," Sparky said and jumped down with his grappling line - successfully this time.

He broke into the store and glared at the raven who was stocking money from the cash register in a bag. "Don't move, you scum! Titan Owl is here!"

However, the raven didn't paid attention to him and just kept putting the money in his bag. "Okay, forget criminals' fear and respect," the elf owl shrugged before grabbing the criminal and pressing his back against the wall. "Like I said, my name's Titan Owl! Don't wear it out...?!"

He was then surprised to see the store's poster on the wall which showed the raven himself. This meant he was...the owner of this store?!

Just like with the seagull from before, the raven's eyes were glowing yellow, but then returned to normal. "What's going on?" he asked with rubbing his forehead and then starred at the masked owl. "W-Who are you? Don't hurt me! Please, take everything you want but don't kill me!" he suddenly begged.

"Whoa, whoa, calm down! I'm not stealing from your store; you did," Sparky defended himself.

"Why would I steal from my own store?" the raven asked in confusion.

"I'd like to know it too," Sparky remarked before noticing some sort of robotic red beetle coming down from the raven's neck and shoulder, jumping down onto the ground and crawling away. "Hey, what's that?"

However, before he could get an answer by chasing the robotic bug, the policebirds cars arrived at the entrance. "Police! Help! There's a crazy masked bird robbing me!" the raven called.

As the policebirds entered, Sparky had no choice but to escape by the back exit door. Another failed attempt at being a hero...

* * *

 **Poor Sparky. He tries to be a superhero, but fate is never on his side. Will we see Titan Owl succeed as a hero and find out what was this strange robotic beetle?**


	171. Titan Owl part 2

**Time for the adventures of Titan Owl to continue!**

* * *

While walking on the rooftops after failing to find out what was wrong with the raven in the shop, Sparky AKA Titan Owl heard a strange noise coming down from the streets. Curious, he looked down to see a runaway bus rolling out of control in the street below.

"What's going on, tonight?" the little bird wondered and threw his grappling line to jump down on the bus' top. He had to use his talons for a firm grip on the vehicle driving out of control.

He eventually managed to open the top's emergency door and sneaked inside. the bus was empty, but driven by a seagull who again had yellow glowing eyes. "Hey! Stop this vehicle right now, mister!" Sparky said with trying to get the steering wheel back in control.

He pressed his foot on the brake pedal, but it didn't do anything. Seriously?! This guy cut his brake off? And as if things couldn't get worst, Sparky saw that he was driving directly toward a lake. If he didn't stop this crazy driver quick, he world turn into Aqua Owl!

Checking behind his head, he saw the same red robotic beetle connected to the back of his neck. Of course! He grabbed the robot bug and forced it off the driver's neck, causing his eyes to return to normal.

"W-What happened?" he asked with rubbing the back of his head.

"At first, I'd say you were possessed by this robot," Sparky responded with smashing the robot against the wall to destroy it. "But you're lucky: I saved you."

"Not exactly!" the driver said, noticing how close they were on the dock to the lake and quickly opened the door to jump out.

Sparky decided to follow...only for his cape to suddenly get stuck in the door that closed itself. "Crap! Maybe the cape wasn't such a good idea after all!"

Unable to free himself in time, Sparky closed his eyes, ready to get submerged in water...but that never came. Slowly opening his eyes, he realized that the bus was _floating_ above the lake.

"W-What the...?!" he mumbled in shock and confusion.

It was only once the bus returned safely on the dock with his feet touching the floor that he realized it was none other than the Silver Sentry that lifted the vehicle from under. Sighing as his life was now out of danger, Sparky grabbed his cape and forced it out of the door.

"Are you okay?" Silver Sentry asked with stepping toward Sparky.

"Oh, it's you, Silver Sentry?" Sparky asked with getting back up to which the human nodded.

"And you are?" he asked at his turn.

"Titan Owl. I'm a superhero, just like you," Sparky responded with shaking his hand. "Well, not exactly like you, but I'm a huge fan."

"Hum-hum. It's your first night on the job?" he asked with a risen eyebrow.

"It's as evident as that?" Sparky asked with rubbing the back of his head.

"Listen, Titan Owl, right? I have a lot of admiration for your determination, but this is a very dangerous work. One wrong step, and someone could get hurt. Probably you," the superhero explained. "Well, hope to meet you again someday."

He was about to fly off, but Sparky called him back. "Wait! There's something I need to show you!" He took out the broken robotic beetle and showed it to Silver Sentry. "Someone's manipulating the birds around with this thing."

The superhero took it and analyzed it. "Hmm, this looks like work from my worst nemesis, Dr. Malignus. You destroyed it, but it keeps receiving a control signal." Silver Sentry then flew up into the sky and used his superpowers to capture the signal from the little robot.

"I found the source! Let's go!" Silver Sentry said with flying down and grabbed Sparky in his arms before taking off again. While flying above the city, he noticed the elf owl trembling nervously. "Is everything alright?"

"Well...it's my first time."

"Really? You're a bird and you never flew before?"

"No - well, that's true, but I meant it's my first time working with another superhero," he replied with an excited smile. However, Silver Sentry just flew down and carefully let him go down on a rooftop. "Huh, what are you doing?"

"Listen, Titan Owl, let's make things very clear: it is out of question for the two of us the work together," Silver sentry firmly said with crossing his arms.

"What?!" But-"

"Listen, I admire your courage and also how you want to help me, but this story is over you. You better stay here and avoid trouble while I take care of Malignus," he said and flew away despite Sparky calling for him.

"You don't understand! I putted this mask and cape to no longer having to stick to the shadows!" The elf owl shook his head. "Just who does he think I am?"

Determined to not simply sit on the sidelines, Sparky started jumping from one roof to the other, chasing after the Silver Sentry until he flew above the large river in the middle of the city and toward an old warehouse on the docks.

Sparky sighed. "Right now, I'd give anything to have a plane. Looks like I'm gonna have to cross this river the old way: swimming!"

* * *

Titan Owl did just that, swimming all the way across the river and to the docks. He then sneaked toward the old warehouse, getting on the rooftop with his grappling line, and then noticed a big hole in there. It has probably been made by Silver Sentry, when he entered.

Tossing his rope down, Titan Owl let himself slid down into the pretty dark chamber with only the moonlight coming through the hole illuminating the place.

"Hello! Is there some bad guy in here?" he called.

Suddenly, the lights turned on, forcing the hero to cover his eyes. "Talking about me?" asked a pretty intimidating voice.

Once he got adjusted to the light, Titan Owl saw the person talking to him was some sort of human wearing a ruby-colored robotic armor that looked strangely like a scorpion. He was standing on a high platform with many computer screens around him.

"Doctor Malignus, I presume?" Titan Owl asked.

"I'm sorry, but I don't I had the pleasure to meet you, mister...?" he asked, waiting for his name.

"I'm Titan Owl. What have you done to Silver Sentry?" the young hero asked with pointing an accusing feather at the vilain.

"He's just there," Malignus responded with pointing to the side, where Silver Sentry suddenly walked out from the shadows. He didn't looked harmed.

"There you are! I was worried-"

WHAM!

In a split-second, Silver Sentry charged into Titan Owl, smashing him with both of his fists which sent the owl crash into the warehouse's wall and land on the floor with a loud thud. Dr. Malignus laughed a lot as Titan Owl rubbed his head with the pain shooting through his whole body.

"Oh, maybe I forgot to mention he was under my control now?" he asked with a laughter.

"Yeah," Sparky said with trying to get back up.

"Silver Sentry is my slave now," Malignus said, pointing to the robotic beetle connected to the hero's neck. "Despite his will of iron, he won't stop himself from becoming what he despize the most: a big vilain. And your first action as my little puppy will be to destroy Titan Owl!"

The possessed Silver Sentry grabbed Titan Owl and lifted him like a wrestler. "Please! Stop, Silver Sentry! I'm your friend!"

"Don't waste your time; he's under my control now. He don't want to hurt you, but it's stronger than him," Dr. Malignus laughed as Silver Sentry tossed Titan Owl up toward the roof.

He managed to grab on the copper pillars hanging from the ceiling and take position. As Silver Sentry flew up toward him, he performed a swing and tossed his turtle shell shield toward him. However, he simply grabbed it in his hands and used his raw strength to squash it like a peanut.

"I don't understand. With Captain America, it works all the time," Titan Owl thought with rubbing his head in confusion.

Instead, he tried to swing his grappling line away, but Silver Sentry flew up at full speed and caught it in time. Using his strength again, he broke the rope in two and tossed Titan Owl through a window and outside the warehouse, sending him crashing into a pile of wooden boxes.

Titan Owl pushed a swear in his head as he started bleeding a bit from the nose and Silver Sentry came flying through the wall of the warehouse. Seeing no other options, the elf owl decided to run away from the overpowered human and hide in the shadows.

As Silver Sentry scooted the area from the skies, Sparky watched him behind an alley. "I wonder if Master Yoshi is not right. Looks like it's time for me to return to the basics," he said with removing his hood and tearing his hooded cape off, getting back to his normal ninja costume. "Fighting like a ninja!"

Silver Sentry kept scanning the arena with no success until Sparky jumped out of his hiding spot. "Hey, dumb face!"

Turning around, Silver Sentry tossed two metal barrels at the elf owl who dodged the first, but received the second one and got knocked down again. As the superhero closed in, looking to squash the owl down with his two fists, this last one shot his eyes open and performed the technique his master taught him: the Invisibly Flying Dragon.

Jumping behind Silver Sentry, Sparky grabbed the robotic beetle connected to the back of his neck and managed to pull it off. The superhero's eyes returned to normal and he rubbed his head in pain.

"The Invisible Flying Dragon technique saved my life," Sparky happily said before Silver Sentry grabbed the robot insect and squashed it in his hand.

"Thank you, Titan Owl I should have accepted to team up with you," he said with a smile and putting his hand on Sparky's shoulder.

He then turned to the warehouse and kicked the door open, flying up to beat Dr. Malignus down, and brought him out of the building.

* * *

Moments later, police was all over the docks and Dr. Malignus was put under arrest and taken away in a car. Sparky watched this from a rooftop alongside Silver Sentry, proud of his work.

"Thanks for your help," the human hero said with a smile. "From now on, I'll think about teaming up with you, Titan Owl."

Sparky just chuckled. "My name is Sparky and tonight, I learned that the hero's spotlight was best left to you. I'll be better sticking to the shadows." Shaking hands and wings with Silver Sentry one last time, Sparky then ran away like a ninja.

* * *

Later on, Sparky returned to his home and found his three siblings in the middle of a training. They all stopped to look at him.

"so, Sparky. got your head cleared out?" Sky asked him.

He smiled. "I learned that I'm a ninja and not a superhero. I'm not Titan Owl the vigilante, but Sparky the ninja bird..."

* * *

 **Well, it was fun to see Sparky as a superhero while it lasted. I sure hope you enjoyed this short story.**

 **However, the next one will be way much longer: the Underground Mysteries story. It's gonna be one of the longest for the Four Ninja Birds.**

 **See you soon and as always, I hope you enjoyed this, Skyler The Elf Owl ;)**


	172. Underground Mysteries

_"What, you might ask yourself, would any sane bird be doing in an abandoned subway tunnel deep under the city? A tunnel so decayed, it's going to collapse from just one little noise, and a huge weird thing howling at us at the top of its lungs. Funny, I'm asking myself the same question."_

* * *

It was night time in the city of New York. Deep down, in the sewers below and into the lair of a certain group of ninjas, Sparky was watching an old black and white movie about a human doctor and his girlfriend getting chased by a monster. That was so scary that he ate his whole bag of potato chips in a pretty short period of time. Once the movie was done, he turned the tv off with the remote and stood up to yawn and stretch himself.

He then went to see his sister, Skyler, who was on her workshop, using tools to analyze a light blue crystal. "Hey, watcha doing, Sky?"

"Examining the crystals we found upon coming here," she answered with looking through a little telescope. "I'd like to find what they are made of, but so far, they are nothing like any crystals I've seen before. Their material are bound to each other like...cerebral cells that have been modified."

Sparky shook his head. "You're thinking way too much, sista." He then took the table lamp and turned the light over his face. "Maybe there are some things we earthlings should never see. Like these things," he said with picking up the two crystals as Sky rolled her eyes.

The two little stones suddenly started glowing, causing both elf owl to look at them in surprise. "Skyler! What is happening?" Master Yoshi asked as he came out of his room followed by Lilly and Kowalski. "Explain."

"What's that noise?" Kowalski asked with rubbing the back of his head.

"Well...I don't know for sure." Picking up a pair of robotic pinches, she used them to take one of the crystals away from the other which made them stop glowing.

"Are we in danger, Skyler?" Master Yoshi asked his daughter.

"Well, maybe the crystals' energetic structure is composed of-"

"Why don't you just say you don't know?" Kowalski interrupted before she could get into too deep details.

"...That's true," Sky admitted.

"I'm the one who did it!" Sparky happily said before the lair's alarm turned on, alerting the ninjas.

"What's that?" Lilly asked.

"Something turned on the alert systems in one of the old sewers tunnels," Sky said with rushing to go watch at the monitor screens to see a figure passing through a kick speed.

"What was that?" Lilly asked.

"Something tells me we'll find out soon," Kowalski remarked with taking out his sais.

"Let's go," Lilly said and headed to the exit of the lair with her siblings.

* * *

And so, the four ninja birds took the paraglider to ride faster through the sewers. "There's no need to warn our coming. Let's get into silent mode, Sky," Lilly told her sister who nodded and reduced the paraglider's noise to practical silence.

Before long, they arrived at the spot they saw on the monitor, parking their paraglider down and jumping off it. they started scanning the area.

"So?" Sparky asked.

"I see nothing," Kowalski remarked with his wings on his hips.

"I wouldn't be too sure about that," Sky said as she pointed her flashlight toward a big hole that has been dug into the tunnel's wall.

"The thing that did this have dug through cement," Kowalski remarked as they gathered near the hole.

Sky gave the flashlight to her brother before opening her material bag and took out a little hammer to hit the surface of the hole and take a sample of it. "I have a feeling like the molecules have been fragmented," she remarked. "I'm not sure if it was by raw strength or by acid."

"Okay, but in scary movies, it's at this moment the monster comes out and attack one of the characters," Sparky said with looking all around for a sight of the monster.

"Calm down, Sparky, you're watching too much tv," Lilly said with with rolling her eyes. "You know what it is?"

Sky shook her head. "Another mystery. One thing's for sure:

"I've never seen such a thing," Sparky said at the same time as his sister. "I knew it! That's the same thing they say all the time!" he panicked.

"Hey, what do ya' get when ya' cross an owl and a chicken? Sparky," Kowalski said and laughed with his sisters.

"We have to go back home anyways; I need to analyze this material to find out what we're up against," Skyler said as they all walked back to the paraglider and drove away with it...not noticing a pair of glowing eyes in the dark hole...

* * *

Later on, back at the lair, Skyler analyzed the sample she took at her workshop. After making some tests with her siblings and father behind, Sky shook her head.

"Was that a good or a bad head shake?" sparky asked. "Cause it's in this part of the movie we're supposed to find the monster's weakness or he will kill us all!" Annoyed, Kowalski tossed water from a glass in his face. "...Thank you."

"Do you have any more informations, Skyler?" Master Yoshi asked.

The elf owl rubbed her chin. "What if this creature have melted into the stone? Being able to break stone is a normal ability for any animal living underground."

"All those answers you're giving sound way more like questions," Master Yoshi said with shaking his head. "Before we can make an unstoppable strategy, we need more informations. This way, our action plan will be flawless."

"I'm ready to fight, Sensei," Lilly said.

"If there's some creature searching for us down there, we'd be better finding it first," Kowalski said with a nod.

"We have no time to lose!" Lilly said and shared a bump-fist with her siblings...except for Sparky who stepped back, causing them to look curiously at him.

"Good luck, all of you. Be careful," Master Yoshi said as Sparky tried to sneak away, only for Kowalski to grab him by the wing and drag him with them.

* * *

After packing up all their equipments, the four siblings got back to the hole in the wall they found in the sewers. Nodding to each other, Lilly entered first followed by Sky who was holding the flashlight.

"After you," Sparky told Kowalski who nodded and entered. The elf owl was then about to sneak away, only for Kowalski to grab him by the collar and bring him in the dark tunnel.

Once they reached the end of the tunnel, the ground found itself in a long abandoned subway tunnel from the early 1900s. The tunnel system was in very bad shape and looked like it could collapse with the slightest noise.

"Someone knows what this is?" Kowalski asked, passing his flashlight all over the old, dusty place.

"There are many train tunnel connected in a network underneath this city," Sky explained as they started walking down the tunnel.

"It's abandoned?" Sparky nervously asked.

Suddenly, they heard a little noise coming from above them. "Hey, you heard that?" Sky asked with pointing her flashlight toward the ceiling to see cracks in it with dust falling down. "Those foundations don't look very solid. The slightest noise could make them collapse. So let's be silent."

Nodding in agreement, the group walked further into the train network tunnel, their flashlights held forward to see ahead. "Still no signs of the creature," Lilly mumbled.

However, she then spotted strange footprints on the ground. "Hey, look at this."

"It must be nothing; let's go home," Sparky said, but his siblings ignored him and resumed the walk, much to his annoyance.

The cave suddenly started trembling with a lot of dust falling from the ceiling. "What's going on?" Lilly asked.

"Shh, don't make any noise," Sky said.

Sparky was about to sneeze because of all the dust falling down, but luckily, Kowalski putted his wing on his beak before it could come out. "She said to not make any noise."

Sparky nodded with a smile...before letting out a big: "ATCHOO!" It didn't took more for the ceiling to start crumbling.

"Couldn't you hold it back?!" Sky annoyingly asked.

"Hey, I couldn't have known that I would...go face-to-face with a huge monster!" Sparky responded with a scared look.

His three siblings looked at him in confusion...before turning around and coming head-to-head with a giant monster that looked like he was made of rock with a large jaw, two big arms, and medium-sized legs as well as blood red eyes.

"What the hell?!" Lilly exclaimed as the creature let out a big roar, causing the ceiling to fall in piece faster than before.

This forced the ninja birds to start running away and in the opposite direction the monster came from. Luckily, they managed to reach the end of the tunnel before it all collapsed and excited. However, they dropped their flashlights in the process, causing them to go off and found themselves in complete dark.

"We escaped! But now, we can't see anything!" Sparky said and coughed a bit.

"Wait." Sky suddenly grabbed her two crystals and made them shine enough for everyone to see.

"You think that thing survived?" Kowalski asked with dusting himself off.

"Know your monsters, Kow. It can melt rock!" Sparky sarcastically said.

 **"** Oh, yeah. Maybe I forgot because I was trying not to get buried in a COLLAPSING SUBWAY TUNNEL!" the barn owl angrily replied.

"Everybody calm down. Let's keep moving," Lilly said and let Skyler lead the way with her two crystals.

The group walked into the strange caves and it wasn't long before they came across more strange footprints on the ground. And it was followed by a deep precipice that blocked their way. Sky gave her crystals to Sparky before taking out a super long rope which she tied to a stalagmite and proceeded to climb down.

Her siblings followed closely and, before long, they arrived at the bottom of the huge cave that looked very ancient. "Man, I can't take it anymore!" Sparky groaned and fell on his knees from exhaustion.

"I agree," Lilly said with a nod. "Let's set up our camp here and rest for a while. Kowalski, mind to take the first night guard?"

"With pleasure," the barn owl replied with a smirk and taking out his two sais.

* * *

 **The four ninja birds have found a new mystery. What's wrong with those crystals? What was this monster they came across? What secret lies within this deep cave they found. A lot of questions, it's gonna take many chapters to answer them all. So stay stunned!**


	173. Underground Mysteries part 2

**What an idiot am I! I accidentally deleted this chapter by distraction and had to re-write it all over again. I really need to pay more attention to my precious work.**

* * *

Kowalski sat awake with the two crystals bringing light as his three siblings were sleeping in their sleep bag. He noticed Sparky was talking in his sleep, probably because of a nightmare. However, before he could try to wake him up, the cave started shaking and he noticed three figures starring at them from the upper floor.

"Guys! Wake up! We're under attack!" he shouted with taking out his sais.

The others quickly jumped out of their sleeping bags just as a figure pushed a giant boulder down in their direction. "RUN!" Lilly ordered and the team grabbed their stuff before running into the tunnel as the giant boulder was rolling behind them.

"Man, don't you hate when this happens?" Sparky asked while running.

Eventually, they came out of the tunnel which gave them a broken bridge hanging over a deep precipice. "Crap! The bridge's destroyed! What can we do now?" Kowalski asked.

The barn owl thought a bit before having an idea: he picked up the grappling line in their equipment bag and swung it before tossing it on a stalagmite on the other side of the bridge.

"Brace yourselves!" he said as the others grabbed onto the ropes and they then jumped together, just as the boulder reached their position and fell down in the abyss below.

Sighing in relief, they climbed up on the other side, now safe for the moment. "I like a little excitement first thing in the morning!" Sparky said which made his siblings chuckle.

Sky took out a crystal to shine their way again and then spotted something surprising: a metal door in the cave's wall which was destroyed. She walked toward it and gave it an analyzing eye. "Huh, I don't want to scare you guys, but I think this metal door has been breached from the inside."

The four siblings exchanged concerned looks before entering the room which led them to some kind of laboratory. However, the whole placed was destroyed and there was clear signs of battle all around. Even some red liquid...

The four siblings walked around to check for any clue. Sky rubbed her chin while looking at all the tools around. "I think I recognize instruments used for physic and biology as well as human cells. If you ask me, I think this is a lab used for mutation tests!"

"W-What?!" Sparky nervously stepped back and an alarm suddenly went on. Probably did he activate some sort of invisible mechanism?

"Sparky!" his three siblings scolded him at unison.

Suddenly, a round machine in the middle of the room with a crystal planted on it started making the stone shine. The birds looked at it, when a strange energy field came out of the machine and slowly made its way toward them, just as the door closed behind them.

Kowalski grabbed his sais and tried to pierce through the field, but only his sai went through it; his wing wasn't allowed. "I think it's a magnetic field that only affects the living tissue!" Sky pointed out.

"Too bad that's exactly what we're made of!" Lilly said as they were backed up against the wall, the field getting closer to them.

"Sky! Any idea? I'd like not to get squashed like a pancake!" Sparky called as they pushed back against the field.

The elf owl thought...and then an idea popped into her mind! "Kowalski! Try to shoot your sai at the machine!" she called.

Nodding, her brother took time to aim correctly before tossing his remaining sai through the field. Fate was on their side as the weapon managed to reach the machine and pierced into it, causing an overload. Electricity jolted out of the machine and after a moment, the magnetic field was gone.

The birds fell on their knees, sighting in relief. "Man, that was close!" Sky said and walked over to a computer screen.

"Looks like it's the end of the nightmare," Kowalski said with stretching his back.

"No Kow; I'm afraid it's only the beginning," Sky said and pressed some buttons on the computer board which turned the screen on to reveal...the Foot Clan symbol.

"The Foots?!" they all exclaimed in surprise.

Kowalski frowned angrily. "those guys are always there, whenever we got trouble! What did they do this time?!"

"We'll see," Sky said and pressed on more buttons along the board. "There are some archive videos. Let's watch them; maybe they'll give us a clue," she said and turned the video on.

The screen showed a Foot scientist raven working in the lab (in a good state) with other Foots. "Day 1: Project commences. Master Blood Talon believes his enemies have taken refuge underground. Our Foot soldiers have been unable to locate them, so the genetic division has been directed to mutate human subjects, so that they can explore deeper into the earth."

The video showed a human subject tied on a table and getting a green liquid injected into him. "No! Please!" he begged and screamed in pain as his body started mutating.

"The subject appears to be in "some" discomfort, but this is a minor annoyance."

"Poor guy," Lilly mumbled.

"If I catch those heartless jerks...!" Kowalski angrily said, hardening his fist.

The next tape started, moving forward to many days later. "Day 345, the experiment appears to be a success! Though the subjects are exhibiting reduced intelligence." The diary flipped days later again. "Day 545, the creatures are showing signs of instability, becoming angry and vicious! Certain aspects of the experiment have gone horribly wrong! Have we attempted too much in developing this unnatural life form?!Perhaps there are some things man was never meant to tamper with."

"That's the one line in a monster movie you DON'T wanna hear!" Sparky nervously said.

The video continued. "Through the generous use of shock restraints, the creatures have been trained to retrieve evidence from their explorations." the tape advanced again with the Foots cheering in joy. "Day 699, the project is a success! Our creatures have found evidence of habitation underground, which has been turned over to Master Blood Talon. I've been told he's quite pleased."

In the next log part, the scientist looked disappointed. "Day 733, the settlement we found is not what Master Blood Talon was searching for. He has pronounced the project: a failure. We've been ordered to shut down the operation, and destroy the creatures." The next tape showed the creatures escaping their cage. "The creatures have freed themselves! They are more intelligent than we ever dreamed! They.. They have been manipulating us ALL ALONG waiting for their moment to escape! No! NO! KEEP AWAY!" The video ended as the Foot scientist was heard screaming.

The four ninja birds just stood there in silence at their discovery. As if on cue, a loud growling noise was suddenly heard, causing them to jump.

"So there's always one guy in the monster movie who freaks out 'cuz he can't take the pressure and I'm gonna do an impression right now and it goes something like...GET ME OUTTA HERE!" Sparky shouted and ran toward the exit.

"I don't agree very often with him, but this time, can we go?" Kowalski nervously asked his sisters.

Lilly nodded. "Time to end our expedition! Let's go go home!"

They ran after their brother outside the laboratory to where the bridge was destroyed. However, before they could even try to cross it again, something melted a hole in the cave's wall and three things came out of it - monsters!

One of them was dark blue and white, standing on two legs with glowing yellow eyes and three claws of the same color on each hand. The second was taller and all red with large white claws and glowing white eyes. Finally, the third one was the big stone monster they met in the train tunnel moments ago.

"Okay, I hope it's not the end of the movie...," Sparky mumbled.


	174. Underground Mysteries part 3

_"My name is Skyler, and as an elf owl of science, I like to investigate things. But I never thought my study of the strange crystals we found in our lair would awaken creatures from the underground, lead us on a search deep below the Earth, or take us to an abandoned Foot Genetic Lab where terrible things were done in the name of the Blood Talon. As an elf owl of science, you wouldn't think I'm the type to believe in monsters, but you'd be wrong, dead wrong..."_

* * *

"I think I speak for everyone when I say, "Zoinks!" Sparky pointed out as he and his three siblings grabbed their weapons while backing up from the three monsters approaching them.

The siblings were forced to step back into the laboratory as the monster moved forward and pushed growls. The blue one spat a greenish liquid that touched the floor before them...and melted it. The ninjas looked in surprise, but then rose their weapons, ready to fight.

"Okay, you guys take the three on the left," Sparky said.

"There are only three," Kowalski remarked without looking away from the monsters.

"There's one for each of you and I'll just be odd-bird-out," Sparky said and stepped back.

"You're tellin' me...!"

The red monster swung his tail to sent a piece of the lab toward the four ninjas who rolled out of the way in time. They then all jumped into action...except for Sparky who just stood back and watched. Skyler dodged a claw swing from the red monster and gave him blows to the torso with her bo staff which had no effect and was forced to jump back when the monster tried to claw her again. Unfortunately, he managed to grab her between his claws and tossed her away.

While Kowalski was fighting the rock monster with his sais, Lilly was facing off against the blue one, dodging his claws before getting kicked back into a metal pole. Rubbing her head, she grabbed the pole and threw it at the monster who made it melt with a jet of acid.

On the other side of the room, the red monster was about to hurt Skyler as she was laying on the floor, but Kowalski jumped in to deliver a violent kick to knock him back. It was then that the two siblings noticed the rock one climbing the ceiling and digging a hole into it with his jaw. By doing so, it left a crack that made them realize he was heading right where Sparky was standing.

"Sparky!" Kowalski called and ran to get in time at his brother, kicking the rock monster away as he came out of the ceiling and jumped toward Sparky. "Watch your back, you oddball!"

"You just call me odd, didn't you? I'm not odd, i'm eccentric," the elf owl replied with a pout, just as the rock monster charged into Kowalski and knocked him away. He then turned toward Sky. "Kowalski thinks I'm odd."

"You're just sensitive," Sky said with a wing on his shoulder before going back to fight.

"Sensitive? I hate being called sensitive!" the elf owl pouted again.

Lilly kicked the blue monster into a machine, causing electric jolts to go through his body and fell on the floor. Groaning in anger, he spat acid which Lilly dodged and kicked him again. He replied by spitting more acid onto a nearby machine, damaging its fondations and making it slowly collapse.

"You won't be using us anymore!" the monster suddenly said.

"Using you? What are you talking about?" Lilly asked in confusion before seeing the machine going to collapse. "Watch out!" She jumped in time to push the monster out of the way before the machine collapsed and exploded right where he was standing moments ago.

After that, she rubbed her head and looked at the surprised monster. "Why did you attacked us?" she asked.

Before the blue monster could answer, the red one smashed her away into the wall. Sparky managed to catch her in his wings just in time before she could land on the floor.

"They seem to think we're someone else," Lilly told her brother.

Kowalski and Sky soon retreated beside their siblings as they couldn't fight off the monsters. "I suggest we leave this place right now," Sky said while panting.

"Runaway? That ain't my style," Kowalski aggressively said, still wanting to fight.

"Call it a tactical retreat. Let's move!" Lilly ordered.

"We're leaving," Sky said with opening the door and ran away with everyone except Kowalski.

After taking a second glance at the three monsters closing in, the barn owl changed his mind. "Tactical retreat...I can live with that." He ran after his three siblings, finding them into a circle-shaped room that was between two big metal door. the one they came through was open, but the one in their way was closed.

"I can't open it!" Sky said after failing to open the metal door. And the monsters were getting closer to their position.

Swearing under their breaths, the siblings worked together to close the metal door behind them in hopes of slowing the monsters long enough to open the other one. They let out sighs of relief...just before the monsters started banging against the door, leaving marks into it.

"Huh, I hope you guys have an idea," Sparky nervously remarked, seeing the metal door won't hold on for long.

It was then that the door was sent flying and the red monster walked inside the room. As if it couldn't get any worst, the rock one erupted from the ground behind them, leaving the ninjas trapped. They took out their weapons, ready to fight for their lives again.

"No!" the blue one suddenly stopped his two friends before they could attack. Then, as he walked toward them, Lilly rose her katanas, ready to defend herself. "Who are you?" he asked with pointing a claw at the group.

"Not those you seem to think we are," Lilly remarked.

"In that case, what are you doing with this?" the blue monster asked with pointing at the crystal inside Sky's bag.

"We just found those crystals in the lair where we live," Lilly replied.

"Yeah, and what do they have to do with all of this?" Kowalski asked, rising his sais.

"Those crystals are evil incarnate!" the blue monster replied. "And what are you doing here?"

"Because one of you monsters came to activate the alert system in our lair-" Sparky started, but got silenced by Sky who putted her wing over his beak.

"Don't listen to him; he's just a bit nervous," she explained with an innocent smile.

"My name is Lilly. Those are my siblings, Kowalski, Skyler, and Sparky."

"We have been attracted into your lair after the crystals got activated," the blue monster explained in a now friendlier tone.

"Wonder who did that," Sky sarcastically said with giving a pointing look toward Sparky who just shrugged.

"For us, their energy represent sign of danger, and by activating them, you became danger for us. Thought it usually comes from the underground," blue monster explained.

"You mean there are more crystals like this underground?" Sky asked. "We just wanna know where they come from? Can we go get a look?"

"No way!" the blue monster replied. "You cannot get to this place! Something indescribable lives among the crystals. You see, there are some things the earthlings shouldn't see..."

Sparky was about to make a comment about this phrase, only to be silenced by Sky with a wing on the beak once more.

"Come, follow me," the blue monster said and walked away.

The four birds followed him and his two friends back into the destroyed laboratory. "You know, I can't believe Blood Talon genetically turned you into mutants to find his enemies," Lilly remarked.

"And yet, that's exactly what he did without remorse! He forced us to obey him against our own will!" the blue monster angrily said.

"You have been forcefully turned into monsters?" Lilly asked with disgust.

"Yes. We've been turned into his...slaves. He hunted us into our works and even at our own houses. We never learned why we were the chosen ones," he explained with a sad look.

Lilly suddenly felt sympathy for them. "So what's your name?"

"My name is Quarry," the blue monster presented himself. "The red one is Razorfist and the big one is Stonebiter."

"But what about your true names?" Lilly asked.

Quarry sadly looked down. "Unfortunately, the experiences they made on us made us completely forget our identities."

Lilly nodded. "We saw the archive videos."

"Don't worry about Blood Talon; we gave him what he deserved!" Kowalski said with hitting a fist in his wing.

"Yup; he made the mistake of rubbing himself to us!" Sparky said with a nod. "You don't have anything to fear about him now."

Suddenly, an alert siren noise erupted, surprising everyone. Quarry rushed to the control panned and looked at a screen. "No! the others! They activated an alert in the delta east tunnel! We need to activate the energy shield!" he said with running near the crystal machine that almost killed the ninja birds.

He tried to turn it on, but it didn't worked. "No, no! It doesn't work! I cannot activate the shield to protect us!"

"Hum, if this can help you, I kinda had to destroy your shield because it was gonna squash us," Kowalski explained.

They suddenly heard a loud growling again. "What was that?" Lilly asked.

"The other subjects. Like us. Wandering in the tunnels," Quarry explained while pressing buttons all over the board.

"And why can't they come?"

"Because they are unstable and violent! They fell into craziness and will kill us if they get here!"

Lilly looked curiously. "And what about you?"

Quarry remained silent for a moment before turning around and answering. "We are destined to meet the same fate. the only thing we can do is try to hold them back as long as possible."

He then somehow managed to get the machine to work again. But the shield didn't worked. "the crystal is out of energy! It's hopeless!" he said as the growling noises coming from the tunnel outside the laboratory were getting closer...

* * *

 **It's not good. The three monsters might revealed themselves to be good, but there are more hostile ones coming their way and the shield is out of function. They need to find a solution before it's too late!**


	175. Underground Mysteries part 4

**Pray for the Ninja Birds to come out of this alive!**

* * *

The growling coming from the tunnel were getting closer to the birds and monsters' location. "They will be there in a minute!" Quarry said.

"Says, have you ever thought about writing horror movie scenarios? 'Cause I'm certain this one would work," Sparky said.

While they were chatting, Sky went to the machine's crystal and picked it up in her wings, only for it to shatter into pieces. "So this is what those crystals are for: giving energy?"

"Yes. It was the only one we had. We found it in the catacombs and it was very precious for us," Quarry sadly said with looking down.

"Why not using one of ours?" Lilly asked with taking out one of the crystals they possessed.

"They are too small and doesn't have enough energy," Quarry replied.

"They just need to have enough to push them back a moment," Sky said with taking the crystal and inserting it into the machine. Unfortunately, it didn't caused anything and the monsters were still coming closer.

Kowalski went to help Razorfist and Stonebitter to close the slightly damaged metal door giving on the tunnel the monsters were about to come from. Meanwhile, Quarry pressed on more buttons along the control panel and groaned. "There's nothing!"

Sky slammed her other crystal against the one in the machine to no result. "I don't understand why it doesn't work. Maybe the contact cells are burned."

"Or maybe you just putted it backwards?" Sparky simply suggested.

"Sparky, I wouldn't have done such a dumb mistake," Sky replied with rolling her eyes.

BANG!

The monsters suddenly arrived and started banging against the metal door. Kowalski, Razorfist and Stonebitter tried to hold it in place, fighting against the hits. Sky used her tools to adjust the machine. "Alright, put the crystal into it again."

BANG!

It was too late as the metal door fell and inside came various versions of Quarry, Razorfist and Stonebitter, only they looked wilder and a scared look at her brother, Sky gulped and then turned the crystal around before inserting it into the machine once again.

To her surprise, it started glowing, the machines started working again, and the magnetic field appeared, pushing the monster back before they could reach the group. They banged against the wall, but it was useless and they were pushed out of the room and back into the tunnel they came from.

"They're giving up," Quarry remarked as the monsters walked away from the magnetic field and back into the depths of the tunnel. "They will come back tomorrow. They always do," he added after the field faded.

"You should find a bigger crystal," Lilly remarked, sighing in relief a bit.

"We wouldn't be able to survive another day in the forbidden zone," Quarry replied with shaking his head.

"Forbidden zone? Like a secret place?" Sparky asked curiously.

"The ancient catacombs are kilometers long. Many of us went to explore them, but most never came back," Quarry sadly said.

"...Maybe they got lost?"

"They have been taken away by a spectral entity. There has never been any fighting trace: they simply...disappeared."

"I understand why you don't wanna go explore them anymore. but you need a new crystal," Lilly said.

"And since we have pretty much...destroyed your security system, we're gonna help you. Right?" Kowalski asked.

"Yes, of course," Lilly and Sky said while Sparky remained silent, earning him pointing looks.

"...Can't we just go buy a generator up in the street?" he innocently asked.

* * *

The group headed out of the laboratory with Sky leading the way thanks to her shining crystal. "Okay, let's keep our wits about us," Lilly commanded.

"Don't worry Sparky, you can share my wits," Kowalski said with a smirk.

"Ohhh, so now I'm witless? Must be why I'm the only one bothered by the fact that we're heading into place that even monsters are afraid of," the elf owl sarcastically replied.

After many minutes of walking, the group arrived into a lower cave with a lake of yellowish liquid that smelled bad.

"Pew! It doesn't smell rose!" Sparky said with waving his wing near his beak.

"It's because we're near a lake of sulfure, bro," Sky pointed out.

"Coming from a bird who grew up in the sewers, you can trust me when I say it smells like a seagull's drop," Sparky said.

"We need to keep advancing: the others are wandering all around here," Quarry said and started walking on little stone steps across the lake. "We're in their territory."

The others closely followed him from behind, careful not to step into the sulfur lake underneath them. Eventually, they reached the other side and Razorfist used his claws to break through the cave's wall ahead of them. The monsters climbed on the wall to the side while the ninjas were forced the step through a tiny platform.

Before long, they arrived on a little stone bridge that was hanging above a big lake underneath which was spinning like a toilet turned on.

"Here we are," Quarry said with pointing down.

They nodded at each other before jumping in the spinning lake below. "And me who thought following monsters in a cave would be the worst part," Lilly mumbled before jumping down too. Sky and Kowalski followed her. Sparky silently prayed before jumping in the water as well with a : "COWABUNGA!"

* * *

After spinning all around the water for a while, Sparky landed from a waterfall into a river and then swam to the coast where his siblings and monster friends were all gathered.

"Are we still far from the crystals, Quarry?" Lilly asked, shaking the water off her feathers.

"They are right here, in the catacombs. But from now on, we need to be as quiet as possible. Follow me," he replied and started walking along the path with the others following him.

"Hey, guys, you recognize those structure?" Sky asked, pointing at the material the room they were about to enter was made of.

"Yeah; these are the same as the ones our lair is made of!" Sparky realized in surprise.

"What does that mean?" Lilly asked.

"I'm not sure...," Sky softy replied.

Once inside, the group saw a few crystals planted into the structure of the room. "This one should do it," Quarry remarked with picking one of the crystals. "We have no reason to get any deeper into this evil place."

BAM!

"GUYS!" Everybody turned to see Sparky running in with a giant spider monster behind him. "RUN!"

The others obeyed and ran after him with the spider monster behind them. They soon came across a big door which blocked their way. Razorfist clawed at it, Stonebitter smashed and Quarry spat acid on it. But none of them could even slightly damage it.

It was then that Sky noticed a crystal-shaped slit next to the door and inserted her crystal into it. Just like she expected, a mechanism turned on and the door opened.

"It worked! Let's go!" she called.

However, just then, a pair of glowing orbs came out of nowhere and surrounded the young elf owl. The lights seemed to wrap around her and then – WHOOSH! – she vanished in a blinding flash!

"SKYLER!" her siblings shouted in horror.

* * *

 **Oh my gosh! What happened to Skyler? Is she dead? I sure hope not so. Otherwise, her author will kill me...**


	176. Underground Mysteries part 5

**Time to find out what happened to Skyler and what's gonna become of the four ninja birds and their monster friends.**

* * *

"Skyler! No! Where are you?!" Kowalski called in panic after his sister had disappeared into a flash.

"Kowalski! Get ready!" Lilly called with taking out her two katanas as the monsters who joined the giant spider were closing in on them.

Suddenly, the glowing orbs came back and Kowalski barely managed to duck them. They instead went straight at the spider monster who faded in a flash, just like Skyler. Their next target was Razorfist along with another monster who disappeared as well.

"Razorfist!" Sparky called in horror. "What's going on here?!"

Stonebiter was the next to get captured by the glowing orbs alongside another monster he was trying to fight off.

"Stonebiter!" Sparky called and then started swinging his nunchucks in anger. "Bastards! Come and fight!"

"It's not the time!" Lilly said with holding her younger brother back. "We need to retreat! No matter what's behind that door, it can't be worst than facing them!" she said with pointing at the monsters coming their way.

"I hope you're right," Sparky admitted before Quarry and the siblings retreated into the tunnel, Lilly removing the crystal to close the door behind them before to prevent the monsters from following them.

Once they were sure the door was solid enough to old back the monsters, Lilly, Quarry, Kowalski and Sparky turned around and walked deeper into the tunnel. Once they reached the exit, they found a pretty impressive sight.

They arrived into a huge cave with what seemed to be a closed and ancient city in the middle of a lake. There was a large tower in the middle of said city and a cluster of glowing crystals covering the cavern roof.

"W-We should not be here," Quarry said, trembling and backing up in fear. "It's an ancient metropole. The City of Death!"

"Okay, that's definitely scarier than a monster's movie," Sparky pointed out.

"We won't run away!" Lilly firmly said. "I don't know who took away our friends and sister, but they made a huge mistake!"

"We're gonna move this city around until we find her!" Kowalski declared, fury in his eyes.

Lilly led her three friends through a passage in the cave's wall which brought them on another side of the platform surrounding the city. There, as if fate was on their side, they found some kind of tram machine connected by a rope to the city. It looked like a vehicle designed specifically for that use.

"Huh...can we find another way to access the city?" Kowalski nervously asked.

"No need: it's perfect," Lilly optimistically said with kicking the vehicle which trembled and shook a bit. "...Okay, maybe not that much... fine, I go first."

She carefully stepped inside the open door of the machine, on her guards as she didn't wanted to fall into a trap and get to disappear like her sister and two friends. To her pleasure, nothing happened.

"Alright, no danger," she happily said and walked up the machine in the middle of the vehicle where there was a crystal-shaped hole. The spix macaw immediately understood what she had to do and took out her crystal.

GROWL!

Jumping she turned around at the same time as her friends to see the two remaining monsters they had locked behind the door coming their way. What the hell?! How did they broke through the door?

"Everyone inside! Quick!" Kowalski ordered as he, Sparky and Quarry all rushed inside the tram.

Lilly quickly plunged her crystal into the hole which activated the tram and closed the door before the monsters could come in. The engine then turned on and the rope started pulling them in direction of the city.

However, they were wrong to think they were safe. The two monsters jumped and landed on top of the tram, piercing a big hole through the roof and reaching for the four passengers inside. However, before they could touch them, the glowing flying orbs appeared again and made the two monsters disappear.

While the group had a multitude of questions going through their head, they realized the damage had already been done: the tram broke loose from the cable bringing them toward the city and was set falling down toward the lake below, making them scream in terror.

"EVERYBODY! JUMP OUT!" Lilly screamed.

The team did just that and, by some miracle, they actually managed to land on the coast of the city while the tram went to splash into the lake.

"Is everyone okay?" Lilly asked to which her friends nodded. "Alright, let's keep moving then."

The group walked around the feet of the city until they found an entry in the shape of a door. As they walked toward it, they couldn't help but look at the city's size.

"You see this? The same structure as our lair," Lilly mumbled.

"And they seem VERY old," Kowalski added.

"Hey, look," Lilly said as she spotted what looked like jet vehicles fitted with the city's technology near the entrance door. Curiosity being too strong, she planted a crystal into the hole which activated it. "Cool, that way, we'll go across the city faster. Come on."

* * *

Using their crystals, the four friends picked a jet vehicle each with Quarry getting with Sparky as there was only three of them and started riding across the city. There was many buildings and bridges, all made of the same material as their lair, but there was no sign of life anywhere. This city was completely abandoned.

"The people who have built this city are the same ones that built our lair," Lilly remarked, watching the city while driving.

"We need to focus on finding Sky for now. We'll make a touristic visit later," Kowalski pointed out.

However, Lilly suddenly made them stop. "Wait, halt! I saw something on the higher grounds." She drove ahead into a tunnel with her jet.

"Lilly! Wait!" Sparky called, but then a flash passed into the tunnel - the exact same one as when Sky disappeared.

"LILLY!" Sparky and Kowalski exclaimed in horror before running into the tunnel with their weapons. However, they didn't found their sister: only her jet now alone. They came too late.

"Lilly?! WHERE ARE YOU!" Kowalski screamed in panic.

"I don't think it's a good idea to scream like this," Sparky remarked. "She disappeared, like the others."

Kowalski angrily punched the wall before walking out of the tunnel with his brother. It was then that they realized someone else was missing. "Quarry?" Sparky asked.

they suddenly heard a grunt from the darkness behind them and screamed as they quickly turned around. "Wait, it's just me," their blue monster friend said with coming out.

"What are ya' doin' lurkin' around like that?" Kowalski asked, pressing a wing against his beating chest.

"Hiding. You... you left me alone."

"Man, mutate some backbone, would ya'?" Sparky asked with putting his wings on his hips.

The blue monster was about to respond...but then looked up and gasped. "There it is!" he said with pointing toward a dark figure at the distance.

"Hey! Come back here!" Kowalski shouted as the figure started walking away and followed it by jumping on his jet vehicle. However, a few seconds later, and another flash appeared.

"Great, Kow's gone too," Sparky sarcastically said.

"I warned you. I warned you all! Evil dwells in this dead city. We'll never get out alive!" Quarry panicked which caused Sparky to slap him across the face.

"Look, there's gonna be any hysterics around here, I'll have 'em!" he affirmed. "And I think it's gonna right now: he's here!" he exclaimed with pointing at the dark figure standing on top of a building, glancing down at them.

While Quarry was panicking, Sparky angrily glared and took out his kurasigama blade which he swung at the figure. However, it only dodged his attack and threw glowing orbs in his direction. However, they weren't destined to him and instead caught Quarry who disappeared in a flash at his turn.

"Quarry!" sparky exclaimed in horror before glaring back up at the figure. "GIVE ME MY FRIENDS AND SIBLINGS BACK!"

* * *

 **Great, now everyone have been captured except for Sparky. Can he save everyone or will he end up getting captured by this mysterious figure too? And if he succeeds, will he and his siblings discover the mystery behind this city?**


	177. Underground Mysteries part 6

**Time to conclude the Underground Mysteries story!**

* * *

Sparky was now the only one remaining after all his friends have been taken away by the glowing orbs. "Crap, it's like in the nightmare I made." Seeing nothing else to do, the young elf owl decided to head for the tower at the center of the city.

He reached it in a matter of minutes and entered by the entrance door. The first thing he found was the monsters he and his friends faced since entering the undergrounds. However, they were all trapped into ice and were not moving. There was even his friends!

"Razorfist?! Stonebiter?! Quarry!" he exclaimed in surprise after seeing them all. "What the hell's going on here?"

"Don't touch them!" a voice suddenly ordered, causing him to turn around in a split-second. "Please, don't touch anything. I'm not done with them yet."

The figure that came was a human male. His skin was pale white and his eyes red with orange irises. He had some brown-pale hair along the back of his head and was wearing a dark blue hoodie and robes that left only his right arm visible. This last one looked like it was made of machine.

His instincts kicking in as he recognized him as the figure that attacked them, Sparky went for a dive kick and knocked the intruder to the ground. He then pinned him to the ground and grabbed him by the collar.

"Tell me where are my siblings, baldy!" he ordered with a threatening tone.

"Sparky!" The elf owl stopped at that voice and turned around to be surprised by the arrival of his three siblings who were all smiling. "About time, we've been waiting for you," Lilly said.

"...What?" Sparky asked in complete confusion.

* * *

"We were completely wrong about him," Lilly explained her little brother after the stranger had brought them to the part of the tower that served as his room. There was some couches and a fire in the middle to keep them warm.

"Yeah; he actually wanted to help the monsters after learning that they had been genetically modified by Blood Talon and the Foots," Sky explained with pointing at the stranger.

"At the moment we're talking, the crystals I trapped them in are giving them a fixing energy," he explained with pointing at the crystals stuck to the ceiling above the city. "Their bodies are getting genetically fixed inside this structure. In a few minutes, they will have recovered their human appearance."

"Thanks a lot for all those precisions," Sparky said with crossing his wings. "But what's this city exactly?"

The stranger slowly moved his hoodie aside to reveal a crystal necklace resting on his chest. "This city has originally been created by an ancient pacific people. Unfortunately, I'm the only survivor..."

"We have been living here, in the underground, for millenniums. We were living in harmony with this earth so precious to us as we couldn't tolerate the rudeness of the outside world. One day, we detected life signals coming from the surface. New species appeared and we started studying them from our lair - this same lair that is yours today."

"As time passed by, a dark reality was looming over us: we were all going to disappear. Our two species unable to co-exist, our people have gone extinct. I'm the last one remaining..."

"I'm really sorry," Sky said with sympathy and walked toward the stranger. "How long have you been living down here?"

"For so long that my life have been reduced to a sea of loneliness. And this is why I want to give them back their human appearance: so that they can help me rebuild this underground city."

The siblings exchanged unsure look. "Hum, I wouldn't count on it, if I were you. Those people have a life on the surface - friends, family-"

"NO!" the stranger suddenly cut her off, aggressiveness in his tone. "They will stay here! they have to! I refuse to let this city die. they will stay...and you too."

'Uh...I'm afraid that..uh..being all alone down here for so long has driven this guy's mind slightly around the bend," Sky nervously mumbled to her siblings.

"We um...appreciate the invitation to live here with you in this wondrous world of yours, but-" Lilly tried to explain.

"Yes, it is wondrous. A world where even ninja birds can freely walk the streets. No more lurking in sewers, no more hiding your faces. And entire city where you can finally be yourselves," the stranger said.

"Let me put it this way: There's no way we're relocating to this creepoid community, understand? Now drop it," Kowalski firmly said after running out of patience.

The stranger glared at them. "Let's get out of here!" Sky said and they quickly headed for the exit. However, the stranger made his crystal necklace shine which caused the doors to shut before they could come out.

"Listen, you need to let us go!" Lilly tried to resonate the stranger once again.

"No! You cannot refuse my offer! You will stay here with me!" Using his power, he suddenly summoned tentacles made of rock that came out from the walls, ceiling and floor and grabbed all the ninjas, except Sparky.

"Sparky! Aim for his crystal!" Sky called to her brother.

"Alright!" Taking out his kurasigama blade and threw it right at the stranger, touching his crystal which broke into shards. the action caused the tentacles to disappear and release his siblings.

They grabbed the stranger and brought him to his icing machines where they trapped him into ice, freezing him off. "Good job, Sparky," Lilly congratulated her little brother.

"I know, I'm super awesome." He then looked sadly at the frozen stranger. "He wasn't a bad guy; he just felt alone. It wasn't his fault..."

"Let's free the others," Sky said with removing the crystals alimenting the machines that froze their friends. The ice fell into shards to reveal Quarry in his human form...or rather HER human form.

"Quarry?! You're a girl?!" Sparky asked in shock as he and Kowalski covered their eyes.

Indeed, Quarry was a human girl with dark blue hair...and she was naked. "I-I'm normal again," she happily remarked.

"...Let's go free the others," Sky simply said to break the awkward.

* * *

Later on, after all the monsters were back to their human selves, the four ninja birds led them to the city's exit in hopes of bringing them back to the surface. However, they all stopped before going of the city. "What's wrong?" Lilly asked them.

"...We cannot leave," Quarry said and pointed at the crystals up in the ceiling. "The stranger said that those crystals gave us the fixing energy. If we get out of their perimeter, their effects will cease to work and we'll turn into monsters again. We're forced to stay here..."

Lilly stepped forward with a look of determination. "We'll get you out of here, we promise."

"No, we cannot accept. You don't have to risk your lives for us," Quarry denied with her friends nodding in agreement.

"There's no way we're gonna abandon you here," Sparky firmly said.

Quarry looked down. "Listen, you don't belong here; you guys have a life up there. If there's a way out of here, we'll find it."

"I still got many crystals; I can find a cure," Sky assured. "And then we'll come back, you can count on us."

Quarry just gave a little smile. "...Thank you."

* * *

And so, after this long episode of finding mysteries in the underground, the four ninja birds returned up in the sewers and toward their lair. However, as they were getting close to their home, a strange noise alerted them and they immediately went to hide in the shadows.

They were surprised to see Foot ninjas walking through the tunnels with flashlights, as if searching for something. "Foot soldiers? What are they doing here?" Lilly asked.

Suddenly, Sparky got grabbed from behind and was about to shut only to get a wing on his beak. To his relief, the intruder was Master Yoshi who told him to not make any noise.

"Master Yoshi! What's going on?" Lilly asked in a whisper.

"I have no idea. But I think the Foots came searching for us in the sewers. They are everywhere," the old bird explained.

"Are you kidding me?" Kowalski asked in disbelief.

"We cannot return to the lair; we're gonna have to get somewhere else," the falcon continued.

Sky rubbed her chin and then snapped her feathers. "I know the perfect place."

* * *

Up at the surface, Tiny was resting on the couch of her apart, watching television on this Friday night. She then heard someone knocking at her window and went to open up. She was surprised to find her ninja friends standing there with innocent smiles.

"Guys? What are you doing here?" the little green bird asked.

"Hello, Tiny... Would you mind if we would stay with you for a certain time?" Sky asked with an unconvincing smile.

* * *

 **Well, that's it for the underground mysteries. However, I still have a few chapters for this arc before moving on to the next. Don't worry, we'll go back to the Blue Thunder Crew very soon.**

 **So Sparky tried to become a hero, they found an underground world they didn't even suspected existed, learned the origin of their lair, saw that the Foots did genetic experiments on humans to turn them into monsters and discovered an underground city that once belonged to an ancient species.**

 **That's a lot for only six chapter, don't you think?**


	178. The Drawer

_"Being a ninja bird, I've seen a lot crazy things in the past few years, but this really takes the prize. At first, I thought I was dreaming, then I wished I was. But this was no dream, this was definitely a nightmare."_

* * *

The ninja birds and Master Yoshi were discussing inside Tiny's apartment house, the same night they moved in as they needed a new home while the Foots were searching the sewers for their home.

"We need to go back down and make the Foots leave our sewers by any mean necessary!"' Kowalski declared with smashing a fist in his wing. He was currently standing up in the living room with Lilly.

"Calm down, Kow; we don't even know why they're here," Lilly tried to ease down her brother.

"I don't care!"

"You shouldn't!"

"My children," Master Yoshi said to get their attention. He was currently kneeling in a corner of the living room, trying to meditate. "You have stopped many plotting and defeated Blood Talon. It's evident that they are searching for our lair."

Meanwhile, Sparky and Sky were sitting together on two pillows in the living room as well. "I thought with Blood Talon gone we'd seen the last of those bozos. Do you really think they could find our lair? I just got my room the way I like it. And my famous ninja trading card collection is just lying out in the open! If they that, I'll-"

"Relax, Sparky," Sky said before her brother could get into a panic attack. "With all the techno camouflage and security devices I've installed, there's no way they'll find our place. BBQ soy chip?" she asked with offering him a potato chip from a bag.

"Fire away, sis," the elf owl replied with a smile, catching the chip in his beak and munching on it.

"We're not gonna let those ninjas prevent us from going back home!" Kowalski insisted. "We should go down and give them a good beatdown!"

"Charging into battle with no informations nor strategy is stupid," Yoshi deadpanned. "Sometimes, it is better to sit down and wait. Answers will come soon."

"Master Yoshi is right," Lilly said. "And besides, isn't home the place where we're all together? This is what matters."

they suddenly heard a coughing noise and turned to see Tiny glancing at them from the couch. "You guys are all welcome to stay at my home as long as you don't stand before the tv while I'm trying to watch it."

It was then that the two siblings realized they were standing in front of the working television. "Oh, sorry, Tiny," they quickly apologized with moving out of the way for the green bird to see.

Suddenly, someone came knocking at the door. "Who can that be?" Tiny wondered with getting up and walking to the door. She opened to reveal a young crow holding a bag of Chinese food.

"Your command has arrived. It's 15$," he said.

"Huh? Command? what are you talking-" Tiny started but got interrupted by Lilly.

"Thanks, we appreciate that you came so fast," she said with giving the money to the crow and taking the bag. "Have a safe trip back," she added with quickly closing the door.

"...I didn't knew it was costume night," the deliver crow remarked before leaving the apart.

"You ordered food?" tiny asked with rising an eyebrow.

"Yup!" Sparky nodded as he took out the four box of warm noodles and shared them with his siblings. "We heard that this restaurant makes the best noodles around." They started digging in their food, spilling some of it on the floor.

"May I have the privilege of getting you anything else, m'lords?" Tiny sarcastically asked.

"No, we're fine. Thanks," Sky replied, her beak full.

Tiny pushed a big sigh. "I feel like I've gone from happily single to mother of four overnight."

"Tell me about it," Master Yoshi said with an annoyed look.

Once he was done eating, Kowalski stood up and stretched with a loud yawn. "Alright, I'm gonna go take a shower."

* * *

Later on, as Sparky was calmly eating chips on the couch, Sky was making sure Metal turtle was in good shape and Lilly was watching tv with Tiny, Kowalski came out of the bathroom, all wet with a towel around his waist and some steam coming out.

"Yo Sky! Can ya' do somethin' about the hot water? A bird can't even take a decent shower in this joint," he called.

"Been there, done that," Sky replied.

"Well go there, and do it again!" Kowalski insisted.

" Why is it always me? Why don't you ask Sparky to fix something once in a while?" They then looked toward Sparky who just kept eating his chips, not listening to the conversation. Sky sighed annoyingly and stood up. "Fine, I'll do it!"

"Thanks, Sky, that's really nice," Tiny told her friend.

"No probs, Tiny," Sky replied as she walked toward the exit door.

"Just be careful around Kirby, the guy to whom I just bought the basement apart. No need to scare the new lodger."

"Don't worry; I'm a ninja. Not getting seen is my specialty," Sky assured.

And so, the elf owl opened the door and walked down the staircase to the basement. The place was dark and smelly.

"This place would need a decorator," Sky mumbled as she turned a light switch on to illuminate the place. "And an exterminator," she added as she saw many spider webs in a corner.

However, a shadow suddenly passed before her. "What's that?" she asked as the shadow revealed itself to be some kind of little harpy. It pushed a loud screech before disappearing into the turning corner of the hallway.

"What was that?" Sky took her bo staff out for security measure and walked down the hallway. She didn't found the monster anywhere, but she spotted an half-open door with some light coming out of it.

Curiosity getting the best of her, she walked to the door and peaked inside. She saw a little room with nothing special except a little bed and a male bat sitting on a chair and before a drawing boar. He had black fur and yellow eyes. He seemed to currently be working on a drawing.

"It must be Tiny's new lodger," Sky thought. "I wonder what he's doing?"

He finished drawing some kind of fly on his sketchbook. It was then that something supernatural happened: _the drawing came out of the sketchbook_ and started flying around the room. How did he do that?!

The little fly flew pass Sky and out of the room. This caused the bat to notice her. "Huh? A ninja? Strange, I don't remember drawing you," he remarked with rubbing his chin. "Or you came to take your crystal back?" he asked, revealing that the pencil he used to draw had indeed a pink crystal tied to it.

"Listen, I haven't done anything wrong. I'll give it back to you, but please, put your staff down," the bat asked with getting up from his chair and backing up.

"Wait, wait, don't be afraid," Sky said with rising her wing. "I know I might look strange, but I don't intend on harming you." She putted her bo staff away. "My name is Skyler, call me Sky. I don't see which crystal you're talking about. However, I'd like to know you did what you just did."

The bat seemed to trust her, calming down and showing her his pencil. "Well, actually, I'm not responsible for much. Sure, I do the drawings, but it's this crystal that makes them come to life. The magic comes from it."

"Seriously? Another crystal?" Sky mumbled to herself.

The bat rose an eyebrow. "I don't understand."

"No, nothing. It's just that I got a feeling like I'm always getting cornered by magic crystals these times," Sky admitted.

"You should try it too. Wait, I'm gonna get you a new page," the bat said and turned toward his sketchbook, flipping the pages, looking for a blank one.

"Say, doesn't my appearance freak you out a little?" Sky asked.

"Fella, since my sketches started leapin' off the page, I've seen freakier, believe me," the bat replied. "Oh, by the way, name's Kirby," he said with extending his wing for a shake.

"Nice to meet you, Kirby," Sky said with a smile as she shook his wing. "But say, where exactly did you find this crystal?"

"It might sound crazy, but I actually found it in a pile of coal. I discovered its powers afterwards. Here, try drawing something," Kirby said with handing the pencil to Sky.

"I won't miss the opportunity," she said with taking the tool and sitting down on the chair and before the sketchbook. "I wonder if there's some sort of bio-molecular energy transfer involved...?"

"Sky, just draw something," Kirby interrupted his friend before she could get too deeply into a science theory.

"Haha, okay. But I'm afraid a stick person is the best I can do," the elf owl admitted and draw just that.

Exactly with the previous drawing, her stick person took life and jumped out of the sketchbook. He laughed and jumped all around the room.

"Wow! Incredible!" Sky exclaimed in awe.

"Told ya," Kirby said with a chuckle as the little stick figure walked over to Sky's feet and kicked her in both kidneys.

"Ouch!" she groaned in pain and was about to stomp on the little character. However, it faded away into dust before she could. "Huh? He disappeared."

"Yes, they all do. Everything that I draw take life and disappear after a few seconds," Kirby explained. "However, there is one exception. Something I drawn two weeks ago. It did not disappear."

He walked over to a corner where a blanket was covering something. He removed it to reveal some kind of futuristic door with a portal in the middle of it.

"What's that?" Sky asked, not expecting to see such a thing in here.

"I have no idea," Kirby replied.

"It looks like some kind of portal," Sky remarked as she stepped forward and plunged her wing into the portal. She removed it, glad to see her limb unarmed. "This is very strange..."

The elf owl decided to take her courage into hands (or wings) and stepped inside the portal. "Sky!" Kirby called for her out of fear. "You hear me?!"

Luckily, she came out seconds after, a huge smile on her face. "Kirby! You've gotta see this! You won't believe your eyes!"

"...Okay, why not. Just let me grab my sketchbook," the bat said with putting his magical pencil over his ear and then grabbing his precious sketchbook.

Sky then grabbed his wing and brought him inside the portal.

* * *

Kirby screamed as they fell down and landed onto a grassy ground. "Sorry, I forgot to mention we were going to fall from high," Sky apologized as she helped her bat friend stand up.

It was then that they took a good look at the landscape around them. They were standing in some kind of green hill zone with the sky all purple, other planets visible in the sky, and some strange city accessible via a rainbow bridge in the distance.

"What's this place?!" sky asked, visibly confused. "This looks like some kind of parallel dimension."

Kirby looked around curiously as well. "This place looks familiar to me..." It was then that something clicked in his head. "Wait! Look!"

He opened his sketchbook to reveal a drawing of the exact same place on two pages.

"I drew this place!" He revealed.

"Really?!" Sky exclaimed in surprise. She then saw someone walking nearby. "Hey, what's that?"

It was some kind of dark green muscled monster with a white beard and a barbaric look.

"Isn't that one of the monsters you drew in your sketchbook?"

Kirby looked into his book and found a drawing. "Yes, it is. I remember drawing him. Let's follow him!"

The two friends secretly followed the monster. To their surprise, he was joining many more monsters like him toward the rainbow bridge leading to the floating city.

"What's going on here?" Sky asked.

* * *

 **The four ninja birds and Master Yoshi moved in with Tiny and are trying to adjust to the life in apartment. Sky met a new friend with the power to give life to his drawings and are now inside a world he created. This sounds fun, right?**

 **The character of Kirby is inspired by comic book legend Jack Kirby who created famous characters like the Avengers, Fantastic 4, Captain America, Hulk, Thor, etc, alongside Stand Lee. Rest in peace, King!**


	179. The Drawer part 2

**Time for the adventure in the imaginary world to continue!**

* * *

Sky and Kirby watched from a distance to see the weird monsters rushing toward four strangely garbed human warriors. There was one with reddish hair and beard wearing two golden staff and armor. Another one with the same traits but in light blue and holding a metal hammer. the third one was dressed in a red superhero outfit with a mask and some kind of shield. The fourth one was pretty similar but in pink and with golden horns on his mask.

They were valiantly trying to fight off the monsters, but were clearly outnumbered and outmatched. No matter how many monsters they managed to take down, there was always another one to take its place and press on the attack. "YOU SHALL NOT PASS!" the one with the hammer screamed before tossing his weapon at a monster which created a thunder explosion and knocked many monsters back.

 **(I bet you already know what this phrase references XD)**

"We must do something!" Kirby exclaimed as the four warriors were getting weak and the monsters were closing in.

"Stay here; I'm taking care of it!" Sky told him with taking her bo staff out and charging into battle.

She jumped and delivered a dive kick to the closest monster before whipping the others away with her weapon. A monster tried to claw her, but she dodged and smashed him in the face. Another one closed in, only for the elf owl to knock him off his feet with her staff.

The warriors started getting back up and noticed the unexpected help in work. "Who is this strange creature helping us?" the reddish-beared man asked.

"I don't know, but let's not let her face those monsters on her own!" the hammer guy said and the four heroes charged at Sky's sides, helping her fend off the monsters.

With their combined forces, the monsters were no match and eventually decided to run away in defeat. "Victory!" the heroes cheered victoriously.

"I came. I saw. I kicked monster butt!" Sky happily said with putting her bo staff away as Kirby joined her.

"Skyler, you're fighting in a awesome way! I've never seen anything like this!" Kirby complimented her. "Well, except maybe in cartoons."

"Thank you, strangers!" the red beard warrior said as he came with his friends and patted Sky's shoulder.

"Hum, hello, warrior?" the elf owl responded, unsure.

"Be welcome, my friends. We are the only ones opposing the strength of darkness that we defeated thanks to your help. You have all of our gratefulness. But we must get prepared as they will return."

"In that case, we'll just have to welcome them; I'm barely getting warmed up," Sky happily said with showing some martial arts moves.

"Maybe, but they will be more numerous," the warrior deadpanned. "So numerous that we won't be able to hold them all back. And when they will have defeated us, nothing will stop them from crossing the bridge and destroy our city! I cannot accept that those monsters will destroy our beautiful town and hurt our families! Those things will destroy everything we cherish..."

"We will stop them!" Sky affirmed with determination.

"Yes; we will help you fight back!" Kirby nodded with throwing a fist in the air.

The hammer one then looked at the distance and widened his eyes. "This is a good thing: here they come! They are thousands!" Everybody turned to see a huge legion of monsters like the ones they just defeated running toward them...and they didn't looked happy at all.

"We must defend the bridge at any cost!" red beard declared. "The fate of our city depends of our success!"

"In that case, let's not let them through!" Sky said with rising her bo staff. She got a bit nervous as the monsters were closing in and leaned toward Kirby. "Man, you drew all of them, Kirby?"

"Yes; I admit I always had too much imagination," the bat admitted with rubbing the back of his head.

"Couldn't you draw more good guys?" Sky asked.

"Hey, I couldn't know they would become real and attack us," the bat defended himself.

"If they cross the bridge, everything's lost!" red beard said.

The heroes' last stand finally started as the monsters arrived and they started knocking them off. While the superheroes were using their strength and weapons to fight them off, Sky swiftly used her bo staff to take them down one-by-one before they could overwhelm them.

Kirby had to stay back as he couldn't do much to help. Instead, he decided to have a look into his sketchbook as he started formulating an idea. However, his thoughts were interrupted as Sky was suddenly knocked down at his feet, groaning in pain.

"Sky! Are you okay?"

"Well, some help would be welcome," she admitted as her bat friend helped her back up. She then saw three monsters running their way and quickly got in her fighting stance again. "There's too many of them!" she said with charging into the monsters.

While she fought, Kirby scratched the side of his head and finally came with an idea. "I know!" Taking his magic pencil and sketchbook, he turned on a blank page and made a drawing of Skyler but with a little something special.

The elf owl took down five monsters in a row and started getting tired. And even more kept coming at her! However, something strange happened: a light started shining over her right wing and before long, an item formed over it. Some kind of metal gauntlet gun.

"What's that?!" she asked in surprised while looking at the gauntlet gun over her right wing.

"I called it the Zero Gravity Gauntlet Gun!" Kirby informed her. "It shoots beams that negatives the effects of gravity and send your opponents floating! I just created it!"

"I feel like I'm gonna have the time of my life!" Sky said and turned back toward the monsters.

Rising her new weapon, she started shooting little laser shots which touched the monsters and sent them levitating off in the air.

"It works!" Sky exclaimed and them smirked. "Eat negative gravity, you loser!" She kept shooting at all the monsters, sending them up toward the purple sky.

After sending many monsters off, she smirked and blew the smoke off from the gun on her wing. "The Zero Gravity Gauntlet Gun. Don't leave home without it."

Just then, another monster came her direction. She smirked and rose her gauntlet gun to shoot at him...only for no laser to come out of her weapon which instead blew smoke.

"Huh? My weapon is broken!" she realized in horror as the monster tried to grab her. she ducked and instead used her gauntlet gun to deliver a violent right to his face, knocking him down. "Cool, it can even serve as a boxing gauntlet."

However, it was then that she realized that her superhero friends were getting tired from the fight as more and more monsters kept coming.

"They keep coming! Can't you do anything else?!" Sky asked Kirby who was currently drawing something in his sketchbook.

"Wait, I'm just adding a few more details and...we're done!" he said.

Suddenly, something materialized underneath them. It was some kind of giant yellow robot straight out of a Michael Bay movie.

"Wow! Too cool, Kirby! How did you called this one?" Sky asked him while looking down at the robot.

"Let's call him the monster Fighter," Kirby replied. "I can control him with my mind: look!"

Focusing, the bat made the robot rise his arms and smash many monsters away at once. This proven to be useful to take down the many monsters coming at them.

"Excellent, Kirby! Keep up like this: I'm going back at it!" Sky said and jumped down from the robot, kicking two monsters down before reaching the ground.

"Monsters managed to pass! We gotta stop them!" red beard suddenly called, pointing at some monster who started running up the rainbow bridge toward the floating city.

Sky tried to run at them, but three monsters tackled her down to the ground. And the others were getting overwhelmed as well because of fatigue from fighting for too long.

"Crap!" Kirby said as he saw his friends getting neutralized below. "I must do something!" An idea then popped into his mind and he opened his sketchbook again. "If those monsters are all into my sketchbook... Yes! I got it!"

The bat took his magic pencil and started drawing as fast as he could. "Come on, come on...DONE!"

Just as he said that, the monsters all found themselves getting bound! Kirby had drawn various forms of bindings to thwart the invading army - good thing he could draw so fast! Sky and the warriors realized it and were relieved to be saved after getting so close to get killed.

"Victory!" the superheroes cheered in joy. they then walked toward the robot on which Kirby was standing. "Thank you, brave warrior. Thanks to you, our city is safe! You will always be welcome here!"

"Thank you, Majesty," Kirby replied with blushing and coming down his robot.

"Kirby, my friend. You are the king!" Sky complimented the bat with walking up to him and putting her bo staff away. "How did you do that?"

"As fast as I could," he replied with showing the drawings of monsters trapped in bounds inside his sketchbook. The two then laughed.

"Come on, let's go back home," Sky said and bringing Kirby toward the portal they came through.

"...I don't know if I really wanna leave. This place is marvelous!" Kirby sadly admitted while walking alongside his friend.

"We can always come back another time," Sky said with wrapping a wing around the bat's shoulders. "How about we go get a snack? I'm super-hungry."

Suddenly, the portal door they found started shaking. "The door!" Sky exclaimed.

"It's getting smaller!" Kirby realized. "Quick! Go ahead! I'll be right behind you!"

"But-" Sky said.

"It's no time to discuss! Hurry up!"

The elf owl looked between her friend and the portal...before nodding and jumping inside. She landed back into Kirby's room. however, upon turning around, she saw in horror that the portal was too small for Kirby to go back through. just before it totally disappeared, a little paper flew through.

"Kirby! No!" Sky called, falling on her knees in sadness. She then turned toward the paper and looked at it. It was written: "Sky, life at better is bitter sweet. See ya around, pal!- Kirby" There was a drawing of Sky with her Zero Gravity Gauntlet Gun added.

Sky just starred at the paper for a moment before smiling and whipping a tear away. Her friend was gone, but not dead. "I wonder how he managed to write and draw this in a matter of seconds," she mumbled with looking at the fourth wall with a giggle.

The elf owl putted the paper to her belt before walking out of the room and back toward the apart. "At least, he'll have to explore the world he created himself," she mumbled to herself. As she arrived at the staircases, she was surprised to see Kowalski standing there, waiting for her with his towel still tied around his waist.

"There you are, Sky! What took you so long?" he asked.

"You wouldn't believe me if I tell you," she replied with a giggle.

"Did you at least fixed the hot water?"

Sky widened her eyes and then chuckled nervously. "Well..."

* * *

 **It was a fun ride, but every good thing have an end. I hope you're not too sad for Kirby. Once again, rest in peace, King! (the one in real life, not the one in here; the one in here is still alive)**

 **Now, I'd say there's around only four chapters left before the end of this arc. And on a side note, my story have passed the line of 600 reviews! I don't write for reviews, but do you realize? It's the third one in the whole Rio fandom history to accomplish this. The other two being "Rio The Darkness 5" by Ricardo The Black Hawk and "Medieval Adventures" by AlexRioLover92.**

 **THANK YOU ALL, OWL LOVERS!**


	180. The Foot Clan strikes back

_"There are times in your life when you draw on everything you have. Times when you reach down into the deepest part of yourself. When you know you gotta give it your all, because anything less won't get the job done. It's in times like these that you find out who you really are. That is, if you live long enough."_

* * *

It has been now two days and nights since the ninjas moved in at Tiny's apartment. It was currently early morning (thought it was still dark outside) and everybody was sleeping in the living room while Tiny was sleeping in her own room. Sparky, Kowalski and Sky were sharing the big couch while Master Yoshi was just kneeling on the smaller one with his eyes closed.

However, he soon got awoken by a noise. "Your early morning training?" he asked to Lilly who opened the apart's window without turning to look at her.

"Yes, Sensei. I take opportunity of the fact that the whole city is asleep," the spix macaw replied.

"So much discipline is very admirable," the old falcon remarked with finally getting up from the couch and turning toward his daughter. "Have fun." However, just as Lilly was about to leave, he added: "I hope you are not planning on going back alone to the lair, Lilly."

The spix macaw remained still for a moment before turning around with an innocent smile. "And why would I do that? Because there are many Foot ninjas down in the sewers that are preventing us from going back home and forcing us to hide cowardly in Tiny's apartment?" she asked with a bit of venom in her voice which her sensei didn't failed to notice.

"You are asking a question that isn't even one," the old falcon said with shaking his head. "If we want to overcome the Foots, we must work altogether, like a great team. Not in our own individual side, Lilly."

"Yes, I know, Master," Lilly said with looking down before rising her head. "But I'm pretty curious: I wonder what the Foot ninjas are planning."

"Be patient, my daughter," Yoshi said with putting a wing on her shoulder. "I have a feeling we will discover it soon enough." He walked back to the couch to sit down and, by the time he turned around, Lilly was already gone...

* * *

Thought it was early morning, the sky was covered by a wall of dark clouds that indicated a storm was probably nearby. Lilly was running from one roof to another, making sure to keep her cardio balanced with a good parkour run.

Eventually, she felt something following her and immediately got on her guards. She turned around just in time to kick an upcoming Foot ninja in the face, knocking him away. She then realized there was three more with him and they were all holding a katana in wings. So she decided to take out one of her own.

Just as she thought they were gonna attack, she heard a noise and spotted more Foot ninjas coming from the other side of the rooftop. Fighting them all on her own would be risky at this point. Seeing no other options, the spix macaw instead grabbed a cable line above her and used her katana to cut it off, sending her falling to a farther rooftop.

As soon as she landed, she started running away from her followers with an already bigger advance on them.

* * *

Back at the apartment, everyone was still sleeping peacefully...until Sparky suddenly jumped up and shouted: "BEANS!" This caused Sky to jump up and kick her brother in the face.

"What's going on?!" Kowalski asked as he jumped up with his sais out, ready to fight.

"Hum, sorry; I kinda dreamed that I was making beans and someone tried to steal them away from me," Sparky explained with rubbing his face in pain from Sky's kick.

There was a long pause during which everyone just starred at the elf owl. "Words fail me," Kowalski said with putting his sais away.

He then walked toward the bathroom to take a shower, but Sparky jumped pass him and closed the door. "Sorry: gotta be faster, bro!" Kowalski just groaned in frustration and facewinged himself.

Later on, after finishing his shower, Sparky got in the kitchen and started making eggs (artificial ones; not real ones) for breakfast. Tiny came out of her bedroom and let out a big yawn while stretching.

"Hello, everyone." She suddenly smelled something. "Hey, what's burning?"

"Sparky's cooking," Kowalski, Sky and Master Yoshi replied at unison from the living room.

Indeed, Sparky was cooking breakfast when the yolks in the pan broke; he began to stir up the eggs. "Huh. Scrambled's okay with everybody, right?" he nervously asked.

"Again?!" everyone asked at unison.

"By the way, where's Lilly? I didn't see her, this morning," the elf owl remarked.

"He went out to make his usual early morning training," Master Yoshi replied while sitting in a meditation position.

"I hope she'll be back soon; the sky is very dark," Sky remarked with looking out the window and toward the cloudy sky where lightning started flashing.

* * *

Speaking of which, the ninja spix macaw stopped on a rooftop, taking a little break as she ran a lot. She panted, but thought she had escaped her followers.

Of course, she had to be wrong; six Foot ninjas jumped down before her. They all had katanas and didn't seemed to have come to mess around. "Okay, looks like running won't lead me anywhere," Lilly thought with taking out her second katana out.

There was a long pause disturbed by nothing else but the sound of the city and the lightning flashing above them. Eventually, the Foots charged, but Lilly was ready for them, jumping on them one-by-one and ending with a double dive kick to two of the group.

She easily disposed of them in a matter of seconds with a few katana swings and kicks. That was easy...too easy. It wasn't like the Foots to give so simple challenges.

Just as she expected, more Foot ninjas appeared on all the rooftops around her, leaving her with no way out. As if by coincidence, the lightning flashed again and the rain finally started to fall. It took only a few seconds before the whole city as well as the birds about to clash were all wet.

the dark figures all remained immobile, stalking their prey they were about to jump on. They could come, the "prey" was ready to welcome them...

* * *

Back at the apart, Sparky was cleaning the dishes before tossing them at Kowalski who caught and putted them down on the table in order. Tiny saw this and widened her eyes.

"No! Don't toss it like that!" Unfortunately, she caused a distraction which made Kowalski miss the next plate that went crashing and break onto the floor.

"Kids...," Master Yoshi sighed while shaking his head in annoyance. He was currently in the living room, reading the newspaper.

"We're sorry, Tiny," Sparky said.

"Yes, you got...some glue?" Kowalski nervously asked.

"No need; I realize that it's very hard for six person to share a so small apartment," the green bird replied with sitting down on a chair around the table.

"Don't worry, Tiny; I promise we won't stay for long," Sky assured with putting a wing on her friend's shoulder.

"Don't get me wrong: I like you all. I'm just not used to have so much people in my apart," the green bird explained herself.

"We perfectly understand, Tiny," Yoshi assured as he came to sit down in the kitchen as well. "We will go back home as soon as the Foots will have left our lair."

Sparky then arrived and brought plates of burned toasts and scrambled eggs on the table along with a bottle of jam. "Bon appétit!"

Just after he said that, he, Kowalski and Sky started eating with little to no manners at all. "So, one would think that table manners were a part of their training...?" tiny asked in disgust.

"One would think," Yoshi sarcastically said with an annoyed look on his face.

* * *

The Foot ninjas jumped down on the same rooftop as Lilly and started clashing their weapons against her katanas. Luckily, thanks to her harder training, the spix macaw was able to stand on her own, knocking down the ninjas one-by-one.

Once they were all down, she took a moment to catch her breath and let the rain cool her down a bit. Those guys were probably idiots to think they could take her down with so little striking force.

However, just as she was about to leave, three intruders appeared on another rooftop. She took a good look at them and gasped as she recognized them: birds wearing dark blue robotic armors with orange google eyes.

Cyber Foot Ninjas.

They all jumped down on the same rooftop as her and glanced at the macaw (even thought it wasn't visible because of their googles). Just as Lilly readied her katanas, the Cyber ninjas activated their camouflage system and became invisible.

Great! Just what she needed!

Lilly got on her guards, trying to guess where the invisible ninjas would strike from. Eventually, she received a punch out of nowhere right to her beak, making her fall on her knees. Cursing in her head, she jumped up and tried to kick her attacker, only to touch nothing but the wind and the rain.

Groaning angrily, she kept swinging her katanas and kicking in random spots, only to touch nothing. In comparison, the strikes kept coming at her and she eventually found herself knocked to the wet floor.

Her situation looked hopeless...

* * *

 **This is no good! Lilly is under attack and the Cyber foot ninjas are overwhelming her! Can she find a way to get out of this situation before getting beaten down to a blood pulp?**


	181. The Foot Clan strikes back part 2

**Lilly's fight continues!**

* * *

Things were not looking good for Lilly the ninja spix macaw. She was getting attacked by Cyber Foot Ninjas and, with no way to spot them, she could only receive their attacks. Actually, she received so many that she started having blues on her wet skin.

However, fate seemed to be on her side as she realized something: the steps that her opponents took were visibly in the water left on the floor by the rain. This gave her an idea. She turned her purple bandana around her eyes so that they were covered. Now that she couldn't see anything, she could focus her other senses to feel her enemies approaching.

She focused deeply, trying to hear or smell the ninjas. This worked as she managed to land a successful spin kick to a nearby ninja, knocking him to the wet floor. Not taking time to celebrate her victory, she once again got on her guards, trying to sense the remaining two.

She sensed a katana swing coming and blocked it with her own. She then replied with a swing by herself which touched the cyborg's armor, causing his camouflage to get destroyed (thought Lilly couldn't see it) and kicked him under the jaw, knocking him down.

Only one remaining. She listened carefully and heard stepping noises through the rain. Eventually, she jumped and performed a dive kick right into the invisible ninja's camouflage system, knocking him to the ground. The spix macaw then putted her bandana back in position to see all three Cyber Foot Ninjas now visible laying down on the wet floor.

She just gave a bow of respect (without having any real one for those cowards) and walked away. There was more and more lightnings flashing in the sky and they were getting more violent with time. The rain was also falling harder. The first thing she would do, once she would get back at the apartment, will be to take a warm shower.

But of course, this will have to wait as FIVE Cyber Foot Ninjas arrived and blocked her path. "Come on, gimme a break!" Lilly angrily thought as she took her katanas out once again.

However, just as the cyborgs were about to attack, a bigger and slightly familiar figure appeared behind them, causing them to stop and turn around. They moved out of the way and bowed in respect to...Dragon Face!

Lilly widened her eyes in shock as the giant, muscled raven slowly stepped in her direction, cracking his knuckles as the ninjas stepped back to give them space. Lilly soon turned her look of surprise into a glare and made a wing sign to tell him to get closer.

Falling into the trap, he pushed a growl and ran forward, only for Lilly to jump pass him on the other side of the roof. She smirked and teasingly did the same wing gesture to tell him to come. Gettin impatient, he ripped a pipe off and charged, swinging it at the spix macaw,

She dodged the pipe and also blocked it with her katanas. However, Dragon Face ended up landing a good smash on the macaw, sending her crashing into the rooftop's wall. She groaned in pain and landed with a big thud. The big raven slowly walked toward, lightning flashing behind him as he rose the pipe, ready to finish her off with it.

However, the young ninja refused to go down so easily and swiftly rolled out of the way before grabbing Dragon Face's head and smashing it hard into a chimney. the impact was so strong that it caused a crack and stunned the raven so hard that he dropped his pipe. The chimney was so damaged that it collapsed on the giant before he could recover.

Lilly smirked and turned toward the Cyber Foot ninjas who were visibly shocked to see their leader getting taken down and jumped off the rooftop. Sighing in exhaustion, Lilly putted her katanas away and ran off the rooftop before any more Foots could come attack her again.

* * *

Back at the apartment, Sparky and Kowalski were watching football on tv. " Panthers! Rams! Bears! Eh, they even got Dolphins! You'd think they'd have room for something a little more...avian?" the barn owl annoyingly said.

"Sorry, but birds are not very popular around here," Sky remarked from the table where she was polishing Metal turtle.

"...Say what?"

Sparky suddenly stepped in front of the tv. "May I have your attention please." Everybody marked a pause and looked at him.

The young elf owl suddenly let out a loud burp that lasted extremely long. Once he was done, 10 seconds later, he bowed heartily.

"Cool," Kowalski and Sky said as they clapped for him.

"Ewww!" Tiny exclaimed in disgust.

"This is what I live with all the time.," Master Yoshi annoyingly remarked.

"Please, please, you're too kind!" Sparky said with a proud smile.

"...I can't believe I just clapped for that," Sky remarked as Kowalski nodded in agreement.

Kowalski suddenly got up from the couch. "Alright, I have enough! I'm gonna go get Lilly! Not that I hate being here, but I'm impatient to go back to the lair! I have enough waiting!"

Master Yoshi gave him a firm glare. "You are not going anywhere until your sister is back! Sit down!"

Kowalski angrily sighed and sat back on the couch. "This is unfair! We gotta stay here doing nothing while Lilly is outside having fun."

* * *

Except she wasn't. The spix macaw was still running from one roof to another under the heavy rain, desperate to return to the apartment before she could get attacked again. However, fatigue was starting catching up to her and she couldn't run as fast as usual. And this storm wasn't helping either!

She gave a quick look behind her and was shocked to see more ninja figures following her. She tried to run faster. If she was surrounded again, she wasn't sure to be able to make it out alive this time. It wasn't time for her legs to give up!

Then, to her horror, she ended in a dead end with no more roof to jump on. She trembled in fear as she slowly turned around to see many Foots, Cyber Foots, and Dragon Face (with some bruises) cornering her on this very rooftop. She was trapped.

Lilly panted in exhaustion as the Foots moved out of the way, allowing Dragon Face to step forward once again. Despite the rain cooling her body down, the spix macaw had a burning feeling inside. the wind was blowing really hard through her wet feathers and lightnings kept shining over the city.

Having enough, she pushed a piercing cry that broke through the sound of lightning and took out her two katanas, jumping into action. Using all the power of despair, she clashed her blades against the Foots and knocked them down one by one with violent blows. There was no point of holding back at this point.

Eventually, Dragon Face had enough and decided to jump into action, only for Lilly to uppercut him so hard under the jaw that he was sent flying and crash into a water pool. Adrenaline could really create awesome accomplishments!

"You!" the giant angrily growled as he stood up and whipped blood from his beak. He was about to attack again...before looking up and suddenly smirking. He laughed and then backed away from a confused Lilly.

The young spix macaw rose a curious eyebrow and then turned around in the direction they were looking in...to widen her eyes in surprise. On another rooftop were standing four crows wearing red scarfs around their neck which were dancing in the wind, the Foot symbol tattooed on their abdomen and rice hats on their head. They had pure blood red eyes and were holding a different weapon each: a double bladed sword, an axe, a trident, and a spear.

They had looks of pure hatred and blood lust in their eyes and the lightning flashing behind them gave them an even scarier look. Time seemed to flow slowly and Lilly felt like she had been starring at those four figure for an eternity.

Understanding they were not gonna let her go, Lilly once again summoned the power of despair and jumped toward those four warriors with her katanas. However, just as she was about to cut them down, they faded into smoke and disappeared.

The spix macaw looked in confusion before seeing them re-appear below at Dragon Face's side. Suddenly, everyone - Dragon Face, the Foots, the four strange warriors, and the Cyber Foot Ninjas - turned in the same direction and bowed in respect.

Lilly once again rose her eyebrow in confusion before looking in the same direction...and felt her heart stop.

This metal armor...those blades...this figure... It couldn't be!

While Lilly was shocked looking at the figure on the other roof, the four warriors suddenly appeared around her again. Before she could react, one of them kicked her in the stomach, knocking the wind out of her, and another one smashed the back of her head. This caused her to fall on her limbs.

The four warriors started giving her the beating of her life, smashing, kicking, cutting, piercing her down before she could get back up. No matter what she did, the poor spix macaw could just not get back up. The fights she went through since earlier tired everything she had and the pain she was enduring right now was just too much for her.

Coughing blood, she realized she was lost...

* * *

Back at the apartment, it was starting getting late. Two hours have passed and Lilly still wasn't back. Her siblings and father were getting worried.

"I'm worried for Lilly," Sparky voiced up while rubbing his wings nervously.

"Sparky's right; she's been gone for two hours now," Sky said, taking out her bo staff

"What do you say, Master Yoshi?" Kowalski asked as they all turned toward their sensei.

The old falcon looked down and he couldn't deny he too was worried for his daughter. He sighed before looking up. "Go."

The three siblings smiled and walked toward the window.

CLANG!

...which broke into shards as something flew right through it and landed right in the middle of the living room. To everybody's shock and horror it was none other than Lilly. She was badly beaten, covered of bruises and so much blood that it formed a small pond on the floor. She was barely conscious.

"LILLY!" everyone exclaimed in horror and rushed at her side. "You're okay?! Talk to me!" Kowalski said in panic as he picked his sister in his wings.

The spix macaw groaned in pain as she struggled to open up her eyes. Since she could not answer, her brother stood up and angrily walked toward the broken window, taking his sais out.

"Whoever did this to you is gonna pay!"

"No... Wait...," Lilly weakly said, holding her wing toward her brother. The barn owl quickly walked back at her side. "He's back...Blood...Talon..." Lilly then sighed and fainted.

Silence fell into the apartment. We couldn't hear anything but the sound of wind blowing through the broken window.

* * *

On a nearby roof, the four guards with rice hats bowed and gave Lilly's katanas to Blood Talon. The armored raven took them and admired their blades. He then rose them over his head and with superhuman strength, broke them in half, leaving their shards to scatter on the floor. The evil mastermind then laughed maniacally, as the thunderstorm raged on all around...

* * *

 **Man, I think this is the first time I push a character to their extreme limits in this story since Blu faced Risky Boots. Lilly really went through a rough time: she practically faced the whole Foot Clan (safe for Blood Talon) all by herself.**

 **The fight is not over yet: the group is still in danger. With Lilly out of action (and mortally wounded) as well as having lost her katanas, the group will have to run away from their foes before it's too late!**


	182. The Foot Clan strikes back part 3

_"The worst has come to pass. My daughter Lilly was out on a training exercise when she was ambushed and chased across the city by the dark forces of the Foot. She was returned to us broken and battered, only to deliver a terrible message:_

 _"He's back...Blood...Talon..."_

 _"I had foolishly thought the worst had come to pass, but now I fear it is yet to come..."_

* * *

The cold wind of the thunderstorm was still flying inside Tiny's apartment by the broken window Lilly has been launched through.

"What?! What did he just say?!" Tiny asked in surprised.

"He said Blood Talon is back," Sparky replied.

"It's impossible!" Kowalski said. "We are all there, we all saw what happened that night!" he affirmed, remembering the night he and his siblings almost got killed by the Foot Clan leader, only for Master Yoshi to interfere, knock him off the rooftop and causing a big water tank to crush him down.

"A normal bird could have never survived this!" Sky said.

"But we're not facing a normal bird: we're facing Blood Talon!" Kowalski said.

"If you read comic books you'd know, the bad guy always comes back! Always!" Sparky said with a panicking voice.

"We must get Lilly out of here!" Tiny said.

"You are right: we must all leave," Master Yoshi nodded.

"Oh no!" Sparky suddenly exclaimed. "We've got company!"

The others looked out the broken window like him and were shocked to see Foot ninjas standing on the rooftops, glancing down at them.

"What should we do?" Sparky asked. "Usually, Lilly's the one to come up with a plan! How are we gonna come up with a plan without her?!"

"We don't need a plan!" Kowalski affirmed, taking out his sais and ready to fight.

CLANG!

Just after he said that, two Foots broke through the two remaining windows and landed in the living room. "Sensei! Take care of Lilly! We take care of them!" Sky said with taking out her bo staff as more Foots jumped in through the kitchen's window.

The female elf owl blocked two Foots' katanas with her staff while her two siblings fought off with the ones coming from the living room. Meanwhile, Master Yoshi and Tiny picked Lilly up and tried to escort her to the exit door.

Though they did their best to fight them back, the Foots had the number's advantage. At one point, one of them kicked Sparky down and got ready to finish him off with a katana.

"No!" Master Yoshi exclaimed and jumped to deliver a violent dive kick into the Foot's face, knocking him hard into the wall. "I will hold them back! Help Tiny carry Lilly away: we are leaving by the shop!" the old falcon ordered his son before stepping toward the battle, easily knocking every Foot away.

Sparky was watching this from behind the couch with an impressed look. However, he soon heard his little sister groaning and turned toward her. "Lilly!"

"M-My katanas...where are they?" she weakly asked, barely conscious.

"Stay calm: we'll get you out of here," Sparky assured his little sister before looking up from the couch and seeing his two other siblings fighting the incoming Foots off.

"That's enough!" Yoshi angrily mumbled after taking down at least a twelfth Foot. "Sky! Kowalski! Cover my back!" He then turned toward his other son. "Sparky! I told you to help Tiny taking Lilly out! What are you waiting for?!"

As the master kept easily knocking the Foots one by one with his stick, Sparky took out his nunchucks and started fighting off any Foot getting near his sister and Tiny.

"I-I can walk," the blue ninja insisted and tried to stand off in vain as the pain was too strong.

"Lilly, lean on me," Tiny told her, trying her best despite her smaller size.

"Tiny, leave me. Get away if you can. This is our fight, not yours."

"Not my fight?!" the green bird asked in surprise. "Look Lilly, we're all family now. I could never run out on you!" she affirmed with a look of determination on her face.

Using all of her strength she managed to get her ninja friend to the exit door which she opened...and then gasped in horror as many more Foots waited for them on the other side. Luckily, Lilly managed to kick the door close by reflex before they could enter.

However, this was proven to be useless as they simply kicked in anyways. Sparky quickly took notice of this and jumped back to go help his sister and friend. He kicked the Foots away and down the staircase leading to the shop below.

"Ladies and gentlemen, owls and falcons, run, do not walk, to the nearest exit!" he said with keeping the door open.

"Kowalski! We must retreat!" Sky called after knocking down three Foots with one swing from her bo staff.

"Go!" the barn owl shouted at his family as he tried to hold back the Foots in the apartment while the others exited it and headed down the stairs.

"Be careful!" Yoshi told Sparky as he started walking down the stairs. "The shop is our only way out. And they know it."

The young elf owl nodded and went down to see if the path was clear. He carefully opened the door to the shop. It was pretty dark and not a sound to be heard.

"It's quiet...maybe too quiet..." He then looked at the camera. "Always wanted to say that!"

Looking into the shop, Sparky saw that everything seemed normal...except for the four warriors wearing rice hats that gave Lilly a beat down.

He widened his eyes at them...before smiling innocently. "Nice hats." He then closed the door and returned to the others.

"No!" Sky stopped him. "We can't go back up!"

"How's that?! We got a welcome committee down below!" Sparky replied.

"We have no choice: they keep coming on from the windows up there!" Sky replied with pointing at Kowalski who was still trying to fight the Foots off in the apartment.

"But those guys below don't look nice!" Sparky insisted.

"They all do!" Sky replied and ran down in the shop to see the four warriors Sparky talked about. "...Nice hat," she said with a giggle.

The one holding an axe suddenly tossed it at her. She managed to duck it, but then gasped upon seeing it coming back like a boomerang and got swiped off her feet. Another warrior launched his spear at her, but she managed to roll out of the way in time, letting it pierce the wall.

She crawled back in the hallway where Sparky was still standing. "Kowalski! Need help here!"

"I'm busy!" he angrily replied and kept fighting the Foots coming from the apartment.

Having no choice, Sky and Sparky stepped in the shop with Master Yoshi following. "Blood Talon's Elite Guard!" the old falcon exclaimed upon seeing the four warriors. "They are his most dangerous warriors." The master suddenly ran up and started fighting the Foots for Kowalski. "Go help your siblings! I'm gonna protect Lilly and Tiny!"

Nodding, the barn owl ran down in the shop at the two elf owls's side. "Whoa...nice hats," he remarked.

Sky and Sparky nodded in agreement. "Yeah, we thought so too," Sparky pointed out.

"Say what you will about the Foot, but they do not skip on the head gear," Sky giggled a bit. However, she soon noticed a detail: there was blood on the Elite Guards' weapons. "Hey, this blood..."

"Is it, Lilly's?!" Sparky asked, widening his eyes.

The siblings soon realized it. "So you're the ones who did this to our sister?!" Kowalski asked. He glared with dread at them while cracking his knuckles (on his wing, LOL) as his two siblings were also getting really mad.

Pushing battle cries, they charged and engaged the fight with Kowalski punching the Spear One across the face. Sky kicked simultaneously the Axe and Blade Ones before said Axe One performed a spin and smashed Kowalski right into the wall.

Distracted by this, Sky received a kick in the face by the Spear One and also got knocked against the wall. Sparky refused to stay down and dodged swings from the Trident One before angrily kicking him in the abdomen to send him crash into a vitrine.

After getting back up, Sky started blocking swings from the Spear One with her bo staff who destroyed many things in the shop in the process. "Try to not break anything!" she ordered with performing a leg sweep. "Some respect for another's shop!"

Meanwhile, Kowalski and Sparky were standing back-to-back, trapped between the Axe and Blade Ones. "I need to catch my breath!" the barn owl said despite being fueled by the desire to avenge his sister.

"You really think we can ask them for a break?" Sparky sarcastically asked before they resumed the fight.

The elf owl managed to smash the Axe One in the face before getting kicked away by the Blade One who disposed of Kowalski before. He performed a few moonsaults to dodge his blade swings before replying with a dropkick right in his face.

The fight wasn't over yet!

* * *

 **The ninjas are trapped in the building with Master Yoshi holdings the Foots on the upper floor while Sky, Sparky and Kowalski are fighting Blood Talon's Elite Guard in the shop and Tiny have to carry the injured Lilly!**

 **Are they gonna make it?**


	183. The Foot Clan strikes back part 4

**Time to conclude the Underground Mysteries Arc!**

* * *

The fight was still raging on inside the shop between the ninjas birds and Blood Talon's Elite Guard. The Axe One knocked the bo staff out of Sky's wings and it rolled beside Sparky who was currently laying on the floor with the Blade One about to strike him down.

Fearing for her brother, Sky grabbed the Axe One and performed a Monkey Flip to send him crash right into the Blade One, saving her little brother in the process. However, before he could thank her for that, the two guards disappeared into smoke and re-appeared between the two of them.

"Crap!" Sky swore under her breath as she managed to grab her bo staff back.

Master Yoshi left the upper floor and rushed into the shop to go help his kids. Tiny was about to follow with Lilly on her shoulder, when something suddenly pulled her friend back. The little green bird turned around and was shocked to see none other than Dragon Face grabbing Lilly in his big wing.

"Your friend doesn't seem alright. Want me to put her out of her misery?" he asked with an evil smirk.

Tiny panicked as the others were too busy fighting in the shop to come help them. Out of despair, she grabbed a nearby vase and smashed it into the giant's face. However, it seemed to have angered him more than anything else.

"Put him down!" she ordered while trembling in fear.

"As you wish," Dragon face replied and tossed Lilly into the shop, sending her to crash into a wall and land hard with a thud.

"Lilly!" exclaimed Kowalski who was nearby and looked after his sister. He then saw the Trident One arriving and he stood between he and his sister, well determined to protect her.

The barn owl blocked his opponent's weapon and replied with a spin kick across the face. Before he could press on his attack, he saw Tiny backing up inside the shop in fear as Dragon Face was closing on her. He charged and delivered a kick into the giant's face to push him out of the store before Tiny closed the door, locking him (momentarily) outside.

Kowalski then went back to check on Lilly with Sky and Sparky joining as well. However, before they could check for any injuries, they saw the four Elite Guards gathering near the shop's entrance door which was kicked away by an imposing figure.

One they recognized very well.

"Oh no...," Kowalski mumbled.

"How is it possible?" Sparky asked while trembling in fear.

Blood Talon stepped inside the store and his red eyes glared at the four ninja birds. "You have been standing in my way for way too long! No one opposite Blood Talon! Now, it is time for me to take my revenge! Say farewell to each other, while you still can."

"Oh yeah, Mr. Spikeypants? Well, you're the one who should be saying farewell to uh, to yourself!" Sparky replied while trying to sound cool.

"Oh yeah, Sparky. That got 'em," Kowalski sarcastically remarked.

"Hey, I'm under a lot of pressure here!"

"Silence!" Blood Talon angrily yelled.

"This attack is as coward as wretched. It is not worth an honorable man, but I'm not surprised, coming from you," Master Yoshi commented, eyeing his rival. "Real men always face in one-on-one."

"This will not stop us from kickings those cowards' asses for Lilly! Right, guys?" Kowalski angrily said.

"Yeah!" Sky and Sparky replied at unison.

Kowalski charged first, trying to touch Blood Talon with his furious fists, but the armored raven easily dodge before replying with an uppercut underneath the barn owl's jaw, knocking him down and making him spit some blood.

Sparky went on the attack next, but immediately got knocked down by a violent slap in the face from Blood Talon. Sky was the last to attack, swinging her bo staff at the armored avian who easily dodged and kicked her hard in the abdomen, knocking her away and next to Lilly.

As Master Yoshi took position to defend his kids, Blood Talon's Elite Guard got ready to attack. "Finish them off! But leave the falcon to me," he ordered.

Blood Talon picked Sky's bo staff from the floor and attacked Master Yoshi who blocked with his own wooden stick. The combat engaged between the raven and falcon, both avians clashed their weapons and kicked each other. At one point, three Foot ninjas attacked Yoshi who easily kicked them away. Blood Talon tried to take this opportunity to cowardly attack from behind, but Yoshi saw it coming and ducked the attack.

The falcon ducked again and again before delivering a strong kick into the raven's abdomen, knocking him against a vitrine. While their fight was raging on, the Elite Guard was approaching the four defenseless ninja birds as well as Tiny who was close to having a panic attack.

However, before they could deal the finishing blow, a light appeared from outside and through the store's window. The guards turned toward it and realized too late that it was actually a motorcycle that came breaking through the window and knocked them all back like bowling.

The four ninja birds slowly got back up and looked at the intruder who was wearing a familiar hockey mask and sports bag on his back which contained a baseball bat and hockey sticks. "Making a party without inviting me?" he asked with removing his mask to reveal a burrowing owl.

"Ryker!" Kowalski exclaimed in joy.

"One of the worst frequented parties I've ever seen," the burrowing owl remarked as he took his baseball bat out and smashed two Elite Guards away. He then looked at Tiny and smirked. "Everything's fine, cutie?"

"Please, don't call me like that," the green bird said with a little blush.

Blood Talon narrowed his red eyes at the intruder. "Eliminate him!" he ordered.

More Foot ninjas bursted into the shop and around the burrowing owl. "I would've preferred a rock band," he remarked with putting his hockey mask back on and taking out two hockey sticks. "That's not too bad: I'll just improvise."

"Goongala!" Ryker shouted before jumping into action and smacking the Foots one by one with his hockey sticks. The others followed and helped him fight as well with Sky recovering her bo staff which Blood Talon dropped after a kick from Yoshi.

At the same time, Dragon Face managed to break through the door and get into the shop. He spotted Tiny taking care of Lilly all by herself while the others were busy fighting. smirking, he made his way toward them.

Tiny saw him coming and gasped. However, she stood protectively over her friend. "You won't get her! You'll have to go through me first!"

"With pleasure. Those ninjas to be very bound to you. If something was to happen to you, it would hurt their heart," the giant said with rising his fist, ready to strike the terrified green bird down.

WHAM!

He suddenly got smashed in the face and started bleeding from the nose. Groaning, he saw the attacker was none other than Ryker. "Don't you touch her, you hear me?!"

Dragon Face angrily growled and started swinging his massive wings at the burrowing owl who swiftly dodged and replied with a hockey stick smash in his back that sent him crashing into four Foots.

"Thanks, Ryker," Tiny gracefully said.

"You're welcome," the burrowing owl replied with a smile behind his hockey mask before swinging his hockey stick and golf club and returned into the fight.

While everyone was fighting, Lilly was weakly trying to stand up. "Must...fight..."

"No Lilly, you're in no position to fight," Tiny said and tried to pull her down.

"I don't have a choice... They need...my help..." However, she fell to her knees again.

It was then that she saw a shadow before her. Looking up, she saw Blood Talon making his way toward her with his claws risen, ready to finish her off.

"NO!" Master Yoshi jumped and kicked the raven right in the face, knocking him back before he could harm his daughter. "Striking a down opponent! You have no honor, Blood Talon!"

"I fight to win!" the raven replied and started throwing punches at the old falcon who easily dodged and deflected his attacks.

However, he soon managed to land one strike into Yoshi's face and followed with a combo of punches and knee strikes and even managed to cut him on the shoulder with his claws. Lilly saw this and refused to let her master - no, her FATHER getting killed.

Gathering all of her strength, she charged and pushed a wardrobe between the two of them, ending Blood Talon's combo. However, just this effort costed her all she had and collapsed just in time for Tiny to catch her again.

"Lilly...!" Yoshi mumbled with tears in his eyes. He then turned and saw his three other kids fighting bravely only to get taken down one-by-one. Sky even took a katanas cut across her abdomen and Kowalski received a punch across the face that made him bleed even more from the mouth because of Blood Talon's earlier uppercut.

"No! I will not allow you to destroy my family again!" the old falcon firmly declared. "Everyone! Retreat!" he shouted with kicking Blood Talon in the abdomen, sending him fly out of the store.

"But where can we go? There's no escape!" Kowalski called after stabbing his sai into a Foot's shoulder before kicking him away.

Tiny looked around and then spotted a door off to one side of the shop. "In there!" she called with pointing at the metal door.

"Let's go!" Sparky said and ran to open the metal door which revealed a walk-in cooler. "Everyone in there! It's our only option!"

Kowalski and Ryker provided cover for the others as they dragged Lilly inside the room before Sparky and Sky ran inside as well, closing the metal door tightly behind them."Excellent," Kowalski sarcastically said as he putted his sais away. "This room is small with no issue and pretty dark: the perfect place to make our last stand."

"That was the only place left for us to go," Tiny pointed out while still looking after Lilly.

the others were prepared, thinking the Foots would try to bang at the door and break in. However, to their surprise, it was pretty calm. "Kinda quiet out there...you think they all just went home?" Sparky asked.

"Yeah, we scared them off by running into a closet and lockin' the door," Kowalski sarcastically replied. He then sniffed the air. "Hey, I smell smoke."

Sky also sniffed. "I can smell something do: gas."

"Sparky," Kowalski said with glaring at his brother.

"No! Not that kind of gas," Sky said with rolling her eyes.

Sparky then touched the metal door and realized something. "Hey, this door is getting kinda hot." He shoved against it, but it wouldn't move. "Hey1 It's jammed! It won't open!"

"Gas plus flame equals...," Ryker mumbled. everyone then widened their eyes as they understood what was happening: the Foots locked them inside and used fire plus gas to blow the building up with them inside. "Let's book! Now!"

The burrowing owl and Kowalski helped Sparky in trying to open the door. "We gotta get out of here!"

"It's useless: we're trapped!" Ryker realized and gave up trying to open the door.

They were lost.

However, Tiny suddenly remembered something. "Guys! The motor that used to power the cooler was removed a few years back, leaving a hole in the exterior wall that could lead us outside! Start searching for an exit!"

The others exchanged looks before searching across the small room for an exit. Luckily, Kowalski spotted an hole at the feet of the wall at the end. "I found something!"

* * *

BOOM!

Everybody around watched in shock as the shop exploded in fire and collapsed. A particular human figure standing on a rooftop watched in shock at the scene. After starring at the flames in silence for a moment, he brought a communicator up to his face.

"What is it, Bishop?" a voice asked.

"I got terrible news... the ninja birds have been killed by Blood Talon. I couldn't get there in time..." He then lowered his head. "Forgive me, my friends..."

* * *

 **Big ending for this arc, right? Unfortunately, we're leaving it there.**

 **There's a lot that happened during the third season of our ninja birds' adventures, right? Let's see:**

 **-Sparky briefly became a superhero and met Silver Sentry**

 **-The ninjas went underground and discovered the Foots made experiments on humans to turn them into monsters as well as an ancient city habited by a very old species that turned out to be hostile**

 **-Skyler met a bat named Kirby who had the power to give life to his drawings and had an adventure with him**

 **-Blood Talon returned, Lilly got badly injured, and now Tiny's home is destroyed and our heroes' fate remains unknown.**

 **That's a lot. I know you want to know what happens next (specially you, Skyler), but that'll be for another time. Sorry.**

 **Except that, I hope you enjoyed this arc :)**


	184. Gio S Duke

**I know, I know: you guys are tired of those side arcs, specially after three ones in a row, and you want to go back to Blu and his friends.**

 **Listen, I promise this is the last arc before we return to the Blue Thunder Crew and continue their adventures. In the mean time, just sit back and enjoy this arc which will tell the story of Gio S. Duke. You know, the guy who shared a drink with Hawkeye upon learning of Blu and his friends' bounties.**

 **Tust me, this guy will play a big part in the future of "The Dynamic Adventure". Without any further due, let's start the story of one of the Four Great Emperors ...**

* * *

 _"I have spent my life searching for the answers that my father, and my father's fathers have failed to find. Who were the precursors? Why did they created the vast monoliths scattered across our world? What was their purpose and why did they vanish? I have asked the plants, but they did not remember. The plants asked the rocks, but the rocks did not remember._

 _"Every bone of my body tells me that the answers rest on the shoulders of a young boy. Oblivious to his destiny. Oblivious to finding the truth. Rejecting all of my guidance. And why would he want to listen to Samos The Sage, anyway? I'm just the Master of Healing Essence, one of the wisest men on the planet!_

 _"So it seems that the answers begin not with careful researches or sensible thinking. As crazy as it sounds, it begins, with an act of disobedience..."_

* * *

Gio S. Duke was enjoying the peaceful night on the speedboat he burrowed from his fisherman friend. Well, he didn't really gave him permission to use it, but as long as he was busy fishing in the Forbidden Jungle, he wouldn't know and what he didn't knew couldn't hurt him.

The speedboat had three skis beneath it; two in back one in front. It used a large propeller in the back, and was reinforced with metal plating in the front. Duke was laying on his back against the edge, looking up at the dark sky filled with stars. The fresh, salty sea wind was blowing through his puffy flame-shaped blonde hair and his emerald eyes were lazily half-closed.

Normally, such a fresh wind would make him shiver with his outfit which only consisted of a blue tunic and off-white trousers with a metal plate on his left shoulder. He was also wearing goggles and a bandanna wrapped around his neck with bandages over his forearms and feet along with sandals. He had a lean, muscular, yet athletic build.

But he was not feeling cold by the wind as the thrill of adventure was burning inside him. Indeed, tonight, Duke decided to take the speedboat and drive all the way to the island he was told not to go to: Misty Island.

It is a sludge-filled island surrounded by heavy banks of mist with mud and rocky structures, littered with skeletons of large animals. This island was located near the Sandover Village where Duke lived. Due to its creepy and unappealing look as well as many scary stories told about it, all of the villagers preferred to stay away from this island. However, Duke has been watching it in the distance from his village for quite a while and, now that he was old enough, he didn't see why he couldn't go make a quick adventure and see if the legends were true.

The speedboat arrived on the coast of the pretty dark and chilly island on which Duke set foot. He walked around for a bit, but saw nothing interesting outside of the big skeletons decorating the place and the occasional deep mud pit.

Eventually, he came across something pretty interesting. In a spot of the island, he spotted a group of Lurkers - purple gorilla-like monsters with threatening yellow eyes - gathering for an unknown reason. Not wanting to be spotted, Duke took cover behind a stone from where he could watch the scene safely.

Suddenly, two persons appeared out of nowhere by some sort of teleportation before the whole group and were floating above the ground. One of them appeared to be an elderly man, though his age was difficult to tell due to his strange appearance. His skin tone was grayish-blue for some reasons. In addition, he also had large, glowing, yellow eyes, which was a trait also carried by all lurkers. He was wearing a glove on his right hand which has several tubes entering his skin, and a belt that dangles three spherical weights.

The other one was a woman. Like the man, her skin was grayish-blue in color, and there was two patches of a darker color on either side of her face. She was wearing a top that left her stomach visible, pants, boots and gloves that seemed all to be made of Precursor metal and serve as an armor.

"Continue your search for artifacts and echo. The locals possess Precursor items; you know what to do," the male said with a deep, loud and somehow dark voice.

"Deal harshly with anyone who strays from the village. We will attack them in due time," the woman said with a more normal but still threatening voice.

Understanding that it would be dangerous to stay here any longer, Duke decided to get off his hiding spot and walk away from this assembly, making sure to not get spotted.

* * *

While exploring the other parts of the island, Duke ended up finding something pretty interesting. Some kind of pool in an open area that was filled with a strange dark purple-ish liquid. Duke did not know what it was, but somehow, it felt evil to him.

"I think old Samos told me something about it once...or a thousand times," Duke mumbled. "But it's better not to stay here too long."

BAM!

Duke's heart skipped a beat as something landed hard behind him. The young boy quickly turned around to see a Lurker General looming over him. Unlike normal Lurkers, this one was dark blue with an skeleton armor and a club made of bone.

What could Duke do? He was an adventurer; not a fighter! He could only dodge the club as the Lurker General was swinging it at him. But the inevitable happened: he ended up on the edge of the pool with no more room to dodge and got knocked down into it. He pushed a big scream as everything turned to dark around him.

* * *

"AAAAAH!"

Duke was suddenly thrown out of the pool almost immediately after falling into it and landed on the metal floor with a loud thud. Groaning, he rubbed his forehead through his pair of googles with his wing and looked all around to see in relief that the Lurker General was no longer there.

Wait a second. Wing?

Duke was surprised to see indeed that instead of his arm was a green, yellow and slightly light blue wing. What the heck?! Upon further examination, he realized that his whole body was now covered of feathers thought his clothes were still present. He soon understood what was happening.

"I've turned into a military macaw?! WHAT THE HECK?!"

* * *

 **Pretty big beginning right? Duke discovered a secret scheme at the cost of falling into a dark pool and getting turned into a military macaw. Wonder what's gonna happen next for him.**

 **And like I previously said, Gio S. Duke belongs to SuperDuke1000.**


	185. Samos The Sage

**Let's see how Duke likes his new military macaw form XD**

* * *

Following his little escapade on the Misty Island, Duke returned to his hometown, the Sandover Village located on the south coast of the big island he lived on. He sneaked into the hut of Samos The Sage which was located at the very end of the village with a good view upon the sea. He carefully walked up to the higher floor where was connected a giant windmill for energy.

He then took a peak inside the room where Samos was currently meditating on the floor. Samos is a stout human with a stubby body, gaunt limbs, large feet and hands, a large round head topped with a large log, and slightly green-tinted skin complexion. His hair were long and white, and a bluebird could be seen flying around him. His facial hair formed a full-blown beard and a mustache which trailed alongside the beard down to his waist. His clothing consisted of a plain green tunic and waist cloth. Samos also carries a staff which is primarily used as a walking stick, and two thick stumps used as stilts. His eyes are very small, as they could barely be seen behind his glasses.

Barely did Duke stepped with his new macaw feet inside that the old man turned toward him with a visibly unhappy look. "Where in the green donation did you go?!"

Duke rubbed the back of his head with his wing. "Well..."

"Don't tell me," the old man interrupted him and stepped forward. "Instead of listening to my wisdom, you decided to go mess around the only place I told you not to go: Misty Island!"

"Yes, and then-"

"And then, Duke, you took a big bath, but inside a bathtub filled with Dark Eco," Samos completed.

"That's it, but do you think you can get me out of this mess, old man?" Duke asked, a big urged to find his human form again.

"By my professional opinion, changing is improving," the old man explained. "However, even if it wasn't, I couldn't help you."

"What?! How's that?!"

"There is only one person who have studied Dark Eco long enough to have a chance to return you to your human form. Gol Acheron The Sage. But he lives far to the north - far, FAR to the north. Nobody has spoken to him in ages. I would teleport you there, but I can't do that either."

He pointed toward a big ring made of Precursor metal that looked like a portal at the end of the room. "None of the three sages that possess the other portals have judged fit to turn them in as well." He then rubbed his beard. "The only other way north is through the Fire Canyon, but its volcanic soil is hot enough to melt Precursor metal. You can't just walk through it."

"But you could fly over it if you had a zoomer equipped with an energy shield." Duke turned around to see someone standing at the entrance. It was his friend and Samos' daughter, Keira.

Keira is a young woman of 16 with a slim build. She has fair skin, blue hair, and green eyes. On the clothing side, she wears a sleeveless whiteish-lavender midriff singlet with thick red trim; purple and pink 3/4 cargo pants; and bandage-like straps around her arms and legs, both somewhat concealed, respectively, by brown (possibly leather) gauntlets and her boots. She also wears a purple choker around her neck, as well as blue goggles.

Duke blushed a bit as, while he and Keira were friends and had known each other for a long time, she still wasn't used to her beauty and felt a bit shy around her.

"And you're lucky; I just happen to be working such a thing at this very moment," she continued as she walked into the room with a smile. "All I need is some power cells to make sure the shield can resist the Canyon's heat, isn't that right, daddy?"

"Yes, Keira, that might work," Samos said with rubbing his beard. "But where will an inexperienced boy gonna find those power cells?"

"From the villagers: most of them have one or two power cells in possession. And even if they don't want to give them away, I'm certain they'll do it in exchange of a service or two. And I'm certain there are even more out there in the wild just waiting for a brave adventurer to find them," Keira say with a look toward Duke whom went a bit red in the face.

"I guess it'll be me," he guessed with rubbing the back of his head with his wing.

"Brave adventurer?" Samoas asked. "You wouldn't even be able to find your way out of the village without training. Before you do anything," he said with pointing at the portal, "you're gonna train in the art of fighting at Geyser Rock."

"Huh, is that really necessary?" Duke asked.

"GET INSIDE THIS PORTAL BEFORE I TURN YOU INTO A PLANT!"

Getting the message very clear, the little military macaw rushed into the portal without saying anything else.

* * *

Geyser Rock was a small tropical island located on a remote point neighboring Sandover Village and Misty Island, seemingly uninhabited, and abundant with vegetation, geysers, water falls, and test dummies. After spending two days over there, Duke mastered the art of fighting (which included punching, kicking, different strategies, as well as orientating himself to not get lost) and also survived on his own thanks to said vegetations. All that along with adjusting to his new military macaw body (thought he still couldn't fly).

After the two days has passed, Duke returned to the Sandover Village and into Samos' hut through the portal. "Good training, boy, but that's nothing compared to the challenges that lie ahead," Samos told the young boy.

"Don't worry old man, I'm sure I'll survive," Duke assured with a confident smile. "Now, if you don't mind, I'm a bit excited to go on this adventure to regain my human form."

"Very well then, go on your adventure. While you're at it, why don't you make yourself useful? My Green Eco collectors at the Sentinel Beach are jammed again. Go to the far end of the beach and clear them out, would you?" Duke nodded.

"Now, my young boy...GET OUT OF HERE!"

Needless to say the military macaw immediately rushed out of the hut and down toward the Sandover Village.

* * *

 **Duke's training is now complete and he's out for his adventure. The goals of his quest: getting to the north and find Gol to bring him back to normal, finding power cells to help Keira making a shield for his zoomer to cross the Fire Canyon, but most importantly, fixing Samos' Green Eco collectors to avoid getting his butt kicked.**


	186. Sandover Village

**Time to explore the Sandover Village!**

* * *

But before that, let's learn about the village in question, shall we?

Sandover Village consists of one primary collection of huts, four islets, and two beaches. Samos' hut lies on the southernmost side of the village, resting on an islet held up by a rock plateau. That islet then connects to an intermediate islet by a wooden bridge, which draws a bridge to the central part of the village that contains three huts and a docking station for the Fisherman's speedboat. To the northwest and northeast of the central village lie the Sculptor's hut and the Birdwatcher's hut, respectively, accessible via two small wooden bridges. On the northeastern side of the village, just ahead of the Birdwatcher's hut, lies a beach which is home to the Farmer and his hut, as well as his pen of yakows and a stretch of rice paddies.

The village is located in front of the entrance to a massive jungle named Forbidden Jungle, and at the bottom of a grassy mountain with canyons of lava on top where is located the Fire Canyon. It neighbors Sentinel Beach, which is located by following a wood bridge ahead of the Sculptor's hut. Duke was gonna need to head there soon.

Sandover Village is a tropical environment with sandy beaches, palm trees, and grassy cliffs. It consists of stone-made huts, stone and wooden decor, and minimal establishments.

Walking down the bridge, Duke arrived in the middle of the village and started wondering who he should go ask for power cells first. After some minutes of thinking, he headed for the Mayor's hut - out of all the residents, he was the most lucky to have some on him. The hut he lived in was pretty large and warm with a fire in the middle along with a bedroom.

The Mayor is short and plump, wearing purple clothing, and a top-hat typical of a mayor. He also has large pants in comparison to his shirt. Strangely, he seemed pretty nervous, walking around with a concerned look.

"Who, what?!" he suddenly exclaimed upon seeing Duke. "What is this parrot doing here?!"

"Calm down, Mayor. It's me, Duke."

"Duke?! Gio S. Duke? But why are you a parrot?" he asked in confusion.

"That's a long story. But do you have a problem? You seem nervous," Duke asked.

"Don't tell me that you have problems as well: there's enough already with all those monsters attacking everyone wandering outside the village and now, there's...this!" he angrily growled. "you see this?" he asked with pointing at the mechanical wheels at the ceiling which supposed to be alimented by the Blue Eco energy. "And how they are not moving? That means our village have no valor."

"The Blue Eco beam coming from the Forbidden Jungle have been interrupted. And boy, everyone is too frightened to go in this dangerous territory and see what happened."

"Did you pay the bills, by simple curiosity?" Duke asked with a risen eyebrow.

The Mayor chuckled a bit. "Very funny. Now listen, if you fix the eco beam, I'll give you a power cell. Oh, and another thing: if by any chance, you're interested in contributing to my re-election campaign, I might be ready to give you another power cell. The minimum contribution is very modest...900 coins."

"You call this modest?!" Duke exclaimed in surprise. However, he then shook his head and took out a bag of coins. "You politicians are way too greedy. Here's my "modest contribution" for your re-election campaign."

He tossed the coin bag at the Mayor who started jumping in excitation. "By my elders! Thank you so much, my boy!" The old man then reached into his shirt to take out a power cell. "Here's a power cell, just like promised."

Duke took it in his wing. It was a little ball made of Precursor metal that was glowing a bit with energy. He smiled and putted it away into his backpack before waving at the Mayor and walking out of his hut.

 **(I forgot to explain: Precursor metal is a metal bronze in color with ancient, mysterious writing over it in some cases)**

Before heading to the Sentinel Beach, Duke decided to make a quick stop to the hut of his Uncle. He walked inside his hut which was decorated with a lot of exploration stuff (which was why he was called Explorer by the other village residents) and saw his old man reading a map.

The Explorer is fairly sophisticated in his demeanor, referring to Duke as "m'boy". He uses a staff, and wears clothing similar to that of Duke's. He has a beard and wears a monocle on his right eye.

"Hey, Uncle," he said to get his attention.

"Well, hello there, m'boy," he said before turning around and jumping a bit. "Oh my! What happened to you, Duke?"

"Well, I kinda went on an adventure I shouldn't have and now, I've been turned into a parrot," the macaw explained. "Samos cannot heal me: he said the only one who can is located at the far north of the island. So this is where I'm going. I thought you'd like to know."

The old man blinked his eyes and rubbed his beard and mustache a bit. "This seems serious indeed. You said you're gonna have to travel far north? Well, I'd like to accompany you, m'boy, like in all the tens of adventures I had outside of the village before, but I'm getting a bit too old for that. However, the least I can do is give you a few useful items for your quest."

He reached into his treasure chest in the corner of the hut and took out a bag of coins as well as a power cell. "There, a power cell and a few hundreds of coins. This should help you."

"Thanks, Uncle. I truly appreciate it," Duke said with taking the items and putting them into his backpack. "And don't worry; I'll be back before you know it."

"I'm sure about it. Good luck, m'boy," the old man said before his nephew exited his hut and returned to his map.

Already two power cells under his belt and hundreds of coins for a bonus. things were starting pretty well for Duke! Before heading for the Sentinel Beach, he decided first to go talk to every villager and see if they could help him in one way or another.

He walked to the north-east side of the Sandover Village and over to the Birdwatcher's hut. This old lady was the caretaker and watchover of the local animal life. She is an aged woman, and wears a yellow hat which resembles the head of a bird, most likely as a disguise mechanism to assist in her bird watching. She carries a pair of binoculars for spotting birds, which she can often be seen gazing through.

Upon entering her hut which was filled with caged birds and other observations tools, he saw her glancing behind the window through her binoculars. He coughed a bit to get her attention.

"Oh my! What a beautiful specimen," she said, probably not expecting to see a macaw walking in her home just like this.

"Hum, Miss Birdwatcher, it's me, Duke."

She reacted the exact same way as the other ones and Duke had to explain once again his appearance change. "Oh my, I'm so sorry, dear. A lot of terrible things have happened lately. For example, yesterday, I saw a group of thieves stealing a mother flut flut's egg. Now this poor lonely egg is trapped on a hill at the Sentinel Beach.

"I tried to reach it, but I couldn't. If you could climb up there and push the egg down, I've putted some hay below to make sure it would land safely. Do this old lady a favor and I'll give you a power cell."

"Honestly, I never liked birds as much as you, Miss Birdwatcher, but stealing someone's egg is pretty crappy. So I'm gonna go safe this egg," Duke affirmed.

"Really?! You're too brave, my little Duke."

The military macaw just smiled. "It's okay; gotta help my new kind after all."

* * *

 **Okay, now Duke got more work on his calendar: fixing Samos' Green Eco collectors, finding enough power cells for his zoomer, and now, helping Miss Birdwatcher by going to save an egg at Sentinel Beach. Looks like his adventure is just getting started.**


	187. Sentinel Beach

After talking with Miss Birdwatcher and getting another work on his list, Duke headed north of the village and went to see the next villager: the Sculptor. The Sculptor is a tall human male with spiked purple hair and a goatee, clad in safety visors and a sculpting apron and utility belt. He has a balance of personality between easy going and laid back, and anxious and seemingly depressed when without his pet.

The man was currently busy sculpting a big cube-shaped stone before turning toward Duke and looked in surprise. "Hey! Little furry dude! Aww... For a moment, I thought you were my muse," he sadly said.

"Your what?" Duke asked curiously.

"Have you never seen a muse before?" he asked. "It's a little glowing squirrel about your size full of pomp and crazy as a Lurker!"

"A bit like me?" Duke mused.

"As a matter a fact, without my muse, I can't even sculpt. But with her, I see beauty at everything, you know." He then let himself fall in a sitting position. "But right now, I couldn't even find my way out a cheese box." He turned to look at Duke. "I think she went to that Misty Island. I hope she's alright." He then turned toward Duke with a little smile. "I'll give you a power cell if you bring her back to me."

"Really?" Duke rubbed his chin a bit. "Honestly, I don't really wanna go back there as it is the reason I'm on this quest, but if it can get me a power cell and make you happy..."

With yet another quest added to his journal, Duke walked out of the Sculptor's hut and headed south-west of it. It only took a few seconds before the grassy ground got replaced by a floor of sand as Duke entered the Sentinel Beach.

Sentinel Beach is an extension of western Sandover Village, which can be reached by passing through three stone arches located ahead of the Sculptor's hut. It is a beach also containing a small, grassy village-like area which has a few huts, windmills, and other primitive apparatuses.

The young military macaw walked his little feet across the beach and turned his head to look at the sea which was spreading all the way to the horizon with no other islands in view. With the fresh, salty wind blowing through his feathers, he would have spent the rest of the day there, but he had a few missions to do there.

"Alright, so I've gotta un-jam Samos' Green Eco collectors, save the flut flut egg, and see if I can find a few extra power cells around." The macaw smiled. "It should be easy."

He decided to take care of Samos' collectors first. Upon walking along the beach, he found them over the grassy plains: they were in the shape of little vents tied to the floor with boulders preventing Green Eco from entering them.

Luckily for Duke, they were easy to move, even with his small size. Thanks to his training, his muscles were well developed and he managed to move them all off in a matter of minutes. A green energy then started coming out of the ground and into the vents - probably the Green Eco Samos talked about.

"The old man's gonna be happy," Duke mumbled with a smile. "Now let's go find this flut flut egg the lady told me about."

Duke searched around the beach for a while, but ended founding the egg. It was located on a cliff against the wall of the mountain. Duke had to work really hard, but he managed to make it on top where the rather big egg was resting inside a nest.

"Man, I seriously need to learn how to fly," Duke said with stretching his body.

"Push him down!" He looked down to see Miss Birdwatcher standing at the feet of the mountain with a big pile of hay beside her for the egg. "Make sure he lands on the pile of hay!"

Duke nodded down and pushed his wings against the big egg. It took a while, but he managed to send him down the cliff and straight onto the pile of hay.

"Good job!" Miss Birdwatcher called. "Now meet me down here by the egg!"

Sighing, Duke made the effort to go back down the cliff and went to join the old lady by the luckily intact flut flut egg. She was making sure everything was fine.

"Oh my, I hope the boy in here is okay." She then turned toward Duke and took out a power cell from her bag. "Here's a power cell for your efforts. Thanks again, Duke."

Just as the little spix macaw took the glowing orb and putted it into his backpack, the egg started shaking and before long, it cracked open and out of it came a flut flut.

The flut flut is a rather large bird, somewhat resembling, in shape, to an ostrich. It has a round head, two very large eyes, a combination of both a beak and a mouth, two relatively small feathered arms used for gliding, hooved feet, and a large feathered tail. They are blue in color with some yellow feathers.

The newborn made cute noise with his beak before coming out of the egg. He turned his attention toward Duke and eyed him. Despite being a newborn, he was already taller than the military macaw.

"Huh... Hi?" Duke nervously said with waving his wing.

"Aww, how cute, he think you're his mother," Miss Birdwatcher said.

"His mom?" Duke asked, dumbfounded. "I can't be his mom: I'm a guy!" he protested as the flut flut kept eyeing him.

"Love at first sight," the old lady giggled. "Listen boy, I will bring this chick back to the village and take care of him."

"Alright," Duke nodded. "I'm gonna check the beach for more power cells and then I'll go see old Samos to announce him I fixed his Green Eco problem."

* * *

 **Cool, Duke saved the flut flut (who now believe Duke's his mom XD) and unblocked the Green Eco collectors. Samos will be happy.**

 **I know this chapter was short, but the next one should be longer. Duke still have a long journey to go before reaching the north.**


	188. Farming and fishing

After unblocking the Green Eco collectors and saving the flut flut's egg for Miss Birdwatcher, Duke remained on the Sentinel Beach for a while to search for more power cells. He managed to find three of them: one behind the mountain's waterfall, one on top of one of the three stone sentinels, and one in a pelican nest (with whom he had to fight for).

Once he was done, he returned to the Sandover Village to announce the news to Samos who rewarded him with a power cell. At this rate, he'll have gathered enough for Keira's zoomer to cross the Fire Canyon.

For now, Duke decided to go talk with the only villager he had yet to talk with: the Farmer. He lived in the northernmost part of Sandover Village on a farm where he was raising yattles.

The Farmer is a bony old man who has a large straw hat, a wooden walking staff and carries a large bundle of straw on his back, presumably to feed the yattles. He owns a ranch and a small corral where he keeps his yattles. The Farmer also grows a plot rice paddies next to his ranch. He is the closest resident to the Forbidden Jungle.

Duke found the old man sitting on a bench next to his house. "Gotta milk those yattles, gotta milk those yattles...," he mumbled, visibly half-asleep.

"Hum, hello?" Duke said.

"Huh, huh?!" he suddenly shot awake. "Oh, it's you, Duke."

"Are you okay, gramps, you seem tired," the military macaw remarked.

"Oh, it's just because of my yattles," he said with pointing to the side where his yattles were surprisingly wandering all around the small beach outside of their pen. "Those little daredevils have escaped the pen and now, I can't get them back in. I've tried, but I'm feeling way too old for that." He laid back on his bench and looked at the avian with his slit-shaped eyes. "Would you be kind to help an old farmer like me? I'd truly appreciate it."

"Sure, no probs," Duke said with a nod and walked over to one of the few yattles scattered across the small beach. "Come on, little guy, get back to your pen," he said with trying to move the animal who refused to move and simply ate grass on the floor. He refused to move, no matter what Duke did, even kicking him back, when he started hitting him with shoulder tackles.

"Alright, looks like this won't be easy..."

* * *

It took a long while and a lot of efforts, but in the end, Duke managed to force all the yattles back in their pen. "A good job done," he said with stretching his back as his body was aching and covered of sweat from all the hard work he did.

"Oh, well done, m'boy!" the Farmer happily said after Duke announced him the job was done. "You brought all those daredevils back into the pen; now I can sleep in peace." He reached into his pocket and took out a power cell. "Here's a power cell as a reward."

Duke thanked the old man who went back in his hut to sleep after taking his power cell. "Alright, now it's time to head for the Forbidden Jungle." Turning toward north, he walked through a big hole in the cliff which led outside the Sandover Village and into the Forbidden Jungle.

At the entrance of the jungle there was a canyon with a short river at the bottom, with a rope bridge stretched across the canyon, connecting the two sides. Duke slowly crossed the bridge to enter the jungle environment. The macaw was on all of his guards as he never really came to explore this jungle and all the stories he heard about it in the Sandover Village were not helping.

"Alright, this is no time to panic. I've gotta go find out why the Blue Eco beam stopped reaching the village. And while I'm at it, I could also explore the Forbidden Temple and go see if the Fisherman is somewhere around," Duke mumbled to himself.

The young macaw started scooting the jungle, careful to not drag any unwanted wild attention to himself. The heat was pretty strong (even for the fact that it was near the Sandover Village), and he couldn't walk for three seconds without getting attacked by a mosquito. He had to find his power cells and fix the Blue Eco problem before getting eaten alive by those blood suckers!

After a moment of walking around, Duke walked down in the jungle's valley and was surprised to find the Fisherman standing near the main river with a wooden basket as well as a fishing net. He was plump, has a blue beard, and wears a red bandanna which reads "FISH" on the front. His necklace appeared to be some variety of tooth, presumably from a fish or shark.

"Hey, old man, it's me, Duke," he announced his arrival before taking a peak inside the basket. "What's in the basket?"

"Nothing to talk about," the Fisherman replied with shaking his head. "Those darn Lurker Sharks took a bite out of me boat while I went fishing. And now, no matter what I do, I can't seem to catch the slightest fish in this river."

"Want me to help? Maybe I could help you with your fish," Duke suggested.

"That would be nice, son. Tell you what, if you can catch up 200 pounds of good fish, not only will I give you a power cell, but I'll add a bonus: you,ll be allowed to burrow my speedboat to go wherever you want, like Misty Island. What do you say?" the Fisherman offered.

"Oh, that would be nice...," Duke said with a nervous laughter, not daring to tell the old man he already used his speedboat without his permission to get to Misty Island, which was the reason he was now a bird.

The avian grabbed the little fish net and positioned himself near the little river. "There are two types of good fish to catch," Fisherman started explaining. "There are green fishes that are worth one pound and golden ones that are worth five pounds. However, here's the catch: there's one dangerous fish. It possess a deadly poison that can make all of your catches worthless. They are purple and it's because of them that I lose most of my catches. You need to avoid them at all cost, or you'll have to restart at the bottom again."

Catching the green and golden ones, and avoiding the purple ones. That should be possible. Duke nodded and turned toward the river, starting his fishing party.

* * *

It took a while and Duke had to restart many times from catching poisoned fishes, but in the end, he managed to catch the promised 200 pounds of fish. The Fisherman looked really happy to see his basket filled to the edge with good sea meat.

"You did it! You caught two hundred pounds of fish!" He took a power cell out of his jacket and handed it over to Duke. "Here's the power cell I promised you. And you can use my speedboat at the village's docks whenever you want."

"Thanks," Duke said with a smile as he took the power cell. "Now, if you'll excuse-me, I'll let you prepare your fishes while I'm gonna go explore the rest of the jungle.

* * *

 **Who else likes fish?**


	189. Forbidden Temple

**Let's continue exploring the Forbidden Jungle, friends!**

* * *

After helping the Fisherman with his fish problem, Duke explored the Forbidden Jungle's valley a bit more. It took him a moment, but he ended up finding the problem source for the whole Blue Eco thing. At the bottom of the jungle was a large mechanical station powered by Blue Eco found near the Forbidden Temple surrounded by Lurkers. This machine intercepted a Blue Eco beam coming from the Forbidden Temple, which would have normally been redirected to the village by use of tower lenses, although the Lurkers had blocked said beam thanks to a mirror.

"So that's why we no longer have Blue Eco at the village, huh," Duke mumbled. The Lurkers soon took notice of him and pushed growls before their imposing ape shapes made their ways toward him. Duke smirked as it was time to put in action everything he had learned at the Geyser Rock.

Using teamwork, multiple Lurkers engaged in close combat with Duke. Despite their teamwork, duke blocked many of their attacks with ease. He calmly dodged and countered their attacks, hitting hard and making sure they would stay down.

One Lurker threw multiple punches, only for each of them to miss. Duke countered with a punch to his torso before flipping him to the ground. Somehow, Duke's macaw body made him strong than he was as a human.

With a leap, Duke performed a split kick to knock out the two remaining Lurkers. He took a moment to look at all the unconscious purple apes laying all around with pride. His training really did pay after all. But he would celebrate later: for now, he had to fix the Blue Eco problem.

Climbing up the machine, Duke walked over to the mirror blocking the blue ray and smashed it away, not caring if that brought him seven years of bad luck. With the piece of metal gone, the beam was allowed to continue its normal trajectory which passed through the many panels scattered across the jungle and all the way back to the Sandover Village.

"A good job done," Duke said with a smile. His attention then shifted to the Forbidden Temple in question. A massive temple made of Precursor metal towering above the highest trees of this jungle. True to be told, Duke did spotted it a few times from the village before, but even old Samos barely knew something about it.

"Looks like i'm gonna find out what secret lies within this temple." Duke walked around the rift surrounding the temple and ended up finding a bridge of Precursor metal which he used to reach the temple's entrance. It was circular (like every Precursor door) and opened upon getting close to it.

Stepping inside, Duke saw that he was still outside and that before him was a set of staircases leading to many floating silos moving in random patterns that were leading up to a large and high tower.

"Oh boy, looks like climbing the cliff at the Sentinel Beach was just a warm up."

It took Duke some jumping here and there with him passing close to fall down to his inevitable death multiple times, but he managed to reach the top of the giant tower. The view he got from there was purely amazing: he could see all the jungle, the Sandover Village, Misty Island, and even the distant horizons of the sea. With the fresh air blowing through his feathers, it was a sight definitely worth the effort of climbing up.

After a long time (thought Duke wasn't sure how long), he broke out of his calm trance and turned toward a little button standing in the middle of the tower ground. Curiosity getting the best of him, Duke pressed it down with his foot which made a mechanical noise being heard below: something started working.

Then, the floor turned into a platform and started sinking down. Duke saw the circular walls around him moving up until the sky was far above and he arrived below ground-level into the inner networking of the temple. He found himself into a little room with only one circular door.

"Doesn't seem like I have a thousand choices," Duke mumbled to himself before stepping through the door and ending into a long hallway. It was pretty dark and took him a while before reaching the room at the end of the hallway. And there, something immediately caught his attention.

Before him was standing a large, plant-like mutation with green vines and a light blue-purple lily which actually had two yellow eyes (similar to the Lurkers') and a big mouth which pushed a loud growl. Duke also noticed that two of the plant's vines were wrapped through small canisters of dark eco, probably the source of the plant's mutation.

"Maybe this guy isn't aggressive and will just let me pass if-" duke mumbled to himself as he slowly stepped forward, but immediately had to jump back as the plant launched its head forward in an attempt to bite him. "Okay, apparently not. I'm still gonna have to fight this plant after all."

The monster kept launching its head in an attempt to eat Duke who just rolled out of harm's way and ended up replying with an uppercut right underneath his jaw. The plant pulled out a loud scream and spat some dark purple liquid out of its mouth.

"Looks like I just found your weak spot," Duke said with a smirk.

The Dark Eco Plant seemed to have realized this as well as it decided to rely on swinging its big vines at Duke instead of launching its head. The military macaw managed t dodge all the vines and jump on them one-by-one until he managed to jump to the head. He threw his fist into an uppercut again right underneath the plant's jaw, making him spit a fountain of dark purple liquid like before.

The plant pushed a big growl of pain once again before collapsing onto the metallic floor. The purple liquid flowed out of its mouth and it closed its eyes, falling dead and spitting a power cell out of all things. Duke stepped toward the glowing object and picked it up. It was covered of saliva, making him whip it off first.

"Really? It just took two uppercuts in the chin to take you down?" Duke then turned toward the camera. "Not really imaginative, Alex."

 **(Shut up, Duke! I can create bad villains if I want to)**

"Alright, time to get out of here," the military macaw said with going back toward the room he came from.

* * *

 **I know, I know, there wasn't much to see inside this temple outside the Dark Eco Plant. And it was a blank villain, but hey, they don't all need to be world-threatening level and can be fun little underbosses, right?**


	190. Back to Misty Island

**We're gonna go back to a pretty dark location for this episode.**

* * *

After defeating the Dark Eco Plant and finding two extra power cells around the jungle, Duke returned to the Sandover Village where he met with the Mayor. This last one was very glad Duke fixed the Blue Eco problem and gave him a power cell just as promised. Afterwards, the macaw went back to Samos' hut and to the lower floor where Keira was living to give her all the power cells he had collected.

"Nice job, Duke," the young girl happily said. "A few more and the Zoomer should be ready to cross the Fire Canyon," she said with pointing at the Zoomer in her open house. It looked like a biker floating over the ground with two wings on the front and back and a propeller on the front. It was orange and blue in color.

"Cool," Duke said before dropping his happy face upside down. "I'm afraid the next part will be the hardest so far."

"What are you gonna do?"

"I'm gonna go back on Misty Island. It's the only zone around the village I haven't scooted yet."

"Be careful: this place is very dangerous."

Duke just smiled. "Don't worry Keira: I won't fall in this pool of Dark Eco again. And this time, I've got fighting experience, so those Lurkers won't stand a chance against me."

"Alright then, good luck," the young girl told him and went back to work on her Zoomer.

Duke walked away from the hut and made his way over to the village's docks where he found the Fisherman's speedboat. As he got on board again, he couldn't deny he didn't really felt like going back to Misty Island after what happened last time, but he wasn't gonna back down now. Besides, he could stand on his own now.

Turning the machine on, Duke started riving away from the village and off to the sea. A few seconds later, he arrived to the sludge-filled land of Misty Island. As soon as he reached the docks at the entrance, he got disturbed by the now fresh climate that replaced the warm atmosphere of the Sandover Village.

"Better start searching right now. The sooner I find the power cells, the sooner I can go back to the village," Duke thought with getting down the speedboat and on the docks.

He started walking on the island's humid floor and remained on guard in case he would meet a General Lurker like before. However, the first creature he met was way stranger: a little feline creature with long pointed ears, large green eyes, a small nose and mouth, with a beard. Its face, underbelly, paws, under its tail, and inner-ears were a very pale brown, almost white. It had a dark brown trim around the areas where the pale brown meets with a very decorative and flashy gold color; distinguishing it from most animals. It also had a little green aura emanating from its body.

Strangely, this little creature seemed familiar to Duke. Soon, it clicked into his head. "You're the Sculptor's muse!" he realized. However, his scream caused the little feline to start running away. "No wait! Come back!"

He started running after the muse who revealed herself to be pretty fast and agile, jumping to hard-to-reach places such as large bone structures and higher platforms. It was hyperactive and Duke was having an hard time keeping up with her as she ran in circles around the same zone of the island.

The poor military macaw started wishing he was in his human form. He tried to keep in close pursuit as much as possible and tried to cross corners when it went around as to catch up with it easily. It took a few laps, but he ended up grabbing the little animal in his wings.

"There you go, little guy. You sure gave me a lot of work," Duke chuckled as he looked at the creature struggling in his wings. "Let's get you back home, shall we?"

* * *

Using the speedboat, Duke returned to the Sandover Village with the Muse and immediately toward the Sculptor's hut. He entered with a bright smile on his face.

"Hey pal, look at what I found," he said with holding the Muse up.

"Little furry ball!" the artist happily beamed as his feline friend jumped into his hands and affectionately licked his face. "I thought I lost you forever! Man, thank you so much, Duke!"

"You're welcome," duke replied with a smile. "So, you don't have anything for me?"

"Oh yes!" The Sculptor said, suddenly remembering what he promised and took a power cell from the counter of his hut. "Here's the power cell I promised. Now, thanks to you, I'll be able to resume my work."

Nodding, Duke took his new power cell and left his friend as he started sculpting his stone with a newfound inspiration. He used the speedboat to return to Misty Island and resume the researches he briefly stopped.

He met a few Lurkers on his way, but nothing he couldn't take care of. He walked across a few skeleton bridges with a misty water below that would no doubt send him to his dead. He made sure to not fall down because of that.

He soon made it to the place where he caught the Lurkers gathering in front of the two mysterious beings. It seemed like the entrance to somewhere well-guarded. The Precursor door opened itself alone as always and let him enter a pretty large arena zone entirely made of Precursor metal. It looked like a gladiator arena for battles.

As duke stepped inside, he couldn't help but notice how things were quiet...too quiet. After the gatherings he saw near this place, two weeks ago, he would have thought it would be filled with Lurkers, but there was nothing.

SHLACK!

He quickly turned his head around to see the door he came from suddenly closing alone. As if that wasn't surprising enough, familiar growling noises were heard around and he quickly turned his head...before widening his eyes as many Lurkers both normal and some Generals too were standing on the top around the arena.

"Crap! An ambush!"

* * *

 **Duke have found the Sculptor's Muse, but has fallen into an ambush. Will he make it out alive?**


	191. Fire Canyon

**Time for the fight to start!**

* * *

Duke had both his wings spread, ready to fight off the upcoming ambush. The Lurkers jumped in the arena and surrounded him, glaring at him while prepared to leap when ready as well. The military macaw cracked his knuckles, ready to counter-attack.

Two came charging from both sides and Duke simply ducked, letting them strike each other down. "Morons," he mumbled with a chuckle before blocking a punch and flipping the Lurker over his shoulder.

He then turned to see a General coming his way and tried to punch him, but the Lurker grabbed his fist and headbutted Duke, knocking him to the ground. The macaw rubbed his head, feeling the stinging pain in his head.

The General Lurker then tried to slam his club on him, but Duke managed to roll out of the way in time and planted a kick to the side of his head which stunned him. This gave Duke enough time to get back up and hit an uppercut right underneath his jaw, making him fly up and land hard with a thud, falling unconscious.

"Not as though as when I came here for the first time, right?" duke asked with pride at how strong he had become.

He then kept chaining the combos to take down all the Lurkers (both the normals and Generals), not stopping a moment to rest. Before long, all the Lurkers were laying down on the arena floor, defeated.

"Wow! Did I really became that strong?" Duke asked to himself with a chuckle as he looked at his wings.

Suddenly, a set of staircases came out from the arena's upper floor. With nowhere else to go, Duke climbed them up and found himself in the same zone where he found the Dark Eco pool that changed him into a military macaw. There was a power cell on the other side of it. So, he carefully walked around the pool as he didn't wanted to fall again and turn into god-knows-what.

"Alright, that makes one more!" Duke happily said.

* * *

He remained some more time on the island and managed to find three extra power cells before deciding it was enough. Going back to the speedboat, he returned to the Sandover Village and to Samos' hut to share his discoveries.

"Good work boy," he said. "You sure became stronger since you went to the Geyser Rock. At least you didn't fell into that pool again," he chuckled.

"Where's Keira?" Duke asked. "I think I've gathered enough power cells for her Zoomer."

"She knows it: she went to the Fire Canyon with her Zoomer to get everything ready. She's just waiting for you now," the old man informed him.

"Already? Cool! Alright, time for me to cross the Fire Canyon then!" Duke said and headed out of the hut.

"Be sure not to get melted boy!" Samos called with a bit of worry.

Duke headed out of the village and climbed the cliff next to the Farmer's hut which led into a crater in the mountain. As he walked, he felt the heat violently rising and before long, he understood why it was called Fire Canyon as he arrived before a long canyon with a volcanic soil.

Keira was present as well, finishing adding the last adjustments to the Zoomer. She stopped upon noticing Duke.

"Great job, Duke. You've gathered all the power cells I needed to make the heat shield for the Zoomer. Be careful: the heat shield will only protect your jet to five hundred degrees, so try to stay cool. Flying over open up lava will definitely make the temperature rise up fast, and if you reach five hundred degrees, you,ll be done."

"Done like I'm gonna be all melted?" Duke asked, sweat flowing on his forehead both from the heat and nervousness.

"The Fire Canyon is very hot," Keira said. "Make sure to never stop riding forward and avoid open up lava. Oh, and don't forget to open up the portal gate in the Blue Sage's lab. My dad and I will join you there. Good luck."

Duke nodded and hoped onto the Zoomer which was surprisingly fit for his size. He placed his feet on the breakers on either sides as well as putting his wings on the control propeller. He hesitated a moment (he was risking dying melted after all) before pushing on the propeller to advance on the volcanic ground.

At first, he was having a bit of an hard time as it was his first time driving a Zoomer, but he soon got adjusted to it. And it was actually fun! The air, despite being very hot, felt good flying through his feathers.

However, the fun time quickly ended as the heat underneath him made him remember that he had a limited time to reach the end of the Fire Canyon before his heat shield would break and leave him melt.

Remembering what Keira told him, Duke made his best to avoid the spots with open lava, thought that was hard by moments as the zones were sometimes curled into zig zags. "Come on! How long is this canyon?!" Duke mumbled to himself as he was feeling the heat becoming stronger and stronger by the seconds. He didn't wanted to become a roasted chicken!

Luckily, he soon saw the end of the canyon and let out a sigh of relief. As soon as he came out of the volcanic zone, he parked the still hot Zoomer to the side and jumped off it.

"Looks like Keira did a good job," Duke said with a smile as he patted the jet. "Now let's head to the Blue Sage's lab." The military macaw walked forward to the other side of the canyon.

* * *

 **Duke have survived the ambush in Misty Island as well as the travel across the Fire Canyon. He's now headed toward the Blue Sage's house. What danger lies beyond the Sandover Village? We'll find out soon!**


	192. Rock Village

**It's time to enter a new village.**

* * *

Duke shivered a bit. Ever since he walked away from the Fire Canyon and deeper into the mountain, the air went from burning hot to pretty cool. One thing was for sure: he was no longer in the Sandover Village zone.

It only took him a few seconds before reaching a grassy cliff connected to the Blue Sage's hut which overlooked the village ahead and its surroundings. Duke entered the hut and was rather shocked by the mess he discovered. There was some advanced gadgets and books spilled a bit all around, even on the floor. It was almost as if a battle had occurred in here!

Shaking this idea off, Duke remembered he had to turn the portal gate on for Samos and Keira. He walked beside said objects and stepped on the blue button which turned it on. He now just had to wait for his friends to come in.

And he didn't had to wait for long as Samos came through, landing hard on the floor while Keira simply walked in. "I never think I'll get used to this tingling teleportation feeling!" he groaned with getting back up and stretching his old body. He then looked around at the ruined hut. "Wow! It looks like the Blue Sage have thrown a party! And he didn't even invited me?"

Keira then walked over to a telescope in front of the window which allowed to check on the village. Looking through it, she suddenly gasped. "Oh my! Rock Village is on fire!"

"One heck of a party," Samos mumbled with a small pouting look which made Duke chuckle.

"No, no!" Keira said with rubbing her eyes. "I mean Rock Village is getting bombed with fire boulders! Look!" She moved aside for Duke to look through the telescope.

The village itself primarily consisted of large stone promontories littered with small huts planted at high altitudes, situated on the east coast of the continent, overlooking the ocean. The stone structures seemed to be hollowed out and used as the huts themselves, with the exteriors of the housing units acting as terraces. Lying beneath the central mountain was a floating pavilion connected to a cafe, pontoons, and other wooden structures surrounding the waters connecting to either other parts of the village, or surrounding locations.

However, something was wrong: fire boulders were laying a bit everywhere, having damaged and burned some of the village's structures. The responsible one was visible on top of the cliff.

A rather large Lurker, his appearance similar to the General Lurker. He had dark blue skin (possibly fur) and black hair on his head, shoulders, and growing in as a beard along his jaw and chin, which was wrapped with a brown cloth. He had thin legs and a thin waist, possibly being much scrawnier than he appeared to be. He wore a red loin cloth around his waist - secured with a sand red belt - and what appeared to be red foot/shin wraps.

He also possessed a set of Precursor armor with the ability to conjure large large boulders. Said armor also granted him the strength to hurdle the boulders great distances. The armor covered his torso and right arm only, while his left arm was left exposed.

"Who the hell is that?" Duke asked, backing up from the telescope.

"I think this monster's name is Klaww," Samos pointed out with rubbing his beard. "The Blue Sage talked to me about him through letters. He said he wanted to take him down, but I didn't got any news after this."

"And look," Keira said, looking through the telescope again. "It looks like the Blue Sage is working on a machine to move the boulders," she said, pointing out to some kind of beam machine located at the feet of the cliff Klaww was standing on. "Assuming its operational, we're gonna need more power cells to fuel it. Looks like you're gonna need to go check around for more power cells, Duke."

"Go to the village and make sure everyone's fine, boy," Samos instructed the macaw.

He nodded and was about to walk away. However, he noticed something interesting: a gadget laying in a corner of the hut. He picked it up in his wings and inspected it: it looked like some kind of gun with bandages an a yellow battery to the side.

"Could be useful," Duke mumbled to himself before tying to gun to his belt and ran out of the hut.

Once Duke arrived down at the Rock Village, he couldn't help but frown at how the place was ruined by the burning boulders. Where the heck did the Blue Sage go to give up his village like that?

Duke headed to the pavilion at the center of the village where he found two man sitting. One of them was a pretty muscled warrior wearing a Romanesque armor with green hair and beard. The other one was wearing a barrel around his waist (for some reason) along with a large frayed hat with an ace of spades card tucked in it.

Duke decided to go talk to the warrior first. To his surprise, he was actually sobbing. "Hey, what's wrong, though guy?" Duke asked.

"You're right: I was though once. Maybe even the toughest of them all," the Warrior sadly replied. "I single-handly defended this village from those monsters for almost a year. But then, this monster at the top of the Mountain Pass arrived and started bombing our village. Taking my courage into hands, I went up there to face him."

The Warrior then sat back down and sobbed sadly. "But he pounded me like one tenderize a yattle steak."

"Ever thought about fighting him with melodrama? Cause it's killing me," Duke mumbled to himself.

"After my failure, he blocked the passage to the Mountain Pass with a thirty hundred pounds boulder. Leaving no way for anyone to challenge him again. So, our sage - a master of Blue Eco - built up a machine capable of moving the boulder out of the way," he explained with pointing at the machine on the other side of the village which was visible from their position.

"However, he disappeared before we could use it and his power cells with him. All hope is gone now."

Duke sighed, feeling pity for this Warrior, and handed him a bag of coins. "Here's 50 golden coins to go buy yourself a new armor, if this can make you feel better." He then smiled. "And don't worry about this giant Lurker: I'm planning on taking him on."

"You? No disrespect kid, but even if I can't take him down, I don't see how you could. But I'm still gonna wish you good luck," the Warrior said with taking the bag of money. He then took out a power cell. "Here, have this. I think it'll be more useful to you than to me."

Nodding and taking the cell, Duke turned around and walked over to the other man. This last one groaned upon seeing him. "Not another hero! The other one is already a disaster."

"Who are you? And why are you dressed like this?" Duke asked.

"I'm the Gambler and I'm like this because I lost all my money," he simply replied.

"...Okay. Do you know where I can find power cells around here? I need them to power up the Blue Sage's machine," Duke explained.

The Gambler smirked. "I do where you can find power cells. I'd be willing to tell you...in exchange of 90 golden coins."

Duke sighed and took out a bag of coins. "For your memory," he said to the Gambler who took the bag.

"Thanks." He then rubbed his chin. "If you follow the platoons in the water leading to the coast of the village and head north, you'll reach the Boggy Swamps. It is subject to continual rainfall and is home to a heavy concentration of swamp rats, as well as other notable Lurker species. If you wanna find power cells, this seem like the right place."

"Okay. Anywhere else?" Duke asked.

The Gambler nodded and pointed toward the sea. Duke noticed that there was a big dome made of Precursor located off the coast of the village. It seemed to stretch underwater.

"You see this dome? It's called the Lost Precursor City and it leads to an underwater city. It is implied to be a long since-abandoned Precursor civilization: a massive underwater networking chamber. The Blue Sage once made some researches there, but he never shared his discoveries with the village. That's all I can tell you for now. good luck."

Nodding, Duke around and started thinking. "Alright, should I go explore the Boggy Swamps or the Lost Precursor City first?"


	193. Boggy Swamps

_Previously: Duke arrived at the Rock Village to find the Blue Sage missing and a giant Lurker bombing the village with burning boulders. He must now find enough power cells to fuel the machine that will open the way to the monster in the Mountain Pass._

* * *

After thinking about it, Duke decided to head for the Boggy Swamp before going to the Lost Precursor City. Following the Gambler's instructions, he jumped on the platoons in the water of the village (careful not to fall in the water below as he didn't dare thinking of the monsters possibly hiding below) and headed north west of the village. Eventually, he arrived to the edge of the coast and entered a path that led him to the destination.

Much to Duke's displeasure, it was dominated by marsh, including sludge and thick, hazardous tar, as well as large thorns and wooden stakes. For some reason, it started raining in here and it smelled so bad that the military macaw he was going to puke for a second before managing to compose himself.

Taking a deep breath, Duke resigned himself to step into the muddy swamp and immediately hated the feeling underneath his foot. "Let's find those power cells and get the hell out of here as fast as possible!" he mumbled to himself.

The military macaw made his way through the dirty swamp, trying not to step in anything too gross for him, and soon reached the entrance to a cave. Needless to say he was glad to get his feet out of the mud. Thankfully, there was some torches lightening up his path.

Eventually, he reached a pretty large arena. Before he could get to the exit point, little noises were heard and many little red rat-like Lurkers came out of holes in the walls, surrounding Duke and preventing him from either going back or forward.

"Crap! I'm trapped!" Duke said before an idea came into his mind. "Wait, this is the perfect occasion to try the Blue Sage's tool."

Taking the gun into his wings, Duke aimed at a nearby Rat Lurker before pressing on the trigger. He got pushed back a bit as a yellow fireball came out of the weapon's tip and knocked said Lurker down. This thing could shoot fireballs? Cool!

Smirking, Duke went on a fun rampage as he started shooting every Rat Lurkers down one-by-one with his Fireball Gun (He was gonna call it that way), knocking them away with close combat when they got too close to him. Before long, there was not one of those nuisances remaining: they were all defeated.

With this being done, Duke headed outside of the cave and then faced yet another obstacle. This time, it was in the form of a path made of tar which was beyond the shadow of a doubt deep enough to make him drown. The only way across it was a series of wooden scaffoldings, but they was too much distance between each one them: Duke would never be able to jump far enough. What could he do?

He then heard a strange noise behind him and quickly turned around...to see the flut flut?

"What are you doing here, little guy?" Duke asked in surprise. He then noticed the big bird he saved on the Sentinel Beach was carrying a message paper around his neck. Thinking it was destined for him, Duke picked it and unrolled it open to read what it contained.

It was Keira saying she sent the flut flut after him, thinking he could use his help. Duke smiled and patted the big bird's head. "You couldn't have come at a better time, my friend. Care to make me go through this tar swamp?"

The big bird just gave a nod and smiled as he allowed Duke to hop on his back. He then jumped on the scaffoldings one-by-one with incredible speed, avoiding the tar swamps below them. A few minutes later, they reached the end of the path, but still didn't found any power cell.

They arrived at a docking station at the coastline with the sea now revealing itself before them. Duke didn't really understood what it was doing there since it was very unlikely people would want to dock and explore such a place. However, something else then caught his attention: a little hut standing on the edge of another tar swamp.

Duke noticed that someone was sitting next to said hut. It was a man with orange hair and small beard. His clothes were scrappy and poorly fitting, with a small vest, a pair of half broken overalls and a frayed hat that covered his eyes. His clothing contributed to his overall disheveled appearance. He also wore a jug holding some sort of drinkable liquid which he was swallowing and jiggling.

Yup, he was definitely drunk.

"Hum, excuse-me, sir?" Duke said as he got off the flut flut and walked over to the drunk man.

"Howdy, friends!" he exclaimed with swinging his jug, almost hitting Duke in the process. "Enjoyin' my beautiful swamp? I own these here parts. Everything that doesn't sink into the mud, that is! He he ha ha hah aha!"

"Judging by the smell, I can say your bathtub fell into the mud a long time ago," Duke mumbled to himself while trying to fan the hillbilly's bad smell off.

"What's a bathtub?" the hillbilly asked in confusion. "Anyways, I got bigger problems right now. Those darn Rat Lurkers jump on everything they can get their paws on. They scared my hip-hog friend, Farthy. I miss him so much!" he sniffed.

"I tried to get him back home by putting his favorite muffins on the edge of the swamp, but those darn Lurkers just keep eating them! If you could keep them away long enough, I'm sure Farthy could smell their odor and end up finding his way home. So what do you say? Wanna help me out?"

"Sure, why not. While I'm passing, I could do it," Duke responded while the flut flut nodded.

"Great! Those rats will be back anytime. Keep them at bay as long as you can and do not let them eat any of the four muffins or everything will be lost."

Duke nodded and went to take position on the edge of the tar swamp where the four muffins were laying on the ground. He then took his Fireball Gun as he saw many Rat Lurkers coming through the swamp and toward their position.

"Time for a good tower defense game!"

Rising his weapon, he started shooting at the rats one-by-one before they could reach the muffins. If things were simple at first, Duke started having an hard time as there was more and more of them coming, making it impossible to keep all of them at bay.

Whenever one of them got too close, Duke would rely to close combat to fight them off with the flut flut helping by pecking them. Before long, the Hillbilly called for them:

"Guys! Guys! You did it!" They turned to see him with a little hip-hog in his lap. "Farthy has returned! You sure know how to shoot! Thanks for your help!"

He then reached into his pants and took out not one, not two, but THREE power cells! "That's for helping me, buddy."

"Wow, three power cells? That's awesome!" Duke happily said before realizing something. "Wait a second, why were they in your... No, you know what, I don't wanna know..."

* * *

 **Well, at least Duke didn't went in the Boggy Swamp for nothing. He had the chance to test his new weapon, work with the flut flut and help the Hillbilly.**

 **I wonder why he kept those three power cells inside his pants. I think it would be better if we never learn why XD**


	194. The Lost Precursor City

Having finished exploring the Boggy Swamp, Duke brought the flut flut back to the Blue Sage's hut before heading for his next destination: the Lost Precursor City. Returning to the pavilion in the middle of the village, Duke couldn't help but glance at Klaww who was still throwing burning boulders onto the village.

"Just you wait, big guy: I'll take care of you soon," he thought.

The military macaw went on the cafe side of the pavilion were a set of platoons were aligned toward the dome far off the village's coast. He started jumping on them one after the other (still careful to not fall in the water below as he didn't wanted to become a bait for all the fishes below) until he managed to reach the dome.

Walking through the circled door, he found himself inside a room with nothing but a button into the floor. Duke quickly realized it was the same one as on the tower top, back in the Forbidden Jungle and on top of the Forbidden Temple. Shrugging, he simply stepped on the button, pressing it down.

A mechanism noise was heard and he soon started getting down with the platform underwater. Duke looked in awe as the tube he was getting down in was transparent, allowing him to see the underwater world - the fishes swimming all around, the alleges dancing to the rhythm of the waves, the whole underwater life! It was beautiful.

Eventually, he arrived at the bottom of the tunnel with another circle-shaped door opening before him. Gulping, he walked through and found himself into a corridor of Precursor metal with windows all around for him to look out into the sea.

"I don't know why, but I got a feeling I'm gonna have a lot of fun exploring this lost city," Duke thought to himself.

The military macaw started walking through the complicated network with various passageways, platforms, rooms, and chambers. It felt like he was always going in the same direction and walking in circles.

Luckily, this all came to an end as he soon reached a chamber with a tunnel shaped like a sliding tube. He wondered could be at the bottom of it? Bah, only one way to find out.

The military macaw jumped into the tube and let himself slide on his butt. He couldn't help but laugh and scream as the slide was pretty long and fast with the tube turning in every direction. After what like minutes but was actually 40 seconds, he reached the bottom of the slide tube and into a pretty strange room.

The room itself was looking like the inside of a silo and was pretty long with the ceiling out of view. There was a strange platform located in the middle with a power cell laying on it! Before Duke jumped to catch it, however, he decided to look down below and was surprised to see a pool of Dark Eco! Okay, this was probably the inside of another Dark Eco Silo.

Making sure not to fall below, Duke took a leap and jumped right on the platform to catch the power cell and put it into his backpack.

"Alright! That makes another one for the Blue Sage's-"

CLACK!

To Duke's confusion, the platform he was standing onto lowered down and a big mechanic noise was heard. Looking down, he saw something terrible happening: the Dark Eco pool's level was rising! This power cell just served as a trap!

Pushing a swear underneath his breath, Duke quickly jumped onto the platform against the wall and started running up the ledges that lead upwards into the silo to escape before the Dark Eco could reach him and turn him into something else!

Despite running up the ledges as fast as his macaw legs allowed him to, Duke realized that the rising Dark Eco pool was slowly catching up to him. If he couldn't reach the exit in time, it was over! Luckily, the door resting near the very top of the silo came into view. Duke pushed himself to the limit as the pool was now millimeters away from touching his toes.

Launching himself, Duke managed to pass the door which then closed itself immediately before the Dark Eco could come into the room with him. Panting deeply, his body covered of sweat from the marathon he just ran, Duke slowly pushed himself up and recomposed himself before scanning the room he was in.

It was isolated, but there was a little metal table in the middle of the room with a power cell laying on it along with a treasure chest filled to the edge with golden coins beside it. There was another circle-shaped door on the other side.

"Wow! Jackpot!" Duke happily said, grabbing the power cell in his wing and looking at all the golden coins in the chest. "Looks like this run wasn't for nothing." He then looked at the fourth wall. "Thought I wonder what a power cell and a treasure doing in this room visibly abandoned for years. Strange, huh?"

* * *

 **...Okay, maybe the world of "The Dynamic Adventure" is a bit strange XD. At least Duke's not dead, right?**


	195. Duke vs Klaww

**We're done exploring the Rock Village and its surrounding zones: it's time to face up with Klaww!**

* * *

After having a near-death experience in the Lost Precursor City, Duke made his way up to the machine at the feet of Mountain Pass where Keira awaited him. He gave her all the power cells he had collected so that she could fuel the machine and move the boulder blocking their way.

"We should have enough power cells to power up this machine and move off that boulder," Keira said with pressing the buttons on the control panel.

This caused a Blue Eco beam to come out from the machine's canon and reach the burning boulder, lifting it off from the ground and opening the path up to Mountain Pass.

"Great! It works" Keira then turned toward Duke. "Now be careful with this giant Lurker monster okay?"

"Don't worry; it's not the first time I face up with a monster," Duke replied, referring to the Dark Eco Plant he faced in the Forbidden Temple. Thought he hoped Klaww will be easier to take down.

The military macaw started climbing up the platforms that led up to the mountain. Before long, he reached the top and entered a crack similar to the Fire Canyon's entrance and was soon greeted by a rather imposing sight.

The zone before him was a tunneled-out cave filled with molten lava into which the giant Klaww was standing. Noticing the intruder, he pushed a loud roar, having visibly been waiting for him.

Gulping, Duke refused to back down and noticed a platform of dried magma down below. He jumped down onto it, ready to face the giant Lurker, and immediately had to whip sweat away because of the heat generated by the lava all around. Since said lava prevented him from getting into close combat, Duke instead took out his Fireball Gun.

Pushing a roar, Klaww raised his robotic arm and started using it to shoot boulders at Duke. Thankfully, they were smaller than the ones he used to shoot over the village and there was enough room on his platform to dodge them and avoid deadly damage.

As soon as Klaww stopped shooting to recharge his arm, Duke rose his Fireball Gun and aimed for a good spot. Unfortunately, due to his Precursor armor, the only parts of Klaww's body that were exposed were his lower belly, head and left arm.

Since it was the easiest spot to touch, Duke started shooting fireballs at his lower belly. The attacks made Klaww flinch a bit, but not enough to take him down. Eventually, he pushed another loud roar and returned on the offensive, shooting boulders that forced Duke to dodge again.

He had to repeat this cycle of dodging until Klaww had to recharge and shoot at him for two more times. By that time, the giant Lurker had burning marks all over his abdomen and was visibly enraged. He rose both arms in the air and started creating a boulder that was getting visibly bigger than all the previous ones.

Duke widened his eyes: if Klaww was to toss this boulder over him, he would squashed, no doubt! He quickly rose his Fireball Gun and shot him enough times in the underbelly to lower himself down. Having a good aim, Duke then shot a fireball right into his face, causing him to push a loud growl of pain. In the process, he dropped the giant boulder which fell directly on top of his head.

CRACK!

Duke immediately knew this was the sound of Klaww's spine snapping. The giant stumbled a bit before falling down into the molten lava and disappearing beneath. He was defeated.

In his fall, the giant caused some lava stalagmite around to fall in the perfect way to form a bridge for Duke to reach the other side. Smiling, the military macaw pulled his Fireball Gun away and started crossing the bridge.

* * *

Moments later, Duke was standing on the other side of Mountain Pass with Keira. The area they were in was an extended plain of grassy cliffs flourishing with fir trees. It was way better than the volcanic zone where Duke had fought Klaww.

"Great job, Duke!" Keira beamed. She had brought the Zoomer from the village. "The villagers are all relieved that Klaww is gone now." Her happy face turned upside down. "However, they are still worried for the Blue Sage."

"Don't worry; we'll find him," Duke assured. "So you brought the Zoomer to help me cross the mountain?"

"Yes. You need to reach the Red Sage's hut as fast as possible. If he didn't already got captured that is."

Nodding, Duke was about to jump on the Zoomer when a group of Lurkers on flying devices passed and smirked at them before flying across the Mountain Pass. "Lurkers?" Duke said in surprise.

"Oh my! Those Lurkers are heading for a detonator at the end of the Mountain Pass!" Keira exclaimed in horror. "If they reach it before you, they'll blow up the entire pass! Duke! you need to reach and destroy the detonator before them or it's all over!"

Nodding, Duke wasted no time jumping on the Zoomer and charging at the Flying Lurkers' pursuit.

* * *

 **Klaww has been defeated, but if Duke cannot reach the end of Mountain Pass before those Lurkers, it will all have been in vain!**


	196. Volcanic Crater

**The hot pursuit begins!**

* * *

The Mountain Pass revealed itself to be a large valley between Rock Village and Volcanic Crater. Luckily, it was shaped in a straight way to make it look like a track for Duke's Zoomer. Thanks to this, he could easily navigate through.

Well, he would, if there wasn't a lot of trees in his way along with bottomless pits he had to dodge to avoid falling to his inevitable death. This was a huge disadvantage over the Flying Lurkers who could simply fly above all those obstacles with no problem at all. Luckily, Duke's advantage was that his Zoomer was faster than their engines.

After many minutes of riding across the valley, Duke entered a cave tunnel and managed to exceed the Flying Lurkers inside. Soon, a Lurker holding what seemed like a detonator came into view. Pushing his Zoomer to the limit, Duke managed to charge into the monster, knocking him out and destroy the detonator before he could activate it.

"I did it!" Duke happily beamed and turned around to see the Flying Lurkers leaving with disappointed looks.

Smiling, Duke jumped off his Zoomer and then turned to see the path ahead of him was a volcanic cave like opening. Barely did he made a few steps inside that he coughed because of the suffer smell that invaded his nostrils. Of course, this was in a volcano underground: what was he thinking?

He then arrived inside a crate with lava below and a huge heat that caused him to sweat already. In the center of the crater was the Red Sage's hut, which had similarity with the preceding sage's huts except adapted for the volcanic environment. It was accessible via rope bridge on one side and one on the other side.

Seeing nowhere else to go, Duke simply crossed the wooden bridge - careful not to fall in the lava below and turn into a roasted chicken - and then entered the Red Sage's hut. Exactly like with the previous one, it was a total mess with books and other items scattered all around and not signs of the sage.

"Looks like we arrived too late once again," Duke mumbled as he pressed on the button to activate the portal gate.

Samos and Keira came flying through with the old man landing head first once again. "I'm always wondering if I'm loosing funny parts in this!" he groaned with getting back up. He then looked at the hut and widened his eyes. "Holy yakow! The Red Sage's lab look worse than the Blue's!"

"It definitely look like there has been a struggle in here," Keira remarked with a nod and crossing her arms.

They suddenly heard a laughing noise coming from above and looked up. To their surprise, it was none other than the two strange beings Duke saw commanding the Lurkers back on Misty Island. they were floating near the ceiling and glancing down at them.

"I don't think we can call it a struggle," the man said with his deep voice. "Would you, dear sister?" he asked with turning his head to the woman.

"Certainly not," she responded. "The Red Sage gave up with so little effort, it wasn't a fight at all."

Samos eyed the strange beings for a moment before widening his eyes. "Gol?! Is that you?! Looks like you finally went too deep in your research." He then looked at the girl. "And Maya?! good lord! I told you Dark Eco would end up affecting you both! But nobody ever listen to old Samos." This statement caused Duke to nervously rub the back of his head.

"What have you two done with the Blue and Red Sages?"

"Don't you worry about your pathetic friends," Gol replied. "You are all fools. They are safe in our citadel. Our "special guests"."

"They have recently agreed to help us on a special project," Maya added with a smirk.

"You're blind, Samos: Dark Eco can be controlled. Waiting for us in darkness and using it, we will be able to re-shape the world to our liking," Gol said.

"You can't control Dark Eco by itself!" Samos denied. "Even the Precursor-"

"Until now, we had to do with what little Dark Eco we could find near the surface," Maya cut him off. "But soon, we will have access to the vast stores of Dark Eco hidden deep underground."

Samos suddenly widened his eyes in horror as he seemed to understand what they were talking about. "Not the silos!"

"Yes, the silos," Gol confirmed with a smirk. "We will open them and all the Dark Eco in the world will be ours."

"But that's impossible! Only a Precursor robot could-"

"Oh, quite being so pessimist, Samos," Maya cut him off once again. "We've got big plans for you." The two siblings then faded away into dust.

"It's those same guys I saw back on Misty Island," Duke mumbled to himself. He then realized something. "Wait a minute! This is Gol? The Gol supposed to change me back into a human?! And he's trying to kill us?!" he asked to which Samos slowly nodded. "...I'm doomed."

"We may all be doomed!" Samos said. "If they open the silos, the Dark Eco will destroy everything it touches. We simply must get to their citadel and stop them!"

"The only way to their citadel is through the Lava Tube at the bottom of this crater," Keira explained, rubbing her chin. "A few more power cells, and the Zoomer's heat shield should be able to get you through there safely."

"Alright my boy, you know what to do," Samos said. "Go search more power cells and make your way to the citadel!"

Nodding, Duke headed toward the hut's exit when he noticed something laying on the floor. It looked like a pair of red gloves made specially to fit wings. "If I remember correctly, Red Eco is made to enhance one's physical strength. Maybe those are gloves charged with Red Eco?"

If it was the case, they would made him stronger. Duke tied them to his belt and then headed out of the hut.

* * *

 **Duke reached the Volcanic Crater and Gol and Maya showed themselves! He now have a new gadget and knows what his enemies are up to. He just have the find enough power cells for his Zoomer to reach the Citadel through the Lava Tube.**


	197. Snowy Mountains

**Time to explore the Volcanic Crater!**

* * *

After leaving the hut, duke crossed the second rope bridge which passed near some kind of gondola that was leading upward to an unknown destination. However, Duke decided not to find out where yet and instead headed into a cave not too far.

It was filled with glowing crystal and there was some kind of miner working against the wall. He was short and plump, with muddy clothes typical of a miner, and carried a pick-ax.

"Excuse-me," Duke said to get his attention.

The miner turned around and looked down at him. "Yes, what can I do for you, little parrot?"

"I'm searching for power cells. Is there any place you think I can find some?" Duke asked.

"Power cells, huh? That's funny: most people usually come here to find crystals," the Miner remarked with a chuckle. "But if you really wanna find power cells, the only place I know you can find some is the Snowy Mountain; you can access it with the gondola located near the entrance of this cave."

"Alright, thanks for your help," Duke said before heading out of the cave, leaving the Miner to resume his search for crystals.

He then walked over to the gondola and went to turn on the machine's switch to activate it before sitting down in the gondola. Slowly, the ropes started turning and he got lifted up toward the sky and away from the Volcanic Crater. The burning heat was soon replaced by a chilling cold atmosphere as he arrived to the top of the snowy mountain above the volcano.

"Brrr, maybe I should've brought warmer clothes," the military macaw mumbled to himself as he jumped down into the cold snow which made him shiver even more. Turning around, he saw that he was so high that he could see distant countries. Exactly like when he reached the top of the Forbidden Temple.

Again, it was a sight worth dying for.

After breaking out from his trance, Duke walked forward to go explore the Snowy Mountain. However, it wasn't long before he met his first obstacle: a cave with ledges too far from each other for him to cross.

"Great, how am I gonna advance now?" he mumbled to himself.

He then heard a chirping noise from behind and turned around to see his flut flut companion standing there with a smile.

"You again? How did you made the way over here?" Duke asked before rolling his eyes and looking at the fourth wall. "Fanfic logic, right?"

 **(Absolutely :) )**

Shrugging, the military macaw jumped onto the flut flut's back. The big bird ran forward and started jumping from one ledge to another. Duke held on his friend for dear life as there was a bottomless pit between each gap which would lead to a certain death.

Eventually, they arrived at the end of the cave which was a pretty big open room with a power cell laying right in the middle of it. "A power cell all alone in here? Seems pretty strange. But a power cell's a power cell," duke thought as he jumped off his friend's back and went to pick up the glowing orb which he putted in his backpack.

Suddenly, Lurkers jumped out of nowhere, armed with wooden shields and bats. They were different from the Lurkers he was used to thought: these ones were identical to the normal ones excepting a blue coat with pale blue underbellies. They were also clad in heavy yellow winter gear, including some type of animal pelt used as a cowl, obscuring a presumably dark blue mane.

"I also thought it was too simple," Duke mumbled as the Snow Lurkers surrounded him and the flut flut. He then had an idea. "This is the perfect opportunity to try my Red Eco Gauntlets!" he said with taking said gadgets out and putting them on his wings.

Some Snow Lurkers charged at him with their bats, but he knocked them out of the way with punches that made him realize how strong his gloves made him. Smirking, he grabbed a Snow Lurker, lifted him up, and tossed him at the others.

A Snow Lurker came and swung his wooden shield at the military who swiftly dodged his attacks before replying with a punch in the stomach that knocked him off into the bottomless pit. Another one was about to attack him from behind, but the flut flut grabbed him by the head with his beak and tossed him away, not wanting Duke to get hurt.

Everyone tried to take Duke down, but he was just too strong. Before long, they were all laying down, defeated. "A good job done," the macaw said with a smile as he pulled his gloves away and jumped on the flut flut's back. "Let's keep going, pal."


	198. The Citadel

**Don't be surprised that we're already done with the Volcanic Crater: there's just not much to be seen around here.**

* * *

After defeating the Snow Lurkers's ambush, Duke and the flut flut kept searching across the Snowy Mountain. He managed to find three more power cells before going back down in the Volcanic Crater. Funny: right after landing, he already missed the coolness of the mountain.

He headed toward the bottom of the volcano after bringing the flut flut back to the Red Sage's hut. There, he found Keira with the Zoomer, finishing to add the last adjustments.

"There, the heat shield should now be able to stand up to 800 degrees," she said.

The Lava Tube was a volcanic pass full of molten lava and slightly solidified cool spots, with large pathways. Due to the closed space, it was hotter than the Fire Canyon and also looked to go farther. It was so hot in fact that he started thinking the Fire Canyon wasn't that bad after all.

"But the shield won't be able to resist the heat forever, so be quick okay?" Keira continued with looking at Duke.

"Don't worry; I know my way around with a Zoomer," Duke confidentially said.

"Alright. Once you get to the other side, open the portal gate for my dad and I okay?" Keira continued.

The military macaw nodded before jumping onto the Zoomer and started driving through the Lava Tube. It was a bit hard to remain focused as the place was even hotter than the Fire Canyon, causing Duke to sweat a lot - so much that his wet wings almost let go of the controllers.

Along with that, there was also many more pits of lava which forced him to stay focused at the risk of falling down below to his death. As if that wasn't bad enough, many Dark Eco barrels where scattered along the path, forcing him to dodge them at the price of getting blown up.

Luckily, just as the heat shield seemed to have reached its limit and the lower part of the Zoomer started turning red, Duke arrived at the end of the Lava Tube and at the entrance of the Citadel which was a lonely rock platform with a portal gate in a corner.

"Phew! I thought I was done for it this time," he mumbled before getting down and pressing down the button to activate the portal gate. Strangely, only Keira came out of it this time. "Keira? Where's your father?"

"This is terrible! Father is missing! I think he might have been kidnapped as well," Keira sadly said with rubbing her forehead.

"What?! Impossible: they can't just have kidnapped him like that!" Duke denied with his eyes wide open.

"This is no good. The Lurker army continues to grow across the land, the four sages have been kidnapped, Gol and Maya have gathered enough Dark Eco to put on their terrible plan, and to stop them you're gonna have to fight your way through the Citadel," she said with pointing at the Precursor door which was probably leading inside the destination. "You gotta save my father before it's too late!"

"And Duke?" Keira looked down and rubbed the back of her head. "Be careful, okay?"

Duke just smiled at her concern. "Don't worry; I'll be."

He then headed to the door which opened itself to reveal a pretty long hall. He ran to the end of it and crossed another door to enter a surprising room. A vast room with spinning platforms, wooden scaffolding, dropping tiles, and various other platforming challenges, with a large Precursor robot protected by a shield at the center of the room. The entire Citadel consisted of seemingly gravity-defying or vastly tall structures, with every platform descending down to an endlessly pitch-black chasm. The remaining functioning Precursor technology within the citadel appeared to be tinkered with and patched using identifiable Lurker technology.

"About time you decided to show up!"

Duke looked up to see Samos standing in a cage located near the giant robot. "Old man! You're okay?"

"It could be better. But now's not time for this: Gol and Maya captured us and try to suck our respective Eco to power up their machine." He then pointed at the giant robot in the middle of the room. "It appears they have gathered the remaining of an ancient Precursor Robot with parts scattered across the land. They then added a few Lurker additions of their own and turned it into a powerful machine to open the Dark Eco silos."

He looked back at Duke. "If you free all four of us, we could use our combined Ecos to break through the shield and arrest the robot before it can destroy the world. The power generator of the cages is located at the very top of the Citadel. Hurry up boy! And don't fall below and you're doomed to a certain death."

"Thanks for reminding me," Duke sarcastically replied.

The walk through the Citadel proved to be a rather difficult one for the military macaw. With the small scaffoldings, the spinning platforms, Lurkers blocking the way, it wasn't easy at all. Before long, Duke reached the second floor where a large rotary of variously-pitched platforms connected to the main scaffolding system leading to the power generator awaited him.

"Is the flut flut gonna jump of nowhere again to help me?" Duke hopefully asked with turning around. But his feathered friend wasn't there. "Come on, this would have been the perfect time!"

Shrugging, the military macaw started jumping from one spinning platform to the other, making to time his jumps correctly as to not fall to his death. After many jumps, he made a final one and almost missed the main scaffolding system, barely managing to grab the edge with his wings. Pulling himself up, he pushed a sigh of relief as he avoided death once again.

Once it was passed, he quickly looked at the shield generator and shot into it with his Fireball Gun to make it blow and fall off.

"Great work, boy!" Duke turned around to see Samos alongside three other sages floating up to him. "You're a real hero now!"

"Good work, fellows! Old Samos was right about you!" the Blue sage beamed.

The Blue Sage wears brownish yellow pants, a blue vest and leather straps on his feet. On his head he wears a large overturned bowl-shaped hat, with several antennae sticking out. This would appear to somehow conduct Blue Eco's energy, though this is unknown. The bowl is connected to a small barrel on his left wrist by a tube. His Blue Eco is channeled through a metal staff with a glowing blue glass ball on the end, which he carries with him. He wears a monocle, and sports a lightning-shaped white mustache.

"Who woulda thought I'd live to see the day I had to be rescued by a macaw boy?! I'm gonna give Gol and Maya a little payback for these embarrassments! Then we'll see about cookin' up some macaw stew," the Yellow Sage said.

"Hey! No one's gonna cook me!" Duke protested.

The Yellow Sage is a stout man, with saturated yellow skin and wears various metal plating and equipment. He carries a large tank on his back, and with the yellow tubes coming in and out of it, presumably carries Yellow Eco. He wears a metal face mask covering all but his mouth/jaw-area with a small telescope-like object on top of his head. He has a large white beard and wears a brownish-yellow tunic trimmed with beige cloth. He wears pale green-yellow pants and carries a Yellow Eco staff.

"Heh heh heh heh...! You've finally come to rescue me! Do you know how long I've been in here? Heh heh heh...!" the Red Sage said with a laugh.

The Red Sage has a mustache, with a red, plump, round body. His only clothing is his metal-plated suit and the glowing red tubes around it (which presumably carry Red Eco in them).

"We must now combine our Ecos and break this shield surrounding the Precursor Robot!" Samos called.

"Good idea. And, huh...one more thing, guys," Duke said.

"Yes, yes, don't worry, we'll see about changing you back to normal later," Samos said. "But for now, we must focus on saving the world."

He and the three other sages then flew around the shield and shot beams of their respective Eco on it until it faded away, leaving the Precursor Robot exposed. However, before they could directly attack it, it suddenly flew up the tube above it and outside the Citadel.

"Crap!" Samos swore. "Gol and Maya have already took control of it! They're gonna open the Dark Eco silos and destroy the world! Duke! Take the elevator and stop that robot!"

Duke nodded and entered the large elevator inside the main scaffolding. Pressing down the button in the middle, the elevator started moving upward toward the final battle...

* * *

 **Duke has reached the Citadel and free all the sages. Now, can he stop Gol and Maya from releasing the Dark Eco in the world before it's too late?**


	199. Battle on top of the world

**Alright, it's time for the final battle!**

* * *

After a few long minutes, the elevator finally reached the top. It came out on top of a gigantic Precursor tower. It was so tall that Duke could see practically all of the continent including all the regions he had previously visited. It was currently night time which gave the sky a dark blue color and the sea visible at the horizon was purple. The wind was blowing pretty hard and the wind was coldish (it was understandable: they were even higher than the Snowy Mountain!).

Walking over to the edge of the Citadel's roof, Duke saw that the floor was so far below that it was barely visible. He also saw the giant Precursor Robot floating next to another big Dark Eco silo, shooting a beam with its eye at it, trying to get it open and unleash the Dark Eco inside.

Pushing a loud sigh, Duke jumped on the little platform that floated off and brought him toward the final fight.

"HEY! GOL! MAYA!" Duke shouted as he got near and jumped on the silo. "I CAME HERE TO STOP YOU!"

"It is too late!" Gol's voice replied from inside the robot while still shooting its beam at the silo.

Duke quickly took out his Fireball Gun and started shooting at the robot's eye until it exploded, destroying its beam. "YOU'LL REGRET THAT!" The robot angrily shouted. Unfortunately, the damage had already been done and the silo's slit slowly started opening. Duke had to end this quick before it got completely open and released the Dark Eco inside.

The Precursor Robot suddenly started shooting Green Eco drops with its arm into the Dark Eco and soon, large, spiky, Lurker-like creatures came out of the pool and started charging at Duke.

The military macaw took out his Red Eco Gauntlets after putting away his Fireball Guns and easily smashed the hostile creatures away with punches and smashes. Once they were all defeated, Gol and Maya once again groaned into their machine.

"IT'S NOT OVER!"

The robot rose its right arm and used a launcher to throw bombs of explosive Red Eco. As soon as they exploded, they released a shockwave, creating harmful radius on all sides. Duke was forced to jump up to avoid possibly loosing his legs.

"No idea I would have to play jump the sheep!" duke mumbled to himself.

He then rose his Fireball Gun and shot multiple times on the Red Eco canon until it Precursor Robot started getting badly damaged. However, the Dark Eco silo was getting more and more open by the seconds. Duke had to end this fight quickly.

Mounted on its left arm was a large Yellow Eco cannon, taking up nearly all of its left arm. It launched huge blasts of Yellow Eco which charged across the top of the silo. Duke managed to dodge the shots at the cost of it rubbing his skin and burning some feathers.

"Take that!" After dodging some attacks, Duke once again rose his Fireball Gun and shot until the Yellow Eco canon exploded.

Despite having the advantage, Duke started feeling tired from this seemingly endless battle and the tiredness from traveling and accomplishing tasks nonstop for ten hours started catching up to him. Suddenly, the four sages floated around the silo and shot a beam at the same spot above it, creating some kind of light ball.

"What's that?" Duke asked.

"We're making Light Eco for you!" Samos called.

"Light Eco?" Duke asked. "I know Green Eco for healing, Yellow Eco for fire power, Blue Eco for speed, Red Eco for strength, and Dark Eco for destruction...but I don't know Light Eco."

"It's a combination of our Ecos and the exact opposite of Dark Eco!" Samos called as the light ball fell before Duke. "That's all we can fabric for the moment! Quick! Time's running short!"

He didn't had to ask it twice as Duke grabbed the Light Eco ball and combined it with his Fireball Gun. It turned white with glowing light and Duke could feel a great power in it. the military macaw smirked as he looked up at the giant Precursor Robot.

"Gol, do something!" Maya panicked inside the robot.

However, before they could do anything, Duke rose his Light Eco-charged Fireball Gun. "Goodbye, baby!" he dropped before shooting an extra-powerful blast that literally made the robot explode into pieces.

The Robot's head, where Gol and Maya were located, fell right into the silo's Dark Eco pool. "NOOOO!" they shouted as the head slowly sunk into the Dark Eco and the silo closed itself, sealing the corrupted sages forever.

Duke just stood there with his now normal Fireball Gun returned to normal and the wind blowing through his feathers. At last, it was over...

"DUKE!"

The macaw turned around just in time to see Keira arriving and giving him a big hug. This made him blush a bit as the sages including Samos came down and chuckled.

"I may have been a bit hard on you, son," Samos said after Keira let go of the hug. "You do have what it takes to be a hero."

"But Duke, that means we can no longer change you back," Keira remarked.

"Don't worry about that, Keira," Duke said with a smile and looked at his body. "Honestly, I got a bit attached to this feathered body."

"Duke, you got a great talent for making use of the Ecos," the Blue Sage remarked. "Samos did taught you well I see."

"And Keira, without your help thanks to your knowledge in mechanic, none of this would have been possible," the Red Sage remarked. "Perhaps we have found another sage, hahaha!"

"...Gol and Maya are lost," Samos mumbled while looking at the closed silo after he and the others went back on the Citadel's top. He couldn't deny he was sad to have lost two of his friends due to corruption. Duke came and putted a wing on his shoulder for comfort.

"Huh, just one thing," the Yellow Sage suddenly called. "What's that door?"

Indeed, there was a big Precursor door located on the edge of the rooftop. Duke had failed to notice it upon his arrival as he was in a hurry to stop Gol and Maya. What could lay beneath that door?

"Look, there are holes for power cells all over it," Keira remarked. "Maybe by inserting a power cell in each one of them, we'll be able to open it?"

Nodding, Duke took out all the power cells he had collected so far and inserted them The giant door door then created a mechanical noise and started opening slowly. A huge light coming from inside caused everyone to cover their eyes for a moment before seeing inside.

It was a huge room with a Precursor metal table on which was laying...

...

...

...

...

...

...a fruit?

* * *

 **Yup, another arc that ends on a cliffhanger. What was this fruit? What are the Precursors in the end? XD**

 **I'd like to point out that this story takes place more than thirty years before the current events of this story. So don't be surprised that Duke is young in here while the Duke Hawkeye had a drink with was human in form and pretty old.**

 **Now that I think about it, all the last four arcs ended in cliffhangers right?**

 **Inazuma 11: Is Team Raimon gonna win the Football Frontier Tournament?**

 **Angry Birds Snow: What the last sentence meant, when it said Snow Kid was gonna be a part of a bigger picture?**

 **Underground Mysteries: Are the ninjas birds and their friends all alive?**

 **Precursor Legacy: What was that fruit?**

 **Anyway, I sure hope you guys enjoyed reading those last arcs as much as I enjoyed writing them. And little news that should make everyone happy: the side arcs are over for now! We're gonna go back to the Blue Thunder Crew and continue their adventure for the next arc!**

 **Until then, be nice and stay cool, owl lovers :)**


	200. The Skyland map

**Finally. After two complete months of waiting, the big day has come: we're going back to the Blue Thunder Crew!**

* * *

Blu was sitting on the tip of the Saldanha, enjoying the fresh, salty sea breeze blowing through his feathers. It has been five days now since they had left their friends at the Valley of Peace and followed their compass toward their next destination. Right now, the sun was shining bright in the blue sky and reflecting over the miraculous beautiful sea surface.

The captain of the Blue Thunder Crew turned his head toward his ship and looked at his crew mates. Dominic was taking a nap in a corner; Alex was sitting on the floor, classing his medical tools, and Hernandez was chatting with Lazaro who was currently laying flat on his stomach. They had recently returned to their normal bird forms after crossing a zone. This meant they were no longer anthropomorphic and didn't had to wear clothes anymore.

"What's wrong, Lazaro?" Hernandez asked his best friend. The pelican looked down at the little puffin.

"I'm bored...," he whined. "It's been five days since we left and nothing has happened since."

"You already finished reading the books about fishes King Alkawbra gave you back in Sequin?"

"Twice."

"Why don't you go swimming a bit?"

"I did that everyday: it's getting boring. Not any spectacular marine life to see."

"Playing cards with the others?"

"Dominic and Vladimir are too strong. And Alex cheats all the time."

Speaking of which, the young snowy owl kid justly finished classing his tools when Vladimir walked by and accidentally stepped on his stuff, spilling them all over the floor in disorder.

"Hey! Watch where you're walking!" the kid angrily screamed at the golden eagle.

"Oh, sorry Alex," Vladimir quickly apologized and leaned down to help his friend class his tools once again.

Apollo was using his mallet to plant a metal board over the mast as it has been slightly damaged by a thunderstorm two days ago. The barn owl sighed and removed his green cap to whip sweat from his forehead. He then turned his attention toward Dominic who was still sleeping in a corner.

"Hey, Dom! Mind to stop snoring like a sloth and help me fixing the ship?" he called. "The last storm has been pretty hard on us."

"You just had to be more careful with the propeller, dude," the golden eagle nonchalantly replied while keeping his eyes closed.

"Hey, I couldn't have known that this storm would catch us! It's Jewel's job of keeping us sure of the weather in here, right Jewel?" He turned his head toward his spix macaw friend who seemed distracted. "Jewel?"

"Come see this, guys! It's strange!" she suddenly called.

Blu was the first to join his girlfriend by jumping off the tip of the Saldanha. Alex putted his tools back in his backpack, Lazaro picked himself up from the floor and Dominic yawned out of his nap before coming around Jewel.

It was then that they saw what was confusing her: her compass which usually showed them which way to go was pointing upward toward the sky. It was jammed in this position. "Your compass...?" Lazaro mumbled.

"It's pointing toward the sky," Jewel nodded with looking at her little tool.

"What does that mean?" Alex asked curiously. "Our next destination is in the sky?"

"Don't be ridiculous," Blu chuckled. "There can't be an island in the sky, it's scientifically impossible. The compass must simply be broken."

As they talked, something suddenly fell on Lazaro's big nose. He blinked his eyes curiously before realizing it was actually raining all around. But was that possible? The sky was clear...was it?

It was only then that he noticed a shadow forming on the floor and slowly growing more and more. The puffin looked up to see a figure coming down from the sky and toward them...really fast!

"WATCH OUT!"

Just after he screamed, something big came crashing into the sea, right next to their boat. This created a big wave that splashed water over our feathered friends and also made the boat rock really hard.

"HOLD ON TO SOMETHING!" Dominic screamed as he held onto the boat's security barrier for dear life.

The Sladanha was rocked really hard in every direction, making the crew fear it would get pushed upside down. Blu wrapped a wing around his girlfriend while stretching the other to hold onto the security barrier. All the others went to grab the mast with Hernandez and Vladimir keeping Alex, Lazaro and Apollo safe.

After many minutes, the wave finally calmed down and the Saldanha stopped moving, allowing the Blue Thunder Crew to let go of their safe grip. "Man, I really had to complain about the calmness," Lazaro groaned as he whipped sweat from his forehead.

"Crap! What was that thing?!" Apollo asked as he and the others walked over to the side of the ship to see what fell down from the sky.

To their surprise, it was the wreck of a ship. It was badly damaged and looked like it once belonged to a great pirate crew...but was now just a shell of what it once was.

"A ship?!" Dominic asked in surprise. "How did it fall down from the sky?"

"I didn't knew ships could fly now," Alex remarked with scratching the side of his head. Suddenly, something fell on his head, covering his sight. "Ha, help! I'm blind!"

Jewel removed the paper from her little friend's head and then held it in her wings to give it a good look. It appeared to be some kind of map representing a big island with various zones and clouds all around. On the spot above, it was written: "Skyland, Celestial Land".

"Celestial Land? What does that means?" Hernandez asked as he looked at the map over Jewel's shoulder.

"A land in the sky?" Dominic asked. "Maybe this is why it's called Skyland."

Blu just shrugged. "I don't know what it's supposed to mean. I suggest we take a stop at the next island to rest a bit and also take time to decide our next move."

"Yeah, and also see if we can get my compass fixed," Jewel added with looking at her compass that was pointing higher and higher.

* * *

 **What a way to start the new adventure for the Blue Thunder Crew, right? What's wrong with Jewel's compass pointing toward the sky? What was this ship that fell from the very same spot? And what's this Skyland? Stay stunned to find out!**

 **Also, I'd like to point out that this is the 200th chapter of "The Dynamic Adventure". Man, I'd never thought this fanfic would get that far when I started it, back in February 2018. And I still have many stories to tell in this. Thanks to everyone who still supports me :)**


	201. Mock Town

MOCK TOWN - NOON

Inside a bar, two clients were gathering the attention with their gambling game. One of the players putted on a set of cards, but the other's one was stronger than his, meaning he had won the game.

This player was none other than Roshio "The Executer", a renewed pirate. Roshio was a tall and muscular human man with long white dreadlocks and a wide face. His left arm was also intricately tattooed with skulls and a red pattern. He wore an indigo a-shirt with black pants and a headband with his jolly roger (a hung man on a red background) on it in a repeating pattern.

"Looks like you lost all your money," Roshio said with a smirk. "You got nothing left tot bet. Unless you wanna put your panties on the line," he chuckled, making some of the other people in the bar laugh.

"But that's a good thing," some guy said. "You should know that winning against Roshio means either getting badly hurt or even killed."

"Sorry pal; I take all your money," Roshio said and extended his hand to grab his opponent's money on the table.

SLASH!

Just as he was about to touch the bag of coins, Roshio's opponent planted a knife straight into his hand, making him scream loud in pain.

"Lier!" said opponent said. "This game was tricked: you cheated!"

This person was a hyena named Bellamy. Bellamy was a tall man with tan skin and short, unkempt blond hair. He wore white pants, a green sash with markings, and a pink sleeveless shirt with a navy blue pirate captain's coat over it. He had a scar above his right eye and tattoos of eye-like designs on his arms. He had a trademark grin and sometimes sticks out his tongue in a taunting manner.

Roshio groaned in pain while looking at the hyena. "What are you talking about?! I didn't cheated!"

Bellamy responded by grabbing a bottle of beer and smashing it over Roshio's head. "Sarkies," he said with turning his head toward a guy at the counter. "You saw this guy cheating, right?"

The guy named was also a male hyena with grey fur. He had wavy, shoulder-length blue hair and wears a purple-tinted visor over his eyes. He also wore a white-furred coat over his bare chest in addition to golden chains that were either a necklace or a clasp. He had red-and-white striped gloves and pants with the same pattern alongside a gold belt. On Sarkies' bare chest was a tattoo of a smiley with a cancel symbol. He also had the same symbol on his belt. Sarkies was wiedling a giant curved knife that greatly resembled a kukri.

"Huh?" he asked with turning around then quickly responded: "Oh, yes, I totally saw him changing the cards in a not so subtle way. Terrible cheater," he said, despite visibly having no clue of what just happened.

"SHUT UP! YOU DON'T EVEN KNOW WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT-"

POW!

Before Roshio could finish his sentence, Bellamy took a gun out of his belt and shot him in the leg before kicking him hard and out by the window, sending him to crash on the floor of the city below. The hyena then walked at the broken window and looked down at the man with a smirk.

"Looks like the executioner just got executed, hehehehe..."

* * *

"See anything?" Blu asked Apollo who looked through binoculars at the edge of the boat.

"No, I don't see any land nearby," the barn owl replied.

"I don't understand: the land of Mock Town should be into view," Jewel said as she looked at a map. "Anyways, we're in the land's climatic zone right now."

"So it's a spring climatic land then," Blu deduced.

"What a beautiful sun," Alex remarked with a smile as he looked up at the sky. "Spring is a very beautiful season. We're all gonna enjoy it."

A few moments later, the island came into view. It looked like some kind of resort with many trees, houses and even hotels. There was a streaker with "MOCK TOWN" written on it at the docks.

"Mock Town? Wow, this looks like a beautiful town," Blu remarked with a smile.

"This place looks like a resort, don't you think?" Apollo asked to which Alex nodded in excitation.

"How about we make a quick stop and rest for a bit?" Jewel suggested.

However, Apollo quickly noticed a bothering detail: at the docks they were about to reach, there was only ships with jolly roger flags. Meaning they were pirate ships!

"Huh, guys? Am I dreaming or all the boats around here are pirates'?" he nervously asked.

"Come on, Apollo: use your head a bit. You really think pirates would make a stop in here?" Jewel asked with rolling her eyes.

"I hope not..."

Once the Saldanha reached the docks, Blu, Dominic and Jewel jumped down into the town. It was filled with animals and even humans either walking or stumbling and dancing from being too drunk.

"There's a lot of animation here," Blu remarked.

"It looks like a nice place," Dominic added with a nod as he followed his captain.

"Let's try not to get too much attention, okay? We don't want to get in trouble before getting to our next destination," Jewel said.

"Hey guys! Think you can buy us some fish while you're out?!" Lazaro called from the ship.

And so, the three birds started walking into Mock town. Like Blu said, it was very animated: there wasn't a single spot in the city where pirates were not drinking, singing or fighting. It they were not in the New World, they could think they were in the Far West.

"Can I count on you to not start a brawl around here?" Jewel asked Dominic with a risen eyebrow.

"Don't worry; I won't fight unless someone attacks us first," Dominic replied before forming a grin in the corner of his beak. "Please, make that they attack first..."

Suddenly, the trio stumbled upon a man who fell down from a horse. A large man with a longer than normal nose, a visibly unshaved face, and straight purple tattoos coming from his hairline to the corners of his eyes. He had long and ash blonde hair and had a pallid look, as if he was on the verge of death. He was wearing a black fur coat, a wide-brimmed, black beaten hat, and what appeared to be a dark white hangman's noose around his neck. He appeared to wear a green turtleneck, and from under his coat sprouted what looked to be a brown robe, under which his hairy legs were visible. He had black, large-buckled shoes. On his back he carried a long, cylindrical bag, in which he kept his scythe. His overall appearance resembled that of a stereotypical undertaker from Western fictions.

"Huh, sir, are you okay?" Blu asked the man who seemed to suffer on the ground.

He turned his scary-looking face toward the trio and reached his hand toward them. "Please...could you help me getting back on my horse?"

"Can't you do it yourself?" Dominic asked with a curious look. However, the man just groaned in pain and gave a begging look. Dominic sighed. "Take his head, Blu."

The macaw and eagle worked together to put the sick man back on his horse's back. "Aww, thanks a lot, that's really nice. I've got an extremely fragile health, you know. Come on, Stronger, let's go," he said to his horse...who also fell flat on his stomach with a sick look.

"His horse too?!" Blu and Dominic exclaimed at unison.

"They should go see a doctor," Jewel remarked.

The horse managed to get back up and the sick man looked at the trio again. "Thanks for your precious help again." He then took a basket of apples out of somewhere. "Here, have it, it's a gift."

"This looks suspicious," Dominic said with crossing his wings and giving a pointing look at the man. "Thanks, but I don't want any."

Blu's stomach suddenly growled. "Well, personally, I'm a bit hungry. I'd take one." He reached his wing to take an apple into which he was about to take a bite.

"HELP!"

The three friends turned around to see a crowd gathered around a human who had blood spilling out of his mouth. "What happened?!"

"This old man gave him an apple after helping him back on his horse, and blood suddenly started flowing out of his mouth after he bit into it!"

Blu froze on the spot. His gaze instinctively went from the apple he held in his wing to the sick man who grinned at him. Dominic glared and putted his wing on his saber.

"You bastard! What are you doing?!"

The man grinned. "You're a very lucky boy: had this man not died at this very moment, you could have suffered the same fate. If the apple you're holding is poisoned, that is; not all of them are," he explained with another chuckle before his horse, Stronger, suddenly started running away.

"Okay, that was strange," Blu said with tossing the apple away.

"In what kind of town did we ended?" Jewel angrily asked.

"The kind we don't want to end into," Dominic replied. "We better not trust anyone around here from now on. We don't want to get poisoned or killed in a even dumber way."

"RAAAAAAGH!"

The trio turned around to see someone standing on top of a building, screaming for no apparent reason. An unusually big, tall, broad, broad-chested, broad shouldered, tan-skinned, muscular gorilla, with a broad upper body and a thin lower body in comparison. He had dark fur and curly violet hair reaching down to his shoulders and wore a dark brown mask with orange decorations on it, which covered the upper part of his face but revealed his eyes and his nose. He appeared to be some kind of Luchador wrestlers based on his mask of Mexican origin. Maybe they should ask Lazaro and Hernandez about this.

He was wearing a sleeveless black shirt and a pair of white pants with ruffles coming from the base then reaching up to his knees; he was also wearing black bands tied around both elbows. This gorilla also wore a championship belt, a belt which wrestlers only obtain from winning many matches or to show that they are extremely skilled in wrestling. They were not sure if this guy obtained this belt from his mastery in wrestling or if it was just there for his wrestler appearance.

"He's doing it again," some guy said with shaking his head.

"How many victims did this guy made already?"

"Not idea. I never heard about him; must not have a bounty. But I prefer remaining away from him: he looks like a pro wrestling champion."

"Pro wrestling champion?" Blu and Dominic asked at unison.

"Let's just keep going, guys," Jewel said with pushing her boy friend and comrade away from the strange gorilla. "Hey, how about we go take a look in there, it seems like a nice place."

They arrived at a big and luxurious-looking hotel with "Tropical Hotel" written around the entrance gate. There was many pool around and even palm trees.

"What do you think about this place?" Dominic asked as they stepped inside.

"It's way calmer than the downtown," Blu remarked.

"It's so beautiful! I can barely realize it's located in a pirate town," Jewel beamed, admiring the place with star in her eyes.

"There's even a vila," Dominic remarked before then rising an eyebrow. "A bit strange thought: it's extremely calm. Not the slightest noise."

"Ladies and gentlemen!" They all turned around to see a little squirrel wearing a white buttoned-up long sleeve shirt, a cloth around his waist similar to a green apron, and red pants patterned with pink flowers. He had a black mustache and looked rather nervous. "I'm sorry, but you cannot stay here! You'd be better to leave right now!"

"But why?" Blu curiously asked the nervous squirrel.

"The hotel is currently occupied by mister Bellamy and his crew. This is why we cannot accept any new client for now. If mister Bellamy finds you in here, you'll get in trouble! so please, just leave," he nervously explained.

"I don't see any problem at taking a look inside," Dominic said with crossing his wings. "And besides, who's this Bellamy you're talking about anyways?"

"What's going on?"

The squirrel suddenly started panicking as someone walking into the hotel's territory too. "What are those little bugs doing in here?"

"Mister Sarkies!" the squirrel panicked and ran all around. "Welcome back! No worries: I was just going to send them away!"

"Then do it, we paid a fortune for this hotel," the hyena named Sarkies said before arriving before Blu and glancing down at him. "Just get out of here, you brats."

Blu crossed his wings, not about to let this arrogant hyena tell him what to do. "I'm sorry, mister Sarkies, but you have zero orders to tell me."

Sarkis just smirked and gave a scoff. "Really? You took you can take on me, you half portion? Aww, I pity you." He then reached into the pocket of his coat and took out golden coins which eh tossed before the macaw. "There, that should be enough to eat a little bit. Thought I might as well toss it into the sewers, hehehe."

Blu looked down at the money "generously" offered by the hyena. He then shook his head. "No thanks, we already have enough money like this. Let's go guys, we're wasting our time in here."

The trio then headed out of the hotel as Sarkies just shook his head. "What a bunch of arrogant pricks..."

* * *

Some time later, Blu, Jewel and Dominic were tired of walking around the town and made a stop at a bar called Pub N' Pies to catch a drink. They were all sitting at the counter with fruit juice cups (well, for Blu and Jewel; Dominic was having a beer cup).

"This guy managed to put me in a terrible mood!" Jewel angrily said after swallowing her mango juice cup.

"Hehe, you just met with the wrong person," the bartender, a brown bear, said. "Mock Town have become a popular spot amongst pirates: they come here to use their treasures and have fun."

"Maybe, but still...," Jewel mumbled with looking away in a frown.

"Looks like nothing will calm you." The bartender then filled her cup with mango juice again. "There, it's on the house." He then returned to clear a cup. "The most notorious criminals all come to Mock Town. Because of this, the violence rate is pretty high. But we have to deal with it. If you're lucky, you won't get any trouble."

He then handed a cherry pie to Blu and to another customer sitting beside him. Jewel looked down at her compass which was still pointing upward. She then looked up at the bartender. "Say, could you tell us about the Celestial-"

"BERK!" Blu suddenly exclaimed. His beak was filled with a bite from the cherry pie he commanded. "Bartender! This cherry pie is absolutely disgusting!"

"What are you talking about? It's a pure delight!"

Blu turned his head to see who just talked. It was an extremely tall albino macaw who was twice Blu's height and with silver-colored feathers. He had hazel eyes and was wearing a black bandana on top of his head and a black skull tattooed on his stomach.

This individual and Blu looked at each other awkwardly for a moment before going back to their meal. Blu drank some of his blueberry juice cup and sighed.

"This blueberry juice is delicious!"

"It's absolutely disgusting!" the albino macaw suddenly exclaimed. This caused the two macaw to look at each other again. "Your taste buds must have a problem, kid."

"I think it's rather yours that are dysfunctional," Blu replied with a little annoyed look.

"Listen guys, if you have problems with what we serve, you should talk to the cooks," the bartender pointed out.

"I'm gonna take a full barrel of this blueberry juice, if that's okay with you," Blu asked.

"As for me, I'm gonna take fifty cherry pies for my crew," the albino macaw asked. He then looked back at Blu. "Say kid, wouldn't you happen to be a pirate?"

"Yup, absolutely," Blu replied with pride.

"What's your research level?"

"A rank."

The albino macaw blinked his eyes. "A rank you say?! Are you kidding? That's impossible; you must really think I'm an idiot."

"I'm not lying! That's the truth!" Blu angrily replied and exchanged a glare with the macaw who seriously started annoying him.

"Wow, I don't want a brawl in my bar," the bartender said and putted a big box on the counter. "Here are the fifty cherry pies you asked for. Just take them and go, please."

The albino macaw kept glaring at Blu as he grabbed his box and simply walked at the bar's exit. At the same moment he went out, someone came in.

"Is there a spix macaw in here?" he asked. All the eyes turned toward him and all the faces got covered of fear.

"I-It's Bellamy!"

The hyena laughed evilly as his gaze ended up on Blu. "You've got an A rank research bounty, Gunderson," the hyena named Bellamy said and started walking in his direction.

"W-Who's that?" Blu mumbled.

"I've got a feeling he's got something after you, Blu," Dominic remarked before taking another sip of his beer.

"Bellamy? Isn't that the name of the guy who reserved the hotel?" Jewel suddenly realized.

"You heard that? This little bird is a A rank criminal. How's that possible?" someone in the bar mumbled.

"Wow, I'm meeting a lot of strange people today," Blu mumbled as the hyena arrived in front of him.

He glanced down at him for a moment before turning toward the bartender. "I'm thirsty. Gimme your most costly drink and give this boy what he wants."

"...Okay," the bartender said before walking away.

Right after that, someone else walked in. "Wow, there's a lot of people in here!" It was Sarkies, the other hyena. "This bar might be called Pub N' Pies, but it certainly doesn't smell pie, hahahaha!"

"Hey, it's the other guy we met at the hotel," Jewel realized.

Suddenly, more hyena entered the bar. They were all wearing the logo of the crew Sarkies was part of. In a matter of seconds, all the customers left the bar and left their place to the hyenas. Needless to say the atmosphere in there turned pretty threatening.

Just then, the bartender brought a glass of blueberry juice for Blu and some turquoise liquid for Bellamy. "Cheers, boy," the hyena said with picking up his glass.

"Oh, thanks, cheers to you too," Blu said, surprised by Bellamy's generous act. He took his glass and drank his blueberry juice.

SLAM!

In a split-second, Bellamy grabbed Blu's head with his paw and slammed it right through the counter which broke in half under the impact. Everybody gasped in shock while Sarkies laughed. Blu groaned hard because of the pain shooting through his miraculously unbroken skull.

"BLU!" Jewel exclaimed in shock.

Bellamy then felt cold ice pressed against his throat. "What are you doing, you brat?" he asked and turned his head toward Dominic who took out his Snow Run saber and held it at Bellamy's throat.

"Give me one good reason not to cut your head off, bastard!" Dominic said in a threatening tone.

Suddenly, Blu managed to stand up, making Bellamy back down in surprise. "You can still stand up?!"

Blu rubbed his head with his wing before glaring up at Bellamy. "Alright, you want to fight? You got it!"

"You defeating Bellamy?" one of the hyenas asked before everyone in the bar started laughing.

"Ahahahaha!" Bellamy laughed. "This won't be a fight by a squash match!"

"Wait!" Jewel suddenly called and turned toward the bartender. "We would like to a find a way to the Celestial Lands! Can you give us infos?"

The whole bar suddenly fell silent after she said that. We could hear a fly passing by until someone finally decided to talk: "W-What did she said?!"

"This must be a joke!"

"...What?" Jewel simply asked as everyone kept starring at them.

"...AAAAHAHAHA!" Bellamy suddenly burst out laughing. Soon, the whole bar erupted in mocking laughters, as if we just told them the best joke in the world.

"Why are you all laughing?!" Jewel asked in irritation. "This is serious: look! My compass' pointing up toward the sky!" she said with showing her navigation tool.

However, this only made them laugh even harder. "Man!" Bellamy sighed as he sat back down. "I didn't laughed like this since a very long time. If there really was an island in the sky, I think everyone would know it by now. In which era are you living? There are many strange phenoms in the New World. Like the Knock up Stream for example."

He then looked back at the trio. "Of course, I suppose you never heard about it? Any ship caught in this powerful geyser located underwater gets shot up high in the sky before crashing back down into the sea. Some marines didn't knew about it back then and saw ships falling down from the sky. This led them to believe there was an island up there in the sky. It's perfectly ridiculous: all those phenoms have rational explanations."

The hyena glanced back at Blu. "I must recognize I'm a bit disappointed. If you would have passed my test, I would've gladly took you in my crew and headed right to the New Era of pirates. But you're just a kid with dumb dreams in his head." The more Bellamy mocked him, the more Blu's glare turned hard.

"Those days, every dream, even the craziest, are completely dumb. The lost city of gold? The emerald city!? The great treasure of "Treasure Planet"!? The fools who go looking for their "dream treasure" cannot notice what's in front of them! In this era of the sea, the ones who lack real strength... are the ones who are killed by their own imaginations! And for what? So that that when they die, they can say "I lived a good life"!"

Blu hardened his fist...before slowly letting it go and looking down.

"When I see a dumb dreamer, it makes me go nuts," Bellamy continued. He then got back up and Blu just closed his eyes as he punched him across the face, knocking him down again.

"BLU!" Jewel exclaimed in horror and rushed at her boyfriend's side. She then glared up at Bellamy.

"It's people like you that ruins pirates' image. You take yourselves for heroes while you're nothing but junk sailors!"

Groaning, Jewel was about to attack him with her Wind Waker, only for Blu to grab her wing and hold her back. "No, Jewel." He then turned toward Dominic. "Dom?"

"Yeah?" he asked.

"No matter what happens, don't get into their game, okay?" he softly asked.

Dominic looked at his captain before nodding. "Okay..."

* * *

 **Man, Bellamy and his hyenas are really despicable, don't you think? Who is he to judge who have the right to dream or not?**

 **Mock Town's a very strange place with strange people - a sick man on a sick horse and a wrestling gorilla? Do you think the Celestial Land is real or just a myth like Bellamy claims? And if it does exist, how are our friends going to reach it up?**


	202. A man's dream will never end

Blu groaned in pain. Bellamy's crew gave a good beatdown to both he and Dominic, punching and stomping on them like wild beasts. Blu even had right to a kick in the groin while Dominic got a bottle smashed on the back of his head. All the hyenas laughed mockingly while Jewel watched in horror.

"Blu! Dominic! Why are you letting yourselves go? Fight back!" Jewel begged while looking at her friends who could barely stand up, covered in blood.

"It would be pointless, young girl," Sarkies said with showing his kukri dagger which was covered of Dominic's blood. "Your friends know they stand no chance against us. It's a cowardly but wise decision. It's a bit strange that your captain doesn't have the guts to fight back with an A rank research bounty. The Naval Forces must have been generous."

Jewel just glared at the hyena and then back at her friends. "Guys, please...!"

"Anti-violence pirates?" Bellamy asked before swallowing his drink in one sip. "You don't even have any pride. Pirates with no will to fight back. You're just soft dreamers, that's all," he laughed with all the others.

To his surprise, Blu did not respond and just kept glancing at him with his eyes half-closed. "Alright, that's enough," Bellamy sighed with getting up and walking toward the spix macaw while drinking a bottle. "The Naval Forces might have putted a 30 000 golden coins bounty on your head, but to me, you're just a weak and pathetic bird. Taking you down right now would be glory-less."

He filled his mouth with his drink and spat it right into Blu's face, letting it flow on the rest of his body. "Thanks, that's actually refreshing," he said with a little smile and rubbing the liquid in his head feathers.

Bellamy looked at him curiously before glaring. "STOP MOCKING ME!" He grabbed Blu's head and slammed it right through a table before hitting a knee strike across Dominic's face, sending him to crash into another table.

"Blu! Dominic!" Jewel gasped, close to tears, as she kneeled next to her boyfriend and made sure he was okay.

"Let me give this advice, young girl," Sarkies said. "You'll never know anything of the New Age if you stay with weaklings like them. Wouldn't you prefer if I buy you? Just tell me your price."

Jewel remained motionless before slowly turning to look at the hyena with a grin. "What did you say? You wanna buy me?"

"Yeah! Come on, it will be fun!" Sarkies insisted with a seductive smile.

"Let me tell you something very clearly," Jewel said with a low, dread tone. "This parrot is not for sell. I'm way too good for a crew of dirty hyenas like you. And quite frankly, I'd rather like frequenting a dead horse than someone like you."

All the hyenas in the bar gasped in shock at the young macaw's answer to their second. "What?!" this last one exclaimed in shock, looking perfectly insulted. "You little brat! I'm gonna teach you not to disrespect those who are stronger than you!"

However, Bellamy held him back. "Just let it go, Sarkies. As for you, I recommend you pick up your friends and leave this place. And feel lucky that we allow you to get out of this bar alive."

He didn't had to ask twice as Jewel grabbed her boyfriend and comrade by the collar and dragged them out of the bar (which was a surprising feat, considering strength wasn't her strong point). "And don't come back!" one of the hyenas shouted with throwing a bottle out through the door which crashed on the outside floor.

Jewel was such in a terrible mood now that she just furiously walked back in direction of the Saldanha while dragging her injured friend behind her.

"Skyland exist, you know."

Jewel ceased walking and turned around to see the strange albino macaw they met into the bar sitting in a corner and eating his cherry pies. He laughed of good heart.

"This cherry pie really is the best!" he beamed.

"You're the guy from before," Jewel remarked.

The albino looked up at her while chewing on another bite of his pie. "Why the long face, young girl? Those two men won that fight."

"Huh?" Jewel asked with a curious look.

"And the tongue lashing you gave them was pretty impressive too," he continued. "You've got some guts, young girl!"

Suddenly, both Blu and Dominic managed to stand up with the golden eagle stretching himself a bit and Blu dusting his feathers off, as if they just did a little sport. Once he was done, Blu looked at Jewel with a soft smile.

"You're okay, Jewel?"

The spix macaw widened her eyes before glaring seriously. "I should be the one asking you that! You just took hell of a beatdown!"

"This "New Era" they talk about is _shit_ ," the albino macaw said with a surprising serious look. "The age where pirates dream is over, eh?! OF COURSE!" he started laughing out look, catching the attention of some by-passers.

He then grabbed a bottle of rhum and drank many sips before slamming it down on the floor and looking seriously at the trio. "Let me tell you a good thing, young people: A MAN'S DREAM...WILL NEVER END!"

Blu just starred at this strange macaw without saying anything. "AM I RIGHT?!" he asked with a smile. "It ain't easy to surpass a person."

The albino macaw laughed so much that it caught the hyenas' attention inside the bar. "What's this noise outside?" Sarkies asked.

"Forget it," Bellamy simply said. "Those loosers are probably taking their frustration out of the townspeople."

Eventually, the albino macaw stopped laughing and looked at Blu. "Let them laugh. If you seek the Treasure Planet, you'll find fights your fists alone could never take you to! Follow it!" He started laughing out loud again.

"...Let's go," Dominic simply said and started walking away.

"Okay...," Jewel said and turned toward her boyfriend. "Blu?"

He just kept starring at the albino macaw without saying a word. "Oh, looks like I've held you up," this last one realized and got up with picking his pie and rhum bottle. "I see you're in a hurry. I hope you make it there. To Skyland!" he finished with a smile and turned around to walk away while drinking his rhum.

"Strange guy. I like him," Jewel said with a smile before Blu suddenly walked in the opposite direction. "I think he really knew something about the Celestial Island. You have an idea who he might be?"

"We should have asked his name," Blu admitted with a serious look. "But he wasn't alone..."

"Huh?" Jewel asked with a confused look. "You saw other people with him?"

* * *

Back at the Saldanha, Apollo was currently busy fixing the ship from the damage left by the last storm. "Board," he asked after fixing one board against the hull.

"There," Alex said with handing his barn owl friend a wooden board.

Apollo took it and fixed it on another damaged spot. "Nails."

"There." Alex handed him a few nails from a box.

"Board."

"There."

Apollo kept slamming his mallet on the nails to fix the boards until he accidentally slammed it over his pointing feather. "OW!" he groaned in pain and looked at his feather.

"There," Alex said with handing Apollo another board before realizing he just hurt himself. "Oh, you accidentally hit your feather? That must be painful. I wouldn't want that to happen to me," Alex giggled.

"Darn it! I already told them physical reparations were not my cup of tea," Apollo slightly groaned in anger and resumed slamming the nail.

"Don't say that: you're a great handyman," Alex cheerfully said.

"Really? You think that, Alex?" Apollo asked with a charmed look.

"We should have bought a new one," Lazaro remarked from the top of the ship, pointing his flipper at how the Saldanha was damaged with all the new wooden boards Apollo had to place.

"I forbid you from saying that!" Apollo angrily called. "You know this boat has been given to us as a gift by Chuva! There's no way we're just throwing it away like that! Clear?!" he seriously asked.

"Okay, okay," Lazaro said with waving his flipper. "Still, seeing how damaged it has become, I'm starting to think it might be dangerous to drive on the sea with it."

"That's why I'm working my feathered butt down here to fix it! And if you really care about this, you'll come help me!" Apollo continued.

"Fixing? Me?" Lazaro chuckled. "Sorry, but my strong point is destroying things; not the other way around."

Just then, Blu, Dominic and Jewel returned and Hernandez spotted them. "Hey, the others have returned... ¡Oh Dios mio! (Oh my god!) Blu and Dominic are hurt and covered in blood!" the pelican said with widening his eyes.

"What?!" Apollo exclaimed as he turned toward them.

"We need to call a doctor!" Alex panicked.

"Huh, you're the doc, little Al," Vladimir remarked.

"...That's true, my bad," Alex giggled cutely.

* * *

Moments later, Alex took care of his captain and mentor's wounds. "There, it should be better now," he said with cleaning the blood from Blu's face with a wet towel.

"Who did this to you?" Lazaro asked.

"Some moron called Bellamy," Dominic simply said with resting against the ship's wall. He then noticed Jewel still looking madly at them. "What?"

"I still don't understand why you didn't fought back against those idiots! They were bullies and you should have kicked their butts! So why didn't you?!"

Blu walked to his girlfriend and wrapped his wings around her. He gave a nice smile. "Jewel, we had no reason to fight them. I agree with you: they are morons. But if we would have gotten into a brawl with them, it would have been lowering ourselves to their level. And we're way better than they are, don't you agree?"

"Yeah," Dominic nodded. "How do you want us to accomplish our goals if we can't even ignore a bunch of scums who just throw meaningless insults all around?"

Jewel looked at her two friends for a moment. Then she smiled. "You're still the strangest bird I've ever met, blueberry." She kissed Blu on the beak which he returned, making the others smile and Alex look at them with stars in his eyes.

* * *

Back in Mock Town, Bellamy, Sarkies and the other hyenas left the Pub and Pie bar and were currently walking in the streets, laughing and still mocking the others for dreaming. Soon, someone came into their way, blocking them from continuing advancing.

A smirk formed on Bellamy's face. "Who are you, beauty?"

Indeed, the person blocking their way a female scarlet macaw with flamboyant red feathers. Some of them on her wings and tail were yellow and dark blue and she had yellow facial expressions around her beautiful ruby eyes. Along with her clean and soft feathers, she had a slender, curvy figure that would catch any man's attention and her tai moved elegantly behind her as she walked.

"So you're saying we don't have the right to dream anymore, huh?" the female scarlet macaw asked with a grin. "How about we fight to see about that?"

* * *

 **Who's that scarlet macaw girl? Is she going to beat Bellamy? And is the Blue Thunder Crew going to find a way up the Skyland?**

 **Now I know most of you are probably pissed off that Blu and Dominic took the beating without fighting back, but you heard what they said: they had nothing to prove to those morons. A good fighter knows when to fight, but an even better fighter knows when not to fight.**

 **And besides, this girl will probably whoop his ass for them anyways. We can wish :)**


	203. 100 million coins bird!

**Time to find out who's this scarlet macaw girl and what she wants with Bellamy!**

* * *

Bellamy blinked his eyes a few times...before suddenly bursting out in laughter. "Are you serious? You wanna take me down? Do you even know who I am, young girl? I'm Bellamy The Big Time Rookie!"

"I don't care: I'm gonna kick your ass and show how much of a weakling you are," the scarlet macaw simply said with crossing her wings.

"Okay, if that's what you want." Bellamy laughed. "But I warn you: I won't hold back against you simply because you're a girl."

He cracked his knuckled before lowering his knees. "SPRING HOPPER!" His legs suddenly turned into springs which pushed him at full speed toward a building where he started a cycle of bouncing at an incredible speed - so fast that it was hard to follow with the eye.

"SPRING SMASH!" Suddenly dashing toward Arlene, he turned his arm into a spring which gave a boost to punch the scarlet macaw across the face and sent her crash into an house.

"Surprised?" the hyena asked with a smirk after coming to an halt. "I ate a Magical Fruit that gave me superpowers. I can turn my limbs into springs to get an incredible boost in speed to hit or jump or even run if I want to. The technique you just saw is the same one I used to take down Roshio The Executioner."

Everybody laughed at their chief's victory...before widening their eyes as the scarlet macaw girl walked out of the destroyed house and simply dusted her feathers as if it was nothing.

"Not bad, I kinda felt something," she recognized with an amused smile.

Bellamy gaped at her before glaring angrily. "How can you still stand up?! I forbid you from mocking my power! SPRING HOPPER!" He turned his legs into springs and once again charged at full speed toward the scarlet macaw, ready to finish her off.

"AAAAAH!" the scarlet macaw girl screamed as she rose her wing curled like a fist and slammed it down onto the hyena's skull just as he arrived before her. The impact caused Bellamy's head to hit the wooden floor hard and for him to spit a lot of blood.

The whole town fell silent as everyone starred at Bellamy laying lifelessly at the scarlet macaw's feet. We could only hear the wind as well as the sound of blood drop falling from the macaw's fist to the floor.

Eventually, Sarkies broke the silence: "Huh, come on, Bellamy, stop messing around. That's not funny. Come on, get up and give this girl a good beating." However, Bellamy remained motionless, his eyes closed and his head covered of blood.

"Come on, Bellamy!" Sarkies insisted, now getting worried. "Stop messing around! You're a captain with a bounty of 55,000,000 golden coins! You cannot let this girl win like this!"

"Huh, Sarkies?" another hyena part of his crew mumbled. "I think you should see this: I just found it in the bounties' records," he said with handing a paper to Sarkies who impatiently took it.

"What is it...?!"

The hyena widened his eyes as this paper was a bounty with a picture of the scarlet macaw who just took down Bellamy. Below said picture was written: ""Cherry Bomb" Arlene, S-rank criminal" with a bounty of 80,000,000 golden coins.

"W-What?!" Sarkies gaped in horror as he dropped the paper. "Her bounty's bigger than Bellamy's?!"

All the eyes slowly turned toward the scarlet macaw named Arlene who still looked rather annoyed despite having defeated Bellamy. "Have you seen a group led by a spix macaw around here?"

While most of the hyenas were too afraid to answer, one of them found the courage to do so: "T-T-They went that way," he said with a trembling voice and pointing a finger in one direction.

"Thanks," Arlene said with a cheerful smile as if she just had a fun conversation with friends. She then turned around to leave, her tailfeathers swinging elegantly behind her for the hyenas to see.

Sarkies went to check over Bellamy who was still unconscious before glaring up at the scarlet macaw. "Impossible...! Hey! Wait! You have yet to defeat me! Where do you think you're going?!"

However, the hyena fell silent as Arlene slowly turned toward him and gave him a glare. "You really want to know?" she asked with rising her blood-tainted fist which made everyone tremble in fear.

However, she then uncurled it to point a feather toward the sky with a friendly look. "Up there, to the sky."

* * *

Meanwhile, very, very, VERY far from Mock Town, in the middle of the sea, a little raft was floating around with a peregrine falcon sitting on it. Hawkeye was looking at the bounty papers of both Blu and Dominic with interest.

"Tyler "Blu" Gunderson and Yusef "Dominic" Saklov," he mumbled. "So they are the ones who have put Risky Boots out of commission?"

The falcon couldn't help but smirk as he remembered the day he met those two in the Ga'Hoole world. He remembered how Dominic challenged him to a duel and, despite being taken down with only two blows, he imposed his will to one day defeat him and become the best swordsman in the world. His captain was also interesting as he had an even bigger dream: becoming the strongest bird in the world.

"Those kids are really strong: they managed to get the attention of the headquarters." Hawkeye then laughed to himself.

* * *

SAINT EARTH, MARY-JOY

"What? Gio S. Duke?!"

"Yes, sir. His acts are strange and unusual."

"But he is not moving in person?!"

"No; he sent a messenger. But even then, a meeting between Gio S. Duke and Urax The Destroyer would represent a big danger."

"Indeed, if Duke was to explode of anger, he would escape our control. However, knowing him, I don't think he wants to change the world. Let's wait a bit before taking rushed decisions."

"Our biggest problem remains the Seven Warlords. We need to find a successor to Risky Boots. The vacant place must not stay like this. If the Three Great Powers were to fall, the whole world would get shaken by it. We must act quick."

"Yes. We already contacted the other Warlords, but we have yet to know how many will respond. They are pirates, after all: they are very unpredictable."

"Oh, Risky Boots, you've caused us so much trouble. We cannot let the boy who took you down move freely around the seas...Tyler "Blu" Gunderson!"

* * *

Meanwhile, at the port of Mary-Joy, many Naval Forces soldiers were gathered as a ship arrived and two person walked out of it to make their way toward the headquarters building.

"Attention! Attention! Two members of the Seven Warlord have arrived!" a voice announced through speakers. "Nergui Omega and Banshee Kuma!"

Nergui Omega is a male human. He had dirty blonde hair that reached either sides of his eyes and the back of his neck as well as some beard on his face. He was slender and tall with strong abs, but not too big. His dress consisted of a black open jacket with the omega symbol on the back in white which left his upper body exposed as well as black jeans, boots, gloves and glasses that were hiding his eyes.

As for Banshee Kuma, he was a giant brown bear - a very giant one, measuring 689 cm. There was nothing very special about him outside of his size, a red bandana tied around his neck, and a book he carried in his paw.

Omega walked with a bored look while Kuma had his head high and serious. The two Warlords made their way into the headquarters building and into the reunion room which looked like an English royal dining room (y'know, with the large table, chairs, mirrors, etc) with some high-ranked NF soldiers.

"I'm bored," Nergui whined while resting his head against his hand. "Nothing interesting ever happens in this place." Kuma, meanwhile, was just sitting and reading his book.

"Hey, show some respect, you're at the Naval Forces' headquarters, Omega. This should be very honoring for you," one of the high-ranked soldiers said.

Omega just twisted his lips into a grin. "What? The little puppy hates that I talk trash about his little fortress? Hahahaha!" he laughed, making the soldier stand up and put his hand on the handle of his saber.

"Enough! You didn't came here to start an argument!"

Everybody turned to see someone walking in the room. It was a tall, fair-skinned, and muscular man with a black long, braided goatee and a mustache. He was wearing a white NF cap which was hiding a big afro haircut. He was also wearing black-rimmed glasses and a white and gold full NF admiral uniform that was adorned with medals. The most distinctive features of this uniform were a life-size seagull on top of his cap, and his oversized NF coat which he was wearing like a cape. His coat had the kanji for justice, in blue, emblazoned on the back.

"Fleet Admiral Sengoku!" one of the soldiers exclaimed.

The man known as Sengoku smiled. "Sorry for being late." He then turned toward Omega and Kuma. "Thanks for coming, you little rascals."

"Thhat's a compliment," Omega chuckled while Kuma just closed his book and turned his attention to the Fleet Admiral.

"Alright, let's start this reunion," Sengoku said with sitting on a chair. "I think no one else will be joining us. I'm already surprised that two out of six of the Warlords came at all."

"I didn't really wanted to come either, but since nothing happened on my land, I said why not," Omega told the Fleet Admiral with laying back in his chair, both feet on the table.

"Okay, I won't hide that this news doesn't really please me," Sengoku said. "Whenever I learn that things are going well for the pirates, I'm feeling mad for all the day."

Omega chuckled evilly. "So you're in a terrible mood, eh? Not really zen for someone nicknamed "Sengoku The Buddah"."

Footsteps were then heard and everyone turned their head to see someone else walking into the reunion room. "Did I just heard a boring conversation?"

"Hello, Hawkeye," Sengoku simply greeted the flacon.

"The Warlords and the headquarter of the Naval Forces. Two powerful enemies reunited around a big table. If you want my opinion, that's completely crazy," Hawkeye simply said as he walked toward the table.

"What an entrance: I wasn't expecting to see you here, Dracule," Omega said with a smirk and a taunting look behind his glasses.

"Indeed, a big surprise," Sengoku said in agreement.

"Don't go get the wrong ideas: I'm only here as a watcher," Hawkeye said. "I'm interested by the pirates that will be suggested during this reunion. Nothing more."

"In that case, you won't have any objection that I assist to this reunion as well? Only, I won't be a simple watcher."

All the eyes turned toward the open window of the room which led on a terrace. There was standing a strange being: a male dove with pale white feathers dressed in an off-white collared long-sleeve shirt patterned with yellow crosses and navy jumper pants. His most distinguishing accessories were his classic black top hat and red wooden cane. He was sitting casually on the edge of the terrace with a pleased look on his yellow beak.

"Who are you? And how did you entered in here?!" one of the high-ranked soldiers asked in surprise.

"True to be told, I did not expect to see so many important persons in this same room. If you allow it, I'd like to..." The dove performed feet taps while also swinging his crane in stylish way. "...participate to this reunion. I promise I'll be sage."

"I heard you were searching replacement for Risky Boots. This means there's a free spot in the Seven Warlords, correct?"

One of the soldiers suddenly realized something. "W-Wait a second! Aren't you Blanchard?"

"Blanchard?" Sengoku asked with a curious look.

"Oh, so you know me?" the dove named Blanchard asked. "I'm very honored of it."

"It's the kind of name we never forget. He was a famous sheriff in the West lands of the New World. But he has been exiled for being excessively violent and unnecessarily cruel. "

"Aw, that's in the past," Blanchard said with doing a wing shove. "If I came here, it's not to talk about me. Instead, I'd like to recommend someone that would be a great element amongst the Seven Warlords..."

* * *

Meanwhile, on a bigger ship located in the middle of the sea.

"Duke, huh? It's been a while since I've heard that name. So it's Duke that sends me this message?"

"Yes, replied the member of Duke's crew, a hyacinth macaw. "It's very important and he sent me to make sure it reaches its destination."

"Well, I thank you for working so hard."

The hyacinth macaw just blushed. "I just did my duty as a crew member."

SLASH!

He suddenly widened his eyes as the captain to whom he brought the message teared this last one to pieces with his large wings. "H-Hey! W-What are you...?!"

"He dares sending me a letter? This little guy thinks he's a lord or what?" He dropped the pieces of paper on the floor as the member of Duke's crew tried to grab them.

"This information was important! You're realize it was from Gio S. Duke?! Are you crazy?!" the macaw angrily asked.

"I'm Urax The Destroyer: I ain't afraid of anything," he said with filling his beak with a barrel of beer.

"Huh, captain? You should slow down on alcohol," remarked a male snowy owl with touching his captain's pulse on his wing.

"You little moron! I can drink if I want to: it won't hurt me!" Urax dryly replied with tossing his barrel on the floor.

"Listen: the captain insisted on the fact that it was important!"

"Oh, but I know what it's about. Jason Donald and Silverbeard, isn't it? Listen very well: tell your little captain that if he has anything to tell me, he just have to come face-to-face with a good bottle. You can leave now; I got more important things to do than talking with a moron!"

* * *

Not too long after this event, Duke was contacted the news by his crew member through a radiophone. To his surprise, Duke was actually laughing.

"The old bird is always so stubborn! I know Urax: I was certain it would go down this way."

"Just give me more time: I've been humiliated!"

"What are you gonna do?" Duke asked curiously. "You accomplished your mission: now come back here, it will be better."

"I cannot let him get away like this: he tainted my honor!"

"Dude, life is more important than honor. There's nothing you can do now, get that in that skull of yours. You did your best and I thank you for it," Duke insisted. He then hanged the phone and turned toward his crew.

"So what are we gonna do, captain?"

"We're leaving right now: get the boat ready," Duke replied with standing up.

"You're planning on going to meet Urax The Destroyer?"

"Yup."

"You really think the government will allow us to do that without acting? I don't think so."

Duke just laughed. "You think too much: since when does pirates ask the government for anything?" He then stood up. "Listen, everyone! The World Government may not like this, but if they try to stop us, we'll force our way through. Don't forget to take rhum - a lot of rhum so that we won't be thirsty!"

* * *

"John Silver?" Sengoku asked, back in Mary-Joy.

"Yes, it's the name of our crew captain," Blanchard said with a nod. "You probably heard about him?"

However, Sengoku shook his head. "Nope, never heard about him. It's not a good start if nobody knows him. How do you want him represent a big threat for the other pirates?"

"Of course, I'm fully aware of this detail," Blanchard said with swinging his cane around. "I actually have a solution to take care of this bothering detail. Which is why I'd like you to accord me some time."

Omega chuckled. "This sounds interesting. How about you give him a chance, Sengoku? I feel like we're gonna have a lot of fun."

"I'm part of the great Silverbeard Crew," Blanchard said with a sinister smirk. "Make sure you don't forget it..."

* * *

Back in Mock Town, Sarkies was walking around, still shouting angrily at how his crew captain got ridiculed by a girl. No matter what they did, his comrades couldn't do anything to calm him down.

"This little bit-" He suddenly bumped into someone. To his surprise, it was the same albino macaw Blu argued with about pies and juice in the bar. "Hey, you fatass! You're blocking the way! Get off there-"

In a split-second, the albino macaw grabbed Sarkies' head with his wing and slammed it really hard down on the wooden floor, knocking him out.

"You don't want to talk to John "Silverbeard" Silver that way, you weakling!" the albino macaw declared, revealing his name. He then continued reading what he was doing before being interrupted by the hyena: a bounty paper of Blu which had a 100,000,000 golden coins bounty. "Been a while since I awaited to find someone which such a high bounty." He laughed.

Suddenly, he was joined by three persons. One of them was the same sick man riding on a sick horse that offered poisoned apples to Blu. And the other was the gorilla wearing a wrestling attire that shouted on top of a building earlier. The third one was a dark brown barn owl with a slender built wearing some kind of aiming glass on his right eye and a emotionless look. He was holding some kind of wooden sniper riffle in his wings.

"Jesus," Silverbeard told the gorilla. "Doc Q." The sick human. "Weasley." The barn owl. "Let's go: we found our target."

"Yeah! The serious things will finally start!" the gorilla known as Jesus beamed. "Say captain, weren't we supposed to reunite with Blanchard in this town? Why didn't we saw him yet?"

"Guess he had more important things to do. Fate's like that, don't you agree, Weasley?" Silverbeard replied.

"Hm-hm," the barn owl known as Weasley simply nodded.

"Fate can be really crappy sometimes, but it's like that," Doc Q sadly said.

* * *

 **Well, we sure did meet a lot of new characters in this chapter, didn't we?**

 **-Urax The Destroyer**

 **The Silverbeard Crew:**

 **-"Silverbeard" John Silver**

 **-"Champion" Jesus Bollea**

 **-"Reaper" Doc Q**

 **-"Supersonic" Weasley Gate**

 **-and Blanchard The Dove**

 **-the NF's Fleet Admiral, Sengoku**

 **Two more members of the Seven Warlords:**

 **-Nergui Omega**

 **-Banshee Kuma ("Kuma" meaning "Bear" in Japanese. And no, he's not taken from the Tekken character!)**

 **Who's "Cherry bomb" Arlene? Why did she attacked Bellamy? Will Silverbeard get accepted for the vacant spot amongst the Seven Warlords? How will the meeting between Urax The Destroyer and Gio S. Duke happen? Is the Blue Thunder Crew gonna find a way up to the Skyland?**

 **A lot of questions risen in barely five chapters.**

 **Urax The Destroyer belongs to my good old phoenix pal, BluePhoenixLord.**

 **And Arlene belongs to Arlene The Scarlet Macaw, now known as viochizen. For those of you screaming at me, I asked her many months ago and, just before announcing her retirement from the Rio fandom, she allowed me to use her OC for this story. Thanks a lot, guys :)**


	204. The Knock Up Stream

_Previously on "The Dynamic Adventure"...a lot of things happened. Bellamy got taken down in one hit by a scarlet macaw named "Cherry bomb" Arlene; the World Government have potentially found a new Warlord in "Silverbeard" John Silver; Duke is gonna meet up with a bird named Urax The Destroyer._

* * *

The Blue Thunder Crew took a well-deserved night of sleep after all the events that happened the day before. As the sun started rising at the horizon to start a new day, our feathered friends slowly woke up on the Saldanha.

"Morning, beautiful," Blu said with kissing Jewel who responded with an hug.

"Ugh, could you avoid doing this at this hour?" Apollo annoyingly asked while Alex looked at the two lovebirds with stars in his eyes.

Vladimir chuckled softly. "So what's the plan for today?"

"Guess we'll just go back to Mock town and try to find infos about this mysterious Celestial Land again," Hernandez responded.

"This won't be necessary."

Everybody froze for a moment before quickly turning around and seeing a female scarlet macaw standing on the upper level of the Saldanha with a smile on her beak.

"Who are you?" Dominic asked with putting a wing on the handle of his saber.

The intruder just giggled and rose her wings. Suddenly, vines jumped out of the ground and grabbed Dominic's wing, pulling it away from his saber. "You have no reason to worry; I'm not your enemy."

"She ate a Magical Fruit?" Apollo asked in surprise.

"If you really wanna know, my name is Arlene. And yes, I ate a Magical Fruit. I can control plants," she said with rising her wing and making some plants grow on the wooden floor.

"Hum, that's cool," Blu simply said. "So why did you came here, Arlene?"

"Because I want the same thing as you." She pointed her wing toward the sky. "Getting to the Celestial Island."

"What?!" everybody exclaimed in surprise at unison.

The scarlet macaw smiled. "You got that right: I heard a lot about the Celestial Island and I've been searching a way to get to this mystical place for a long time. And you guys are lucky: I recently discovered how to get up there."

"So why are you here then?" Lazaro suspiciously asked.

"Because I don't have a ship and I heard you guys planned to get there as well," Arlene explained. "What do you say we go up to the sky together?"

Blu smiled. "Sure, why not."

"What?!" all the others exclaimed at unison.

"You can't be serious, Blu!" Apollo protested. "We don't even know who's that girl - okay, she told us her name, but she could be an enemy! You can't just accept people on board like that!"

"Do you even know how to get to the Celestial Island?" Arlene asked.

"...Huh," Apollo mumbled to looked at the others who just shrugged.

"Okay, I cannot deny we'll need a guide if we wanna get up there to Skyland," Dominic recognized. "We're gonna allow you to accompany us for this time, but if you do anything suspicious, we'll jump on you. Got it?"

"Loud and clear," Arlene replied with a sweet smile.

"So, Arlene, how do we get to the Celestial Island?" Lazaro asked.

The scarlet macaw came down and walked over to the tip of the boat, pointing at the horizon. "Have you ever heard of something called the Knock Up Stream?"

Blu rubbed his beak. "Yeah, I remember that Bellamy mentioned something like that back in the bar."

"The Knock Up Stream is a powerful pressurized water stream that shoots upwards to the sky from the bottom," Arlene explained. "The Knock Up Stream is created by a giant underwater cave filled with gas. At some point in time, the gas pressure is too big and creates a crack in the ceiling, then a giant whirlpool is created from the crack. Once most of the gas gets free, the seabed explodes, sending a giant stream upwards. This event happens only 5 times a month. The strength of each particular event varies dramatically."

She turned back toward the group. "I know where the next Knock Up Stream will happen and it's in around 30 minutes. Meaning we have little time to get there."

The Blue Thunder Crew members exchanged looks. "And what if we miss it?" Vladimir asked.

"Well, we'll be stuck on this island for five months before the next Knock Up Stream erupt," Arlene simply said.

"What?! But I don't wanna stay here for five months!" Alex exclaimed.

"In that case, we should get going right now."

Blu nodded. "Raise the moorings! We're leaving right away!"

The Blue Thunder Crew did as their captain instructed and drove away from Mock Town and back toward the sea. The Saldanha soon arrived into a zone where the sky turned dark and the water below was shaking a bit.

"Oh no!" Jewel exclaimed. It started raining and she was holding on to the boat that was shaking pretty hard.

"What's wrong, Jewel?" asked Hernandez who was in the same position.

"If I remember the books I've read correctly, those weather conditions means that there's a huge whirlpool ahead of us!" she exclaimed.

"Perfect!" Arlene suddenly said. "This is exactly where we must go! What's the compass indicating, Navigator?"

Jewel took out her compass and looked at it. The arrow was pointing upward. "It's pointing toward this dark cloud above us!"

"So that means Skyland is right above this cloud?!" Apollo asked.

Soon, the whirlpool came into view. A giant hole in the middle of the ocean that was spinning fast and attracted the Saldanha into it. "Holy crap! We're gonna get drowned!" Apollo panicked.

"I've never seen such a big whirlpool!" Arlene screamed at the others through the storm. "The Knock Up Stream is in there below. It will explode and send us up in the sky!"

"Whoa! This is gonna be awesome!" Alex beamed, imagining behind shot into the sky.

"What?! No, no, no! I changed my mind! I wanna go back!" Apollo panicked.

"Forget about that: it's too late to turn around. The whirlpool is already sucking us in," Dominic told his barn owl friend. Just then, they were about to fall directly into the water hole. "Everyone! Hold on tight! We're falling into the whirlpool!"

However, their fall was suddenly stopped. Confused, the avians looked down below to see that the whirlpool had disappeared just as the waves and the water was calm again.

"Huh? It's already over?" Lazaro asked in confusion.

"What happened?" Blu asked.

"T-the giant whirlpool have disappeared? I-I don't understand!" Apollo said with adjusting his cap.

However, big bubbles suddenly rose up to the water surface and Jewel noticed it. "It's not over yet! It's only getting started!"

"What do you mean?" Vladimir asked.

"The whirlpool has been absorbed by something under the sea."

A huge silence fell over the Saldanha. "...Are we thinking the same thing?" Apollo mumbled.

"DON'T MOVE!"

The Blue Thunder Crew and Arlene turned their heads to see a ship arriving in their direction. It was a giant raft made up of gigantic trees possibly wound together. Around the sides of the raft were gunports. A large mast was posted in the middle, bearing a jolly roger - a flag of three scowling skulls: one looking left, one looking forward, and one looking right. Behind them there was cross intersected sets of bones, in addition to the classic two - and three sails. Another sail was placed at the stern of the raft, behind the main sails.

"Hey, look Dominic!" Blu said.

The golden eagle turned his head to see John "Silverbeard" Silver as well as his crewmates on the boat. "I got you, Tyler "Blu" Gunderson!" the albino macaw shouted. "You won't escape from me!"

"Hey, it's those guys we've seen in Mock Town!" Jewel exclaimed.

"I've came to capture you and your little one hundred million coins bounty!" Silverbeard continued. "Surrender right now!" He then looked up. "I wonder why the sky's so dark."

Blu looked at him in confusion. "What are you talking about? What one hundred milion bounty?"

"Oh, you don't know?" Silverbeard took out two papers from under his bandana and showed the bounty papers of Blu and Dominic with 100,000,000 and 60,000,000 primes respectively.

"Wow! You guys are famous around here now!" Apollo beamed while looking through his binoculars.

Lazaro suddenly jumped beside him. "What? Wait a sec, do you see a bounty for me too?"

"Huh..no," Apollo simply said.

An annoyed grin formed on the puffin's beak. "You sure? Take a good look."

"No; I tell you there's only Blu and Dominic!"

"It must be because of the events in Sequin," Vladimir deduced.

"So I'm worth 100,000,000 coins in the New World?! That's amazing!" Blu said with a confident smile.

"My 60,000,000 look dumbs in comparison," Dominic said with an amused chuckle.

"It's no time to rejoice!" Jewel deadpanned.

Just as she said that, waves appeared around the Saldanha which was slowly lifted upward by a boss in the water. While the others were confused, Arlene started sweating. "There it is...the Knock Up Stream!"

Dominic widened his eyes. "EVERYONE! GRAB ONTO THE SHIP OR GET INSIDE! MAKE SURE NOT TO FALL OVERBOARD OR YOU'RE DEAD!"

The boss underneath them kept growing and became as big as an hill. Then, a few seconds later, it became a giant water beam to shot the Saldanha at incredible speed toward the sky and pushed Silverbeard's ship away with a big wave.

"AAAAAAH!" the whole Blue Thunder Crew screamed at unison as their ship was flying toward the sky even faster than they thought it would be possible to go. The Saldanha was drifting over the giant water beam vertically, aiming right toward the sky. It was going so fast that al the avians onboard could barely move from the spots they were hanging on.

"This is going fast!" Vladimir shouted while holding onto the security barricade.

"I'M GOING TO BE SICK!" Apollo shouted from the ship's wall, his face getting pale.

"YAHOO! THIS IS AWESOME!" Alex happily beamed while feeling the wind blowing hardly against his face and through his feathers.

"Hold on, Lazaro!" Hernandez called to his puffin friend who was gripping for dear life on his shoulders.

"Easy to say: I only have flippers!" he angrily replied.

"We're going straight for the Celestial Island!" Arlene happily said while looking upward at the dark sky they were going for.

"Here we go for the sky!" Dominic said with a smirk.

"This is even better than flying with wings!" Jewel remarked with a happy laughter.

Blu smiled as he sat on the tip front of the Saldanha and looked back at his friends. He then looked forward to see the Knock Up Stream underneath them and the sky getting closer. "Alright, HERE WE GO FOR SKYLAND TO PROVE DREAMS DO COME TRUE!"

"YEAH!" all the others (minus Arlene) replied at unison.

* * *

 **Arlene joined the Blue Thunder Crew and led them to the Knock Up Stream which is currently shooting them up toward the sky. Will everything go right and they will find the Celestial Island...or will something go wrong as always?**


	205. Sail the White Sea! The Sky Knight

_Previously: "Cherry bomb" Arlene met with the Blue Thunder Crew and led them to the Knock Up Stream, a natural phenom that sends their boat toward the sky. After a brief confrontation with the Silverbeard Crew, the Saldanha is currently riding up toward the sky and the Celestial Island - in hopes that it exists..._

* * *

The Saldanha kept flying upward thanks to the Knock Up Stream. It was currently going through a wall of white clouds that was rather long. While sitting on the edge of the boat, Blu coughed as he somehow was no longer able to breath.

"I'm choking!" the spix macaw thought while keeping his beak shut. He would press his wings against it if he didn't needed them to hold onto the boat.

"It's as if we were underwater!" Dominic thoughts while holding the security barricade.

Luckily, the boat soon came out of the wall cloud and shot up in the air - so hard that it lost a few pieces - and then landed down.

* * *

Back in the sea below, the Silverbeard Crew was sitting back after the Blue Thunder Crew had escaped them and the Knock Up Stream finished roaring to the sky.

Silverbeard laughed. "Looks like they managed to escape us! Hahahaha!"

"They were very lucky, those folks!" Doc Q said after falling off Stronger, his horse.

"We let a good catch escape!" Jesus Bollea angrily said. "We must do something about it, captain! I suggest we chase and capture them!"

Silverbeard laughed again. "Calm down, Bollea. You have no reason to worry: just tell yourself they have not disappeared yet. We're gonna meet them one day, as long as we remain in the New World."

"I agree with him," Weasley calmly said. "Everything in the universe obey to a big mechanism which make things happening, and that mechanism is called desire."

Silverbeard laughed again. "Heard that, guys?"

"That didn't meant anything at all," Jesus sarcastically said.

* * *

Back in the sky, all the Blue Thunder Crew, and Arlene, was laying down on the boat's floor, panting from exhaustion. Their feathers were all wet, but the thing was that it wasn't sweat: it was like water.

"Man...!" Dominic mumbled as he rested his back against the ship's wall. "I don't understand what just happened. But is everybody there?"

"Yeah, I think," Arlene responded with rubbing her wings.

"Huh, guys? I think you should look at that," Blu said after walking to the edge of the ship.

Everyone did just that and got surprised to see that the Saldanha was actually _floating_ on the huge wall of clouds they flew through. This last one was so large that it was spreading out of view.

"Where are we?" Lazaro asked while looking all around.

"Clouds?!" Alex asked in awe.

"We're floating on clouds," Jewel realized. "But how? That's impossible!"

"I must be dreaming," Apollo mumbled with removing his cap and rubbing his forehead.

"Nope, you're not dreaming. We're on what's called a sea of clouds," Arlene confirmed with a smile.

Jewel then noticed another strange detail. "Hey, look, my compass is still pointing upward."

"Then it means we're on the White Sea," Arlene deduced.

"You mean we can get even higher? How are we gonna do it?" Alex asked.

Arlene rubbed her chin. "I must admit I don't have the slightest idea."

"A sea of clouds? Wow!" Apollo started trembling in excitation and then stood on the security barricade. "Attention, everyone! Apollo Bird is gonna jump into the sea of clouds!"

"Really?" Blu and Alex asked at unison, unable to help but feel admiration for their friend's courage.

"Hey, you're a bit reckless there, dude! We don't even know if this sea is like the one we're used to!" Lazaro deadpanned.

"A sea's a sea! Here I go!" the barn owl shouted and plunged into the clouds below which created a SPLASH!

"How courageous!" Alex beamed, admiration in his eyes.

Everyone waited for many seconds on the Saldanha, but nothing happened. "Huh, shouldn't he have come back by now?" Dominic asked.

Everybody looked down in the clouds and started to get worried. However, they couldn't see their owl friend anywhere because of the clouds.

"I'm wondering about something," Arlene. "Do you think this sea have a bottom like ours?"

The others all widened their eyes in shock. "The moron! He might've fallen underneath the clouds and back to our sea!" Dominic gasped.

Luckily, the barn owl jumped out of the clouds and back on the ship while panting in exhaustion and fear while also being covered of water. "My god..."

"Apollo! Are you alright?" Hernandez asked as he went to his barn owl friend. "What happened?"

"You won't believe me," he said, "but I flew as low as I could and then I just came out of the clouds and started falling down toward our sea! Luckily that I'm a bird and I flew back up toward here. That was scary!"

"Okay, notes for later: we don't jump into the sea of clouds until we know more about it," Jewel said with the others all nodding in agreement.

While they were chatting, Alex decided to sit on the edge of the ship and scan the surroundings with his binoculars. "Alright, where's this Celestial?" he mumbled.

He then spotted something interesting: a pirate ship like theirs located many feet away. "Hey, guys! I just spotted a ship over there!" Upon further examination, he saw something stranger: a figure standing on the clouds before it. "Huh? Someone's standing on the clouds?"

Suddenly, to his shock and confusion, the ship exploded and broke in half before sinking down into the sea of clouds, as if someone shot it down with a canon. The snowy owl kid started trembling in fear.

"Hey, is something wrong, Al?" Lazaro asked, noticing his friend's behavior. "You said that you saw a ship?"

Alex dropped the binoculars and turned toward his friends. "Yes, but it's too late: it disappeared!"

"Disappeared? What do you mean?" Dominic asked.

"Something or someone blew it off!"

The puffin and golden eagle exchanged a curious look. However, their attention quickly drifted away to something on the clouds that was coming their way at an incredible speed. They managed to inspect him really quick: it was some sort of Komodo dragon with light green scales and a muscular built. He was covered by various dark green and red tribal tattoos across his left shoulder and the left side of his face. He had very long dark brown hair arranged in a mohawk that followed into a segmented braid that went slightly past his waist, resembling those worn by Native Americans, and he had little spherical earrings. He was also wearing some kind of grass skirt around his groin and some kind of tribal mask over his face. But the strangest part was that he had what looked like ski skates on his feet that was allowing him to dash over the clouds, a big metal bazooka in his right hand, and a tribal shield in his left one.

"It's someone: he's coming toward us!" Lazaro pointed out. "And he's moving on the clouds?!"

"What do you want?" Dominic called the strange reptile as he jumped from the clouds in their direction.

"Kill you all!" he replied.

Before anyone could react, he charged at Lazaro and delivered a violent knee strike across his beak which sent him crashing into the ship's wall. Then, just as Dominic unsheathed his sabers, the reptile bounced on the floor and kicked him in the face before spinning around and slamming his bazooka into Blu's head, knocking him to the ground.

Just as the others were about to attack, the intruder jumped high above them and pointed his bazooka at the ship, clearly about to shoot.

"He's gonna shoot!" Alex shouted in horror.

"We're doomed!" Apollo panicked.

"STOP THAT!"

Just as he was about to shoot, the masked intruder got stopped by a figure coming down from the sky. It was an old man of average height with long white hair, mustache, and beard. He strongly looked like a knight from medieval times as he wore a metal armor with a dark red shirt, and brown pants. He also had the knight's visor pulled up. He wore a long dark blue cloak that was yellow on the inside and at the back. He was riding what looked like a pink pegasus and had a lance (like in medieval stories) in hand which he justly planted through the intruder's tribal shield.

This sent him flying down into the sea of cloud in which he drove thanks to his skis. Meanwhile, the strange knight landed onto the ship, right on the security barricade.

"Another intruder!" Jewel said with getting her Wind Waker staff ready.

The strange knight then turned toward them with a non-agressive look in his eyes. "I'm the Knight of the Sky," he simply said with his pegasus pushing a cute noise behind him. He then turned his head and looked around. "Alright, he's gone..."

"Who's thet lizard that attacked us? You've met him before?" Jewel asked before turning to her boyfriend and rushed to him.

"I won't congratulate you: even at three-on-one, you didn't do anything," Apollo scolded the three birds down.

"You saved us. Thank you," Alex said with bowing at the knight.

"You're welcome: I had to do something," the knight said with a smile. "It's free for this time."

"I must admit I'm a bit ashamed of the way we fought," Lazaro recognized while panting hard.

"It must be because the air is rare at this altitude," Arlene deduced.

"Now that you say it, it's true that I'm having an hard time breathing in here," Dominic admitted while struggling to stand up.

"You're from the Blue Sea?" the knight asked.

"Blue Sea?" Jewel curiously asked. "And who are you?"

"I'm the Knight of the Sky," he repeated. "The Blue Sea is the name given by us to the world under the clouds. If I understand, you came here all the way from where the sea is blue, right?"

"Yes," Blu confirmed with a nod.

"I understand why you're having an hard time breathing then: here, we're seven hundred thousand meters above your sea. But if you go higher, you'll an even whiter sea. People like you have an hard time adapting to our environment," the knight explained.

"But I feel like I'm starting to get used to it," Blu said as he finally found the strength to stand up.

"Yeah; I can already move better than earlier," Dominic said with a nod.

"By the way, do you know how this guy managed to run on the sea of clouds?" Alex asked.

"Wait a sec. I know you must have many questions to ask me, but I'd like us to talk business first," the knight seriously said.

"Business? What do you mean?" Jewel asked.

"You must know that I'm a mercenary. This region is very dangerous and those who doesn't know the art of celestial fight are very vulnerable in here. As you just saw, we can get attacked really quick around here and you can end up in sea food at any time. But thanks to me, you'll be able to be saved with only five million extols for one whistle."

Everybody just starred at him. "...What?" they all asked at unison.

The knight suddenly looked shocked and annoyed. "Come on! Don't you realize it? I'm making you a good offer! And I won't low down my prize, not even just one extol! I must win my life."

"Sorry, but we have no idea what's an extol," Lazaro said. "And what's that whistle story?"

"You did took the Highwest Road to come here, right?" the knight curiously asked. "And you did meet one or two island on your way here, correct?"

"I don't understand," Blu said with the most confused of looks.

"Wait, you're saying that there was many ways to reach the sea of clouds, and when you're saying one island or two, does that mean there's many Celestial Islands?" Jewel asked.

"We came here by the Knock Up Stream," Arlene informed by the knight.

"Wow, that's very impressive. This torrent is very dangerous and only the bravest are willing to take the risk."

"So that means there was another, safest way to com here?!" Vladimir asked in shock before face-winging himself. "Okay, we look a bit dumb there."

"Did you lost one of your comrades on the way?" the knight asked.

"No; our crew is all there," Blu answered.

"The way you is particular," the knight continued. "Had you taken the usual way, if you were at least an hundred onboard, only a few of you would have arrive safe. Some survive of course, but the outcome is very random. But those who take the Knock Up Stream either gets completely destroyed or arrive all together, just like it was your case. You were very courageous."

"Oh, but of course it was in part thanks to me," Apollo said with taking a proud stance. "They were all terrified and I had to take things in hand when-"

"Apollo, shut up," Jewel rudely deadpanned.

"Here's the whistle I talked about," the knight said with taking out a whistle from his pocket and tossing it at Blu's feet. "You can only use it once. When i'll hear the whistle's sound, I'll fly through the skies to save you. Usually, it costs five million extols, but I decided that my service will be free for the next time."

He was about to leave, but Jewel held him back. "Wait! We don't know your name yet!"

He turend toward her with a smile. "I'm Gen Fall, Knight of the Sky. And this is Pierre, my faithful pegasus friend," he said with pointing the animal who let out another cute noise with his mouth.

He then jumped on this last one's back and started flying away. "Good luck, my young and brave friends."

"Bye," Alex said and waved at his new friends.

"In the end, he didn't taught us anything new," Arlene said with a frown.

"Yup, we're not more advanced than before meeting him," Apollo nodded.

"So how are we supposed to get to the higher sky now?" Dominic asked. "I suggest we keep advancing."

"Hey! Look ahead!" Alex suddenly called from the edge of the boat.

"Huh? What did you saw?" Arlene asked as she walked over to him.

"The cloud over there is not like the others," the kid replied with pointing his wing toward a big cloud far at the horizon which was moving upward.

"You're right: it looks like a waterfall."

"How about we go check it?" Dominic suggested to which all the others nodded in agreement.

The crew turned the Saldanha and made it drive toward the giant cloud looking like a waterfall. Soon, as they got close to said cloud, something came into view: a big entrance gate shaped like a white and golden star that had a panel on the top with "Heaven's Gate" written on it.

"Wow! That's a big gate!" Lazaro exclaimed while looking at the gate in awe.

"And look: this cloud is really a waterfall," Jewel said with pointing at the big cloud behind the gate.

"Heaven's Gate?" Apollo asked. "This means heaven's right behind this door? But to get to heaven, we gotta be dead. You think we're dead?"

"Don't say dumb things," Arlene said with rolling her eyes.

"Hey, look! I see something!" Apollo called and pointed at someone standing to the side of the gate's tunnel after the ship entered.

It was a human lady. A short very elderly woman with an extensively wrinkled face. She had purple hair, put into two buns. She had thin arms, and wore a pink tunic, and had small white wings on her back. She was also holding a camera which she used to take picture of the crew.

"This woman have wings on her back?!" Alex exclaimed in surprise.

"This means she's an angel?" Blu asked.

"I am Amazon, the guardian of Heaven's Gate," the old woman said. "What brought you here? Are you tourists or warriors?"

"Huh, tourists, if that's the good term," Jewel said with rubbing the back of her head.

"We wanna go to the Celstial Island," Blu said. "She's on the other side of the gate, right?"

"And what do you mean by warriors?" Dominic asked.

Amazon just starred at the birds. "Actually, the reason is of no importance. You're gonna have to give a billion extols by person to cross the gate and get inside: that's the price fixed by law."

"A billion?!" Apollo exclaimed in shock. "Are you crazy?! We don't have such a fortune!" He then turned the others. "How much do you think it costs in golden coins?"

"I don't know, but it still must be a huge fortune," Alex said.

"And it's by person, so we'll need nine billion extols to enter," Arlene pointed out with a wing on her hip.

"And what if we don't have the money?" Jewel asked.

"You could still enter," Amazon simply replied.

"Seriously?!" Apollo asked in awe and confusion.

"Or you also have the possibility to turn around. I'm not a sentinel nor a soldier: I must simply ask your intentions and where you wanna go," the elder woman simply said.

"Okay. So like I said, we're searching for the Celestial Island," Blu answered.

"And we're planning on passing anyway, lady," Apollo said.

"Really? You're nine, aren't you?" Amazon asked.

"Yes, exactly."

Suddenly, two things jumped out of the cloud sea: giant lobster pinches that grabbed either side of the Saldanha, holding it firmly.

"W-What's that?!" Vladimir asked.

"You won't find this beast anywhere else: the Lobster Express," Amazon informed the group.

Suddenly, the Lobster Express dashed forward at an incredible speed and brought the Saldanha up the cloud waterfall. The group felt the exact same sensation as when they rode up the Knock Up Stream with Blu standing on the tip of the boat, Apollo feeling sick, Jewel and Alex having fun and the others just trying to remain calm and not falling overboard.

As the Lobster Express brought the Saldanha up the cloud waterfall, Amazon grabbed a radiophone and called someone. "Hello? This is Amazon, guardian of Heaven's Gate. A group of nine strangers is about to enter Skyland, the Divine Kingdom. May the Heaven's Judgement hit them."

* * *

 **Alright, the Blue Thunder is about to really enter Skyland this time. However, with the call Amazon just made, I think there might be trouble ahead. What's that "Heaven's Judgement" she talked about?**

 **We're gonna have to wait the next chapter to find out. I also hope I won't bring religion controversy over this for the themes implied.**


	206. Godland, Skypiea! The cloud beach

**Before we start, I'd like to dedicate this chapter to Stan Lee - the creator of Marvel - who died today at 95. Man, as a Marvel fan, you don't know how much this hurts me. REST IN PEACE, SUPERHERO LEGEND!**

* * *

The Lobster Express was bringing the Saldanha at full speed across the cloud waterfall up toward the sky. "This cloud belt looks like a river," Dominic remarked while still holding on to the boat.

"You know what I think: this road isn't work of nature," Blu told his friends, agreeing with Dominic.

"Yeah; it has nothing natural about it," Apollo said while holding to the mat.

After a few more minutes, a light started shining through a whole in the seemingly endless cloud wall they were into. "Hey! There's the exit: I can see a light!" Alex said with pointing upward.

Arlene also spotted a sign near the exit: "Godland Skypiea" it was saying. In that case, it wasn't an exit but an entrance.

Their excitation reaching the max, the Blue Thunder Crew arrived at the exit and had to cover their eyes because of the strong light. The Lobster Express dropped the Saldanha in the middle of yet another sea of clouds. The big aquatic creature then turned around and back down the cloud waterfall where they came from.

However, the group was too distracted by the huge island ahead of them to care. It looked like a big tropical island made of clouds with some palm trees and buildings visible in the background. They also noticed that the blue sky was now visible above them, no longer being covered by clouds.

"It's the Celestial Island!" Blu beamed.

Everybody looked at it in awe and amazement. That meant that the stories and myths were true!

"Skypiea? Just like on the card Blu found?" Hernandez asked. Then, he formed a smile on his huge beak. "That's amazing! The wasteland that fell on us really did came here after all. They have seen all of this before us."

The ship soon reached the beach which looked as beautiful and warm as any other ones. "What are we waiting for? Let's go explore!" Blu said and jumped down from the ship and into the beach's cloud water.

"Hey, wait for me!" Apollo called and jumped down next to him. He then felt something strange underneath his feet. "Hey, you feel that? It's as if this island was a big, soft cloud."

The macaw and owl exchanged a smile before starting to run on the soft cloud beach. "Wait! I'm coming too!" Alex said and jumped down as well, following his two friends.

"Huh, but what are we gonna do for the anchor if there's no bottom, Blu?" Dominic called.

"Don't worry about that!" the captain replied while still running on the sand, enjoying the feeling.

Shrugging, Dominic just grabbed and tossed the anchor down into the cloud sea below. He then couldn't help but look all around. "This place is very beautiful: it's almost as if we were in paradise. I almost feel as if I was dreaming."

"I agree with you, Yusef," Vladimir said. "Look at them; they're playing around like kids." He then smiled. "I feel like doing the same." The golden eagle then flew down to go join the others at the beach.

"You worry too much, Dom. Let's go have some fun," Jewel said and playfully nudged Dominic before jumping down in the water and ran to her friends.

Arlene then arrived beside him. "It smells like adventure. It's all about entering a new territory and exploring it." She then smiled. "I didn't even knew it could be exciting." She jumped down to go with the others as well.

"...Strange girl," Dominic mumbled to himself.

Back to the beach, Alex laid on his stomach over a pile of clouds. "Aww, it's so good on this island. I could take a nap right here..."

Not too far, Blu climbed a palm tree and took a good look all around for anything interesting. Apollo was just down below, trying to build a castle of clouds. Vladimir checked on some flowers that looked like roses and picked them up to sniff them and they smelled very good.

"How good is it there," Jewel beamed, enjoying the beach's atmosphere. "I doubt the Naval Forces will come search for us in here. We're finally gonna have a good break.

Meanwhile, Blu found a big fruit in the palm tree: it looked like an octagon-shaped watermelon. "What's that? It looks delicious." The macaw bit his beak into the fruit...and immediately regretted it as it was hard like rock. "Ouch! This thing's too hard!"

Vladimir then walked over to Arlene and offered her one of the roses he picked up." There, it's for you, Arlene," he said in a gentlemen's way.

"Oh, thanks," the scarlet macaw said and slightly blushed.

"You're welcome. I have another one for Jewel," the golden eagle said and walked away in search of Jewel with another rose.

Dominic justly joined the group at the beach. "How can my legs get wet into clouds?" he mumbled with whipping his wet legs after walking out of the cloud sea.

Just then, something soft came rubbing itself over his legs. Looking down, Dominic saw that it was what looked like a baby white fox. Eve to him, he looked pretty cute.

"Huh? What are you doing there, you?" he asked with kneeling next to the little furry creature.

Suddenly, they heard a soft noise that sounded like an harp. What was that music? Everybody turned toward a pile of clouds on top of which a figure was standing. Upon getting closer, they saw that it was a bird. A female canary with dark yellow feathers and some white facial expressions. She was wearing a red pilot helmet on her head and a turquoise scarf around her neck. She had her eyes closed with a smile on her beak as she ran her feathers over an harp to create an elegant melody that was wonder for the ears.

"...Is that an angel?" Lazaro mumbled to Hernandez.

Eventually, the canary slowly opened her black eyes and noticed everyone starring at her. "Oh...hum, did I disturbed you? I'm sorry." She then looked down at the little silver fox beside Dominic and smiled. "Come here, Sue."

The feline obeyed and ran to her as she came down from the cloud. "You're from the Blue Sea, right?" she asked with kneeling down and petting the little Sue.

"Yeah, we're from down below," Blu confirmed. "What about you?"

"Yes, this is my home," she confirmed with a smile. "Welcome to Angel Beach." She then noticed the fruit Blu was still holding under his wing. "Wanna eat the fruit? Here, I'll show you hoe.

"Hum, okay," Blu said with handing her the fruit. She took it and used her talon to cut an hole open into the middle on the bottom. She then inserted a straw into it.

"There, suck its content," the canary said with giving the fruit back to Blu.

He did as she told and sucked the content before widening his eyes. "My gosh! This taste absolutely delicious!"

"Really? Let me try!" Apollo said and sucked the fruit at his turn. "Wow! You're not kidding: it's a pure wonder!"

"The canary giggled. "By the way, my name's Margalo. And this is Sue, a cloud fox; he's very nice. If you need anything, it'll be my pleasure to help you."

"Well, as you probably know, Margalo, we got a lot of questions to ask; everything seems so strange on this island," Jewel said.

At the same time, Dominic noticed something. "Hey, someone's coming our way."

"Yes, it's my friend, Stuart," Margalo said with looking at the figure coming their way from the cloud sea.

"Hello, Margalo!" he called.

"Hey, Stuart!" she replied.

This named Stuart was a mouse, of all things, with white fur wearing a red jacket and blue jeans. He was driving on some kind of motorboat ship shaped like a jet.

"Huh, what's that thing your friend's riding on?" Jewel asked.

"Oh, you mean his Waver," Margalo replied.

"This looks nice!" Blu said with a smile.

"It's called a Waver?"

"I'm coming!" Stuart said before his Weaver reached the beach and collided into a tree with him falling into the cloud sand. "Ouch! It's not easy to park down. Is everyone okay?"

"We should be the ones asking you this," Dominic remarked with a confused look at the mouse.

This last one got back up and dusted himself up before looking at all the avians. "Who are those guys, they're your friends, Margalo?"

"Yes, I just met them. They're from the Blue Sea," Margalo explained.

"Is that so? The journey most have been hard: the Opal Sea is very agitated these times.," Stuart said.

Margalo then looked at a straw basket in the mouse's hand. "Stuart, you caught a lot of fish?"

"Yes; the fishing went fine. Hey, why don't you come home for a dinner? We'll make you a good meal with Celestial specialities," Stuart offered.

"Celestial specialties?!" Lazaro asked, stars in his eyes and drool in his beak. "That would be awesome! Right, guys?"

"But before we go, I'd like to ask a question," Jewel said as she inspected the Weaver. "If there's no motor and you're not using any sail, how can this machine move on water?"

Margalo rose an eyebrow. "You never saw a dial?"

"Dial? No," Blu replied after taking a sip from his fruit.

Jewel decided to give it a try. Standing on the jet, she grabbed the handles and pressed her foot on the pedal. The Weaver shot right into the cloud sea and Jewel panicked for a bit before managing to gain control of the engine. Once she was used to it, it was actually simple to drive at full speed on the water - not better than flying, but still fun.

"It's awesome!" she beamed in joy.

"Wow! I,m surprised! It took me quite a while before actually maanging to handle the Weaver," Stuart said in surprise.

"It's a simple matter of technique!" Jewel shouted while giggling.

"Co,e back, Jew: Stuart and Margalo are inviting us for dinner!" Lazaro called.

"Can I stay and drive this machine a little longer?"

"Huh, of course, but be careful," Stuart replied. He then turned toward the others. "Come on, we're gonna lead you to our home."

And so, Stuart and Margalo led the Blue Thunder Crew and Arlene across the small forest and up a set of staircases which led to a little town. There, the group noticed many animals and some humans building things with clouds.

"This is a construction site?" Apollo asked.

"Nope: it's the cloud career," Stuart replied while walking. "This is where we're extracting the clouds we need."

"You can cut clouds?" Dominic asked with a surprised look.

"To get to the Opal Sea, you took the Milky Road, right?" Stuart asked.

"The Milky Road? You're talking about this cloud river connected to the sea?"

"Yes; she has been built from clouds cut in this very place," the mouse explained. "It's very simple, there are two types of clouds: the ones on which you drove, the oceo nimbus, and the soft ones on which we can walk, the ilo nimbus."

"Those clouds doesn't look very natural to me," Dominic remarked with rubbing the back of his head.

"Yup, their condensation process is very different from that of the other clouds. In the Blue Sea, we find a stone called Sea Stone."

"Yes, it's a material that neutralize Magical Fruits' powers," Arlene pointed out. "But what's the link?"

"Well, the material inside the Sea Stone rise up in the sky and release particles during volcanic irruptions. And once filled with water, depending on the concentration in the clouds, we get either ocea nimbus or ilo nimbus," the mouse explained.

Everybody just starred blankly at him. "Yah, that's...very clear," Blu said with a nervous chuckle.

"We don't understood anything," Hernandez decided to voice out for everyone.

"You didn't had to tell it!" Lazaro said with jumping and slapping the pelican on the head.

"So where was I at?" Stuart asked. "Ok yeah, there are three types of clouds in here: the ilo and oceo nimbus, but there's a third type artificially created." However, before he could tell it, they arrived at the entrance of a big house. "Ah, we're arrived."

Blu took a moment to turn around and give the view a good look: they could see the whole village below as well as the beach. Heck, he could even see Jewel still diving on the cloud sea.

* * *

Stuart and Margalo invited the avians into their house. While Stuart was making food in the kitchen with Lazaro watching, all the others waited in the living room. There was couches made of clouds as well as a table in the middle with a big open window leading on a terrace.

Arlen laid back into a couch before turning toward Margalo. "I know we just arrived, but could you tell us more about the dials you mentioned earlier?"

"Of course," the canary said with a smile before rubbing her chin. "Let's see, how could I explain you..." She walked to a shelf and took a little circular seashell which she gave to Blu.

"Huh, what's that seashell?" Blu asked.

"Say something while keeping it near your mouth," Margalo instructed.

"Hum, okay." Blu brought the seashell near his beak. "I love blueberries."

"Good. Now, press the little button on the top," Margalo instructed.

Blu obeyed and pressed the button on top of the seashell with his feather. Then, a voice came out of it: _"I love blueberries."_

"Hey, that's my voice!" Blu exclaimed in surprise as all the others were surprised too.

"This seashell have registered the sound, just like a recorder," Dominic realized with rubbing his head.

"So this is a dial?" Arlene asked.

"Yes," Margalo nodded. "It's called a tone dial, one of the many dials that can be found on the Opal Sea. It can register and replay any sound."

"Very interesting," Dominic admitted. "But this sea has no bottom; how can there be any seashell?"

"They are generally located on the sand grounds," Margalo responded.

"Alright, but I don't see how it can make the Weaver advance," Arlene admitted.

"Wait," Margalo said and walked over to another shelf to pick up another dial - this one was slightly larger. "It's this one that's used for the Weaver. It's not very big but has the same principle as the tone dial. Look."

She pressed the button in the middle and a gust of wind was shot from the hole. "Wind's coming out of it?" Apollo asked in surprise.

Margalo nodded. "This is the breath dial. A very useful one: it sucks in and shoots out the wind when we want to. Its strength depends on its size: this one can move a small vehicle like the Weaver."

Apollo snapped his feathers. "I got it: the Weaver is pushed by the wind shot by the breath dial."

Margalo nodded. "There are others vehicles: we're using those dials on Rollers and skateboards. Personally, I don't really use them, I prefer flying," she admitted with a giggle.

"Apparently, there are other types," Arlene remarked before looking at a big seashell on the table. "Is that one too?"

"Yup," Margalo said with pressing the button on the top, causing it to illuminate. "It's a lamp dial. There's also the flame dial which works like a furnace, the flavour dial which absorbs odors and aromas, and the vision dial which registers images. There are many of them."

"Wow! This looks awesome!" Alex said in excitation.

Margalo giggled at the kid's enthusiasm. "Of course, those dials are part of our quotidian life. We can say that our civilization evolved thanks to those dials."

Vladimir suddenly noticed Dominic snoring on the couch with his eyes closed and gave him a nudge. "Yusef! Show some manners!"

Stuart and Lazaro then came back in the living room with plates of sea food which included a big fried lobster that looked particularly delicious. "Dinner's served!" the puffin and mouse announced at unison.

"Those are specialties of the island. You'll give me news," Stuart said with a smile.

"It looks delicious! Let's dig!" Alex said and everyone started eating and drinking with Blu grabbing the lobster and eating the delicious, tender meat (which was a bit strange as he wasn't really used to eat meat).

"It's a delight!" Vladimir beamed.

"I cannot find the right words to describe this food," Hernandez said in agreement.

Lazaro walked over to the terrace with a fish in his beak and noticed a detail. "Huh, guys? Where's Jewel?"

"She's not there?" Blu asked curiously. "Maybe she went to explore around with the Weaver."

The others nodded in agreement, but Margalo and Stuart suddenly looked concerned. "Stuart, you think she will be okay?"

"I must admit I'm kinda worried too," Stuart said with rubbing the back of his head.

"Worried for what?" Blu asked curiously.

Margalo looked down. "There's a forbidden zone in Skypiea: a place where no one is allowed to enter. It's very close to here, we can get there quick on the Weaver. Jewel must have wandered away and..."

* * *

At the same time, Jewel who wandered too far arrived at a strange spot with the Weaver. It looked like the entrance of a forest with giant trees - three times bigger than those in the Amazon.

"What's that place...?"

* * *

"And you say we must never enter there? Why?" Apollo asked.

"It's a sacred sanctuary," Margalo replied.

"A sacred sanctuary?" Arlene asked to which the canary nodded. "It's very dangerous: we call it Upper Yard."

* * *

 **Uh-oh, looks like Jewel might be in trouble. Let's hope she won't get any trouble in this Upper Yard.**

 **Except that, you like all the new things introduced in this chapter? The dials, cloud beach, delicious fruits and food? Can't you wait to see more of the Skypiea world? I sure hope so, 'cause there's still a lot to see!**

 **Side note: for those of you who didn't realized yet, Stuart and Margalo are characters from the Stuart Little franchise. Judge me if you want, but to me, those movies (specially the second) are awesome and have places in my heart.**


	207. The Forbidden Sacred Ground

"So God lives there and you're telling us it's forbidden to get into his territory?" Blu asked in surprise.

"Yes," Margalo responded with a nod.

"Just to be sure, you're referring to the REAL god?" Alex asked. "And he lives in Skypiea?"

The canary nodded. "Exactly. Skypiea is the earth of God in the measure it hosts the land of our all-mighty god Raijin. He's the one watching over us all."

"An all-mighty god you say?" Lazaro asked curiously.

"Raijin is watching over everything. There's nothing in this world that could possibly escape him."

"He sees everything?" Apollo asked in surprise to which Margalo nodded.

"Exactly: he can see every of our moves. All the time."

"What?! So he's watching us like right now?" Blu asked in surprise.

"Yeah, sure," Dominic simply said with an unconvinced look and just drank his cup of blue liquid.

"Are you telling us that you don't believe in god?" Alex asked, eyeing the golden eagle with a curious look.

"To be quite honest, I never wondered if God exists or not. And to be even more honest, I don't give a damn," Dominic replied. "I respect other people's beliefs, but I'm just not interested into it."

"Okay, but tell us, Margalo. Did you ever had the chance to meet this god living in Upper Yard?" Vladimir asked.

"No; it's strictly forbidden to get into Upper Yard no matter what," the canary denied. "Upper Yard is a sacred ground..."

"But tell us, what would happen if one was to wander into Upper Yard?" Arlene asked.

"Huh, well...," Margalo said with looking down.

"Well what?" Dominic asked.

"You expose yourself to a certain death. It's the popular belief," Stuart said.

"We're doomed to die?!" Apollo asked in shock.

"Die...?!" Blu mumbled. "HOLY CRAP! WE GOTTA GO THERE AND SAFE JEWEL! QUICK!"

"We have no time to waste! Let's go!" Dominic said with grabbing his sabers.

* * *

Back to Jewel, she was still standing before the giant forest on the Weaver. "Man, those trees are huge: I can't even see the top of them. I've never seen such big trees: they're way bigger than the ones in Rio or the Amazon."

She suddenly heard a voice: "I'm sure there are treasures around here. Awesome treasures. We must be near."

"There's someone," Jewel mumbled. Turning the Weaver on, she followed the voice to the side and entered a small crater into the island where she found a destroyed boat, but no sign of life anywhere. Strange.

She decided to jump on it and found some objects laying here and there, but no signs of life. However, she did notice marks of clawing on the surface. Those people have been attacked? What could have done that to them?

Suddenly, a little bird flew down on top of a seashell and involuntarily pressed on a button which brought back the voice: "I'm sure there are treasures around here. Awesome treasures. We must be near."

"Huh? This seashell's talking?" Jewel asked in confusion as she approached the little object. "But that's impossible."

She picked the object and looked at it under every angle before pressing the button on the top just like the bird did. The voice spoke again: "I'm sure there are treasures around here. Awesome treasures. We must be near."

"This seashell can register voices?" She gulped. "This place is sinister. I'm better leaving right now."

However, just then, she heard an explosion coming from the forest which made her jump. "What was that?!"

Inside the forest, a young squirrel was running between the giant trees at full speed, desperate to save his life. "Help!" he was shouting.

* * *

"LET'S GO!"

Back on Angel Beach, the Blue Thunder Crew and Arlene got on the Saldanha and were in a hurry to leave.

"I'm afraid the elements are not in your favor," Stuart said with sensing the wind. "You're gonna have to face reverse winds which will cost you a lot of time to reach Upper Yard."

"What do you mean, a lot of time?" Blu asked with a risen eyebrow.

"If your ship was powered by the dial, you could advance way faster, but since that's not the case, I'm very sorry."

"How long will it take to get there?" Hernandez asked.

"I have no idea; it depends entirely of the wind," the mouse replied with a shrug.

"It's gonna take us too much time!" Blu said, rubbing his head nervously. "In't there any other way to get to Upper Yard? We must get there before it's too late for Jewel!"

* * *

Back to Upper Yard, the squirrel stopped running and turned around, believing he had outrun his followers. "Phew, I escaped them," he mumbled with rubbing his forehead in relief.

"You think?"

He jumped and turned around to see he was actually surrounded. To his left, there was a tall, bald, muscular, and bearded man. He was wearing a pair of black sunglasses hiding his eyes and purple tattoos on his right arm. His attire consisted of a dark-green A-shirt, loose grey pants with many pockets and what looked like zips under his knees, a long and flowing white sash around his waist and dark leather boots with bandages around the soles. Beside him was standing a giant white hunting dog who looked particularly hungry.

Above his head was another man who resembled a stereotypical aviator from the early 1900s: he had a thin, pointed mustache that splits into two parts; on his head there was an aviator hat decorated with wings, and a pair of goggles on the front. His attire was composed of an orange fur-lined jacket, with brown swollen sleeves decorated by beige spots; loose matching orange pants held up by a belt, fur-lined gloves and boots, and a purple scarf around his neck. He was dark haired, and on his back there was a pair of typical wings, a standard feature of all the inhabitants of Skypiea. He carried a jousting lance and was standing a big red-purple vulture as a driving animal.

Finally, the third one who blocked the escape he was going for was the strangest of the pack: some kind of white balloon with limbs and a funny face in the middle.

"You bastards! You stole my prey!" the bald man angrily said.

"Don't get in my way!'" the aviator replied.

"I was gonna tell you the same thing," the balloon chuckled.

Jewel managed to see this whole scene from a slit in the trees that opened in the cloud sea. "W-What's that? What's going on in here?"

The squirrel sweated nervously while seating on the ground as his situation seemed hopeless.

"This guy's for me: he's my prey! You hear me?!" the bald man firmly declared.

"Is that a fighting invitation?" the aviator asked with a smirk. "If that's the case, I'm ready. You stand no chance against Fuza and I," he said with patting his vulture.

"Really? I can guarantee you that you won't stand long against Holy and I!" he replied, referring to his giant dog who barked.

Meanwhile, the balloon man was bouncing with his feet and laughed. "How funny to see the lower fighters about to kill each other."

"It's you, the lower fighter!" the bald man shouted at the balloon.

Jewel was trembling as she watched this whole scene from afar. She didn't really understood what was going on, but one thing was for sure: she couldn't let this poor squirrel getting killed like this. She grabbed her Wind Waker, ready to attack, when she heard a strange noise behind her and quickly turned around.

The spix macaw gasped as a familiar figure was standing right before her. It was the same masked Komodo dragon who attacked her friends upon arrival. He was aiming his bazooka right at her and was about to shoot. And he did just that...except the shot flew above her and instead went directly at the three strange beings attacking the squirrel.

BOOM!

Jewel had to cover her ears because of the sound caused by the explosion. Once it was passed, she gave a quick look to the attacker before turning around and seeing the explosion left a wall of smoke and she couldn't see if the squirrel has been saved.

She quickly got her answer as said squirrel slowly crawled out of the smoke and to the edge of the island. He was visibly hurt from the Komodo dragon's shot, but still alive. He slowly looked up to Jewel and widened his eyes.

"Hey! You! Help me! Please!" he begged with a pleading look. However, he then widened his eyes as he noticed the masked Komodo dragon behind her. "Oh my gosh! A Guerrero!"

Suddenly, a strange phenom happened, a light beam came down from the sky right over the squirrel. This beam was so strong that Jewel had to cover her eyes because of the light and it also caused the ground to shake and made some waves onto the sea.

"Crap! It's Raijin!" the masked Guerrero shouted while protecting himself with his shield.

The beam lasted for a long moment before ending. Jewel held on thigh to the Weaver until the sea stopped shaking and she was able to see properly again. She noticed the Guerrero driving away on his skis and she couldn't deny she was actually happy of it.

But what did he said about "Raijin?" What was that?

* * *

Angel Island - Lovely Street

"Attention, soldiers!" announced a man followed by other men.

They were the White Berets, police force of Skypiea. As the White Berets, they wear a characteristic uniform that consists of light-purple T-shirts, blue with white cloud-shaped spots wide trousers, Jet Ski and white berets with letters "WB" on them. Everybody turned around to see five of them arriving.

"It's the White Berets," someone said.

"What are they doing here?"

"Warning to the civils: be very careful!" their apparent captain called. "Today, a group of outsiders entered Angel Beach and invaded our territory. We have been informed that they are at the number of nine. The White Berets are gonna do everything to stop those criminals! In the mean time, we invite you to be careful!"

* * *

Back to Jewel, she was hiding behind the tip of the island as to not get spotted by the three strange guys.

"You have heard that? This guy was talking with someone," the bald man remarked.

"Probably with this Guerrero who just escaped," the balloon said. "I think he was begging him to save his life," he laughed.

"I don't understand God Raijin's intentions," the aviator said with scratching his head." If he planned to take this guy down by himself, with sending us here in the first place?"

"He was telling us we were out of time: other ones have already sneaked in here to invade our territory," a fourth one said, but Jewel couldn't see him. "Old Amazon warned us of a ship coming from the Blue Sea with nine birds on it."

"Nine birds?!" Jewel gasped to herself. "From the Blue Sea? But in that case, it can only be us." She then remembered a detail." The old Amazon? But then...it's because we didn't paid the entry price? Oh no! But then, the people on this ship that I saw and this squirrel were also outsiders? Which means that...we're at risk of getting the same fate as them?!"

"Nine, heh? I wonder if it's worth the fight," the balloon guy wondered.

"Nine is not dividable by four," the bald man remarked.

"Who are those guys? And where did we landed?" Jewel nervously wondered. "I must go warn the others! We're in serious trouble!"

* * *

Back to Angel Beach, Stuart and Margalo were preparing a second Weaver for the Blue Thunder Crew. "You think it's gonna work?" Blu asked.

"I cannot guarantee you anything: this only is vastly different from the other your friend took," Stuart responded. He was kneeling next to the Weaver and working on it with a monkey wrench.

"Hey! You, over there! Don't move!"

Everybody turned to see the White Berets coming their way. Strangely, they were crawling on the sand toward them.

"Who are those guys? And why are they crawling?" Blu asked as everyone turned their attention toward the newcomers.

"They must be perverts," Apollo simply said.

"Perverts?" Alex asked with looking curiously at his barn owl friend.

The group soon stopped before everyone and did the military greet gesture which Stuart and Margalo imitated.

"Who are those guys?" Dominic asked with a pointing look.

"Apollo says they are called "perverts"," Alex pointed out.

The captain of the White Berets then looked at the avians. "Oh, there you are, the outsiders from the Blue Sea. According to our law, you'll have to submit to the Heaven's Judgement!"

* * *

 **Man, I'm lucky: today was a day off from school which gave me time to write this new chapter. I hope I did good work.**

 **You think Jewel will warn the others in time before this "Heaven's Judgement" happens? Will they defeat the White Berets? You'll see this next chapter!**


	208. Blue Thunder Crew vs White Berets

Blu blinked his eyes curiously. "An illegal entry you say? What does it means?"

The captain of the group took out papers of his jacket each representing a photo of the Blue Thunder Crew members. "No need to play innocent: these clichés have recently been given to us by Amazon, the guardian of Heaven's Gate."

"What? But there has to be a mistake, Captain McKinley. Those birds are not bad intentioned," Stuart assured.

"What is an illegal entry for you guys anyway?" Lazaro asked.

"I think it's because we didn't paid for the entrance taxes, back in Heaven's Gate," Arlene deduced.

"But the old woman said we could get through," Apollo pointed out.

"Like I said, there's no need to play the innocents," Captain McKinley said. "However, this is nothing that can't be fixed. According to the celestial law, you can pay the sentence for your crime and will be allowed to move around Angel Island like any tourist."

"Okay, what's this sentence?" Dominic asked with crossing his wings.

"It's very simple: you just have to pay ten times the normal entry taxes," Captain McKinley replied.

"Ten times?!" Apollo exclaimed in shock. "But then, it means...ten billions for all of us - a total of...AN HUNDRED BILLION EXTOLES?!"

"But how much does it makes in golden coins?" Vladimir asked.

"In golden coins? The money of the Blue Sea?" the captain asked. "Well, a golden coin counts for around ten thousand extoles."

Apollo made the count for how much the bill was in his head. "...It means we have to pay seven million coins."

"Are you crazy?! We don't have such a fortune!" Lazaro angrily shouted at the White Berets.

"May this be very clear: if you don't pay the taxes, we'll be forced to take you in," Captain McKinley said with a threatening glare.

Blu replied with a glare of his own. "Listen very well: my girlfriend's in danger at the moment we're talking, so I have no time to waste with you! Get out right now-"

Suddenly, a motor noise was heard and everybody turned their head to see a figure coming from the cloud sea. To their surprise, it was Jewel coming back with the Weaver at full speed. So fast in fact that she dashed over the beach and right into Captain McKinley, knocking him down and out.

"Jewel!" Blu beamed and rushed to hug his girlfriend as she came down from the Weaver. "I was so afraid! Are you okay? You're not hurt?"

"I'm okay," Jewel answered and kissed Blu on the cheek before getting serious. "But we need to get out of here right now! Otherwise, we'll make their god very mad!"

"She's right; you need to run," Margalo suddenly said. "For God Raijin, attacking the police forces is considered a very bad crime with the sanction being the banishment on a cloud."

"Banishment on a cloud?" Lazaro asked.

The canary nodded. "This punishment sees a group and their boat getting banished on a lonely cloud far from any island with no means of escape. People who get this sanction are destined to remain there for the rest of their lives until they die."

"This must explains why ships are falling from the sky when everything's clear," Arlene deduced with rubbing her chin. "Like the one holding the Skypiea map that Blu found."

Captain McKinley soon regained consciousness as his soldiers rushed to his side. Upon getting back up, he glared in direction of the Blue Thunder Crew.

"Run! Quick!" Margalo begged her friends.

"Oh no, we're bad!" Jewel nervously mumbled.

"Alright, all of you! You're all passible of the cloud exile punishment! You better come with all of us without resisting!" the captain firmly shouted.

"In your dreams, gramp!" Blu said and glared at the White Berets with rising his fists.

"Alright then. White Berets, in position!" Captain McKinley ordered as his men took position in line and took out bows and arrows which they charged.

"Run! They're too strong for you!" Margalo begged.

"Shoot the Milky Arrows!" the captain ordered.

Obeying, the soldiers shot their arrows which left a cloud trail behind them. Blu managed to swiftly dodged the arrows before landing on one of the cloud trails and standing on it. Unlike the cloud sea, it was solid.

"Let's attack!"

The White Berets suddenly jumped onto the cloud trails with rollers similar to the masked Komodo dragon's skis and dashed in Blu's direction. Luckily, he managed to move out of the way just in time. The soldiers stopped and turned toward him with smirks and chuckles.

They then took out little knives in their hands and used their rollers to dash back at Blu. However, this time, the macaw was ready and rose his wings. "FIST STORM!" Throwing his wings at full speed, Blu managed to knock down all of the White Berets soldiers with one attack.

"What?! His wings?!" Margalo exclaimed in surprise.

"H-He ate a Magical Fruit?!" Stuart also asked in surprise.

Blu stretched a bit as all his friends smiled happily at his success. Captain McKinley smirked and ran toward the village, but not without stopping to turn around and smirk at the avians.

"You morons! You'll never leave this island now! Trust me: you should have listen and obeyed us!" he declared as everyone turned to look at him. "We, White Berets, are the most merciful defenders of Godland! The others you will meet won't be as nice as us! You're now high-ranked criminals in Skypiea! You will be punished and judged by the defenders of Upper Yard!"

* * *

 **This chapter was shorter than the previous one, but you gotta admit I did good work for publishing two chapters in one day. And besides, I just wanted to write the fight between Blu and the White Berets.**

 **Now, do you think Blu and his friends will find out what's this whole god story behind Skypiea and also meet this Raijin god?**


	209. Is escape from Skyland possible?

_Previously: Blu faced the White Berets, official police force of Skypiea, and defeated them easily. Their captain, McKinley, left after issuing a warning that their next opponents will be far worse..._

* * *

The Blue Thunder Crew and their friends remained on Angel Beach after Blu defeated the White Berets and made them flee. "Who were those guys anyway?" he asked.

"We fell into a trap, that's for sure," Jewel pointed out. "Remember that old lady who told us we could pass Heaven's Gate? Apparently, we didn't had the right to." She then glared. "If I see her again, I'm gonna kick her butt.

"Not like we wouldn't have entered anyways," Apollo mumbled. Jewel gave him a glare that made him step back. "Okay, I shut up."

"Hum, guys?" Stuart said. "I'm really sorry, but Margalo and I can't really help you anymore now that you're criminals in Skypiea."

"Guys, I saw something terrible happening in Upper Yard!" Jewel quickly said. "We need to leave this island and quick."

"Now that you talk about it, we were so hurried to come here that we never thought about a way to go back down," Apollo realized. He then turned toward Stuart and Margalo. "Is there a way for us to go back to the Blue Sea?"

Margalo looked down. "By the circumstances, I can't say it's safe, but there might be a solution: you need to get at the end of the cloud and to a place called Cloud End."

Apollo rose a curious eyebrow. "Cloud End? Can you be a little more precise on how to get there?"

"Cloud End is very far East from here. First, you need to get down and reach the lowest part, the White Sea. You must have passed this way to come here, right?" Margalo asked.

"Yes," Apollo nodded with a smile. "You're saying we can go back to our sea from there?"

"Alright then, let's go, Blue Thunder Crew!" Blu said and turned toward the Saldanha with his friends following him. However, he interrupted himself and turned back to Stuart and Margalo. "Oh, I forgot something! Stuart, do you mind if we take the food you prepared for us? We're getting a bit low on supplies these times."

"Sure, no problem," Stuart replied.

"Cool! Let's go!" Lazaro happily beamed and went to get the plates to take the food, visibly eager to bring special fishes he probably won't ever see again.

"And another thing, Stuart," Apollo said. "You're an engineer, right? Would you mind to led us some material to fix our ship? It has been damaged by our travel here."

"Sure, no probs: I'll give you what you need," Stuart said with a smile.

"Alright, we'll be back in a while, guys. Get the ship ready until then," Vladimir called to the others as he followed Blu, Lazaro and Apollo back to Stuart and Margalo's house.

Meanwhile, the others got back on the Saldanha and got it ready to leave while Dominic went to sit against the mat and take a nap. Arlene noticed Margalo stepping toward with a nervous look. "Is there a problem, Margalo?"

"Excuse-me, but I have to tell you something," she softly said. She then flew up on the ship. "Another way to go back to the White Sea."

Jewel, Arlene, Hernandez and Alex looked at her in slight surprise. "Another way to return to the White Sea?" Jewel asked.

"Yes, if you were to take this way, you'd get to the White Sea way faster," Margalo confirmed with a nod. "And you'd reach Cloud End with no problem."

"Really?"

"If you were to take that torrent, I'm certain no one would follow you. If you want, I can show it to you; it wouldn't be a problem," the canary offered.

"If this can help us get out of here faster, I see no problem," Hernandez pointed out.

"In that case, you can rise up the anchor; I'll come back to show you the torrent later," Margalo said.

"Okay, nor probs," Jewel said and patted her friend's shoulder.

However, Arlene was not so optimistic for two reasons: first, Margalo seemed very unsure; second, she was smiling and chuckling nervously while sweat flowed on her cheek. Something was not right.

* * *

"Lazaro, stop eating all of our provisions!" Vladimir angrily scolded.

"Don't worry; there will be plenty more for the travel!" the puffin replied, his beak full of fish.

"So you're the carpenter of your wish?" Stuart asked Apollo who was currently putting some tools like nails into a bag to bring.

"Not exactly: I'm a crafter and elite shooter," the barn owl replied.

"Oh, very interesting," the mouse said as Sue came to rub his back against Apollo.

"Unfortunately, we don't have any carpenter on board yet. Luckily, I have enough knowledges to keep the Saldanha in good shape: the others are depending on me and even go as far as nicknaming me "The Savior"!"

"Show-off," Vladimir mumbled with rolling his eyes.

* * *

"Goodbye, Margalo! Thanks for everything!" Jewel screamed at her friend who was on the beach and waving her wing which the others did as well.

"It was no big deal. Goodbye," the canary replied and turned around to leave.

"Man, I'm relieved. I started wondering how we could possibly get out of this place," Jewel said with a sigh.

"Don't get your hopes high too quick," Arlene deadpanned. "I wonder if the torrent she talked about really exists."

"What do you mean?" Hernandez curiously asked the scarlet macaw.

"If this safe way really does exists, there should be more survivors coming back from the Celestial Islands, don't you think?" she asked.

"Come on, don't be so pessimist," Jewel said with a wing wave. "It must simply be that since not a lot of people come here, there's little leaving as well. Seems logic, right?"

"It could also be that most could not outrun their followers like the White Berets because they were not running quick enough," Alex suggested.

"Totally, Alex's right. We should not worry about that and get ready to leave," Jewel assured.

* * *

Margalo got back up to her house and found Lazaro swallowing another fish in the living room with Vladimir looking annoyed.

"I'm just telling that you should try to eat other things that just fish," the golden eagle said.

"Firstly, I eat what I want; second, I'm a puffin, a bird designed to feed on fishes," he replied and then noticed Margalo. "Oh, hello Margalo, we didn't saw you."

"It's nothing," she assured with a nervous smile. "You were packing up your supplies?" she then asked to which the two nodded at unison.

Apollo then finished packing up the tools in his bag and went out on the terrace for some fresh air. However, he then noticed something strange heading toward the Saldanha.

On said boat, as everyone was relaxing, the surface of the water suddenly shook, making the ship rock and everyone jump. "What's going on?!" Dominic asked as he suddenly shot awake and grabbed his sabers.

"GUYS!" Apollo called to his friends. "Something's strange happening on the boat!"

Alerted by his call, Blu, Lazaro and Vladimir rushed at his side on the terrace. "What's wrong, Apollo?!"

He pointed at the horizon and they saw the same thing as him: the Saldanha was getting carried away by some creature underwater which they couldn't see very well with their friends on it.

"What's that?!" Blu asked in shock.

"I know what it is," Stuart mumbled.

At the same time, the monster surfaced to reveal itself: it was a giant lobster similar to the Lobster Express who took them up the Milky Road, but in darker red and with "GOD" printed in yellow on its forehead.

"It's a unique species from the Opal Sea, the Lobster Super Express!"

"The what?!" the others asked at unison.

* * *

Back on the ship, which was already far by now, Dominic struggled to maintain his composure and took out his sabers. "This thing's trying to take us somewhere! We need to get down from the boat!"

"But what are we gonna do if they take the Saldanha away? How are we gonna go back on the sea?" Alex asked in fear while holding onto the ship's security barer.

"Don't worry Alex; I'm staying on board!" the golden eagle replied.

"No! How are you gonna do, if you're alone to drive the ship?" Jewel asked while also holding on the barer.

"I'll find a way!" The golden eagle jumped overboard on onto the pinch of the giant lobster with which he was holding the boat. He swung his two sabers over it and caused a lot of sparkles, but it also made cracks upon the surface. "A few more and that should do it!"

"I don't want to discourage you, but it seems pointless," Arlene called. "Come back onboard!"

Dominic turned his head and looked at her in confusion. "What do you mean, it's pointless?"

"Even if you continue, his friends will attack us after: look!"

Dominic turned his head toward where she was pointing and saw some giant golden (and very hungry-looking fishes) swimming just in their trail alongside big red vultures above that also looked pretty hungry.

"Celestial predators!" Arlene said. "Even if we fly or swim away, they will attack us! Either it's in water or in the air, we won't be able to fight one hundred percent! We can't escape! And even should we fight like devils and defeat them, there are tens of others waiting to attack after! Any attempt from us is hopeless and that's only the beginning."

"Heaven's Judgement, heh?" Dominic asked with a frown. "No one's gonna get us, but will instead serve us on a silver plate. Very smart..."

"Oh no, they're bringing us back on that island!" Jewel mumbled in horror, remembering what she saw in Upper Yard without even entering it. "BLU! HELP!"

* * *

Back to Margalo and Stuart's house, the group looked in horror as their ship faded away at the horizon with their friends. There was only silence except for the sound of the wind.

"...There was a second giant lobster?" Lazaro mumbled.

"YOU'RE THINKING ABOUT THAT?!" Apollo exclaimed and slapped him on the head. He then turned toward Blu. "Blu! We must do something!"

The spix macaw remained silent before turning toward Stuart and Margalo. "Where did they go?"

The mouse looked down. "...The Lobster Super Express is a servant of God charged to bring people to him. He's heading for the north-west of Upper Yard, toward the sacrificial altar!"

"So he's gonna sacrifice our friends?!" Lazaro asked in shock, almost choking on his fish. He then trembled in anger and frowned. "This trash, I'm gonna kick his-"

"Wait, please. Things are different," Stuart suddenly said.

"Different? What do you mean?" the puffin asked in confusion, his anger cooling down a bit.

"I heard a rumor: apparently, those who are to be sacrificed receive one of the two forms of the Heaven's Judgement," Stuart said with rubbing his chin. "You know those two forms? One of them is called Sacrifice, but that's only half of the judgement: the other half is called the Ordali. In this case, you become an hostage."

"H-Hostages?" Apollo asked in surprise and confusion.

Stuart nodded. "In other words, those who are about to be judged...it's you four."

"And what's that supposed to mean?" Lazaro asked with a confused look.

"I'd need a map to explain you."

"One like this?" Apollo asked as he reached into his backpack and took out the Skyland map which he unrolled onto the living room's table.

"Wow, this map isn't young. But the geography is at least correct," Stuart remarked as everyone sat around the map.

"We're here," Margalo said with putting a pointing feather on the far right bottom of the map. "The sacrificial altar is located here, north-west of the island (she pointed another feather on the middle of Upper Yard). There's only way to get there: this one," she said with tracing her feather from their position to the altar.

"You're gonna have to take the Milky Road first, and then take a dial ship to cross the forest where the Bikans live," Stuart explained.

"Wait a second, we maybe don't have to get through the center of the island," Apollo interfered. "We could simply take a boat and get around the island by the east."

"It's not a bad idea, and besides, that's how the lobster reached Upper Yard, right?" Blu asked.

"Indeed, you could park your boat, but let me tell you this piece of advice: you'll never reach the altar through the forest," Stuart seriously said. "There's a huge difference between this old map and the Upper Yard of today. The Milky Road is crossing the whole island."

"It's this cloud river...," Lazaro mumbled.

"Exactly, but not in only one: there are many networks connected across Upper Yard," Stuart kept explaining. "In other words, there's no way to get to the altar by the sea: you need to take the Milky Road to the heart of the forest. You must stay on it all along to reach the altar."

"I see, no matter what we do, we'll get stopped by this river and forced to take it," Vladimir deduced with rubbing his chin.

Stuart nodded. "And to top it all, this river is inhabited by carnivore fishes."

"C-Carnivore fishes?!" Apollo nervously asked.

"More preys to hunt then," Lazaro mumbled before smirking and laying back in the cloud couch. "It's clear now, it's as if he was saying: "Wanna see your ship and friends again? Come through the door."

"I got it: so that's the challenge we're up against," Apollo deduced.

Stuart nodded while keeping his head low. "That's it: you're gonna have to face the four Bikans of Upper Yard."

Blu suddenly slammed his wing on the table to get everyone's attention with a serious look. "So it's a simple formality. We'll get our friends back once we'll have...how to tell it? Kicked God's ass!"

"Which is easier said than done," Apollo remarked with nervously rubbing the back of his head.

"It doesn't matter! I don't care if those guys are gods or anything! They won't take our friends and get away with it! So let's go!"

* * *

 **Even thought the White Berets have been defeated, the crew's problems are far from being over. Will Dominic, Jewel, Arlene, Alex and Hernandez survive Upper Yard or will they end up like this squirrel guy Jewel saw dying by God Raijin's hand?**


	210. Lovely Street

_Previously: The Blue Thunder Crew realized they had to leave Skypiea before getting Stuart and Margalo into trouble. However, God already set his plan in motion as a giant lobster captured the Saldanha and with it half of the group which includes Dominic, Jewel, Arlene, Alex and Hernandez. It's now up to Blu, Apollo, Lazaro and Vladimir to save them._

* * *

Blu and his friends walked down the cloud steps to head down to Angel Beach. They all had backpacks containing the supplies Stuart and Margalo generously offered them.

"Blu, why did we had to get out so fast?" Apollo asked.

"First, because our friends are in danger, and second, because Stuart and Margalo could get in trouble if we stay: Jewel told us," the spix macaw explained while walking forward with a decided look.

"That's right. But how are we gonna get to the sacrificial altar?" Lazaro asked his captain.

"We could fly there: it's not because we're pirates that we must solely rely on ships and boats," Blu answered.

"That's not a good idea: Margalo warned us that there are vulture monsters roaming in the sky," Vladimir explained. "Firstly, it would be bad as we cannot fight one hundred percent in the air, and second, even if we defeat the first waves, there are tens of other ones waiting to attack as well. This is a fight that would tire us even before we get to Upper Yard."

"In that case, we'll just have to find a boat and take the Milky Road," Blu said as they arrived down at Angel Beach.

"And where do you see a boat that we could take? 'Cause I don't see any around here," Lazaro said and pointed his flipper to the empty beach.

"And how are we supposed to know our way, if we can't trust this old Angel Island map?" Apollo asked with taking out said map from his backpack. "And the way to the Milky Road remains a mystery too."

Blu rubbed his beak and looked down. He couldn't deny that they were indeed in trouble. "Hey guys." The group turned around to see Margalo flying down the steps to meet them.

"Margalo? Whatcha doing here?" Lazaro asked curiously.

"Stuart asked me to show you the way to the sacrificial altar," she said with a smile.

"Really?!" Apollo asked to which the canary nodded.

"Let's go to the port of Angel Island: I can prepare you a boat there." After saying that, the canary looked down and rubbed the back of her head which Blu didn't failed to notice.

"You're giving yourself a lot of hard time for us, Margalo," Blu remarked.

"Oh, it's no big deal," she assured with waving her wing. "Come on, let's go."

With that being said, the group followed Margalo up the cloud steps up to their house and even higher. Soon, a little village came into view.

"What's that?" Blu asked while walking up the steps.

"Lovely Street," Margalo replied. "Once we're inside, the port won't be very far."

After passing a welcoming cloud on which was written: "Lovely Street", the group entered a road with many shops which looked like a sort of main street. There was many Skypiean around which varied from humans to animals, and they were all walking, chatting or buying stuff from the shops.

"Wow! What a beautiful place!" Blu beamed while looking all around in amazement, just like his friends.

Margalo giggled in amusement. "Lovely Street is the only place on Angel Island with shops. Amazing, isn't it?"

However, as they walked, the group noticed a slightly bothering detail: all the people they came across along the street gave them suspicious glares and even stepped back and away from them.

"Go your way!"

"Get out of here quick!"

"Don't you guys feel like they're trying to avoid us?" Apollo mumbled to his friends.

"That's no surprising: they must all know that we're criminals in here," Vladimir replied without stopping walking.

"Come on, we're arriving at the port," Margalo said.

"Already? But we barely arrived," Lazaro pointed out.

"We have no reason to stay around here any longer, dude," Vladimir said and urged his puffin friend to advance forward.

After a few more minutes of walking, they arrived near the port and spotted a little gondola shop named "Gondola Port". And it wore its name very well: there was many gondolas of all sizes and shapes along the port. They were similar to the few ones the birds had the chance to see back in the Valley of Peace.

"Wow! Look at all those gondolas!" Blu beamed.

"There's always a special kind of ship in here," Margalo explained. "From the hotel ship in which you can live for many days to the well-equipped ship made for racing. There are one for every taste."

"Cool. So where's ours?" Lazaro asked, eager to get on their gondola.

"There," Margalo announced as they arrived at the end of the dock. "The Raven!"

The Raven was a very small gondola (specially compared to the other ones) and - just like its name suggested it - was black with a raven head at the tip. There was two seats at the front and at the back, a little umbrella and a pair of oars on either sides ties by ropes.

"...Is that a joke?!" Lazaro exclaimed in shock.

"I used to take this gondola to move around before learning to use the Weaver," Margalo explained. "It might be slower, but it's equipped with two breath dials. If you want, you can take it."

Lazaro was about to complain again, but was silenced by a slap behind the head from Vladimir before any word could come out. "Thanks Margalo, we truly appreciate it," the golden eagle firmly said with glaring at his puffin friend.

The canary giggled before pointing a feather toward a little opening which led to the Milky Road river with a "2" written above it. "You'll come out by the second door. It will lead you to the Milky Road and all the way up to Upper Yard." She suddenly looked down. "You...You'll just have to continue straight forward..."

As the others nodded and were about to advance, Blu didn't moved and just starred at his canary friend. "...Margalo? Why are you trembling since earlier?" he asked with looking at her trembling wings.

She widened her eyes (and Blu noticed the other people around did it as well). "Y-You think I'm trembling?" she asked with a visibly nervous smile.

"Yeah; it looks like you're scared," Blu said.

"Reassure me, it's because you're worried for our journey, right?" Lazaro asked with a curious look.

Margalo just looked down, her smile fading away. "Is everything alright, Margalo? You didn't got in trouble, did you?" Apollo asked with a curious eyebrow. "Back in town, everyone were avoiding us like a disease, but you, you offer us your own boat. You even led us here. Are you afraid of being considered like our accomplice?"

"Huh..." Margalo looked down even lower.

"Why are you so pale and covered of sweat, Margalo?" Blu asked as he got a good look on her face. Since she didn't answered, Blu continued to talk: "You should have told us that you were afraid, Margalo! We would have found a way out without you."

"No, it's just..." This time, the canary was sweating hard and everyone around was looking. "It's not what you think."

"No! Don't say another word!" one of the civilians said in panic.

"It's...It's strange, isn't it? That I brought you here, told you everything in the slightest details, and even gave you a boat despite this ordali being deadly. I really did as if I wanted to be your guide!"

"Stop!" one of the civilians begged.

Apollo also noticed everyone starting to back away from them. "They're in the plan or what?" Lazaro thought.

Margalo started trembling even more and suddenly collapsed on her knees, to her friends' surprise. Her eyes filled with tears which started falling onto the ground. "I'm so sorry!"

"Stop! Don't tell them anything else!" the civilians panicked.

"I'm the one who called the Lobster Super Express!"

This statement caused the avians to widen their eyes. "The giant lobster who captured our friends?!" Vladimir asked. "You're the one who called it?!"

"I-I lied!" Margalo cried. "I told them that there was a torrent they could take to reach Cloud End and lift the anchor! It was the signal for the Lobster Super Express!"

"Dumb girl!" a civilian shouted. "You wanna die? Stop talking!"

"God's law is clear: if we don't bring the criminals to be judged, we'll be the ones to get killed!" Margalo sobbed. "It's the duty of every civilian!" I'm sorry! Strange how things can happen, right?"

Blu just starred at her during her whole speech. "Don't be dumb, Margalo. You just had no other choice. But then, why are you telling us all that?!" The canary slowly lifted her head as Blu ran to put a wing on her shoulder. "You're life's in danger now!"

"It's too late for her!" some civilian shouted. "Don't get near her: the Heaven's Judgement will fall on her!"

Just as he said that, the sky turned a bit dark and a light started shining right over Blu and Margalo's position. Looking up, the birds briefly covered their eyes before seeing a beam coming their way. Pushing a swear as he understood it was the Heaven's Judgement Jewel told him about, Blu grabbed Margalo and tried to run out of the beam's range while his friends jumped back.

But the beam was too big! It was going to hit them!

BOOM!

Blu closed his eyes, knowing it was the end. But upon opening the he realized that he was...flying over the ground? How was that possible? He wasn't flapping his wings, and he couldn't have possibly dodged the beam in time. So how?

"Are you alright?"

Looking up, he saw that an unconscious Margalo was laying beside him on a...horse? But the biggest shock was the person driving said horse. It was the Knight of the Sky!

"Gen Fall!" Apollo beamed as he, Lazaro and Vladimir stood up.

"Don't worry; your friends are okay," the knight said.

"Look! It's Mister Gan Fall!" one of the civilians pointed out after getting back up. All the others were surprised as well.

Feeling good, Blu jumped down with his fiends and looked up. "Thanks for saving us, Mr. Knight."

"You're welcome," he replied with a smile. "I'm gonna keep this young girl: I won't let Raijin get her." He then gave a serious look. "You now know the real nature of this country. and you even know what God can do. What are you planning now?"

"We have no interest for this country, but our friends have been captured," Blu explained the knight.

"Really? In that case, I wish you good luck," the knight said with a smile behind his huge beard before flying away on Pierre, his pegasus.

Margalo soon woke up and realized the condition in which she was. "W-Where are my friends?" she softly asked.

"They're following their own path: it's no longer of your concern," Gan Fall replied without turning around to look at her.

The canary looked down sadly. "I...I know who you are."

"Yes; I'm the Knight of the Sky."

"No, not that," Margalo said. "Please, we need your help...God!"

Back to the port of Lovely Street, Blu and his three friends jumped on the Raven nicely offered to them by Margalo. Blu and Vladimir sat in the front while Lazaro and Apollo shared the back. The captain didn't hesitated to press the pedal to make them advance.

"This time, we're off to Upper Yard for real!" Blu said with an optimistic smile.

"Yeah!" Vladimir and Lazaro shouted at unison while Apollo just held the umbrella in fear of falling overboard.

"We're coming, Jewel..."

* * *

 **What a shock, heh? Margalo led Blu and his friends into a trap before changing her mind at the last second. This almost got her killed by the Heaven's Judgement, but the Knight of the Sky, Gan Fall, interfered to save her. And we also learned that he was called God? what does that mean?**

 **Anyway, our friends are now off to Upper Yard to go save their friends from getting sacrificed. Wish them good luck: it won't be easy task.**


	211. To the Sacrificial Altar!

_Previously: Margalo led Blu, Apollo, Lazaro and Vladimir to a village named Lovely Street so that they could get a gondola to Upper Yard. However, it was then revealed that she was the one who got their friends captured and almost got hit by the Heaven's Judgement, only for the Knight of the Sky to interfere and save her. Blu's group is now on it's way to the Milky Road and to save their friends..._

* * *

After entering the second door, just like Margalo instructed them to, Blu drove the Raven on the little cloud river with the propeller. Apollo was looking behind them with a thinking look.

"You know, guys, I'm worried for Margalo," he said. "By helping us, she sorta became a criminal too and I'm afraid she'll get in trouble. I mean, I'm glad this Gan Fall guy came and all, but I'm still worried."

"Don't worry Apollo; I trust this guy," Blu said while driving (which was odd as he never did it before).

"Me too, but we didn't had a choice," Vladimir said, sitting on the back of the vehicle. "I wanted to protect her as well, but we were better leaving her with this guy."

"The spot we are going is called a sacrificial altar, after all. She would have been in danger more than anything else," Apollo pointed out before looking down nervously. "And besides, there are still those ordeals we have to do, right?"

Blu nodded. "Say, you don't think this craft is a bit slow?"

"It doesn't get as fast as a Weaver because it's bigger and heavier," Lazaro pointed out while laying back on his seat. "There's no point in complaining."

Eventually, they arrived at the end of this Milky Road and entered a way bigger river which led them in direction of a giant forest.

"W-What's that?!" Apollo asked with his eyes wide open. "A-A giant forest?!"

"So that's Upper Yard?" Lazaro asked with sudden interest. "Strange: I don't remember seeing it on the map."

Apollo took out said map and gave it a look. "There is indeed a map on it, but she's normal-sized."

"This map is supposedly two hundred year old, isn't it?" Vladimir asked. "It was probably already older at the time it was created: a tree needs at least an hundred year to reach this size."

The others couldn't deny those giant trees were indeed very impressive as they slowly entered the forest. They soon saw many spears, tribal masks and lightened up torches (like in African tribes) decorating the sides of the river they were following. The avians secretly hoped it was only for decoration and nothing else.

"Here's the entrance. If you wanna turn around, Apollo, it's now or never," Lazaro teasingly said.

"Really? In that case...I say we turn around" the barn owl nervously said.

"We can't turn around now, guys!" Blu deadpanned.

"Just like I thought: my opinion doesn't count."

As they dove deeper into the forest, the sides of the river started getting decorated with stone totems that looked like evil faces glaring at them. Needless to point out Apollo was growing more and more nervous, the more they advanced inside this forest. Soon, the sun was no longer present as the giant tree were blocking it with a wall of leaves and branches.

"What was that?! And that! I heard something!" Apollo panicked at the slightest noise all around.

"Are you done yet?!" Lazaro impatiently asked.

"You sound like me, when we first entered the Amazon rainforest," Blu remarked while keeping his eyes on the river road.

Just then, the first obstacle made its present known: a swinging scythe came out of nowhere and directly toward them. Luckily, it only passed inches before the gondola and didn't touched it. But the warning was clear.

"Look out! There's another one coming!" Apollo panicked.

Unfortunately, there was more than one on their way. Apollo and Vladimir grabbed the paddles on the sides to swing them in the water and give extra speed to their craft. By god knows which miracle (god, XD), they managed to avoid all the giant scythes without getting cut anywhere.

Unfortunately, before they could sigh in relief, another trap activated: wooden lances came out of nowhere and flew right toward them.

"What now?!" Vladimir asked as he dodged one lance which planted itself into the craft's floor.

"WE'RE GONNA DIE! WE'RE GONNA DIE!" Apollo panicked.

Luckily, Lazaro used his kicks to fight back and Vladimir turned his whole body into stone to block the lances (wood cannot pierce stone that I know). After two whole minutes, they escaped the shooting zones and could finally catch a break.

"Phew! Looks like the worst is behind us now," Lazaro said with whipping some sweat off his forehead with his flipper. However, just then, another noise was heard and some kind of flying, spinning buzzsaw came out of nowhere and toward them. "...Me and my big mouth!"

Blu quickly moved to the left and managed to avoid this buzzsaw. However, it didn't stopped there and came flying back at them.

"It's coming back! Dodge it!" Apollo shouted.

* * *

Meanwhile, a bit farther from there and in the northeast of Upper Yard.

"This damned Lobster Super Express left us here," Dominic angrily growled.

Indeed, the giant lobster left the Saldanha on top of a sacrificial altar in the middle of a large cloud water lake which was pretty high and had a long staircase leading down in the water. There was lightened up torches around and the forest was still visible from there.

"Someone knows where we are?" Alex asked, sitting on the security barricade of the ship.

"One thing's for sure: we're on the terrestrial grounds of Upper Yard," Arlene pointed out. "This throne looks like a sacrificial altar."

"What's a sacrifice?" Alex innocently asked.

"It's when you give a life to a god," Jewel answered.

"Oh, just that? Okay, I was afraid we would pull me into a cooking pot filled with boiling water," the kid said in relief.

"Well, you're not very far from the truth," Arlene suddenly said. "There's many ways to proceed, but the objective is to give your life to a god."

"WHAT?!" Alex exclaimed in shock. In his panic, he lost his balance and fell down from the ship and down the staircase toward the cloud water like a rolling ball.

"ALEX!" Jewel and Hernandez exclaimed in shock.

"I got this!" Arlene said with rising her wings. She summoned two vines at the end of the staircase to catch Alex like a net in time.

Unfortunately, the problem didn't stopped there as something jumped out of the water right behind him: a very hungry looking emerald-colored shark. Alex turned around to see it and shouted in panic again.

"GET LOST!"

Just then, Dominic dashed at full speed and blocked the creature's jaw with his sabers before they fell in the water and fought there.

"What's that?!" Jewel asked as Alex ran back on the ship in fear.

"A celestial shark apparently," Arlene responded.

"DOMINIC!" Hernandez called as their eagle friend disappeared underwater and didn't returned.

"Oh no! I killed Dominic..." Alex mumbled with both wings on his beak as tears started rising in his eyes.

However, their worries were quickly put at ease, when their friend finally walked out of the water and up the staircase. He looked exhausted, but he was alive and that was already good.

SPLASH!

The celestial shark (who looked like he took a pretty good beatdown) suddenly jumped out of the water and toward the golden eagle. This last one only frowned before turning around, shouting: "LEAVE ME ALONE!" and smashed the shark across the face with his wing, knocking him back into the water.

"Man...," Dominic sighed and panted as he walked back up next to the ship. "One thing's for sure: we won't go out by swimming," he said with whipping his wet feathers.

"Phew, he's alive!" Jewel sighed in relief.

"You're the best, Dominic!" Alex happily beamed before seeing more celestial sharks floating around the altar. "Oh no! He wasn't the only one!"

"If I fight them one-by-one, we'll be trapped here until nightfall," Dominic remarked.

"That being said, we can't just stay here and do nothing," Arlene remarked as Dominic flew back on the ship.

"This lobster dragged us right in hell. And yet, we're in the sky. Pretty ironic," Dominic chuckled.

"Maybe that's Heaven's Judgement: leaving us to starve in the middle of nowhere," Arlene deduced.

Dominic turned toward her. "You really think God would get that low? That seems pretty evil."

The scarlet macaw just shrugged. "Who knows? I never saw him in person."

Dominic then noticed a bothering detail: there was a hole in the lower shell of the Saldanha. "The shell has been badly damaged. We cannot go back in water until this is fixed." He then looked up. "Try to do your best to fix it, Alex."

"Okay!" the kid said with showing a thumb-up.

"What are you gonna do?" Jewel asked her friend.

"I'm gonna go in the forest and set up a camp. I'm sure Blu and the others are on their way to find us," he replied.

While they were talking, Arlene walked in the opposite direction and found a big stone wall on the side of the ship. It looked very ancient and was covered of strange symbols crafted into the stone that was lightened up by the burning torches. The scarlet macaw walked in front of it and examined the symbols with large interest.

"Say, Dominic, what are you planning to do, once in the forest?" Alex asked his friend.

"God lives on this island, right? In that case, I'm gonna pay him a little visit."

"Huh, that's not a good idea," Jewel deadpanned. "What are you gonna do against a so mysterious being?"

A smirk formed on the eagle's beak. "Dunno; we'll see how he behaves with me."

"What? In case you have forgotten, we still have to face the Birkans on this island. And we should never provoke the anger of a god! Everybody knows that!"

Dominic simply turned toward her with a huge grin. "Sorry, Jewel, but in my whole life, not once did I pry for God. I'm not even sure he exists, so I have no obligations toward him."

Jewel widened her eyes while Alex's were shining like stars. "Wow! He's so cool!" the kid beamed.

"Can I come with you, brave swordsman?" Arlene asked.

"Huh, sure, but try not to get us in trouble, okay?" Dominic answered.

"Hey, you're leaving too, Arlene?!" Jewel suddenly exclaimed. "But what for?"

"To study a bit," she replied with a smile before pointing at the symbols on the stone wall. "This altar has been built over a thousand year ago."

"A-A thousand year?!" everyone exclaimed in surprise.

"This stone alone holds a huge story: it's fascinating," Arlene said with a smile.

"In that case, I come with you too," Jewel said. She then turned toward Hernandez. "Mind to stay here and help Alex with fixing the ship, Hernandez?"

"Not at all. Go ahead," the pelican replied with a calm look.

Dominic, Arlene and Jewel flew over the cloud lake and the celestial sharks to land on the forest ground. The golden eagle turned around and said: "Guys! We,re counting on you to fix the ship!"

"Don't worry; we'll be back soon!" Jewel added.

"Don't worry! And be careful!" Alex responded with a smile. He then turned toward his pelican friend. "Come on, Hernandez, let's start the work."

"Okay," he replied with a little smile.

* * *

Meanwhile, back on the Milky Road, Blu and his friends panted as they escaped what seemed like an endless path of traps.

"Man, is it ever gonna end?" Lazaro asked with dusting his feathers off.

"I wanna go back home...," Apollo mumbled while holding to the Raven in fear.

"Hey, look at that!" Blu said with pointing ahead of their boat.

They were heading right for some kind of stone wall with four different openings in it. And above each of those openings, there was something written above: From left to right "Swamp Ordeal", "Iron Ordeal", "String Ordeal", and "Balloon Ordeal".

"So we can take the opening of our choice?" Lazaro asked.

"I feel like this god wants to play a game with us," Vladimir remarked with a suspicious look.

"So...which entrance should we take?" Apollo asked.

* * *

 **Which entrance do you think they should take?**


	212. Blu vs Satori

**The adventures in Skyland continue!**

* * *

 _After many adventures, the Blue Thunder Crew finally reached Skyland (also known as Skypiea). But Jewel, Dominic, Arlene, Alex and Hernandez are then kidnapped to undergo Heaven's Judgement. Blu, Apollo, Lazaro and Vladimir goes to God's land in hopes of freeing them. They face many dangers along the way. Meanwhile, the others end up on the Sacrificial Altar; Dominic, Arlene, and Jewel decide to venture into the forest, leaving Alex and Hernandez to fix the Saldanha._

* * *

Dominic walked through the giant forest with his two girl friends following behind. The place was surprisingly quiet and there was no sign of hostilities anywhere.

"Where's that god?" he mumbled with looking all around.

"If he's really a god, then he must already know we're here, don't you think?" Arlene suggested.

"Our problems would get fixed way faster if he had the guts to show up," Dominic said with a wing on the handle of his saber.

"Personally, I'm glad we don't end up against a divine being any time soon," Jewel remarked. "I saw him killing a squirrel without even having to show up."

While they were talking, Arlene noticed a detail. She kneeled down and touched the ground with her wing.

"Hey guys, look at the ground," she suddenly called to get her friends' attention.

"What's wrong with the ground?" Jewel asked with a confused look.

The scarlet macaw twisted the dirt between her feathers before looking back at her friends. "It's earth."

"Huh, of course: this is forest ground," Jewel said, not understanding Arlene's point.

"Have you forgotten: we're in the sky."

Dominic slowly understood. "She's right: ground in the sky..."

Jewel also understood. "It's true: this island should normally consist only of clouds. It's the first time I have the chance to touch earth like this in a very long time. But why isn't this part of the island like the others?"

"I have honestly no idea," Arlene said with rubbing her chin. "But one thing's for sure: this part of the Celestial Island is different from the others and that's another reason to explore it..."

* * *

Back on the Milky Road, Blu's group still had to decide which door to choose in the wall. "So, which one we pick?" Apollo asked.

"Let's take the balloons!" Blu said with optimism.

"And why the balloons?" Apollo asked.

"Dunno; it just sounds fun," Blu replied with a shrug.

"Dude, I strongly doubt the ordeals they prepared for us are supposed to be fun." Apollo then looked ahead. "That being said, I'm also gonna vote for the balloons: it's the only path that doesn't sound very dangerous."

"Because you think strings sounds dangerous?" Lazaro asked the barn owl.

"Totally: image that they force us to walk on a tin string above the Blue Sea, thousands of meters down below!" Apollo exclaimed, imagining the scenario in his head.

"Alright then, let's take the balloons way," Vladimir said with Lazaro just nodding his head in agreement. "But let's stay careful: we're on a Celestial Island ten thousand meters above the ground. Anything can happen here."

Blu turned the propeller and directed the Raven right into the balloons tunnel. Once inside, everything turned dark and the avians could no longer see what was laying ahead.

"Ah! I can't see anything!" Apollo panicked.

"Dude, you're an owl. Y'know, a nocturnal bird," Lazaro sarcastically remarked.

"Huh, guys? I just thought about something," Blu said while driving. "What if one of those entrances was safe while the three others were trapped?"

This caused the three others to gaze at him. "You think, Blu? But what if we chose the wrong entrance?" Vladimir asked.

"Dunno. Maybe we'll fall off the island?" Blu suggested.

"NOOO! WE'RE TEN THOUSAND METERS OFF THE GROUND! THAT'D BE A DEADLY FALL!" Apollo panicked.

"Relax: we're birds! We'll just have to fly up," Lazaro said with slapping his owl friend on the head. "We won't fall down from this island!"

Just then, they arrived at the end of the tunnel and out into the daylight again...with their gondola going from cloud water to empty air. The tunnel indeed exited into emptiness and the avians just had time to see the three others were leading safely on the Milky Road ahead. Meaning they chose the wrong path.

"...Me and my big mouth!" Lazaro mumbled with facewinging himself just before they started falling.

"AAAAAAH!" they shouted at unison as they were falling down toward the clouds below. "WE'RE DEAD! WE'RE DEAD! WE'RE DEAD-" Apollo shouted before feeling someone poking him on the shoulder.

Opening his eyes, he realized that the Raven landed on a river of clouds down in another part of the forest and that they were all still alive with no apparent damage being made. the others were all glancing at him.

"We're still alive, dude," Lazaro said with whipping some water off his feathers.

"Man! I really thought we were going for a ten thousand meters fall," Apollo sighed in relief.

"I think we lived enough thrills for the next months," Blu panted with a wing on his quick-beating heart.

"Anyways, I'd like to know where we are now," Vladimir said with scanning the surroundings. They were in another part of Upper Yard with the cloud river they were currently on moving up, down, right and left everywhere around the trees like a roller coaster.

But the strangest part was the strange and big white balloons floating everywhere.

"Balloons?" Blu said with a curious look.

"They must probably come from the ilo nimbus," Vladimir deduced.

"They look like giant snowflake. Thought they are visibly bigger than those in Moose Lake," Blu remarked.

"You've seen this ahead?" Lazaro asked with pointing his flipper. "The Milky Road is moving through the forest." He then rubbed his chin. "This seems a bit strange for an ordeal. I'd like to just think nothing will happen, but honestly, I strongly doubt it."

"You think we took the good one while the others were trapped?" Blu asked.

"Yes, that must be it," Apollo said with a weak smile after recovering from his trauma.

"Stop imagining things: since when do we make warm welcomes to criminals, huh?" Vladimir asked. "At my opinion, there are strong chances that we encounter traps like earlier, so be careful."

The others nodded and looked all around for any trap that could hit them. Apollo took notice of how far the ground was below them. A fall would certainly hurt.

Vladimir couldn't help but frown a bit. "It's strange: they said there would be four Birkans. I thought we'd meet them in every tunnel. Hum, maybe I was a wrong..."

As they drove on the river for many minutes, Apollo and Lazaro decided to grab a floating balloon and toss it at each other.

"Hey! I told you to watch all around!" Vladimir angrily shouted.

"Calm down. There's no problem with-AHHH!" Apollo shouted in fear as a snake suddenly jumped out of the balloon and toward him. "A SNAKE?!"

Luckily, Blu kicked the reptile out of the gondola by reflex before he could harm his friend. "Crap! What was this snake doing in this balloon?!"

"Vladimir! Watch out!" Lazaro suddenly shouted as another balloon was coming right their way.

"I got it!" Vladimir said and turned his wing into stone before smashing the balloon, expecting a snake to jump out of it. However, it instead started to glow into a bright light.

BOOM!

The balloon actually exploded and would have caused bad damages to the group and the ship, had Vladimir not blocked it in time with his stone body.

"A bomb?! What's wrong with those balloons?!" Apollo asked in disbelief.

They suddenly heard a laughter echoing through the forest. "What makes their originality is that you never know what you'll find in them. Personally, I call them the surprise clouds."

This caused the four avians to tense up. "Who's there?" Blu asked.

The intruder soon came into view: it was a balloon man (the same one that Jewel saw earlier) sitting on a balloon. "Greetings," he said while laughing.

"This has to be one of the Birkans," Lazaro deduced as he got into a fighting stance. "Who are you, dude?"

However, the balloon man just jumped on the balloon while laughing. "...Judging by Stuart and Jewel's words, I thought the Birkans would be more badass," Blu mumbled.

"Hey! Ball face! I hope for you that our friends are going well!" Vladimir called.

"Oh, you mean the sacrifices?" he asked. "Don't worry: they're gonna die. And even if they were to escape, they'd still die."

"What are you saying?!" Lazaro annoyingly said, about to jump on him.

"You should rather worry for yourselves: as you can see, you'll have to defeat me if you wanna go any further." The balloon man laughed before jumping from his balloon and charged toward the avians.

"Knock him out, Blu!" Apollo panicked.

"Alright!" The blue macaw swung his wing, ready to throw a punch.

"Oh, you can stretch your limbs," the balloon man said with a smile just before Blu launched his fist and dodged it.

He then putted his hand right in front of a confused Blu's face and launched some kind of blast that knocked him away and off the gondola, straight into a tree, and let him land on the forest ground with a thud.

"Blu!" Lazaro screamed in horror.

"Come one, dude: you won't let a simple punch take you down!" Apollo begged.

"A simple punch?" the balloon man asked. "You're wrong: it's a bit different."

"Really? What's so different about it?!" Lazaro angrily asked and ran toward the enemy.

"Right kick," he said just before the puffin indeed went for a kick with his right foot which he swiftly dodged.

"What?!" Lazaro exclaimed in shock.

"It's a power reserved to those who mastered the art of Mantra!" he said before plating his hand in front of Lazaro's face and doing the exact same thing as with Blu, pushing him over the boat and into a tree with a blast.

"Crap!" Vladimir went for a stone punch which the balloon man dodged again before knocking him with the blast out as well.

"Guys!" Apollo panicked as he looked overboard to see his friends laying down on the forest floor. Unfortunately, this allowed the balloon man to place his hand behind his head and knock him down with his friends as well.

"It's no simple punch: it's an impact," he explained. "The shockwave reaches directly for the spinal cord."

Blu coughed as pain was flowing through his body, but found the strength to stand up. "G-Guys..."

"Don't worry Blu, we're fine," Vladimir assured as he managed to stand up too. "Do you know what he did to us?"

"No, but this power is crazy," Blu admitted.

The balloon man was jumping and laughing on the Raven. "My name is Satori: I'm one of the four Prayers working directly on the orders of our God, Raijin. I'm also the guardian of the Lost Forest."

"Lost Forest?" Lazaro curiously asked.

"Yes; that's the name of the forest into which we're currently in." The Prayer named Satori then reached down his foot to press on the pedal of the Raven, turning it on and letting it advance by itself. "You'll understand why this place deserves its name."

"Hey! The ship is leaving!" Blu pointed out.

"Your ship will now cross this forest on the Milky Road. After a long travel, it will reach the only existing exit. Of course, you understand that you'll never reach the Sacrificial Altar without it. Which is exactly why you must get it back before it's too late. And I bet you already know all those surprise clouds and myself will make ourselves a pleasure of stopping you from doing it." Satori smirked. "Welcome to Upper Yard, the forbidden sacred land."

"You chose the Balloon Ordeal: this leaves you with a 10% chance rate of survival."

"T-Ten percent? Only ten percent?" Apollo nervously asked.

Blu and his friends glared up at Satori who laughed loudly on his surprise cloud.

* * *

Back to the Saldanha, Alex and Hernandez were working on fixing the hole in the ship's shell with the pelican holding the wood board in position while the owl kid slammed nails into it with a mallet.

"Hernandez," Alex mumbled. "You think Blu and the others are searching for us?"

The pelican looked down at his owl friend. "I'm sure about it, little Al. He's our captain; this means he won't leave us behind. We just have to work alone until he join us."

Alex starred at his pelican friend before closing his eyes with a sweet smile. "Yeah, you're right. That's totally true. Blu's too nice to do that-OUCH!"

While he was talking with his eyes closed, Alex kept slamming the mallet on a nail and accidentally hit it on two of his pointing feathers. The pain caused him to drop the mallet which rolled down the staircase before stopping at the very bottom of it and near the cloud river.

"Alex! You're okay? Are you hurt?" Hernandez asked, letting go of the board to kneel down and check on his friend.

"It hurt!" the kid cried with blowing on his pointing feathers. However, he then realized another detail. "Oh no! The mallet! I must get it back!"

However, Hernandez stopped him with a wing. "No, little Al; it's too dangerous. I'll go get it myself."

"No, Hernandez!" Alex insisted. "I'm the smallest of us: those celestial sharks will have an harder time noticing me. And besides, I'm the one who dropped it, so I'll get it back."

* * *

"Listen guys! We need to catch up the boat or we'll loose sight of it!" Apollo nervously told his friends. "If we loose it, Margalo will be sad! Let's go!"

"Wait, Apollo!" Lazaro stopped his owl friend before he could run. "If we get separated, we'll get into trouble." He then turned to his captain. "What should we do, Blu?"

Blu turned to his friend and pointed his feather. "You all go catch up with the Raven; I'm gonna take care of this big balloon by myself."

"You think you can do that?" Lazaro asked to which the macaw nodded. "Okay, but be careful: this guy got strange powers. Join us as soon as you're done, okay?"

His friends running after the Raven, Blu was now alone with Satori. He launched his wing to grab a branch and get upward. He then launched his fist at Satori who just smirked and dodged it.

"It's the same attack as earlier!" He then grabbed Blu's wing and, before the avian could react, started spinning him around like a throwing hammer until he hit a giant tree head first.

After landing on a branch below, Blu groaned as pain was shooting through his head again, forcing him to rub it a bit. "Well, weren't you supposed to beat me down?" Satori asked and laughed.

"I don't understand. How is this guy predicting my moves even before I do them?" Blu asked himself in his head.

He then shook his head a bit before flying toward Satori and launched a Fist Storm at him. Unfortunately, he barely launched his attack that the balloon man grabbed both of his wings and dragged him right in his face.

"Too slow!"

He planted his hand into Blu's stomach to shot another impact through it. This knocked the wind out of the macaw's body and also made him spit a bit of saliva mixed with blood while sending him back against a giant tree. Unfortunately, Satori didn't stopped there and planted Blu against said tree before placing his hand in front of his face and hitting one impact after the other over and over again.

Once he was done, Blu was too weak to move and fell limp on the ground with a thud.

"Too bad: I expected this fight to be funnier," Satori laughed.

* * *

 **This Satori guy defeated Blu! Let's hope the others will fare better, or I'll never see any balloon the same way again.**


	213. Fight to the death in the Lost Forest

**I don't know what to say for the author so...just enjoy this chapter :)**

* * *

While Blu was fighting with Satori the Prayer, Apollo, Lazaro and Vladimir were flying in the forest, searching for the Raven. However, there wasn't any trace of it anywhere.

"Apollo! You see anything?" Vladimir asked while flying.

The barn owl was using his aiming googles to enhance his already strong view and scan the arena. After a few more minutes, he managed to spot their gondola floating along the Milky Road.

"There it is!" he beamed with pointing at it.

"Cool! Let's get it back!" Lazaro said and flew in direction of the boat.

However, a laughter was suddenly heard from behind and Apollo turned around to see Satori there, kicking a surprise cloud in his direction. "HOLY CRAP! THE PRAYER GUY IS BACK!"

It was all the owl had time to shout before the surprise cloud which turned into rock hit him right in the face, sending him crashing to the ground and spit some blood.

"Apollo!" Lazaro shouted in horror. He then looked back at the balloon guy. "If he's here, does it means Blu lost?"

"Absolutely not!"

Said macaw suddenly arrived, flying at full speed toward Satori. This last one looked surprise to see him still alive despite all the impacts he gave him. "FIST STORM!" Blu shouted and launched his fists at quick speed like a gatling toward the balloon man.

Unfortunately, this last one once again managed to foresee his attack and dodged it. In the process, Blu accidentally hit many surprise clouds, sending them flying all around.

"Blu! Don't hit the surprise clouds!" Vladimir shouted in horror.

"You really are just a bunch of morons!" Satori laughed as he jumped from one balloon to the other.

By the time the surprise clouds stopped bouncing everywhere, the four Blue Thunder Crew members had already sustained a lot of damage. Lazaro panted in exhaustion as Apollo stepped over a branch beside his.

"Alright, it's time for me to try my whole new gadget," the barn owl declared with taking out some kind of belt from his backpack and wrapped it around his waist.

"What's this belt?" Lazaro curiously asked.

"My new invention: I call it the Apollo Grappling Iron!" the barn owl proudly declared. "I created it in case I would need to get on higher points and my wings gets broken or too weak to fly. Looks like now's the perfect chance to use it!"

He then pointed at the Raven which was driving through a part of the Milky Road not too far from them. "Look at me: I'm gonna jump on the gondola and make it stop!"

Pressing a button on his belt, the silver plate in the middle of it was shot with a rope tied to it - exactly like a grappling line - and wrapped itself on a branch above, allowing Apollo to swing himself toward the Milky Road and the gondola.

"Yes! You got this, Apollo!" Lazaro beamed with a smile and throwing a fist in the air.

Apollo arrived just above the Raven...before swinging back all the way he came from and hitting himself against the branch. Everyone just starred silently at his failure.

"You moron! Why didn't you jumped on the Raven?!" Lazaro angrily shouted.

"Hum...," Apollo nervously rubbed the back of his head. "I kinda forgot to add a releasing mechanism to my belt."

"Okay, now that's enough!" Vladimir suddenly flew by and grabbed the two of them before bringing them back down with Blu. "Listen to me everyone; we'll have to forget about the Raven for now. In the immediate moment, we need to combine our strength and find this balloon guy's weakness."

"We really think you can defeat me that easily?"

Lazaro widened his eyes before turning around and seeing Satori standing right there. Before he could react, the balloon man placed his hand in front of his chest and shot an impact which knocked him back into a tree and made him spit blood before falling on the ground.

"LAZARO!" the three others exclaimed in shock.

Satori laughed. "One down, three to go..."

* * *

Meanwhile, back on the Sacrificial Altar, Alex was slowly going down one step at a time to go get the mallet back. He was very careful to not make nay noise as he didn't wanted to alert the celestial sharks swimming nearby and Hernandez was watching all this from the top of the Altar.

"Almost there...," Alex mumbled as he finally arrived at the bottom of the Altar and picked the mallet in his wings. "I got it!" he beamed before slamming his wings on his beak.

Unfortunately, the damage has already been done and a celestial shark jumped out of the cloud water toward the kid who started panicking. Wasting no time, Hernandez jumped down and summoned his wing armor before smashing the shark away. Unfortunately, three more jumped out and the pelican just had time to grab his little friend before flying back on the ship and out of danger.

"Man, that was close," Hernandez panted and gently putted Alex down.

The kid pulled the mallet away and recovered from yet another near-death experience. He then looked up at the whistle which the team tied to the mat after being given to them by the Knight of the Sky.

"Hernandez, you think we should call for the knight?" Alex asked his pelican friend.

Hernandez looked at the whistle for a moment before removing it and placing it around Alex's non-existent neck. "Not yet, little Al, but if things get wrong before the others return, you'll be the one to do it, okay?"

The kid nodded with a smile. However, just then, something came down from the air and arrived right near their position. Slowly turning their heads, the avians saw it was a human aviator on the back of a red vulture (the same one Jewel saw in Upper Yard). He looked at the two avians with a curious look.

"Where are the other sacrifices? I only have the two of you to play with?" he asked.

"Can I call the knight now?" Alex asked with his eyes wide open.

"...Yes," Hernandez simply said.

Alex quickly putted the whistle into his beak and blew as strong as he could, making the whistle's sound fly through the whole forest.

* * *

Back in the Lost Forest, Apollo got knocked to the ground by Satori who also made quick work of Vladimir.

"Apollo!" Blu shouted in horror.

The balloon man then kicked a surprise cloud in his direction and exploded upon impact, knocking the poor spix macaw to the ground with a few burning marks.

"I told you you had only 10% of chances to survive," Satori said and laughed.


	214. Former God vs Prier Shura Skydriver

**Before we start this chapter, I'd like to point something - okay, rather two things: first, my story just crossed the line of 400,000 words. Man, you realize? It's almost as long as an Harry Potter book!**

 **And second, my story crossed the line of 900 reviews! You wanna know why it's so amazing? Because it's the first Rio story on this site to ever do so! Man, you have no idea how happy I'm right now! I think I might even cry a bit...**

* * *

Far from Upper Yard and at the outskirt of Skypiea was an humble cabin positioned next to a giant tree and a field of pumpkins.

"What do you think? Don't they look amazing?" Gan Fall asked as he used a watering can to pour water on his plants. "This years' pumpkins look very good, right?"

He turned around toward Stuart who was sitting near the house with Margalo playing her har.

"Yes," Stuart nodded. "I don't know what to say to express my gratitude. But I'm sorry that I have to stay with you as well."

The old man just kept watering his plants. "If they decide that your canary friend let those avian fellows escape, they'll consider you an accomplice. So you,ll be in danger as well. This time is one the house."

He marked a pause to fill his watering can again. "Raijin's Mantra cannot reach us here. How are things on Angel Island?"

"Yes?"

"I'm referring to crops. How are this year's crops coming?" Gan Fall asked.

"Yes, I heard they're coming along quite well," Stuart nodded.

"Is that right? I'm glad to hear that," Gan Fall said with a smile before going to take a plate of four cups filled with orange liquid. "This is juice made from the pumpkins that I grew in my field. It tasted good."

"Yes. I'm sorry. Thank you," Stuart said as he picked one of the cups. "Margalo, have some too."

However, the female canary stopped playing her harp and looked down. "Young lady, are you aware that there are those called pirates in the Blue Sea?"

This question caused her to turn toward the old man with a curious look. "No."

"They are criminals who travel on the Blue Sea. Their ships all fly a black flag, although each pirate's flag is different." Margalo gasped as she remembered the flag with a blue thunder logo on her friends' ship. "Those fellows are probably pirates too."

"What?! Are you saying that they were already criminals?" Stuart asked in surprise.

Gan Fall chuckled while watering his plants. "Well... It is possible that they do not live by the rules of the Blue Sea. In any society, there are always those who don't blend in. Right now, how are you any different?"

"Huh?" Margalo asked with a curious look.

"Who can say for certain that society is right and those who don't blend in are wrong? Sometimes it's not so clear-cut. To put it in extreme terms, a "hero" in wartime is simply a killer if he lives in a different time."

Gan Fall marked a pause before talking again: "I also have a pirate friend. He came here when I was still God over twenty years ago. He was quite the big-hearted and pleasant fellow. Believe it or not, but he too was a bird. I hated to say goodbye. Right now, thought it doesn't look it at first glance, Skyland is a land of endless battles."

"A land where battles between us from the sky and Shandians, also known as guerillas, rage continuously. The Shandians are still challenging Raijin."

"When you were God, you were the symbol of our hopes for peace," Stuart said. "You were doing everything so that people could live together. Your purpose was to end this raging war."

"And I almost succeeded," Gan Fall said with no trace of sadness in his voice. "Unfortunately, it was then that Raijin came and chased me from the throne. I'm sorry, I cannot deny my efforts have remained pointless."

"No, no, you have no reason to apologize," Stuart assured.

The old man remained silent for a while before speaking again: "There's a generations old legend circulating in Skypiea. We say that a very long time ago, the moment this sacred ground we call Upper Yard appeared, a beautiful song started playing, as if the whole island started singing. It was then that the war between the people of Shandia and us started, as if this melody started the hostilities."

"We also say that when this melody will be heard again, this will mean that the war is over once and for all."

"The island's...melody?" Margalo asked.

"Exactly," Gan Fall nodded. "The whole sacred ground. I have hope that this legend will happen one day," he said with a positive smile behind his giant beard.

Suddenly, the sound of the whistle he gave to the Blue Thunder Crew was heard, making him stop dead in what he was doing. Pierre, who was sleeping nearby with Sue, suddenly shot awake and jumped up.

"Yes, I heard it too!" Gan Fall nodded. He dropped his watering can and ran toward his pegasus friend.

"W-What's going on?" Stuart asked.

"Mind to watch over my house during my absence? Duty's calling!" Gan Fall said with putting his knight helmet on and jumping on Pierre's back as he flew off in the sky.

* * *

Back at the Sacrificial Altar, Alex blew into the whistle over and over again in hopes the Knight of the Sky had heard it. The aviator just starred at the two avians before scoffing.

"Now, offer your lives to God Raijin!" He rose his lance and launched it toward Alex who moved out of the way just in time, letting the tip of it plant into the ground. Once the aviator took it out, the hole took fire.

"Fire...!" Hernandez mumbled.

"Why do you struggle? There's no way you can escape death! So die gracefully!" the aviator shouted before his vulture opened his beak and shot a jet of fire.

Alex widened his eyes, but Hernandez managed to catch him and move out of the way in time, getting a little burn mark on his back in the process. Unfortunately, the jet touched the ropes net of the ship and took fire.

This made Alex gasp in horror. "The ship is...!"

The aviator widened his eyes. "Huh? He can get big?"

Alex indeed ate a Muscle Candy to take his muscled form and managed to rip the ropes off before the fire could spread to the rest of the ship. "Darn it! Come on!" he swore as he stomped on the burning ropes to put them off.

"Hey, hey! Why do you care when there won't be anyone to get on board?" the aviator asked. "You and your friends cannot escape death."

"Who the hell are you?!" Hernandez asked with a glare. "Stop it! Don't harm them!"

The aviator jumped and attempted to stab his lance into the pelican who managed to dodge. "Then...offer your life instead!" He kicked Hernandez across the beak before kicking Alex hard right into the mat, making him groan in pain.

The vulture then spat a jet of fire at him, but the kid moved out of the way in time, letting it hit the mat which instantly caught fire instead. Alex gasped at seeing his ship's mat burning down.

"Mierda!" Hernandez swore before grabbing the burning mat, resisting the burning pain on his feathers, and used his raw strength to rip it off before tossing it into the cloud water, pulling the fire down. He panted from the effort of ripping and throwing a whole mat and also rubbed his burned spots.

"You bastard!" Alex angrily said at the aviator. "You bastard! Stop harming our ship already! We're in charge of it!"

The aviator adjusted his goggles and looked down at his vulture. "Well, what should we do, Fuza?" The vulture replied with a crow. "They say not to harm their friends. They say to not damage their ship. They say they don't want to die. What a dilemma. This is not worth of Shura Skyrider, the Prier!"

The aviator now known named Shura charged and tried to plant his lance into Alex who managed to dodge, letting him stab the wall of the ship instead.

"Stop! Your lance will burn the ship!" Hernandez shouted.

And it did just that, setting fire to the wall. Panicking, Alex tried to blow the fire away by slapping on it with his big arms. Once it was done, he turned back to Shura and threw an insult at him before launching a punch which he swiftly dodged by jumping away.

"Do you really think that you guys will...survive without sacrificing anything?" Shura asked.

"I wonder who's that guy," Alex thought while panting. "Ever since the start, he managed to predict everything we're about to do."

"For one to stay alive, another must die: this is how the world remains in balance," Shura said. "Tell me, did you guys knew you were on a sacrificial altar?"

"Well, we heard the others mention it," Alex replied.

"I bet your comrades are excited to get here as well. You see, this island is divided in four region and each one of them is ruled over by a Prayer. According to the law, if an intruder enters a territory, the three others cannot touch him unless he gets into his own territory. But the sacrificial altar you're standing on doesn't belong to any territory which means it doesn't belong to anyone and any of us can attack an intruder in here."

"But in general, we can only take care of the sacrificed once the ones who must go through the ordeals are taken care of."

Alex widened his eyes. "But then, it means that Blu and the others are...!"

"Don't worry; it's not because I'm here that your friends are dead. Which is pretty bad." Shura then smirked. "You wanna know why I insisted on coming all the way here?"

"Why?" Hernandez asked with his wings crossed. "If I get it well, we'll be able to get out of here once our friends will be back?"

"Exactly, but you have yet to find a way out of here," Shura said. "But wait: I told you guys that I came here for a particular reason. See, there's an exception where the sacrificed can lose their immunity until the ordeals are done."

"An exception?"

"Yes, let's imagine, for example, that some of the sacrificed leaves this ship and go in the forest."

"Doing this is an exception to the Heaven's Judgement?" Alex asked. He suddenly widened his eyes in realization. "But then, it means that it's because our friends left!"

"Someone must die and pay for the sins of the others! This is the only truth of this low word and the law of sacrifice! If your friends come back here, you'll see how this truth is real! Seeing a friend dying before your eyes makes you understand the mistakes you made!" He then pointed his lance, ready to attack again. "And you two will pay with your lives!"

As he charged, Alex glared and went for a punch which Shura dodged and planted his lance into his shoulder, sending blood flying and also making the whole catch fire. The poor Alex cried in pain as Shura caught him by the throat and pinned him against the wall.

"You will all die!"

However, before the Prier could deal the finishing blow, a shadow appeared on the ground, indicating someone was above him. He turned around and rose his lance just in time to block that of the intruder...who was none other than the Knight of the Sky.

"Sorry for making you wait!" he said with a smirk.

"Mr. Knight!" Hernandez and Alex exclaimed at unison.

Shura looked pretty surprised as well. "It looks like we have a special guest!" He pushed Gan Fall who jumped up and landed on Pierre's back.

Shura jumped onto Fuza's back and started chasing after the knight. Hernandez fought through the pain and picked Alex into his wings after his muscle candy form ended.

"This is a strong opponent with all the skills to win!" Gan Fall said while flying. "We're gonna have to hit hard to defeat him, Pierre!" The pegasus nodded to his companion.

"What's out of shape gramps' gonna do?" Shura asked and smirked. "How about we play with him a bit, Fuza?" The vulture replied with scream.

Soon, both fliers charged and clashed their lances, like knights used to do in old tournaments. After repeating this multiple times, sending sparks flying in the air, Shura swung his lance at Gan Fall who was flying beside him. However, the old man jumped to dodge it and landed on Fuza's back, right behind him.

Shura looked back to see the old knight placing his hand right in front of his face. He only had time to widen his eyes in horror before an impact came out of the hand and made him spit blood from the mouth while knocking him off the vulture's back. The strength of the impact also pushed Gan Fall back and made him fall too. Luckily, both raiders were caught by their respective companions before falling in the river below.

"We need to attack him again to win!" Gan Fall said, sounding in pain, on Pierre's back. "Come on, Pierre!" The pegasus nodded again.

"What a bastard!" Shura angrily said, whipping blood from his mouth and glaring up at Gan Fall. "I bet you already know that you're considered like a criminal, heh old man? I'm gonna show you the power of a Prier!"

He then adjusted his googles. "The power of the Strings Ordeal!"

* * *

Farther from there, in the Lost Forest, Blu struggled to stand up as his three friends were still laying down. He glared up at Satori who was still jumping on a surprise cloud and laughing.

"My, my! You're a persistent one!" he chuckled. "Alright then, to reward your determination, I'm gonna show you some of my best tricks..."

* * *

 **Sorry guys, I know you wanted to see the fight with Satori, but I also advanced a fight somewhere else. But for now, Alex and Hernandez are hurt and the Saldanha has been badly damaged during the fight. Let's hope Gan Fall can stop Shura Skydriver.**


	215. The Ordeal of Strings

**This is my last day of weekend (four days long) before going back to school. So I'm gonna try to write as much as I can until then.**

* * *

"I admire your determination. And to reward you, I'm gonna show you some of my best tricks!" Satori declared with a laughter.

He suddenly started pressing many surprise clouds together to form a caterpillar shape with the head of it being a dragon face. "What's that?!" Blu asked in confusion.

"It's my Surprise Dragon!" Satori replied. "All those surprise clouds combined are trapped ones combined to create a mega explosion. Should it touch anything, it would cause deadly damages to the unfortunate ones." He then smirked. "And right now, it will be you!"

He performed a move with his hand which made the Surprise Dragon fly toward him. "Come on, Blu! We must dodge it at any cost!" Apollo panicked and grabbed his friend's wing to run away.

The two avians flew up through the trees with the Surprise Dragon chasing them. Luckily, they managed to lose it after a while and landed down to catch their breath. Unfortunately, the victory was cut short as they saw Satori taking advantage of their break to kick a surprise cloud in their direction.

"...Crap!" they mumbled at unison just before the balloon exploded, knocking them back.

"This is getting interesting!" Satori said and laughed while jumping on his surprise cloud.

* * *

Meanwhile, very far from there, a young female dove with white feathers and sky blue eyes with a side bag resting on her hips walked out of Upper Yard and below a wall of cloud. She smiled as she arrived at a village that looked similar to the of the ancient Indian tribes with the huts, totems and all.

She ran inside before a voice made her jump: "Aisa!" She turned her head to see a muscular Komodo dragon sitting against a hut. He had a Mohawk hairstyle and a pair of big, round sunglasses with red lenses and white frame. He wore a grass skirt, similar to the ones worn by his companions, but with a red and green elaborate belt around the waist. He also sported a light red fur vest and a necklace that seemed to be made of some animal's claws or teeth.

"Where have you been?" he asked the little dove named Aisa.

"Kamakiri?" Aisa said.

"You went back to Upper Yard and stole things from there, didn't you?" Kamakiri asked while checking on a little knife.

"Huh..."

"You should be careful: this could cost you your life."

The little dove frowned and pulled out her tongue. "I do what I want! And you have no lesson to tell me: you can't even beat Raijin!" she said before running away.

Kamakiri sighed. "What a little brat..."

Meanwhile, in the main hut of the village, there was a little reunion going on. On the throne of this hut was sitting the Komodo dragon who attacked the Blue Thunder Crew, except he was no longer wearing his mask and fighting tools.

This dragon was Wiper, leader of the Shandia warriors.

"I don't know why, but Gan Fall returned on the Celestial Island," he calmly said. "This old mummy still believes this place can be pacified without using violence. This old guy is totally wrong! Winning or losing, there's no other exits for a fight."

He then looked seriously at the other animals in his hut. "The Great Calgara once said, let's bring back the flame of the Shandias. No matter who's our enemy, wether it's Gan Fall the former God, or Raijin the current one, it's the same for me. It doesn't matter who they pretend to be: they're all the same. And as long as they'll call themselves Gods and rule over this earth, nothing will change: they all deserve to be eliminated!"

"Wiper," a woman dove said to get the leader's attention. "I heard that someone on Angel Island rose up against Raijin. It was a young girl. It has now been six years since Raijin rules over us and it's the first time such a thing happens."

Wiper didn't really looked interested. "Yeah, so what?"

"Gan Fall brought this girl away to avoid Heaven's Judgement," the dove continued. "The problem with that is Raijin now have a good reason to judge the former God. Until now, Gan Fall never did anything that could disturb him, wether it was when he was God or since he became the Knight of the Sky. During all that time, he never tried to face Raijin. And now, he comes on the sacred island..."

Wiper just gave a scoff. "Well in that case, the best thing that could happen would be that he faces one of the four Prier and that they kill each other. Unless you're trying to tell me that we should stop considering Gan Fall like an enemy? This would be a huge mistake: it's not because we have a common enemy that we're allies for more."

The dove looked down and Wiper looked at her seriously. "Laki, if you have doubts, it's no use coming into this fight; I don't need deadweight dragging us down."

Little did they knew was that Asia has been listening to the whole reunion, hiding near the entrance.

"This guy gives me the creeps..."

* * *

"You sure this is a good idea," Stuart?" Margalo asked unsure.

Her mouse friend was busy fixing a new Weaver that he had found in Gan Fall's house.

"Of course. We must prepare a way out for them, Margalo. You're with me?"

The canary smiled and nodded at Stuart.

* * *

Back at the Sacrificial Altar, Gan Fall and Shura were striking their lances in the sky, sending sparks flying everywhere. They had been at it for many minutes now and Hernandez has been watching this with Alex resting from his wounds in his wings all along.

At one point, the two engaged in a close combat and moved so quickly that the watchers had an hard time following their moves.

"How are they moving so fast?" Hernandez thought.

"I suppose it's pointless to try and negotiate with you now?" Gan Fall asked after Pierre putted some distance between the two fighters.

"You're getting too soft, old man!" Shura simply replied before jumping and engaging another super speeded close combat with the knight.

"This fight is intense!" Alex remarked.

The two fighters kept charging at each other (like knights used to do in medieval times, except it was in the air) and Gan Fall even managed to land a cut on Shura's shoulder, leaving him with a bleeding cut.

"We must win at all cost," Gan Fall mumbled while panting in exhaustion.

However, a strange phenom suddenly happened: Gan Fall and Pierre stopped dead and their tracks and were immobilized in mid-air. "W-What?!" the knight mumbled. "What's going on?! I can't move!"

Shura smirked. "Gotcha!" Gan Fall could only look in horror as the Prier dived in his direction and then pierced his lance through his torso, setting it on fire in the process.

"Oh no!" Hernandez gasped as he and Alex widened their eyes in horror.

"Sorry, old man, but you failed my ordeal," Shura mumbled before pulling his burning lance out and kicking Gan Fall to send him crash down in the cloud river below.

"Mr. Knight!" Hernandez and Alex exclaimed in horror at unison.

After watching the knight fade under the clouds, Shura suddenly appeared between the two of them. "If you like this old man so much, just go swim with him!" And with that, he swung his lance to knock both avians and send them fall into the river too.

"And you too as well!" Shura added with dashing up and smashing the still immobilized Pierre to send him join his companion. "How pitiful, those beings. If this lake had no bottom, they would have a chance to survive, but unfortunately, it does have one."

He then adjusted his googles again. "Alright, let's go see if the three other outlaws have been judged..."

* * *

Back in the Lost forest, Blu and Apollo were still laying down, trying to recover from the explosive surprise cloud they received while Satori was laughing at them from the air.

"I have enough: that's too much surprise for me...," Apollo mumbled while laying down on the ground.

"There's no hope left for you now," Satori said. "Your gondola is about to reach the end of the Milky Road meaning you will be trapped in this forest until you starve or get crazy.

"SHUT UP!" Blu angrily replied before throwing his fist which the balloon man easily dodged.

"You're just wasting your time, kid!" Satori laughed and sent the Surprise Dragon after Blu again, forcing him to fly away.

"Crap! If this thing touches me, I'm dead!" Blu nervously thought as the balloon dragon was getting closer and closer behind him.

As a desperate move, he performed a Moonsault to get past the huge dragon. However, as he did so, his beak grabbed hold of something. Looking down, Blu saw that it was a rope that was connected to the Surprise Dragon's head.

"Hey! What are you doing?!" Satori asked, looking shocked for the first time since the fight started.

After taking a few seconds, Blu finally understood: he was using this rope to control the Surprise Dragon and to direct it! A smirk formed on the macaw's beak as he used this last one to bite the rope and snap it in two.

"Raaaargh! Now I can't control my dragon anymore!" Satori angrily shouted. "You're just a big meanie! Get here!"

He pulled on the rope to drag Blu to him. However, Blu still held the part of the rope connected to the Surprise Dragon, causing him to bring it toward Satori as well.

"No! Drop it! DROP IT!" the balloon man panicked. But it was too late and Blu launched the Surprise Dragon at his owner.

BOOM!

This caused a giant explosion that left a crater down below. Thought he managed to avoid getting killed, Satori still sustained a good deal of damage and panted as he rested on one of his surprise clouds.

"Man, that was close! I thought for a second that I was gonna die! I need to be more careful."

"Indeed!"

Before he could understand what was going on, Satori suddenly found himself caught from behind by Blu who wrapped his plastic limbs around his body, preventing him from moving.

"Hey! What are you doing?! Let me go!" Satori ordered and struggled to break free in vain.

"Guys! Now!" Blu shouted.

It was then that Satori realized Vladimir and Lazaro were standing on non-dangerous surprise clouds nearby. And they looked absolutely pissed off.

"You think that we're just a bunch of fools that will be defeated by some unpleasant surprises?" Lazaro asked with a low yet deadly tone.

"Sorry to disappoint you, but that's not gonna happen," Vladimir said with the same tone. "And you know why?"

The puffin rose a feet while Vladimir turned his fist into stone and both birds glared up. "BECAUSE WE'RE THE BLUE THUNDER CREW!"

The balloon man could only widen his eyes in fear as the avians charged with Vladimir delivering a violent stone punch into his stomach and Lazaro giving a powerful spin kick right into his face.

"STONE FURIA ATTACK!"

* * *

 **On one side, Gan Fall and Pierre lost against Shura Skydriver and Fuza and could possibly drown with Alex and Hernandez, and on the other one, Blu and his friends defeated Satori. So it ain't so bad I guess?**

 **And we also got introduced to the Shandias for the first time, meeting their leader, Wiper. He really doesn't seem to like the Skypieans.**


	216. Wiper the warrior

"Gan Fall, the former God, have broke into Upper Yard," Wiper said to his comrades in the hut. "Raijin won't just stay back and do nothing."

"You think Gan Fall want to fight Raijin?" Kamakiri asked.

"Nope; I strongly doubt the old man have enough guts to do it," another man said.

A little shriek was suddenly heard and Aisa rushed into the hut, hugging Lika and crying a bit. "What's wrong, Aisa?" the elder dove asked with wrapping a wing around the younger one.

"I sensed two voices...going off...!" she mumbled while whimpering.

"What?!" Lika said in surprise.

Wiper looked surprised as well. "Your mantra?"

Aisa nodded at the leader's question. "Yes. I just felt it."

"That's what your mantra told you, Aisa? Two voices went off? Are you absolutely sure?" Wiper asked with a slightly threatening look that scared the kid off.

The little dove just nodded. "Aisa is never wrong: you should all know that. Ever since she was born, Aisa have the power to sense the presence of people at a great distance," Lika said. She then looked at the little girl. "Two voices went off, right?"

"Yes, both at the same time," Aisa nodded. "I think there was Gan Fall and the other was one of the Priers."

"They killed each other?" Kamakiri asked in surprise.

"The old man did a good job!" a man named Bram said with a surprised smile. "This leaves only three Priers."

"Well, talk about a surprise. Looks like the sky finally heard our cries," Wiper said with a smirk as he stood up from his throne and walked toward the exit. "Let's take action: it's our perfect chance to take down the three other Priers."

He then turned to the others with a serious glare. "Move! We're gonna launch an all-out attack on Upper Yard!"

"Yes!" they all replied at unison and walked out with Wiper except for Lika who looked down at Aisa.

"That's pretty crazy: you're still afraid of Wiper, aren't you?" She just scoffed and then headed out of the hut.

Aisa frowned and then called: "Laki, wait!"

"What do you want?" the elder dove asked with turning around.

"...Actually, it's not Gan Fall who took down the Prier," Aisa explained. "There are other people up there and they are the ones who did this."

Laki gave a surprised look. "Other people? You mean those who came from the Blue Sea to Skypiea?"

"I can't identify their identity, but they seem fearful," the little dove said with a nod. She then looked down. "So...be careful, okay?"

Laki gave a sight. "Okay. Now give me your bag."

"What?!" Aisa exclaimed in surprise as the elder dove kneeled before her. "No way: it's my secret bag! It's filled with treasures!"

"I know," Laki giggled and wrapped a wing around her for a hug. "Don't worry, I'll bring you back a souvenir, it's a promise," she said with a wink which made the younger dove smile.

* * *

Back in the Lost Forest, Blu, Lazaro and Vladimir panted while standing over the inactive figure of Satori.

"This guy was strong," Blu panted. "I wonder how he was able to foresee all of our moves."

"He won't foresee anything any time soon now!" Lazaro bitterly said.

"Guys!" Apollo called from the air.

"Still alive?" Lazaro asked with a chuckle.

"I found the Raven! It's heading right at the exit of the Lost Forest! Follow me!" Apollo said and flew back from where he came from.

The others followed their owl friend and indeed found their gondola on the Milky Road, landing on it for a well-deserved break. They were now coming out of the forest and about to enter another one.

"Man, this guy drained the juice out of me!" Lazaro said with rubbing sweat off his forehead.

"Look at the positive side of things: we're leaving the Lost Forest at last," Apollo happily pointed out.

* * *

Way farther from there, back at the Sacrificial Altar, Alex was struggling to stay awake as he was slowly sinking deeper into the cloud lake.

"I-I can't swim...," he weakly thought. He looked around to see Gan Fall and Pierre sinking with him as well. "Crap... I couldn't save anyone... It's the end... I'm feeling my life slipping away..."

Those were the last thoughts he had before closing his eyes and passing out.

* * *

"Satori has been defeated. He lost control of his mantra. What an idiot! Those strangers come from the Blue Sea, no doubt about seem different from our other enemies. And this accident on the Sacrificial Altar was not planned. But even if we leave them in peace for a bit, they won't leave. Bah, there is more important than that."

The person thinking was one of the four Priers of Upper Yard, Gedatsu the Cloud Sentinel. A black octopus walking on two of his numerous, long tentacles with red eyes. He was ready to enter into action.

* * *

"You hear the sad voice of those warriors, Oli? No matter the number of battles, it's always the same result. Gan Fall have been defeated by Shura and the Ordeal of Balloons have failed. This is a very action-packed day. But I won't allow those idiots to pass. The day will soon rise and yet, I can sense a storm coming on Upper Yard."

The other person reflecting was the bald man of the Priers. His name was Skybreeder Om.

* * *

"Oh, looks like I finally found someone worth of receiving my anger," Shura happily thought while flying through the forest.

* * *

Wiper was leading a big group of Shandia warriors toward Upper Yard. They were all riding on the cloud sea with dial-powered rollers or boards for some and carrying weapons.

"Listen to me, warriors!" Wiper shouted. "Upper Yard has fallen into chaos: it's our chance to act! We won't ever get another chance like this one! We're gonna attack our usual target: the divine sanctuary! Don't be afraid of Raijin! Calgara is our one and only protecting God!"

The other Chandia warriors shouted positively behind him. "Bram!" Wiper called.

"Yeah!" the man responded. He had dirty long brown hair and beard with a black open jacket, shorts, boots and bandages on his hands and forearms. He was holding two revolvers in his hands.

"Kamakari!"

"Yeah!" the other Komodo replied, swinging his two knives around.

"Ganpo!"

"Yeah!" Ganpo is a fat man with the same tribal dress as the others but in yellow and carrying a bazooka like Wiper's on his shoulder.

"Laki!"

"Yeah!" The elder dove was carrying a riffle gun in her right wing and a mini shield on her left one.

"You must all come back alive! We're gonna separate here!" Wiper instructed before grabbing his own bazooka and shooting a blast toward the forest and caused an explosion as a warning.

"I swear before the Great Calgara that we will bring back the flame of Shandora!" The other warriors cheered their leader.

"The Shandias are here!" the three remaining Priers realized at the same time.

* * *

The explosion didn't go unnoticed as the other groups felt it as well.

"You heard that?" Dominic asked, stopping in his fly.

"An explosion?" Jewel asked.

"I heard another one earlier," Arlene remarked. "But this one was different."

"Whatever, just let's keep going," Dominic said and the trio resumed their flight.

* * *

Alex coughed water out of his lungs and blinked his eyes multiple times before properly opening them and seeing Hernandez standing over him.

"I-I'm alive?" he weakly said.

"Little Al, are you okay?" Hernandez asked with concern.

The kid just nodded before standing up and seeing Gan Fall and Pierre laying beside as well.

"Are they okay?!" Alex asked in fear of them dying for him.

"Don't worry; I took them out of the lake as well. They're still alive," the pelican assured. "But I don't think they'll awake before a while."

"Well, we're all okay and that's already that," Alex said with checking on the man and pegasus.

* * *

"I can hear the sound of waves," Arlene said while flying. "This means the sea must be nearby."

Jewel scanned something else. "Hey, you guys hear those sounds beyond the waves?"

"Yeah. And there's this burning smell," Dominic nodded. He then realized something. "It sounds like an army getting on the attack. I heard it so much back in Sequin that I'm used to it."

"You think our friends will be okay?" Arlene asked.

"Don't worry; Alex and Hernandez can take care of themselves," Dominic replied.

"I was rather thinking about the captain and the others."

"Blu?"

"Yes; after we have been kidnapped, I bet they went searching for us. You think they're okay?"

Dominic made a confident smirk. "Don't worry; Blu made it out of situations way more dangerous than this."

Arlene nodded with a smile before looking ahead...and widening her eyes. They reached the edge of the forest and found some kind of stone house, but it was not an ordinary one: it looked like it was cut in half right in the middle.

"What's that?" Jewel asked as they landed before the house.

"Oh my gosh...!" Arlene mumbled with her eyes wide open.

"You know this thing, Arlene?" Dominic asked with a curious look.

"Yes. Before I came to meet you guys, I remained on Mock Town for a moment and visited the island. At one point, I found a house on the edge of the island...and it was just like this one: cut in half."

This statement caused Dominic and Jewel to widen their eyes. "So you're telling us this is half of an house from Mock Town's island?!" Dominic asked. "B-But how did it ended all the way up here?!"

Arlene rubbed her chin. "This is a mystery that has been bothering me quite a bit. I never understood how there could be an island on a sea of cloud. How could ground form on ilo nimbuses? It's not logic. This can only mean one thing: this land that we call Upper Yard was originally from the Blue Sea. This is a part of Mock Town's island."

Dominic widened his eyes in surprise. "So if I get it well, Mock Town's island got cut in half? with this part ending here? But how is that possible?"

* * *

 **Man, a lot of things happened in this chapter: the Shandia warriors led by Wiper are launching an attack on Upper Yard to take down Raijin, Blu and his friends made it out of the Lost Forest after succeeding the Ordeal of Balloons, Hernandez managed to save Alex, Gan Fall and Pierre from drowing, and Dominic, Arlene and Jewel found out that Upper Yard was originally from the Blue Sea.**

 **The Blue Thunder Crew doesn't know yet that they are about to get caught in a huge war for the land...**


	217. Reunited on the Sacrificial Altar

_Previously: Led by Wiper, the Shandia warriors take benefit of Gan Fall challenging one of the Priers to launch an attack on Upper Yard. Meanwhile, after defeating Satori, Blu, Apollo, Vladimir and Lazaro resume their travel on the Milky Road toward the Sacrificial Altar. At this very spot, Hernandez managed to save Gan Fall, Pierre and Alex from drowning after their loss against Shura Skydriver. Finally, Dominic, Jewel and Arlene reached the edge of Upper Yard and made a pretty big discovery: it's actually one half of what was once part of Mock Town's island._

* * *

"So we're standing on the other half of the island below?!" Jewel asked in surprise.

Arlene nodded with a smile. "And you know what's even more exciting? If I went on Mock Town's island to begin with was because I heard about an hidden city made of gold called Jaya which mysteriously disappeared and was supposed to have faded underwater. However, this myth was false: it was actually right here, in the sky all along."

"So there's a city of gold in here?" Dominic asked.

Arlene nodded again. "Yup. A whole city of gold just waiting to be discovered."

* * *

Meanwhile, the battle in the Upper Yard forest started. The Shandia warriors led by Laki, Kamakiri, Bram and Genbo used their cloud rollers/skis to drive in the air and fought the three remaining Priers.

And yet, despite having the number's advantage, the proud warriors were actually having quite an hard time against the defenders of the Sacred Ground.

* * *

Meanwhile, back on the Milky Road, Blu's group were trying to rest a bit on the Raven as they finally came out of the second forest and entered another zone. This one was an open green field with various types of skulls going from humans to animals planted on wooden picks all around.

"What's that place?" Blu asked.

"It seems clear: it's here that we'll get the second ordeal," Lazaro nonchalantly replied. "Keep an eye open: the next Prier can come out anytime now."

"Crap, as if one ordeal wasn't enough," Apollo sadly mumbled. "What is it gonna be this time: iron? String? Swamp?"

"I don't know, but those pierced skulls aren't making me feel comfortable at all," Vladimir remarked.

Blu nodded. Suddenly, as he was driving the gondola, his attention got turned away by an explosion coming from the edge end of the zone. "Hey! Something's coming toward us!" he said.

"Oh no!" Apollo panicked. "It's the Priers!"

No. It was a group of four Shandia warriors with Wiper among them jumping above their head with their rollers/skis. Both groups barely had time to exchange a glare before Wiper turned himself upside down and pointed his bazooka to shoot at the gondola.

Luckily, Blu managed to stand up in time to fill his belly with air, turning it into a balloon, and block the shot which was sent flying back at the warriors. These last ones managed to dodge it, letting it explode into a tree instead.

"What was that?!" one of the warriors asked in shock.

"This bird ate a Magical Fruit!" Wiper said with narrowing his eyes toward Blu. "So he have super powers."

"Should we attack him, Wiper?" another warrior asked.

"No; it won't be necessary," the Komodo dragon shook his head.

At the same time, Vladimir realized something. "Hey, wait a second! It's this reptile who attacked us, when we arrived on the White Sea!"

"Oh no! He's gonna kill us!'" Apollo panicked.

"You should leave this island if you wanna leave," Wiper called at them. "But if you come on this island with bad intentions: I'll give you the same I reserve for Raijin!" he declared with a threatening glare.

Vladimir rose a curious eyebrow. "What? So he wants to take Raijin down? But then...it means that God and the guerillas are not on the same side."

"This is my last warning: leave this island right now!" Wiper said before turning around and leaving with his three companions.

Apollo let out a sigh of relief as they didn't tried to kill them. "Who were those guys anyways?" Blu asked.

"No idea," Vladimir replied. "But now, we know that they're fighting against God Raijin. That being said, I don't know if we can call them allies yet."

"That's official: I wanna get out of here...," Apollo whined with letting himself lay back in his chair.

* * *

The war raged on in Upper Yard as more and more explosions could be heard all around. But for now, Dominic, Jewel and Arlene returned at the Sacrificial Altar after finishing their little exploring journey. However, much to their surprise, neither Alex nor Hernandez were present on the Saldanha.

"Alex? Hernandez? Where are you?" Jewel called.

Dominic noticed a bothering detail. "Hey, why is the ship more damaged than when we left? The mat's no longer there! What the hell happened here?!"

"Oh no! Maybe they got attacked!" Jewel realized in horror. "Alex! Hernandez!"

"Maybe they are already dead?" Arlene simply suggested.

"Hey! Don't say that!" Jewel angrily shouted at the scarlet macaw, not accepting the idea that two of her friends could be dead.

"ALEX! HERNANDEZ! COME OUT NOW!" Dominic shouted in impatience.

Then, a little white figure stepped out on the edge of the ship. "G-Guys? Is that you?" Alex nervously asked.

"Yes, we're back," Jewel happily said before suddenly widening her eyes as she saw Alex had burning marks and bandages over his shoulder. "My god! What happened to you, Alex?!"

* * *

Meanwhile, as the sun started to set at the horizon, Blu, Apollo, Vladimir and Lazaro came out of yet another forest and entered another one.

"Are we there yet? We've been riding on this Milky Road for a full day," Lazaro whined.

The puffin got the answer to his question at the very moment he asked it: the group entered a special spot of the forest where the Milky Road ended into a lake and had a Sacrificial Altar with the Saldanha on it.

"Look! We found it! The ship and the Sacrificial Altar!" Blu happily shouted with pointing at their ship.

And if things couldn't get better, their friends on the edge of the lake also took notice of them. "BLU!" Jewel beamed.

"JEWEL!" Blu flew off to the coast and grabbed his girlfriend into a big hug. "I was so worried something happened to you! You're not hurt?"

Jewel giggled at her boyfriend's care and kissed him on the cheek. "Don't worry Blu; I can take care of myself.

Later on, after the group have brought the Raven up on the Altar high enough to make sure the Celestial Sharks won't eat it, the Blue Thunder Crew reunited on the Saldanha to catch up with what happened. Apollo didn't failed to notice how damaged the ship was.

"The mat is gone?!" he mumbled in shock as he saw the mat missing.

"A-Apollo," Alex nervously mumbled. "I-I'm sorry, but I did everything I could. You gotta believe me."

The barn owl remained silent for many seconds before turning around and looking at the kid with a look mixed between disappointment and understandment. "...Be more careful with the ship next time, dude."

He then walked away, leaving Alex to swallow the words he just told him. True to be told, he wasn't sure if Apollo advised or scolded him...and it was scary. He whipped away some tears, silently swearing that one day, he'll be strong enough to protect the ship.

"Hey Alex," Blu said as he suddenly walked by. "You and Hernandez managed to fend off one of the Prayers, right? How exactly did you do that? Lazaro, Vladimir, Apollo and I had an hard time fighting off one of them."

"Well, we used the whistle and the Knight of the Sky came," Alex explained.

"Really? And where is he now?"

Alex decided to lead his captain as well as the others inside the ship and into a cabin where Gan Fall was laying unconscious on a bed with his helmet removed and a blanket over him. Pierre was present as well, having bandages around his torso too.

"Man, he got it pretty bad," Blu remarked as he kneeled next to the old man."

"Have he not came, the Saldanha would have been destroyed and Alex and I would both be dead," Hernandez remarked. He too had some bandages for the burnings and were resting against the wall with a guilty look. "Thank you too, Pierre," he added to the pegasus who just nodded.

"You are still too soft, big man!" Lazaro scolded with both flippers on his hips. "Anyways, judging by the state of the Saldanha, I think we're gonna have to put our travel back to Angel Island on standby. Let's go into the forest, we'll just have to camp near the lake."

"Why's that?" Blu curiously asked.

"Because that way, if we get attacked once again, the ship won't get more damaged," Apollo said with an annoyed tone. "Do you ever think about things, Blu?"

The others looked at their barn owl friend, wondering why he was acting in such an irritated manner. "And besides, we'll get more advantage on the ground than on this boat," Lazaro said before the tension could rise any higher.

"Alright then, let's go," Blu simply said.

And so, the Blue Thunder Crew flew out into the forest so settle for the night. Dominic decided to take out some fishes from the lake with help from Lazaro and used his hunter skills to prepare a good meal for the crew around the campfire.

Even thought not all of them were used to eat meat, it was better than starving and it was actually tasting pretty good! As the sky turned dark and night fell, the air became fresher, making the crew enjoy the warm fire even more.

"Alright guys, we should share our reports," Apollo said with getting up to get everyone's attention. "Each should tell what happened since we got separated on Angel Beach."

The crew agreed and each shared their report: Blu's group explaining how they crossed the Milky Road and face Satori the Prayer; Alex and Hernandez explained their encounter with Shura Skydriver and the interference of Gan Fall; and Dominic's group explained their discovery of the truth behind Upper Yard and that there was a city of gold somewhere.

"Alright, thanks for cooperating," Apollo said with a smile. "We know have gathered more infos and can carefully plan our next move. But you're saying there's a city of gold in here?!" he asked in surprise to which Arlene nodded with a sweet smile.

"Do you guys have any idea what's this mantra the Pryers used?" Dominic asked.

"Nope," Lazaro shrugged. "Maybe it's a sixth sense or something like that."

Alex finished preparing a plate of well crushed food for Gan Fall to eat without difficulties as his stomach has been damaged.

"A city of gold, heh?" Blu asked with a big smile. "That's awesome: I'm already excited to find it!"

"Woah, woah, wait a sec! Have you already forgot the warning that this savage warrior gave us, Blu?" Apollo deadpanned.

"God will be mad; it will be terrifying!" Alex nodded while trembling nervously.

Arlene just giggled with an amused smile. "We won't get bored."

"Hey guys, we're pirates right?" Lazaro asked. "We're supposed to chase treasures. And right now, we got a unique one at reach: we won't let this opportunity slip by."

"This is gonna be crazy: we'll have to survive in a middle with a lot of enemies," Dominic said with a smirk. "This is gonna be fun!"

"Why do I feel like we're gonna regret it?" Apollo asked with looking at the fourth wall.

* * *

 **The Blue Thunder Crew has been reunited at last! They now know their next move: finding the city of gold and fill their boat with gold! They are pirates after all, remember?**


	218. Festival before the gold rush

The battle across the Upper Yard forest was raging on and not in favor of the Shandia warriors. The ones fighting in the skies were getting taken down by Shura and his fire shooting vulture Fuza. As for the ones facing Om and his giant dog Oli, no matter how much they shouted with their riffles and bazookas, they just couldn't pierce the dog's skin. This even made him angrier, biting and slapping the warriors away with help from Om who took them down with swings from his saber.

"This beast is getting on my nerves!" Laki angrily said as she was dashing through the sky with Kamakiri at her side.

"We must find a way to pull them apart!" the Komodo dragon remarked.

"I'll try something!" Genbo said and rose his bazooka to shoot a blast at the feet of a tree which collapsed in direction of the Prier and his huge dog. Those last ones failed to notice it in time and were forced to jump in different directions, just like Genbo planned.

Warriors started attacking Oli with their guns while Om, on the other side of the tree, sensed three warriors coming his way and swiftly took them down in one swing from his saber. Laki took the occasion and charged at the bald man with her riffle, trying to shoot him down from behind.

However, he also sensed her coming and swiftly dodged before putting his saber between her and her bag. causing her to get hanged from it.

"Laki!" Genbo called.

"What are you gonna do?" Om asked the dove. "You won't hold on for long like this: it's over!" He then noticed some sand starting to flow out of the bag by a small slit. A smirk formed on his mouth. "You really hold on that what's in this bag?"

Groaning, Laki performed a moonsault thanks to her dial roller and rose her riffle, ready to shoot the Prier in the face. However, this last one simply pulled it to the right, causing her to miss her shot. He then smirked and performed a spin, ready to slash her with his saber.

VROOM!

Just before the blade could touch her Kamakiri jumped out of nowhere and grabbed her in his arms, getting her out of harm's way. "Run, Kamakiri! We'll cover you!" a warrior shouted as he and two comrades where shooting at the Prier with their riffles to provide them cover.

Laki sighed as she got up. "Thanks a lot Kamikiri." However, she then noticed a detail: there was blood on her wings. This made her understand that her Komodo dragon friend has been touched! "Kamakiri!"

"Shit!" Genbo swore as he shot with his bazooka to force Om away.

"Wiper!" a Shandia warrior called in another part of the forest. "Kamakiri has been injured!"

This caused their leader to turn around in surprise. "What?!"

Just then, Oli the giant dog smashed the warrior away with his paw before jumping toward Wiper who groaned and smashed him in the face with his shield. "Crap! While your end is so close!"

Om chuckled while looking at him. "You really believe that? When night falls, we'll have a bigger advantage over you all."

As the Prier chuckled, Wiper couldn't deny this reality. As much as he hated to admit it, the fight was already hard and many of his warriors were tired or injured. Swallowing his pride, he turned toward the other warriors.

"We must save the wounded! Let's retire! Let's reunite at the camp point!" he ordered before running away with the others.

Om looked in surprise before glaring. "You won't get away like this!"

However, before he could run after them, Gedatsu the black octopus arrived. "Wait, Om! God Raijin wants to see us all right now."

The bald man turned around toward his comrade. "Really? Okay, let's go."

* * *

Meanwhile, very far from there, Dominic and Alex were walking into the woods. The Blue Thunder Crew had decided to take the day off to rest and gather supplies before going to search for the golden city. Alex soon stopped and turned around.

"What's wrong?" Dominic asked after noticing it.

"...The ground stopped shaking."

"That's normal, Alex; night is falling, so the Priers and guerillas must go back home to rest," Dominic explained. The golden eagle was carrying a straw bowl filled with vegetables, fruits and other plants. "Come on, we should do the same."

Alex just looked away for a few more seconds before following his friend.

* * *

Back at the crew's camp, Lazaro was preparing a good meal for everyone. He used a little knife to cut carrots into pieces before putting them down into a cocking pot filled with hot water. While doing this, he also let a bowl of water warm up above the campfire and switched to cut a celestial fish with the knife, once he was done with the carrots. Blu was keeping an eye of the water so that it would be potable for tomorrow.

Just then, Dominic and Alex returned. "Lazaro, we brought you a lot of things," the kid happily said with showing the stray bowl he was carrying in his wings. "Nuts, bananas, aloe, and garlic."

"We also found some frogs and rats," Dominic said, showing the preys he captured thanks to his hunting skills in his wings.

"Good job, guys," the puffin said with a smile. "Put this in the ragout."

"Making any progress, Navigator?" Arlene asked Jewel who was busy working on a map as she returned with a big crystal in her wings.

"Yup, work's advancing," the spix macaw replied before looking in surprise at the crystal. "My gosh! What's that?"

"Beautiful isn't it?" Arlene asked with a giggle. "It's a giant salt crystal."

"Awesome! Where did you find it?" Lazaro asked.

"I found it on the shore; I thought it would be useful," the scarlet macaw replied.

"I'm gonna half of the aloe and garlic," Alex said, picking the plants from the bowl. "I'm gonna use it to make ointment for burns and also disinfectant. It's gonna help the knight."

"Want some frogs?" Dominic offered.

"That won't really be useful," Alex giggled.

Lazaro closed the boiling pot after adding the final ingredients. "Why did you put rocks into it?" Hernandez curiously asked.

"The heat in those rocks will make the ingredients cook better," Lazaro explained his friend.

"Wow, you sure know a lot of things about cooking, Lazaro," Blu remarked.

"It's because of the books King Alkawbra gave me," the puffin explained. "Most of them were for fishes, but there was also some about cooking in general. And you know I like to taste new things," he said with a proud smile.

* * *

While the meal was getting ready, Dominic walked away from the camp and all the way to the side of the lake with the Sacrificial Altar. There, he found Apollo crafting branches and pieces of trees into boards.

"Apollo, what are you doing? Dinner's getting ready," the golden eagle called.

The barn owl turned toward him. "Really? I was preparing those boards to fix the ship tomorrow, but now that you mention it, it's true that I'm starting to get hungry," he said with looking down at his growling stomach. "Come on, let's go eat."

* * *

"Alright, it's ready everyone!" Lazaro called. "Sit down: you'll get served! And eat the ragout while it's still hot!"

The puffin started giving bowls of ragout to all of his friends who started to eat. "Mmh! It's delicious!" Apollo beamed after taking one sip of his meal.

"I don't know what you read into these books, but it was totally useful!" Blu said while the others nodded in agreement, all enjoying the ragout and making the puffin smile proudly.

"You know, I'm still having an hard time believing this island was once part of Mock Town," Dominic remarked after taking a sip from his ragout. "I mean, this one is huge compared to the one we saw down below."

"The only explanation I see is that the nimbus sped up the growing process of the earth and trees," Arlene said. "Margalo did explained that plants could grow faster on the nimbus, remember?"

"Yeah, I remember that," Blu said with a nod.

"By the way, Jewel and I think we have found the spot where we could find the golden city," Arlene suddenly said. "Jewel, can you take out the maps?"

Nodding, the spix macaw pulled her ragout bowl aside and took out two maps of Skyland from her bag, putting down on the ground. Everyone gathered around them to look.

"This is the map we found from the falling ship and another one that Arlene found prior to come in Mock Town," Arlene explained. "It's only a theory, but upon making researches, we have thought that the most probable spot to find the golden city would be there," she said with pointing a feather on a spot on the map.

"So you think the golden city could be here?" Blu asked in excitation.

Arlene nodded. "We'll just have to go right there tomorrow. However, we cannot leave the ship alone in here either. So we'll have to split into two teams: one to go explore and one to protect the ship."

"Alright!" everyone said at unison.

"Guys! I'm done!" Vladimir called and showed a pile of wooden logs beside him.

"What's that?" Arlene curiously asked.

"It's to make a wildfire," Vladimir said. "Blu insisted that we make a party tonight and asked me to go find wood for a big fire."

"You did?" Dominic asked as everyone turned toward him.

"Yes," the macaw nodded. "We may have found a huge treasure and we still have a long way to go, so I thought it would be a good way to get motivated to get a party and have some fun." He then turned toward Vladimir. "Come on, Vladimir: set this wood on fire!"

Nodding, the golden eagle used the fire from their camp to light up the pile of lodges which quickly became a huge fire. The arena they were in immediately got enlightened by the flames and a huge heat invaded the atmosphere.

"TIME TO PARTY!" Lazaro beamed.

The avians indeed pulled their cooking tools away and started singing and dancing around the huge campfire. Dominic decided to sit on the sides and just drink a good barrel of beer while watching the others.

Arlene blinked her eyes curiously. They were in the middle of an hostile territory with enemies all around...and they still decided to throw a party? Strange...

As everyone was having fun, Alex suddenly let out a scared scream and rushed to hide behind Hernandez. "What's wrong, Little Al?" the pelican asked as everyone looked at him.

"L-Look!" he said with pointing behind bushes.

Everybody followed his feather and saw many figures behind the bushes. These last ones slowly came out and were revealed to be white very hungry-looking wolves.

"Holy cow!" Lazaro exclaimed and got ready to fight, just like his friends...when the wolves instead surrounded the fire and started dancing of all things.

"...What?" Dominic asked in disbelief.

Arlene giggled. "They just wanted to join in the party as well."

The Blue Thunder Crew just gazed at the wolves...before shrugging and resuming the party. The avians danced with the wolves and Dominic even shared some of his beer with one of them. Needless to say this made Arlene smile and giggle even more.

"Wow, I think it's the first time I see people doing so much noise in Raijin's territory."

Arlene turned around to see Gan Fall arriving. "Oh, you're awake?"

The old man just nodded. "I caused you a lot of trouble while I wanted to help you."

"What are you talking about?" Dominic asked. "You did help us: you saved Alex, Hernandez and our ship."

"You're welcome," the old man chuckled and sat down.

"We have some ragout remaining, want some?" Arlene offered.

"No thanks, that's nice, but I'm not really hungry," the knight politely denied.

Blu and Alex then noticed his presence. "Hey, the knight is awake!" Blu beamed.

"Come dancing!" Alex happily called.

The old man just chuckled and politely shook a no. "Hey mister, how are Stuart and Margalo?" Lazaro asked without stopping his dance.

"Yes: they're at my home. Don't worry; they are safe there," Gan Fall assured.

"Great! We must celebrate this!" Apollo beamed. "How about we throw Alex up in the air?"

"What?" was all the kid had time to ask before his barn owl friend caught him and launched him up in the air.

"Come on, fly Al!" Lazaro said as Apollo kept throwing him in the air and catch him down.

"DUDE! I'M ALREADY A BIRD!" Alex shouted before being thrown up in the air once again.

Gan Fall could only chuckle for his friends. "You know, I heard your conversation earlier," he said with sitting down beside Arlene and Dominic. "So this island originates from the Blue Sea?"

"Yes," Arlene confirmed.

"Alright, but I doubt you'll be able to answer my next question: try to guess why we call it the sacred ground today." Arlene just remained silent. "For you who come from the Blue Sea, this island, must look normal, right?"

"Yeah," Dominic said.

"That's what I thought." The old man putted his hand on the ground. "For us, the people of Skypiea, this place should not exist. Vegetation can develop on the nimbus, but she cannot be born naturally in here. For us, earth and trees doesn't exist in the sky. Which is why we decided to call this land the Vearth. And for us living in the sky, it's a treasure that we will cherish forever..."

The old man smiled up as the scarlet macaw and golden eagle did the same. Dominic then drank from his bottle as the party was going on a full swing in the night...

* * *

 **Not much action here, but there are times for party and times for battle, right? It's always nice to have some fun before going on a gold rush like the crew will the next day. They will al need to be in shape. Well, if Apollo stops throwing Alex that is XD**


	219. God Raijin

**It's in this chapter that we're finally gonna get to see God Raijin that everyone has been so impatient to see!**

* * *

"Come on, Dom!"

"No!"

"Please, I'm not asking you much."

"You're not old enough to go pee by yourself, Apollo! Now let me sleep or I'll knock you out!"

"Oh, you're a big meanie! I'll remember that when you'll need my help," Apollo groaned and walked away. It was very late in the night and everyone was sleeping deeply after partying for hours. The barn owl had to pee, but was too afraid to meet a Prier or another hostile person to go alone. He asked Dominic, but as you saw it, he didn't wanted to.

Having no other choice, Apollo went into the forest and found a spot to pee, thought not too far from the camp as he wanted help, if he was to get attacked. Luckily, everything went fine and he released his pressure with no problems.

However, as he was about to leave, he heard a strange, regular noise. Like the sound of a mall slamming against metal. Intrigued more than scared, the owl used his strong ears to follow the noise and ended reaching the lake's chore. The ship was visible on the altar from there, but barely as there was a tight mist blocking the view. But the noise was definitely coming from there.

Taking his cap off and focusing his nocturnal view, Apollo managed to see through the mist and saw...a transparent figure with a mallet, slamming the tool against the shell of the ship. It looked like a human, but he could see through him/her as he slammed his tool, producing the noise he had heard.

Frozen at the supernatural sight, Apollo kept gazing at the figure until it turned to look at him with yellow eyes and a smirk.

"AAAAAH!"

Alerted by the scream, Dominic quickly shot awake, grabbed his sabers, and rushed to Apollo's position to find him laying on the ground with his face showing a traumatized look.

"What's wrong, Apollo? You're all pale and covered of sweat," the golden eagle remarked with laying down next to his friend.

"I-I saw a g-g-ghost!" he mumbled with fear in his voice.

"A ghost?!" Dominic asked before chuckling. "I think you've been awake too long, pal. You need to sleep."

* * *

Meanwhile, in a place way higher than there, on a ground of clouds, Shura, Om and Gedatsu were standing before the door of what looked like an ancient Japanese dojo.

"Here we are...," Gedatsu said. The octopus was trembling really hard.

"Calm down, dude: you're about to pee on the floor," Om nonchalantly said.

"I'm telling it again: if God Raijin wants to see us, it's probably because you allowed Wiper to escape: I'm sure about it," Shura said with a pointing look at the bald man.

"There's no worries to have: they can do what they want, but the Shandias won't beat us." He turned to look at his comrade through his black glasses. "I don't understand why you're so mad about it."

"Good works, but all meaningless," Shura replied with a scoff.

"If our God would given me this job from the start, I would've accomplished it since a very long time and we wouldn't have offended him," Gedatsu remarked.

Shura scoffed again. "Yeah, right, we all know you're too dumb to do that."

"What?!"

"Here's a piece of advice: don't argue now, it will affect your mantra and you will fail just like Satori," Om said. "So stay calm.

"No, YOU stay calm!" Shura angrily said with rising his lance.

As an answer, the bald man took out his saber. "Listen Shura: I know you defeated old Gan Fall, but that must not mean you have to inflate your ego!"

"Finally some action!" Gedatsu said with an excited smile, rising his tentacles.

The three started fighting just as the temple's doors opened. "Oh no, they're starting it again," said a human monk who was wearing a white monk robe and a big black beard. "Okay, that's enough all of you!"

"No, that's not enough!" Shura angrily said. "I must always carry those two loosers with me all the time! If you would leave the whole Upper Yard island to me, I'm certain I'd do a better job than with those idiots!"

"You're even dumber than I thought!" Om said, clearly reaching the edge of his patience. "You're gonna regret this, Shura: I'm gonna make you taste the Iron Ordeal!"

"Please, stop this!" the monk once again interfered. "You're standing before God."

"Huh, excuse-me?" Shura asked with an annoyed look. "I'm sorry, but I don't see him anywhere."

"Yeah, he called us, and he absented himself?" Om nodded.

"Where is Lord Raijin?" Gedatsu asked.

He immediately got his answer as a thunder suddenly came down from the sky and crashed right onto them, knocking the three Priers away with jolts flying through their bodies.

"Here I am."

The three Priers weakly stood up to see the intruder. It was a male wolf with snow white fur, a well-toned and muscled body and deep yellow eyes. He was wearing yellow pants on his legs that was being supported by a green sash and golden bracelets on his wrists and ankles. However, his most noticeable feature was the golden ring floating behind him which had five drums pierced onto it.

There was God Raijin.

"You're too negligent: you need to train more than this unless you wanna end up like Satori," he calmly said and sat back onto a comfortable chair in the middle of the temple.

"I strongly doubt you called us just for that, my God?" Shura asked after picking up the lance he dropped.

Raijin reached down into a golden bowl filled with fruits and picked up an apple in his paw. "I'm so bored, you know," he chuckled. "Sit down."

The three Priers obeyed and sat down in front of their God.

"Those pirates from the Blue Sea doesn't seem to bother you," he remarked.

"As for Satori, my God, he was seriously laking training," Shura said. "His Balloons Ordeal was nothing but a joke," he mocked.

"Don't be too confident, Shura," Raijin deadpanned. "You're pretty neglecting too. In case you don't know, Gan Fall is still alive," he said with toying with the apple.

"What?! Impossible: I killed him!" the aviator said in shock and disbelief.

"He's in bad shape, but still alive. This old man still have some fighting left in him. I don't know why, but he seems to be on good terms with those pirates from the Blue Sea," the God chuckled.

"And what those pirates from the Blue Sea want here?" Shura asked.

Raijin smirked. "What they want? It's simple: gold."

"Gold?!" Gedatsu asked in surprise.

"They have good infos. And how do they know where to find it?" Om asked.

"This place originates from the Blue Sea: it's no surprising that they know of its existence," the wolf said with rubbing his apple before taking a bite out of it. "They're gonna leave tomorrow and of course, the Shandias are planning on attacking us a second time."

He bit his apple again before continuing: "In Upper Yard, you each have a reserved territory which serves as a frontier and prevent the others from interfering, right? Tomorrow: I'm gonna delete those frontiers therefore allowing you to act as you please. You'll be able to place your ordeals where you want or just stay out of it if you wish to."

"Why taking such a decision in such a critical moment?" Gedatsu asked with a curious look.

"Well, true to be told, I almost finished my plans, so why not finishing what we have to do on this island as fast as possible?" the God asked with his mouth half filled by an apple bite. "We'll leave for the world of dreams soon."

* * *

Back in Upper Yard, Gan Fall was laying wide awake despite his comfortable sleeping couch on the floor. He was looking up at the dark sky and all the stars.

"...Those kids have defeated Satori. This time, we can definitely be sure that Raijin is their enemy. This also means the Shandia tribe won't let such an opportunity slip by." He then frowned. "Damnit, Raijin! What do you want?"

* * *

Meanwhile, on the shore at the entrance of Upper Yard, Wiper was sitting before a dying campfire in the camp his tribe had set for the night. Luckily, Kamakiri's wounds were not bad and he would still be able to fight tomorrow.

He was just starring at the burned wood with his heavy bazooka resting on his shoulder, lost in his thoughts.

"It might have gone wrong today, but tomorrow, we're gonna reach the sanctuary. One way or another." He then looked up at the full moon. "And then...we'll kill Raijin!"

* * *

Eventually, the sun rose over Upper Yard and all the life in it awoke. The Blue Thunder Crew returned to their ship and Apollo immediately let out a huge gasp.

"You see?! I told you a ghost came last night!" the barn owl exclaimed.

Indeed, the Saldanha has miraculously been fixed. The mat was back and the burnings had been covered by metal plates.

"The ship is fixed?!" everyone exclaimed in surprise.

"Man, I don't know who did this, but they even fixed our mat," Jewel pointed out as she putted her wing on the fixed mat.

"Great work for only one person: this piece is supposed to be extremely heavy," Arlene remarked.

"I'm sorry, but honestly, it's not very precise work," Lazaro said, pointing out the low-quality of the work.

"I wonder who could have done that. Outside of Gan Fall, Stuart and Margalo, we don't really have any friends here in Skyland," Dominic said with a suspicious look.

Alex then turned toward Apollo. "You said you've seen who did that? What did he looked like?"

"I already told you: he looked like a ghost," Apollo repeated himself. "Anyway, enough talking: let's get the boat back in the water."

It took the combined efforts of everyone, but they managed to push the Saldanha down in the cloud water. Everyone then got on the ship to talk about their action plan around the map.

"Alright, we traced the path for the exploration team," Jewel said. "To take it, they'll need to head south."

"We'll have to cross the ruins," Arlene remarked.

"Meanwhile, the driving team will take this river with the Saldanha," Jewel said with pointing her feather on a river near the ruins on the map. "It won't be easy, but we're gonna try to land as close as the ruins as we can." She then marked a x with a pencil farther on the river. "We'll reunite here and then, goodbye Celestial Island."

"And thanks to all the gold we'll find, we're gonna become rich," Lazaro remarked with an excited smile.

"I can't wait to leave this place," Apollo nervously mumbled.

It was decided that the driving team who will remain on the Saldanha would include Jewel, Apollo, Lazaro, Hernandez, and Pierre. The exploring one that will go explore the ruins, meanwhile, included Blu, Dominic, Alex, Vladimir, and Arlene.

"Our quest starts..."

* * *

 **Raijin finally made his big anticipated apparition! For those of you who don't know, Raijin (most commonly referred to as "Raiden") is the god of thunder, lightning and storm in shinto religion and Japanese mythology. He's often portrayed as a bear creating thunder by slamming on a drum, which is the reason why Raijin have a golden ring with five drums pierced onto it in this story.**


	220. The survival game begins!

After leaving the Saldanha, Blu, Dominic, Alex, Arlene and Vladimir started walking throughout the forest and toward the golden city with Arlene leading the way.

"So where are we supposed to go to reach those ruins?" Blu asked the scarlet macaw.

"According to the map, it's located south, so this is where we're going," she replied as they walked, not wanting to fly and waste their energy.

However, as the avians walked, Vladimir couldn't help but tilt his head with a suspicious look. "You noticed it too, Vladimir?" Dominic mumbled.

"Yeah, it's too quiet. I thought we would have met one or two enemies along the way," Vladimir said with a nod.

As the group kept walking, Alex, who was behind the trail, heard a strange noise coming from behind. Turning around, the kid saw a rather strange thing: some kind of turquoise-colored wall that was moving alone.

"This root looks very strange," he mumbled. "Hey guys, what's that?"

The others stopped walking and turned around. "You saw something, Alex?" Blu asked, just as the giant root had slipped away.

"I saw a strange root move alone," the kid said, still pointing toward the location.

"A root moving alone?" Vladimir asked. "Strange: the old knight didn't mentioned anything about that. We should just keep moving...?!"

The others turned around immediately understood why their golden eagle froze on the spot: before them was standing a giant snake even bigger than the trees with turquoise scales and yellow eyes shaped in a slit. These eyes were looking at them with a very hungry aura.

"What's that?!" Blu and Dominic asked simultaneously with their eyes wide open as Alex was screaming in fear and panic.

* * *

Meanwhile, back on the Milky Road, Apollo sighed as he stood on the front of the Saldanha, navigating toward the extraction point.

"What a lovely day, isn't it?" he happily asked.

"We're not here to have fun, dude," Hernandez calmly said.

"You're ruining the illusion I created around myself to block this scary forest!" the barn owl angrily replied.

"Hey guys, isn't it time for the old man to take his meds?" Jewel asked.

"You're right; I'm gonna go get them," Lazaro said and ran inside the ship's cabin.

Gan Fall was currently sitting back against the security barer of the front floor where Apollo was also standing. "You look a lot better now," the barn owl remarked with looking at the old man.

"Yes, indeed," the old man nodded with a little smile behind his huge beard. He was no longer wearing his heavy armor, but instead some lighter clothes until he felt better.

"That's good. You should thank Alex; he did a great job to heal you. And since you saved him, I think it means you're cool now," Apollo said with a chuckle. However, the knight remained silent which the owl noticed. "Is everything alright?"

"...Would you like to know a little more about this country?"

"What?" Apollo asked in confusion as Lazaro and Hernandez came closer to the knight and Pierre.

"Six years ago, I was the God of this place...," he calmly said.

"...Huh, are you feeling okay?" Apollo asked. "Cause you just said a completely senseless thing!"

This remark caused Pierre to angrily peck at his shoulder. "You probably know that Upper Yard appeared in Skypiea a very long time ago - 400 years ago, apparently. At this time, Skypiea was one of the most peaceful Celestial Islands. Sometimes, a bunch of stuff came to us from the Blue Sea, sent up by the Knock Up Stream. Those objects were very rare - so much that they were considered like treasures."

"All of the Vearth arrived here the same way. The day the whole Vearth known as Upper Yard rose up on the White Sea, everyone thought it was some kind of miracle. Naturally, they thought it was some kind of gift coming from above and worshipped it."

Jewel then arrived with the meds which she putted before the old knight. "Thank you. But we did not count the original habitants of the Vearth. A huge battle exploded to take control of it. The Shandia tribe was already occupying the island."

"Shandia? That's the name of the guerrilla?" Apollo asked.

"If I understand correctly, they were already living on this earth before it got pushed up in the sky, right?" Lazaro asked.

"Yes, and let's not forget that they were brought up here with the island against their will," Gan Fall nodded.

"So they were on their territory and you chased them off?" Jewel asked in surprise, knowing how they must have felt as the same thing happened to her tribe with lodgers.

"Indeed," Gan Fall said with looking down in shame. "Not caring about them, the Skypieans have kicked them out of their home. Four hundred years have passed since, but the war between the Skypieans and the Shandias is still raging on. Let's just say that the Shandias want to take their home back."

"That's an horrible story...," Jewel said with a sad look.

"So you're responsible for all of this?!" Hernandez asked.

"Yes, you're right," Gan Fall simply said. He then putted the pills into his mouth and used the cup of water Jewel brought him to swallow them.

"What about Raijin?" Jewel asked.

The old man finished drinking the water before replying. "He appeared when I was still a God. He came from another Celestial Island with an army and killed a lot among the elite army I was leading at the time. He took the power, kicked me out and rules over Upper Yard for six years now. The Sacred Guard is now forced to follow his rules and I know absolutely nothing about his projects. As for the Shandia tribe, they don't care who's the God: they just wanna get their Vearth back at any cost."

Lazaro rose a curious eyebrow. "If that's their only plan, like you said, then why did they attacked us when we arrived?"

Gan Fall looked down. "Amongst the members of the Sacred Guard, there are some that try to run away and get down on the Blue Sea. The Shandias see them as enemies and try to kill them if they see them. They must have thought you were fugitives."

"What?! But we cannot accept to get taken down by mistake!" Lazaro angrily said.

"This is the reason I became Knight of the Sky. To prevent deaths and allow fugitives to safely reach other islands. Since they became criminals, they cannot remain on a zone under Raijin's rule."

"Listening to you, I feel like this Raijin is more like a terror king than a God," Hernandez remarked.

"A terror king?" Gan Fall asked. "No; trust me, he's way worse than that. See, Raijin made sure that anyone getting near Skypiea gets immediately treated like a criminal. This gesture led to the creation of a shared guilty feeling amongst the citizens."

"When people get the certainty that what they did was wrong, they become weak. Raijin knows it and used it to his advantage, making sure to rule over the little paradise he built himself. But this is just a game where he pretends to be a God. This guy is the worst!"

The avians just starred at him and then at each other. "When we arrived here, we expected to find a heavenly world. We were totally wrong," Jewel mumbled. "This means the golden city has been pushed into a terrible world."

The old knight suddenly looked at her with interest. "Oh yes, hum, I wanted to ask you: what's this gold you and your friends have been talking about since last night?"

* * *

Meanwhile, back on the beach of Upper Yard, Laki joined the other Shandia warriors as Wiper was standing before them all, looking more determined than ever.

"Don't go think we'll have another chance, 'cause we won't!" the Komodo dragon firmly said. "Those of you who aren't confident just have to stay here: I won't be mad at them."

"Why are you doubting our determination, Wiper?" one of the warriors asked. "You know we've always been determined.

"In that case, are you ready to accomplish our goal, even if you have to step down on the corpses of your comrades on the way? If so, then you're ready to follow me." He then turned toward them with a serious glare. "Today, I'm gonna get Raijin's head..."

* * *

Back in the forest, Blu, Dominic, Alex, Vladimir and Arlene were flying as fast as their wings could go with the giant snake chasing them behind, very eager to eat them in one bite.

"He's very huge! I suppose it's because of the natural environment!" Arlene said, looking above her shoulder.

At one point, the giant snake launched forward with his jaw open, forcing the flock to fly in different directions to avoid getting snapped. Instead, the snake bit right into a giant tree, his massive jaw somehow managing to wrap itself around most of it.

"Despite his size, he's pretty darn fast!" Dominic remarked as he landed on a tree branch.

Everyone then looked in surprise as the snake removed his feng covered of purple liquid from the tree which was completely melted and collapsed with purple smoke!

"P-Poison!" Alex shouted in horror.

"Don't let his feng touch you or you're dead!" Dominic called.

The birds could only fly and dodge as the giant snake tried to eat them. Luckily, they ended up escaping him, but the problem was that in the confusion, all five birds got separated and ended up alone.

"We got a problem: there's no one left here," Arlene mumbled to herself as she looked all around. "I must have lost sight of them. Should I continue without them?"

"Guys! Where are you?!" Alex called in his reindeer form which he used to escape the snake, but was now alone.

"Where did they go?" Dominic asked with looking all around.

"Dunno; we should try to find them," Vladimir said.

"Guys?! Are you here?" Blu called. "Alright, Arlene said to head south; this is where they must have gone. Avian instincts, it's not time to let me down."

* * *

Meanwhile, back at the sanctuary where Raijin was laying on his comfy couch.

"Looks like there's some movement in the Shandia tribe," he said with drinking a cup of sake. "And the strangers from the Blue Sea are now cut into two groups with one of them having been separated. Looks like this day will be packed with action. I wonder how many of them will survive."

He then smirked. "Looks like my survival game has started. Ahahahaha!"

* * *

Down below, the Shandia warriors were dashing through the cloud sea and toward Upper Yard.

"We're heading for the divine sanctuary!" Wiper called ahead of the group. "We must not stop, regardless of what happens! Our one and only target is Raijin's head!"

The warriors cheered loudly behind their leader as they arrived at Upper Yard's entrance.

* * *

 **Blu's group got separated and we learned a little more about Upper Yard and the Shandia tribe. It's a bit sad they got kicked out of their territory.**

 **I suppose you probably know to which historic event this refer to, huh?**

 **For those of you who don't know, sake is an alcoholic drink pretty popular in Japan. Since Raijin is based on a Japanese god, I thought it would be fitting, don't you think?**


	221. Shura Skydriver vs Wiper the War Demon

_Previously: We finally saw God Raijin and this last one allowed his remaining Priers to make their respective Ordeal take place where they want to. A survival game have started in Upper Yard!_

* * *

"If I appeared before you as a mercenary upon your arrival, it's because the beings from the Blue Sea are not up for a celestial battle in here," Gan Fall explained, still resting against the Saldanha's security barer.

"Celestial battle?" Jewel curiously asked.

"Wait, can you bring that barrel closer?" the old man asked with pointing at a wooden barrel of beer Dominic bought not too long ago.

"Hum, okay." Lazaro and Hernandez worked together and brought the wooden barrel onto which Gan Fall placed a circular dial.

"Alright." He then turned toward Lazaro. "Now try to hit it as hard as you can."

"What?!" everyone asked simultaneously. "Why would you want me to do that?" the puffin asked.

"Just do it."

"...Okay."

"Hey, I warn you, Lazaro: if you make an hole in the ship's floor, I'm gonna kick your butt!" Apollo threatened.

But the puffin already jumped high and performed many flips while coming down before landing his foot on the seashell...but nothing happened!

"What?!" Lazaro exclaimed as he landed on his feet.

"Huh, Lazaro, I didn't told you to not put ANY strength into your kick; you could have gone a bit harder," Apollo remarked.

"B-But I've put all my strength into it," the puffin said, much to the surprise of his friends.

"Now, press it against the barrel and press on the button," Gan Fall then instructed.

Obeying, Lazaro took the dial into his flippers and pressed it against the wooden barrel. BAM! He suddenly got sent flying back and crashed into the barer as the bareel exploded, spilling the beer inside and sending shards fly with one of them hitting Apollo in the face.

"W-What the flesh?!" Lazaro asked in shock and looked at the old man.

"This is what we call an impact dial. It can absorb the impact of an attack and throw it back when you wish to. We usually place it in the palm of the hand and keep it in place with a glove or bandages," Gan Fall explained. "If you use it correctly, it is strong enough to take down an opponent on the spot."

Lazaro then realized something. "Hey, doesn't that remind you of something, Apollo?"

"Yeah; it's the same thing this balloon guy did," the barn owl nodded. "So he was using an impact dial."

"From what I've heard, there were once even stronger dials like this in the Celestial Islands," the old man continued. "It was called a reject dial and could release a charge ten times stronger than an impact dial. Bit it was a double-bladed weapon: the charge was so powerful that the user was putting his life in danger. This is why those dials have rarely been used."

"What?! There really are so dangerous seashells?" Apollo asked in disbelief.

"I thought people would only use them as items for their usual lives," Jewel remarked with rubbing the back of her head.

"Yes, but you know, anything with a positive side must have a negative one," Gan Fall remarked. "Any object can be used for good or bad ends: it depends on the user. By definition, dials are useful items, but can also become deadly weapons if they are used correctly during a fight."

"For example, a heat dial can warm up a meal, but can also heat up a weapon to the point of taking fire: this is what the Prier Shura do to set his lance on fire and make his vulture spit jets of flames."

"So this is a celestial battle?" Jewel asked.

"Yes. People from the Blue Sea who knows nothing about the dials cannot understand anything about their enemies' fighting tricks. The same goes for the clouds: they can be used in battle through a long and rough training, and those who don't know it can't do anything against such opponents."

"You also have an explanation for this mantra they're using to anticipate our every move?" Lazaro asked.

"Ah yes, the mantra," the old man said with rubbing his beard. "You know, I myself do not possess this power, so I cannot properly explain it, but I think it's a perception power. During all of his life, a being emanate a voice which express itself permanently."

"A voice?" Hernandez asked.

"Absolutely. It's thanks to this voice that a mantra user can predict his opponent's moves. And the more one train, the larger is radius in which one can hear voices. For example, Priers can hear in all Upper Yard's zone while Raijin can hear throughout the whole country."

"The mantra is an incredible power and its nature remains a mystery. And because of it, the people of this country cannot have their mind at ease even for a second..."

* * *

Meanwhile, up at the sanctuary.

"Are my troops gathered down below?" Raijin asked while laying back in his couch.

"Yes, they are ready and await orders," one of the monks replied. "The Priers are at the outpost followed by fifty sacred guard soldiers led by Yamma. Does it means you're engaging all our forces into this battle, God? Is it really necessary to do so for some Shandias and travelers from the Blue Sea?"

This question caused Raijin to laugh. "The more the merrier, right? Should I understand that you're underestimating the potential of this celestial battle, funny one?"

"Potential?" asked the monk who was standing near his God.

"Yes, absolutely. But you'll see this by yourself very soon." The wolf then started counting on his fingers. "Let's see... It makes fifty soldiers of the sacred guard on our side plus the three Priers, and with me, it makes a total of fifty-four."

"For now, there's twenty Shandias heading for the island. The intruders from the Blue Sea are five on their ship plus the five who ventured into the forest - no, actually four; the old man should no longer be able to fight. So we'll actually be eighty tree and we'll all fight during this survival game," Raijin said before laughing.

"Let's play a little game. According to you, who will still be alive after three hours?" he then asked.

"Another one of those games, huh?" one of the monks asked.

"Why, you don't like it?" Raijin asked. "Come on, give it a try."

"Hum, alright then," the monk started thinking. "Let's see... There's the three Priers and the fifty soldiers of the sacred guard who are extremely strong. They won't be easy to take down, but our enemies are strong too - enough to stand up against the Priers. So I'd say there will be...thirty deaths in three hours. Which will leave around thirty survivors."

Raijin suddenly started laughing again, his mouth full of a banana bite which he started eating. "Don't you think this scenario is a bit too optimistic? You take this battle way too lightly."

The monk rose a curious eyebrow. "In that case, what number would you give, Majesty?"

"Very well, I'll give my number: in three hours, the number of survivors will be reduced to...five!"

* * *

Back below, the Shandia warriors finally entered the Upper Yard forest and were now charging quickly with their rollers and skis through the woods toward the sanctuary, ready to face Raijin and his army.

However, the warriors were suddenly froze dead in their rush, unable to move at all.

"What's going ?!" a soldier asked.

"I can't move!" Bram said.

"What's the joke...?!" Kamakiri mumbled while struggling to move but in vain.

"Hello there."

Everybody looked up and gasped upon seeing a familiar aviator with his bird. "Shura!"

"Himself. You don't have to say it all: I know y name," the Prier chuckled while sitting on top of a rock with Fuza beside him. "I'm afraid I got bad news for you: things have radically changed in Upper Yard since that morning."

He then saw the warriors struggling. "There's no point in struggling, you cannot move. Your chances of survival in the Strings Ordeal are barely of 3%."

This statement caused Kamakiri to widen his eyes. "What?! The Strings Ordeal?!"

"But unfortunately, it's too late for you," Shura chuckled.

Kamakiri struggled and then looked at his body to see very thin strings that were barely visible wrapped all over his body along with everyone else's. "Cloud strings...?!"

"Well done," Shura said. "I wasn't expecting you to spot it so soon, but I trapped my whole territory with cloud strings. They are too thin to be seen, but once inside, even the strongest of men can't escape. They are too solid and you fell into them right at the moment you entered this island."

He then noticed a bothering detail. "Hey, wait a second. Where's your leader?"

"Here!"

The aviator looked up to see Wiper flying down toward him. Groaning, the Prier jumped on Fuza's back and immediately took off in the sky to dodge a bazooka shot from the Shandia.

"I hope you're not planning on defeating me in the sky!"

He charged at full speed, ready to pierce his opponent with his lance. Everybody looked in surprise as, instead of counter-attacking, Wiper dropped his bazooka and shield down, allowing Shura to stab his lance into his left shoulder, setting it on fire in the process.

"Why did you drop your weapons? You're crazy!" Shura asked in confusion.

However, the Shandia leader planted his left bandaged hand (and arm) into the Prier's chest. Kamakiri widened his eyes in surprise. "He's not gonna...!"

"I won't hesitate to sacrifice my shoulder to take you down!" the Komodo dragon said, the fire on his shoulder illuminating the side of his face and making him look like a demon.

"You think you,ll take me down with a simple impact dial?" Shura asked.

"No; I'm gonna take you down with an REJECT!"

BAM!

Next thing he knew, Shura felt a powerful pulse blast through his chest and spat a lot of blood as his body was destroyed and he fell down from Fuza, crashing on the ground down below with a loud thud.

As Fuza flew away in fear, Wiper landed on the ground and groaned in pain while rubbing his bandaged arm. Everybody looked in shock at the unconscious figure of Shura laying on the ground. He was defeated.

* * *

"Shura have already been defeated?" Raijin mumbled. He then laughed. "The moron didn't took this battle seriously."

"This is no good: nobody had defeated a Prier in the last six years," one of the monks said.

"There's no point crying for the lost ones," the God said with laying back in his couch. "Gotta believe God was not on their side," he said and laughed at the joke.

* * *

"Wiper! You wanna die?!" Kamakiri asked in shock. "If you use the reject dial again, your body could get permanent damages!"

The leader didn't answered and simply grabbed his shield and bazooka up, using this last one to shoot a blast at the source of the cloud strings which caused them to drop, releasing all of his men.

"It doesn't matter if I lose my life or not!" he firmly said. "You don't think we'll win this war without a price to pay, do you?!"

The leader then dashed away, leaving his men alone. Kamakiri was about to finish Shura off, but got stopped by Bram.

"This is no time to hesitate: we're in enemy territory and need to keep moving on," the gunslinger said. "If we were to get trapped together in the same spot, it would be over. I'm gonna go ahead."

And with that, the shooter dashed forward all by himself. Kamakiri just starred before turning around. "We're gonna do the same. May luck be with you, my friends."

The Komodo dragon dashed while all the others did the same.

* * *

Meanwhile, Blu was still walking alone by himself in the forest. "Guys! Where are you?" he called, hoping his four friends would hear him. "Dominic! Alex! Vladimir! Arlene!"

No response. "Cheese and sprinkles! Where are they? They didn't go that far?"

However, he stopped dead in his tracks as he saw a shadow with a strange form on the floor. Curious, he turned toward the source...and was surprised to see a familiar Komodo dragon standing on a branch with an unhappy look.

"Seriously? You again?" he groaned. "You can tell me what you're doing here? I told you to leave this island!"

Blu blinked his eyes before narrowing them into a glare. "Look, now's not the time: I gotta find my friends and head south, so leave alone, would ya?"

He resumed walking. "Wait!" Wiper called.

"What?!" Blu annoyingly asked.

"...Nothing, I have nothing else to tell you." He then turned toward him and charged his bazooka. "Chatting isn't my thing and I have no more time to waste. I'm simply gonna finish you off right here and right now."

Blu blinked his eyes a few times before rolling them and taking a fighting stance. "Alright, if you insist, I'll take you down in one hit and I'll join my friends after."

Wiper gave a devilish smirk. "As if..."

* * *

 **Raijin's game have officially started. Shura have been defeated by Wiper (you thought he was too weak? Think again!). Two Priers down; two to go.**

 **I don't think this battle will top the war of Sequin, but I will try to do my best.**


	222. Dominic vs Bram

Arlene stepped into a part of the forest where she found what looked like parts of an ancient civilization. She reached her wing and touched the old stone structure; it was dusty and covered of vines. She frowned and then continued walking.

Meanwhile, very far from there, Dominic and Vladimir were walking side by side. "You know, it's not gonna be easy to fight the guerrilla and Priers in such conditions. We're not the best fly fighters in here," Dominic mumbled.

"You have a technique for that, don't you?" Vladimir asked his friend.

"Yes; Falcon Wings, but it will only work if my enemy isn't too strong." Dominic suddenly saw a shadow on the ground and turned around to see Fuza the vulture flying down toward him. This caused a smirk to form on his beak.

"FALCON WINGS!" he shouted with taking out two sabers, jumping, and cutting the giant vulture down in mid-flight. Dominic landed on the ground with many purple feathers and blood landing around him.

"That wasn't exactly it, but it's already a good start." Dominic pulled his sabers away and resumed walking with Vladimir. "Let's go."

* * *

"HELP ME!"

Alex was getting chased by white goats wearing white monk robes with weaver rollers. The kid took a Reindeer Candy to run away through the forest at full speed. As if things couldn't get any worst, Shandia warriors appeared before him - thought they engaged the goats in combat instead of attacking him.

"IN WHAT KIND OF MESS DID I GOT MYSELF INTO AGAIN?!" the kid shouted while running through the battlefield, trying not to get himself killed.

* * *

Back to Arlene, the scarlet macaw felt and heard the loud echoing explosions. "Looks like there's a battle going on in the forest," she thought before turning back to the ancient houses.

"Those houses have been built far from civilization. They have been recovered by vegetation. But for now, I only care about the city's ruins; let's hope they have been untouched," she mumbled.

She suddenly heard a goat's noise and looked up to see a goat soldier of the sacred guard landing on top of an house, causing pieces of it to collapse in the process.

"A woman alone in here?" he asked with looking down at Arlene. "Know, stranger, that this path leads to the divine sanctuary. I don't recommend you to get there."

Arlene just narrowed her eyes at him. "Get down! You don't seem to realize the valor of those historical architectures. Am I wrong?"

The goat looked offended. "You little brat!"

"What do you want?" Arlene asked.

The goat smirked and took a pose. "In the name of God Raijin, I'm gonna exterminate all of you, Shandias and strangers from the Blue Sea! Thanks to me axe dial!"

Arlene had no idea of what was an axe dial and she frankly didn't really cared. Rising her wing, she summoned vines around the soldier's legs and snapped them in one move, causing him to fall down on the floor and groan loudly in pain.

She then walked beside him and mumbled in his ear: "And don't you ever damage ancient architectures like this again, got it?!"

* * *

PAF!

Back to another part of the forest, Dominic knocked a Shandia warrior down with one punch in the face. "Who was that guy anyway?" he asked with a scoff.

"I think it was one of those guerreros Gan Fall talked about," Vladimir pointed out before seeing something else. "What's that?"

A sacred guard soldier was backing up in what seemed to be fear. "Please! I surrender! You won! Just let me go-"

POW! POW!

The goat got taken down and killed by two gunshots. Bram suddenly jumped out of the bushes and quickly got his attention away from the goat he killed and toward the two golden eagles."Hey, who are you?! Are you one of those Priers?!" Dominic asked with a wing on the handle of his saber.

Bram replied by rising his two little pistols and shot ammo that created a strange light which blindfolded the two golden eagles, but they still managed to roll out of the way in time. Not giving up, the Shandia warrior used his weaver to jump high and shot multiple times at the avians.

Dominic ran away while Vladimir simply turned his body into stone to block them. "He's got a blinding pistol?!" Dominic asked as Bram ran out of sight again. "Where did he go?!"

"Here."

The golden eagles barely got time to turn around before receiving a double spin kick to the face from the human who appeared between them. The both groaned in pain and coughed as they stood up.

"You sure are though," Bram remarked. "I regret underestimating you, avians from the Blue Sea."

However, Dominic simply smirked and took out Sabor. "I'm the one who was wrong here: I took you were a mere soldier." He then turned toward Vladimir. "Vladimir, stay out of this: I want to take on this guy by myself."

He was a bit surprised, but respected his friend's wish and stepped aside. Both opponents glared at each other in silence for a moment with only the wind between them until the human activated his weavers and charged at the golden eagle who managed to roll away to avoid what would have been a deadly kick.

"He didn't even took momentum?!" Dominic thought as he went to hide behind bushes. "Stuart said there was many types of weavers. This is one of them? He can use its pulse to fly in the air without needing to run. And that's not all: his pistols produce flashes that blinds me. I wonder where he went now?"

He immediately got his answer as a flash appeared him him and, by reflex, he rolled down to avoid two bullets. Groaning, he putted Sabor in his beak before taking out Eau De Mort and Snow Run, running toward Bram and dodging his bullets on the way.

"TIGER SLASH!" He swung his three sabers at the Shandia who managed to jump out of the way in time with his weavers.

"A three swords technique?!" Bram thought in surprise.

Jumping high, he shot more flashing bullet sat the eagle who blocked them with his sabers before running up along a giant tree and jumped toward him. However, Bram took out a dial, pressed on its button, and tossed it forward to create a milky road.

"You might be a fine swordsman, with no dials, you stand no chance against me!" He jumped on the cloudy path with his weavers and dashed toward the golden eagle. "You know this? Milky dial!"

He arrived before Dominic and planted his pistols right in his face. Seeing his life flashing before his eyes, Dominic managed to throw his head back to dodge the bullets just in time. Unfortunately, he didn't got so lucky as Bram managed to shoot a bullet into his left leg right at the moment he landed down, causing him to groan in pain.

"Yusef!" Vladimir exclaimed in shock from the sidelines as his friend went to hide behind a tree.

"What an idiot I am!" Dominic thought while holding his leg in pain. "I was not focused enough. Man, this guy's incredible: one moment of distraction and I'm done for it! If I don't find a way to take down his flashing pistols, I'm gonna become like a wolf's rabbit!"

His time of rest got cut short as Bram jumped out of nowhere and started shooting at him again, forcing the golden eagle to run despite the pain in his leg. He groaned silently and tried not to show the pain he was feeling.

"Trying to run?" Bram asked.

However, far from it, Dominic stopped moving and stood still. "...Sight. Hearing. Smell. Taste. Touch. Thought. And unto the six mortal senses. Good. Evil. Neutrality."

Bram rose a confused eyebrow. "What nonsense is that?"

Dominic closed his eyes and mumbled: "And further unto each, purity and corruption. The 36 earthly desires of this world." He opened his eyes and held Sabor upward. "I am facing the muzzle of a canon at you. You are a pistol. I am a canon. In timing and power, my weapon surpasses yours. You did well, but...you're going down!"

Bram didn't really understood, but didn't really wanted to. He grabbed another milky dial and tossed it down to charge at Dominic once more. "A canon? Has he lost his mind? How could he have a weapon like that?" the Shandia wondered as he rose his pistols.

Dominic smirked even more. "Have you seen the Flying Blade Attack?"

"What an idiot! Die!"

Dominic focused hard. "One Sword Style!" Just as Bram started shooting, Dominic swung his saber which sent a spinning air slash that knocked Bram high into the air, making him spit blood in the process. "36-pound Canon!"

The attack left a massive cut on Bram's abdomen and made him drop his pistols before landing on the ground. Vladimir looked in awe as his friend defeated a yet dominating opponent with only one move. Dominic rubbed his cheek to se some blood from a cut caused by his new attack.

"Yeah, that's not exactly it, but that did the job," he mumbled with putting Sabor away. "You were right: it's painful. I have nothing against you, but know that I'm not the kind to lay back and do nothing. I will survive at any cost..."

* * *

As the fight between God's army and the Shandia tribe raged on, Gedatsu threw away the corpse of a soldier to whom he just broke the neck with his tentacle.

"That's all? Too weak," he mumbled. "Hum?"

He saw Alex walking by with a sad and tired look. "I'm alone and the others are all missing. I'm gonna die!" However, he whipped his tears away and took a positive look. "No! I'm the doctor of the Blue Thunder Crew! I'm strong and I don't need any help!"

Behind him, Gedatsu curiously blinked his eyes as the kid failed to notice his presence. "...What's this snowball doing here?"

* * *

Back to Blu, Wiper rose his bazooka and shot a blast at him. The macaw filled his lungs with air until his belly became a balloon which sent the blast fly and explode away.

"Your dumb attacks won't take me down!" Blu said after returning to his normal size.

Wiper scoffed before charging his bazooka and shooting two more blasts which Blu countered the exact same way, sending them away.

* * *

However, something more terrible was happening back on the Saldanha. Gan Fall, Apollo, and Jewel were looking in horror as Lazaro and Hernandez were laying on the wooden floor, roasted like chickens, their feathers burned and steam coming out of their body.

"Lazaro! Hernandez!" Apollo shouted as he rushed at the puffin's side while Jewel went to see the pelican. "Please guys, say something!"

Pierre went to run into hiding while Gan Fall glared at the intruder sitting at the edge of the ship who chuckled.

"Poor idiots. While I came here with no intention of harming you; it was for another reason," Raijin calmly said.

"What are you here for?!" Gan Fall asked with a deadly glare.

"Ahahaha, come on, don't be so cold with me, old man," the wolf chuckled. "We haven't see each other for six years, dear predecessor, Gan Fall..."

* * *

 **Dominic managed to defeat Bram of the Shandia tribe. Let's hope Alex can do the same with Gedatsu and Blu with Wiper. But the biggest problem will be for the others as Raijin appeared on their ship!**

 **Except that, happy Thanksgiving everyone! Enjoy this time with your family and friends. May God (not Raijin) keep you all :)**


	223. Blu Gunderson vs Wiper the War Demon

_Previously: Dominic defeated Shandia warrior Bram and Raijin attacked the Saldanha, taking down Lazaro and Hernandez. Now, Blu is about to face up with Wiper of the Shandia tribe. It's the captain of the Blue Thunder Crew against the War Demon..._

* * *

"NO!" Apollo panicked back on the Saldanha. "HE KILLED LAZARO! I CAN'T FEEL HIS HEARTBEAT!"

"It's because you're touching the wrong side of his chest," Jewel remarked with her eyes half-closed.

Apollo starred at her for a moment before touching the puffin's other side of the chest and feeling a weak but still present heartbeat. He sighed in relief.

"He's still badly hurt; they could die," Jewel remarked. "If only Alex was there."

Gan Fall looked at his friends and then back at the still smiling Raijin. "Raijin...!" he grumbled.

"Come on, don't show so much hate; it's been so long since we've seen," the wolf said, as if talking to an old friend."Wouldn't you rather show how happy you are to see me again, Gan Fall?"

Apollo gently pulled Lazaro down and stood up toward the god with taking a brave pose. "What have you done to my friends?! Come on, show me if you have the guts to do it again! But I warn you: my eight thousand men will never forgive you if you even scratch me. But you're lucky: I'm in a generous mood today. So if you go right now, I'll forgive you."

The wolf just starred blankly at the barn owl before disappearing into lightning. "Great! It worked!" Apollo beamed. However, Raijin then appeared right before him. "...Or not."

Touching the barn owl's forehead with one finger, the god sent a giant lightning wave through his body which left him in the same state as Lazaro and Hernandez, collapsing onto the floor like a roasted chicken.

"APOLLO!" Jewel screamed in horror.

"Monster!" Gan Fall angrily said.

"...I advice you to remain silent if you don't want anything to happen to you," the wolf said with a small glare toward Jewel. This warning caused her to immediately plant her wings against her beak to prevent any scream from coming out. He then surprisingly smiled at her. "Everything's fine."

"You fool! What are you doing here and what for?" Gan Fall angrily asked.

"When I first landed feet on this island, six years ago, your men, the sacred guard, decided to join me and are now working under my command. I must recognize they have a lot of talent and are physically blessed."

"But now, the project I took six years to build is finally reaching its final stage. This means the great day is getting closer and I'll have no more reason to remain on this island. Which is why I came down here: to tell you goodbye."

"Oh, just one last thing: let me tell you that the people of Skypiea are extremely naive. For them, this island is just a huge pile of Vearth and they don't see it in any different light."

"What do you mean?" Gan Fall asked.

"I'm talking about the reason why I took this island from by force, and it's a good reason. And it's also the reason why the ships from the Blue Sea have come to the White Sea and why the Shandia tribe is desperately trying to get their home back."

"In other words, there's only one thing everyone come to get on this island...the mystical golden city also known as Shandora!"

Gan Fall suddenly widened his eyes. "What are you saying?! Gold? I don't understand!"

Raijin laughed again. "This is why I said you were too naive. The only persons who don't know about this city's existence are its own habitants. This can seem like a shock, but it will be the final battle. And the final survivor of my game will become the owner of this huge mountain of gold."

He then walked to the side and onto the ship's security barer, listening to the distant sound of battles. "You hear that? Those are the sounds of my party. To be perfectly honest, I'm also one of the players in this game. I must go now."

"Raijin wait!" Gan Fall called, but it was too late as the wolf already disappeared into lightning.

With the God being gone, Jewel felt a little relief and checked over Apollo, happily seeing that he was still alive. Unfortunately, the joy moment was to be cut short as two figures suddenly landed on the ship and Jewel turned toward them...

* * *

BOOM!

Wiper angrily groaned as Blu deflected all of his bazooka shots with his belly inflating technique.

"You're wasting your time: bazooka, canon or gun, it doesn't have any effect on me!" Blu called at the Shandia warrior.

"Yeah, I can see that. I'm just gonna have to change my attack style." Opening the side of his bazooka, Wiper inserted some kind of dial inside it before aiming at Blu and pressing the rigger which sent a wind blowing in his direction.

Blu didn't really understood what was the point of this attack...before he smelled the wind and realized it was gas! Wiper then pressed the trigger again which sent a jet of blue fire right into Blu's direction. Widening his eyes, the macaw managed to move out of the way in time, thought the explosion knocked him away onto the ground, some minor damage. But it would have been far worse, had the fire touched him.

"What the heck?! He almost turned me into ashes!" Blu said as he got back up and saw the tree he was standing was completely burned. He also noticed Wiper was no longer there. "Hey, where'd he go?"

He almost immediately got his answer as he felt a move behind him and moved just in time to duck a spinning kick from the Komodo dragon. The macaw quickly replied with a stretched punch which Wiper dodged and pushed his wing away before using his weaver to jump up on another branch.

Not wanting to give him time to rest, Blu jumped up and sent a stretched kick toward the reptile who blocked with his own foot. Not stopping, Blu started throwing his fists over and over again which forced Wiper to keep moving in order to dodge and also used his tribal shield to block them.

Eventually, he landed behind Blu with the tip of his bazooka right beside his face. The macaw only briefly smelled the gas before moving out of the way to avoid getting turned into a roasted chicken.

"That was close!" Blu thought before launching his fist yet again.

Wiper caught it in his free hand and span to slam Blu hard onto the ground. He then jumped up high and shot another blue fire blast which would've killed Blu, had he not launched his wing to grab a branch and move out of the way.

Having enough of messing around, both fighters charged, ready to finish the other off. Blu threw his wings backward while Wiper charged his bazooka for another shot.

"POWER SLAM!"

"BLUE FIRE BLAST!

Launching their attack at the same time, Blu's wings collided with Wiper's stomach, making him spit blood and getting knocked back into a tree. Meanwhile, his blue fire blast touched Blu which knocked him many feet away and left him with burned feathers.

After taking back from the hit, Wiper coughed a bit before using his bazooka to sit up. "...What a bastard...!"

Meanwhile, Blu groaned in pain as he weakly sat up on his side. Excepting his body, he found some burned feathers and marks of dirts, but no serious wounds. Thankfully, 'cause he almost felt like dying after this burning shot.

"He almost killed me..."

As he was about to go back to the fight, Blu suddenly spotted a shadow rising on the floor. He barely had time to turn around and see a big open mouth before getting ducked into darkness.

On the other side, Wiper was still waiting for his opponent to come back. "WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?! I KNOW YOU'RE STILL ALIVE! COME AND KEEP FIGHTING!"

But he received no answer. He waited for many seconds in vain as Blu didn't came back tp pursue their fight. Eventually, he had enough and sighed. He didn't had time to waste his energy on a Blue Sea stranger like him. He had to manage himself and keep some strength for when he would face Raijin.

"Just you wait Raijin: I'm coming for you..."

* * *

Meanwhile, in the part of Upper Yard with some little ruins, Genbo panted as he took down many soldiers of the sacred guard with his bazooka. They were not too strong for him, but that didn't made them any weaker to the Shandia warrior.

"Seriously? They're sending the lower fighters of the sacred guard to face me?" the big man asked himself as he reloaded his bazooka.

He suddenly heard loud steps coming his way. "Your bazooka ammo are not common: they are way too heavy. You're using cannonballs made of Vearth, don't you?"

The intruder was a goat monk, but way larger than the normal ones and with a sash tied around his waist.

"Yamma! Leader of the sacred guard!" Genbo said with narrowing his eyes toward the monk.

Rising his bazooka, he shot a cannonball at the monk who didn't seemed interested. Instead, he jumped, caught the cannonball between his feet, and threw it back right into Genbo's stomach, knocking him hard into a tree and making him spit a lot of blood as the ball buried itself deeply into his stomach.

The poor Shandia collapsed and held his stomach in pure agony. "Crap...!" he groaned and looked up at Yamma. "I have no intention of dying in such a dumb way!"

"Still alive? You're though," Yamma remarked. "To reward you, I'm gonna show you my best secret technique."

Turning his sash around, Yamma revealed many axe dials and ran toward the powerless Shandia warrior. Launching his body onto Genbo's, he activated all those axe dials which cut deeply through his body's sending blood flying into the air as extra damage.

Once he moved back, he saw Genbo's body covered of blood before collapsing onto the floor. "It's the end for you, but I have admiration for holding on so much."

* * *

Meanwhile, back on the Saldanha, Jewel slowly backed away from the two figures. They were strange balloon guys with faces in the middle of their bodies with yellow sunglasses on their eyes and laughing in synch.

"What do you want? Who are you?" Jewel asked.

"Forget the who are you and what do you want!" the said in perfect synch. "You eliminated our brother Satori and we want revenge!"

Jewel rose a confused eyebrow. "What do you mean I killed your brother? I don't even know him."

"Forget about the I don't know who he is! Allow us to introduce ourselves: we're Hotori and Kotori! We're twin brothers and you killed our older brother!"

"Are you deaf? I just told you I don't know your brother!" Jewel repeated herself.

"I know who it was," Gan Fall suddenly said. "Satori was one of the four Priers under Raijin's command. He had an important role: he was the one charged to protect the Lost Forest."

"I understand: it's the Prier that got defeated by Blu and the others," Jewel realized.

"Exactly. Satori was the third brother among them."

"So you recognize what you've done! We will never forgive you!" the sibling balloons shouted at unison.

Gan Fall narrowed his eyes. "Pierre!" The pink pegasus arrived with the old man's lance in his mouth and tossed it at him as he caught it in his hand. "This is gonna end now: hurt or not, I won't lose against you!"

Jewel's stare turned toward her three unconscious friends. She then looked back at the enemies and took out her Wind Waker staff in wings.

"I don't think you should interfere in this fight, young girl," Gan Fall commanded.

"I can't stay back: even I sometimes have to protect my crew mates!" Jewel firmly said with taking a fighting stance.

Gan Fall looked at the girl and smiled at her determination. "I see. Alright then, but you must first try to guess which type of dials they're using."

"Okay," Jewel nodded.

* * *

Meanwhile, Blu groaned as he slowly opened his eyes. "Ouch! My head... What happened?"

He quickly remembered what happened: he was in a fight with the Komodo dragon of the guerrilla when something jumped on him. He now scooted his surroundings to see he was in what looked like a huge dark tunnel with pieces of stone houses laying everywhere and a very bad smell invading his nostrils.

"W-Where am I?!"

* * *

"Guys! Where are you?"

Alex was still walking amongst the ancient ruin houses with the ground starting to turn into cloud underneath his feet. No matter how hard he called, he just couldn't find his friends. He suddenly stopped in his tracks as he noticed a shadow coming from behind him. The kid slowly turned around and gasped as a dark octopus was standing before him.

"Lost, little snowball?" Gadetsu asked.

* * *

 **Blu fought with Wiper and got swallowed by a beast and Lazaro, Hernandez and Apollo have been putted down by Raijin. Alex is on the verge of facing Gedatsu of the four Priers. Will he make it out alive?**


	224. Snowball Alex vs Sky Boss Gedatsu

**The war is raging on in Upper Yard and there has already been a lot of lost both on the Shandia and sacred guard's side. Who will come out alive of Raijin's survival game?**

* * *

Arlene was walking alone through the forest, finding more and more pieces of the ancient civilization. She soon came across a large cube-shaped stone with strange writings on it.

"Here's a monument in memory of the city," she mumbled. "It has been built after its destruction by the people. Shandora. That's the name of the ancient city."

The scarlet macaw reached her wing to touch the writings implanted into the stone and took out a notebook from her backpack to take notes.. "Year 402, this city lived a great prosperity that lasted more than a thousand year. Three hundred year later, she completely collapsed."

Arlene frowned a bit. "Those writings totally correspond to the story that happened a hundred year ago, but have no trace remaining in the world today. Which means...this city probably holds the secret of the Forgotten Century."

She then noticed something else on the architecture. "A map of the golden city. Maybe I'll find more answers of that time period in the center of the city." She suddenly heard a loud step behind and quickly turned around. "Who's there?!"

The intruder was none other than Yamma, the leader of the sacred guard. "Well, well, what a beautiful young girl we got there."

"Are you one of God's servants?"

"Servants? You should watch your tongue: you're talking to Yamma, leader of the sacred guard."

Arlene rolled her eyes. "Alright, what do you want, leader of the sacred guard?"

"You'll know very soon," he said with a loud laughter.

* * *

Back to Alex, the kid was looking nervously at the dark octopus that was towering over him.

"You're an enemy! But you're not one of the Priers, are you?" Alex asked as he slowly backed up.

"Yes I am! Gedatsu, master of the Swamps Ordeal!" the octopus said with taking a pretty ridiculous pose. "You better watch out where you put your feet: this is my territory! I spread viso nimbus all around here. If you get trapped into one of them you won't be able to escape. You only have 50% chances of survival in here."

"Swamps?" Alex curiously asked.

"Yes, the Swamps Ordeal!"

"Then why are you sinking into the ground?" Alex asked, pointing at the fact that Gedatsu was slowly sinking into the cloudy ground.

"...No, no, no: it's only to get a boost! Look!" the octopus said and suddenly jumped out of the cloud and high into the air. "Milky dial!"

"Wow! A flying octopus?! That's original!" Alex said, noticing the milky dials tied to his tentacles which were responsible for boosting him up in the sky.

Gedatsu then rose two of his tentacles and started creating purple steam out of them. "Hey, the talking snowball! I'm gonna take you down in one hit! Swamp Cloud Burger!"

He tossed the little purple cloud in Alex's direction. However, at the very same moment, a sacred guard soldier arrived into the field and the Swamp Cloud Burger instead turned toward him, trapping his upper body.

The goat started struggling to get the cloud away, but couldn't as it was caught on him and his hooves would only go through the cloud, unable to remove it. Alex then realized that he was suffocating as it was impossible to breath into a nimbus. Soon, he collapsed onto the ground, getting close to die, but Alex quickly ran to grab his legs and drag him out of the Swamp Cloud Burger.

He quickly jumped onto the goat's stomach to make him spit the cloud liquid and make him pant. "You're okay?" the kid asked.

The goat weakly looked at the snowy owl. "Thanks, you saved my life, kid."

Gedatsu suddenly landed on top of an ancient house. "Saved by your own enemy! Are you not ashamed?! And you pretend to be a soldier of the sacred guard who fight for his God?!"

The soldier narrowed his eyes toward the Prier. "I don't like your tone! I'm done enduring you! You're the next victim!" he said with kicking up and taking a fighting stance.

Alex smiled and did the same. "Yes! We'll work together to take him down!"

Gedatsu just glared. "Very well then. Jet Punch!"

The octopus passed into a blur and curled his tentacle like a fist to smash the goat across the face, knocking him into an house which completely collapsed. Alex widened his eyes and trembled. when did he move? He didn't saw anything!

"...The jet dial, a long forgotten weapon that makes my fist go so quick that my opponent doesn't even realize what's happening to him!" the octopus explained with showing a steaming dial tied around his tentacle. "The only bad side is that it leaves a mark on my skin."

Alex looked at the unconscious, defeated goat in fear. "S-So that's the power of the Priers?! I-I must run away!" Pushing a scream, the kid started flying away. "I must get back in the forest and out of those swamps! Quick!"

However, he was stopped dead in his tracks as the octopus appeared before him, much to his shock and confusion. "Running away, snowball? Jet Punch!"

Alex quickly ate a Muscle Candy to transform into his strong shape and used his powerful legs to jump high into the air. Unfortunately, this was proven to be pretty much useless as the octopus used his milky dials to jump after him.

He swung his tentacle for a smash which Alex managed to dodge. "Swamp Cloud Burger!" Alex widened his eyes as the octopus threw another purple cloud that would suffocate him.

"Crap! Balloon Candy!"

Eating said candy, Alex turned into a balloon which deflected the cloud and sent it flying away. Not about to let him land safely, Gedatsu went for another Jet Punch which touched the fury ball, sending it crash into an house that collapsed.

"Crap!" Alex thought as he started bleeding from the head. "The softness of the Balloon Candy was not enough to protect me from that hit..."

* * *

Back to Arlene, the scarlet macaw moved around to dodge the big goat who tried to hit her, but ended up damaging the pieces of ancient civilization instead.

"Stop! Don't damage those ancient architectures! Don't you know how valuable they are?!" Arlene angrily asked.

Yamma just laughed. "You should worry for yourself instead of those ruins."

Sweating nervously, Arlene kept dodging the punches before the inevitable happened: Yamma smashed through the block she was reading and noting into her notebook, damaging it badly.

This caused her to glare at him with dread. "You moron!"

* * *

Alex groaned on the cloudy floor after taking yet another Jet Punch from Gedatsu. The octopus was starring down at him from the top of an ancient house. How could he win against such a strong opponent, he who couldn't even defeat the Vulture Leader, back in the Valley of Peace.

However, as he thought about it, an idea came into his mind and a smile formed on his beak. Fighting through the pain and blood flowing from his head, the kid jumped up to grab the octopus' tentacles into his muscled hands.

"What are you doing?! Let me go!" Gedatsu said and smashed Alex in the face, causing him to fall down on the floor again. "Swamp Cloud Burger!"

Refusing to give up, Alex jumped high into the air once again, dodging the suffocating purple cloud Gedatsu threw at him. "Just give up already!" the octopus angrily said. "Sky is also part of my territory!"

"Come on, come at me!" Alex nervously thought.

Luckily, the octopus did just that, jumping toward him with his milky dials...only to suddenly start spinning in every direction in the sky. "What the heck?! What's going on...?!" Gedatsu asked before realizing many of his milky dials were missing from his tentacles, explaining why he lost control.

"Crap! This bastard stole one of my dials!"

Alex smirked at his opportunity and then ate a Reindeer Candy to change into a reindeer before pressing his hooves together. "Eat that! ROSE HOOVES!" He smashed the octopus with his strongest attack, leaving a pink hooves mark on his chest and making him spit blood.

The reindeer kid landed on his hooves as Gedatsu landed on his head on the floor, covered of blood and unconscious. It took a few seconds of rest before Alex realized the truth: he had won!

"I DID IT! I DEFEATED A PRIER! I'M A RELA PIRATE!" Alex happily beamed after returning to his normal form.

* * *

Meanwhile, very far from there, Aisa, the little dove was flying over the White Sea and toward Upper Yard. She groaned and cried a bit as she felt another voice fading away. Sure, it was one of the Priers, but still.

She regained her composure and tried to remain focused despite all the voice fading by the minutes. However, she took time to look down and saw a weaver with two people on it driving toward the island. She decided to fly lower and saw it was drove by a white mouse with a yellow canary sitting at the back.

Looking up, Margalo spotted the little dove. "Hey, you! You're a Shandia, right?" Aisa glared and landed on the ship with a strange fighting stance. "Don't be afraid, we're-"

"I'm not afraid!" the dove cut her off. "I'm a proud warrior of Shandora! Skypieans doesn't scare me!" she said with a forced hostile tone.

However, she calmed down upon sensing something touch her legs and looked down to see Sue nuzzling against her feet. Margalo giggled.

"This is Sue. Looks like he already love you."

Indeed, the more Sue rubbed against her feet, the more Aisa calmed. Eventually, she smiled and patted the little fox.

"My name's Margalo."

"And I'm Stuart," the white mouse said without looking away from the driving direction. "What's your name?"

"My name's Aisa," she replied. "Look, I know we just met, but do you think you can get me to Upper Yard?"

This question caused Stuart and Margalo to look in surprise. "Believe it or not...but I can hear the voices of people. No matter how far they are, I can hear them fade away." Tears started forming in her eyes. "There are so many of them..."

Margalo putted her wing on the dove's shoulder. "True to be told, we're heading for Upper Yard too. We're going there to find the pirates from the Blue Sea and bring them back to the frontier of Skypiea."

Aisa looked surprised. "You know those people on this ship? They were trying to escape the forest!"

Surprised, Margalo putted both of her wings on Aisa's shoulders. "You know where they are? It's important!"

The little girl nodded a yes. "Think you can lead us there?" Stuart asked.

"Okay!"

* * *

Meanwhile, Alex drank a lot of water from his gourd. "I wonder if the others have already reached the ancient ruins? But if that's not the case, then I'll go get the treasure all by myself!"

* * *

 **Cool! Alex managed to defeat Gedatsu! That makes only one Prier remaining: Om and his big dog! If they keep it up like this, Raijin can already consider himself defeated! Maybe?**


	225. Raijin's nature finally revealed!

**This one will have slightly more violence into it, just to warn you off.**

* * *

Somewhere in Upper Yard's forest, Kamikiri was riding on the Milky Road with a dial-powered ski, followed by another warrior. The fight has been going on for very long now and he couldn't help but groan because of the wounds he sustained before and during the survival game.

"Kamakiri! You're fine?" the other warrior asked.

"Don't worry about that! Be rather careful about what happens around!" the Komodo dragon replied before looking up as they came into a place where the trees showed the sky and a giant vine coming out of the ground and into the sky was visible in the distance. "Look! It's the Giant Jack! This means we're getting close to the Shandora ruins! Raijin must be up there!"

He suddenly heard a groaning noise behind him and quickly turned around to see his companion had disappeared. The Komodo dragon quickly stopped his run and looked all around for him.

"Somebody called for me?"

Kamakiri froze in place as he recognized this voice. Slowly turning around, he gasped upon seeing an horrifying sight: on a tree branch was standing none other than Raijin himself! He was holding his companion by the head in one paw and his body was completely roasted with smoke coming out of him.

"You wanted something, Kamakiri, warrior of Shandia?" he asked with a smirk as he dropped the body to the floor below.

Kamakiri narrowed his eyes. "Raijin! You little-"

"Watch your tongue: I remind you that you're talking to God," the wolf interrupted him. "You must think: "Why does he appear in such a place?!" You're so surprised that you seem to barely believe it."

Kamakiri just kept glaring at him. "It's because of your Mantra?"

At this question, Raijin just laughed loudly. "I don't even need it; your face's already telling everything! Believe it or not, but I'm actually participating in this survival game as well. And since I'm about to leave this country, I had to go see Gan Fall to tell him a few things."

Kamakiri just spat in disgust. "A game?! This is no game at all!"

"Judging by the face you're making, we could believe that you want to tear my skin off," the God remarked. "Guess what, I'll let you make your wish come true."

"What?!" Kamakiri asked with a complete confused look.

"You've probably done everything possible as a soldier. I'm gonna reward you for your efforts - call this a divine reward," Raijin chuckled as he sat down on the branch. "What do you say, Kamakiri, if I don't move from this branch for five minutes? During the next five minutes, I won't avoid any of your attacks and I won't fight back either. You can attack, scream, do anything you want."

As the wolf laughed, Kamakiri groaned. "I'm gonna..."

"But get pass the deadline," Raijin suddenly said with a glare, "and you'll understand the power of a divine being!"

Pushing a swear, Kamakiri launched a milky dial which created a cloud way or him to Raijin which he wasted no time in driving to reach his enemy, planning to kill him off right away.

"GO TO HELL, RAIJIN!"

* * *

Meanwhile, back on the Saldanha, Jewel looked in horror as the balloon twins were kicking down the unconscious Apollo, Lazaro, and Hernandez while laughing off. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't stop them.

"LEAVE THEM ALONE!" she angrily screamed with swinging her Wind Waker staff at one of the twins, only for him to block it with his hand.

"They hurt our brother, so we won't spare them!" he replied with planting his other hand in Jewel's face.

"A-An impact dial?!" she nervously thought and closed her eyes, ready to feel the pain.

SPROUT!

However, the only thing she felt was the terrible smell of a fart invading her nostrils, causing her to back off and cough a lot. "This smells terrible! What's that?!" she coughed.

"I got a few farts reversed into my flavor dial!" the balloon guy chuckled.

"I see," Gan Fall mumbled. "If I got it correctly, they have four types of dials with them!"

"Of course: axe, flame, impact, and flavor dials!" the duo said at unison. "However, do you know who will use which? It's impossible to distinguish us, so how will you know which one uses the flame or impact dials?"

"I understand what types of dials they're using: we have no more time to lose!" Gan Fall said with swinging his lance.

"I don't care about who's who anyways!" Jewel declared as she changed the tacts of her staff into a cross and shot the upper part like a boomerang.

"Missed!" the duo laughed as they dodged her staff.

Gan Fall then went on the attack, but the balloon guy he charged rose one hand in his direction. The knight rose his hoodie's cape to protect himself from the dial...which only shot a fart. And he who thought it was going to be the flam dial.

"Here's a good combination!" the other guy said with also rising his hand and shot a jet of flames.

Jewel widened her eyes as the gas took fire and create a true fire storm. By the time the flames went off, the only thing revealed was a huge burning mark along the ship, but no signs of the old man.

"Mr. Knight!" she shouted in horror.

"The poor idiot have been turned into ashes!" the twins laughed while jumping together.

However, far from it, the old man jumped from behind the barer, having jumped there to avoid getting hit, and before the twins could do anything, he slashed his lance across one of them's shoulder, knocking him off the ship in the process.

"You didn't really thought you'd get me that easily, did you?" the knight asked with a grin. "That's the proof that you're the idiots here: you underestimated me!"

"Hotori!" Kotori shouted in horror at seeing his twin brother falling into the Milky Road.

"And here it is!" Jewel mumbled with a smirk as her boomerang returned and slammed Kotori behind the head, knocking him down into the Milky Road as well. "BOOMERANG TEMPO!"

Gan Fall smirked before groaning in pain and holding his bandage-covered body. "Please, young girl! Take my glove down the stairs and finish him off!"

"Your wounds are open again!" Jewel realized.

"Don't worry about that! Hurry: he's gonna come back!" the old knight hurried her.

Nodding, Jewel flew down the stairs to the lower part of the ship and found Gan Fall's armor glove. "Crap, it's very heavy!" she said with picking it up in her wings.

Just then, the ballon guy jumped out of the Milky Road and back on the ship. And he looked really pissed off! "FIRST SATORI, NOW HOTORI?! YOU'RE GONNA DIE!"

"Press on the back of the hand! Do it after pressing it on his body! Quick!" Gan Fall shouted from the deck.

Jewel nodded and dodged Kotori's hand as he shot with the flame dial and then jumped on top of his body, pressing the metal glove against his head.

"TAKE THAT!" She pressed the back of the hand and then BAM!, it created n impact that hit his face so hard that he bled a lot from the head and mouth, getting knocked way farther than the Milky Road and away into the forest.

Jewel dropped the glove and held her wings in pain as they were hurting after the blast. "Mr. Knight! What's this glove? It's super painful!"

"You have to endure the pain just for a little while," Gan Fall explained. "But you made great use of it!"

Jewel only smiled as she looked down at her wings. "I did it! I protected the ship and my friends!"

* * *

Meanwhile, back to the Weaver heading for the forest.

"So you said your name is Aisa, right?" Stuart asked while driving. "And you said you could hear voices?"

"Yes," the little dove nodded.

"That's a mysterious power indeed," Margalo said. "But tell me, Aisa, is everything alright? You're trembling nonstop since earlier."

the little dove was indeed holding her knees and trembling nervously. "It's because...it's the first time I'm getting so close to danger...," she admitted.

Stuart just frowned and pressed on the pedal to go faster as the forest was getting into view with smoke coming out of it.

* * *

"Wait! Where are you going?" Jewel asked as Gan Fall putted his armor back on safe for the glove.

"I must leave to go find Raijin," he responded with putting his helmet on. "I'm sorry for leaving you here alone, young girl, but I must find out what he's up to." He then turned toward Pierre who still had bandages around his shoulders. "Pierre, can you fly?"

He responded with a nod. "I'm leaving you my impact glove: it will be useful in case of needs," Gan Fall said before jumping on Pierre's back. "Good luck!" And with that, he flew away, leaving Jewel alone on the ship.

"Strange guy...," Jewel mumbled to herself.

DASH!

Suddenly, a little ship jumped out of nowhere from the forest, leaving a cloud trail behind, and landed on the Milky Road. Jewel gave it a good view and was surprised to see who was on this mini boat.

"MARGALO! STUART!"

The trio happily jumped onto the ship. Once on board, Aisa glared up at Jewel. "Huh, who's that girl?" she asked, feeling a bit uneasy.

"Her name is Aisa. She's a Shandia warrior," Margalo responded before suddenly gasping as she saw her friends laying on the floor. "Oh my god! They're all burnt!"

"Lsten Jewel, you need to take the road we just made with the Weaver," Stuart said. "With our milky dial, we made a new river that will lead you back to the Opal Sea. And by the way, we also brought something special for you."

"What is it?" Jewel curiously asked.

Stuart took out a Weaver, similar to the one Jewel drove upon arriving. "Here's a new Weaver: I made it specially for you. It has a little special function on it..."

* * *

Kamakiri panted in exhaustion. No matter what he did, his attacks couldn't touch the God sitting on the branch before him. He didn't flinched one bit, despite his best efforts. He planted his spear through his body, making holes that always fixed themselves alone with thunder and even used a saber to cut through him, but always to the same result with his body fixing itself again.

"Still there?" Raijin asked with pushing a loud yawn.

"Why?! Why can't I touch him?!" Kamakiri wondered with a look of horror and confusion on his face. Realizing he couldn't win against Raijin, the Komodo dragon grabbed his ski and jumped down on the Milky Road, starting to drive away.

"I must talk to Wiper! If we continue like this, we'll all die! Even the reject won't be of any use in this scenario! We need to run away or...or...!"

Kamakiri stopped dead in his track as thunder appeared before him, turning into a visibly annoyed Raijin. "Trying to go faster than lightning?" he asked. "The five minutes I gave you are up: I must move now."

As the wolf charged his body with lightning, Kamakiri gave a look of horror before slowly turning around. "WIPER! RUN AWAY!" was the last thing he shouted before getting engulfed into the light of the huge lightning beam.

Seconds after, Raijin just scoffed as he looked at the Komodo dragon's roasted body who had fallen off the Milky Road and was now laying, probably unconscious or dead. The wolf also realized his attack spread across the forest and took down many sacred guard soldiers and Shandia warriors.

"Maybe I shouldn't have used a million volt discharge: it touched other players. There was 81 players at the start of my game, but now there is only...26 remaining. This is way more than I expected after two hours of game." He then smirked. "Everything's going according to plan: I'm gonna lead them to the planned spot..."

* * *

"Where is the exit of this tunnel?" Blu wondered as he kept walking in the dark tunnel.

* * *

 **Jewel and Gan Fall defeated Satori's brothers, but Kamakiri has been taken down by Raijin. A moment of silence for him (even thought you barely knew him)...**

 **So, like Raijin said, there's only 26 remaining survivors. Who's gonna win for which side? Can someone take down Raijin?**


	226. The golden city of Shandora

_Previously: Jewel and Gan Fall defeated the twins Hotori and Kotori before the latter left to find Raijin, leaving Jewel alone on the Saldanha for a few seconds before she got reunited with Stuart and Margalo along with little Aisa. Meanwhile, the thunder god found Kamakiri of the Shandia tribe and killed him before he could go warn Wiper._

* * *

Jewel laughed as she drove around the Saldanha on her new Weaver. "Like your new Weaver?" Stuart asked.

"Yes, absolutely!" Jewel replied. "It's even better than the one I used at Angel Beach."

Stuart chuckled. "I worked hard to conceive this new one. But you know, I would've gladly led your group out of Upper Yard and Skypiea."

Jewel parked the Weaver and tied it to the Saldanha with some ropes. "For now, I must navigate the ship to the coast where we gave each other rendez-vous. I'm not worried for them: if the four of them stay together, they can defeat anything."

"They are not four." Jewel turned her head toward Aisa because of her sudden statement. "I cannot sense any group of four on the island: many of two, but not of four. If your friends were moving together, I'd know it, you can trust me."

"Because of the Mantra, the same power God and the Priers posses. Right, Aisa?" Jewel asked.

The kid nodded and trembled while crying. "Yes. I have this cursed power since I was born. Which is why I'm so scared! You don't know how terrible it is to sense all those voices fade away!" she sobbed.

Jewel went to put a wing on her shoulder. "It's okay, don't cry aisa."

The dove pushed her wing away. "I'M NOT CRYING!"

Jewel was a bit taken aback by her reaction. "But tell me, why did you came to this island, Aisa?"

The girl lowered her head. "I don't know. But I couldn't just stay back and do nothing." She sobbed a bit. "Laki and the others..."

Jewel looked sadly at the little girl before hearing an explosion from the forest. "I hope the others are alright..."

* * *

Meanwhile, Arlene grunted because of the damage her body has gotten. Yamma was not messing around and the fact that she was standing amongst ruins she wanted to protect at all cost was leaving her in a huge disadvantage.

"Well, young girl, you're good to talk, but when it comes to acting, you're not so," the towering monk remarked as he looked down at the panting scarlet macaw.

He then jumped and tried to squash her with his huge belly, but she managed to run away in time, thought the impact caused her to fall on her back. Getting his belly out of the ground, the monk went for a double devastating kick.

Arlene would have wanted to dodge, but the artifact she was trying to protect was right behind her. Knowing it would get destroyed if she moved, the macaw rose her wings and used her power to create vine shields with her wings. Closing her eyes, she blocked the devastating kicks, but still felt pain in her wings and got knocked onto her back.

"You're more tenacious than I thought. You're planning on protecting this ruined city for long?" he asked.

Arlene groaned and then glared up at him with anger. "You...You really don't care about this people's history and the legacy they left us?"

Yamma just rose a curious eyebrow before scoffing. "I don't care about the past: only the present matters to me."

"I'm not even surprised, coming from an idiot!" Arlene said.

"How dare you! You don't know who you're talking to?!" Having enough, the monk went for a violent punch which Arlene avoided by rolling out of the way, letting him create a crater into the stone ground.

"I must get him away from the ruins at all cost or this moron will destroy everything!" Arlene thought and started running away.

Just like she planned, the angry monk was following her closely from behind, destroying everything in his path. Eventually, she came out of the ruins and reached the edge of a canyon. She stopped there and turned toward the monk who looked curiously at her.

"Wise decision, you finally stop running?" he asked.

"Yes, but unfortunately for you, it's too late," Arlene responded with a low yet deadly voice. "I won't forgive you even if you apologize!"

Yamma looked at her curiously. "You will never forgive me, heh? You really hold on to those useless ruins? You seem to forget they don't belong to you, cutie!"

"Indeed, but they don't belong to anyone. Listen, I don't feel like talking to you any longer!" she firmly said.

"Oh, don't worry; in a moment, you won't be able to talk at all. I'm gonna squash you like a fly!" Jumping in the air, he went to squash the poor macaw with all of his weight.

However, Arlene just rolled her eyes. "He's charging like an angry bull." Rising her wings, she summoned a vine from a tree branch and caught the monk by the legs, causing him to swing and hit the trunk head first with all of his own momentum.

After the impact, he fell onto the floor and weakly sat up to reveal his face was a bit covered of blood and scars. Pushing a groan, he charged at Arlene once again and returned his scarf to reveal the many axe dials. "Take that! Axe Mountain!"

Arlene didn't moved. Instead, she rose her wings to summon vines onto the monk's body. They grabbed the scarf covered of dials and turned it around. Yamma could only look in horror as, upon crashing into a tree, the axe dials all got activated, causing them to cut into his own body, sending blood flying up in the air.

She then summoned more vines to grab the big monk and toss him off into the crater - not that she wanted to kill him: just to make sure he was out for good.

"After what you've done, it was well-deserved," Arlene said with dusting her chest off.

 **(BADASS!)**

* * *

With Yamma defeated, Arlene resumed her walk. She soon arrived into a field where the ground was made of cloud and with many more ruins all around. As she walked, she took out her notebooks and read her notes about the place she was in.

"This must be the center of the city. But the place doesn't correspond to the map. Maybe the buildings have been moved during the ascension to the sky."

The scarlet macaw walked further into the ruins. She couldn't help but admire the beauty of the place. She eventually arrived before a monument that looked like an old Aztec temple with many steps leading to the top. Right behind it was a huge vine coming out from the ground and high above the clouds.

But the thing that caught her attention the most was a monument with ancient writings into it. There was some vegetation on it, but she could easily read it. Taking out her notebook, she started translating the writing into her pages.

She decided to sit on the steps and take a look at her notes. "Something's not right. Is that really the golden city? Like I thought, the proportions and topography doesn't go with the map. And there's even stranger..."

She closed her book and got up. She turned around and looked at the Aztec temple. "The only entrance is up there..." An idea suddenly came into her mind. "Could it be...?!"

She quickly flew up the temple and entered by the square-shaped entrance. There she found a dark room with a cloud ground. Curiosity getting the best of her, she used her talons to claw the middle of the room, and created a slit to another room down below.

"A secret room?"

She cut the slit open and jumped down on another cloud floor. "I knew this place was hiding something. It was strange to see so many ilo nimbus in here while they're supposed to be from the sea. Actually, the island is still there: but the other half is hidden below the clouds."

The scarlet macaw started venturing deeper inside the temple which looked straight out of an Indiana Jones movie - with clouds. There was many vines she had to cut with her talons and beak to keep advancing.

She soon arrived into a tunnel with light at the end of it. Curiosity getting the best of her, she ran through the tunnel until she reached the end...and then gasped in awe.

Before her was spreading a giant city that looked like an abandoned one in Aztec mythology. There were giant buildings and ruins covered of vegetation everywhere.

"The city of Shandora...it was thought to have been destroyed eight hundred years ago, but it was not true. She's safe and always so beautiful. Here is the golden city of Shandora!"

The scarlet macaw flew down and started walking across the beautiful abandoned city. However, she came out of trance as, when she arrived inside a destroyed building, she saw a metal wall with poneglyphs!

She starred at the metal monument in awe for what felt like an eternity. She then reached her wing to touch it.

"What's this text doing here for everyone to see? Such an ancient text. Only those who have written the poneglyphs can read them." She then started doing just that. "Keep the truth in mind and the mouth sealed. We build story through the past and ring the huge bell of Shandora."

Arlene rose a curious eyebrow. "Of course! There was once a big golden bell in here: I read it into this ancient notebook." She then looked away. "All the books of this city have been burnt. The story of this place have been eradicated..."

* * *

Meanwhile, Blu was still walking deeper into the dark tunnel.

"Man, I shouldn't have dropped my backpack: my breakfast was in it. I'm so hungry now...," he pouted with looking down at his growling stomach.

* * *

 **Arlene defeated Yamma and found the lost city of Shandora at last! There was even some poneglyphs in it! What more mysteries lie ahead in it?**


	227. Up the Giant Jack

Alex groaned as he was slowly climbing the Giant Jack - the huge vine coming out from the ground and through the clouds. He tried to fly up there, but the wind was too strong for a little avian like him. So he instead used his talons to climb up the plant.

"Man, is the top still far away?" he asked himself, getting tired. However, he then put on a look of determination. "No matter: I'll be the one to find the gold and bring it to the others! They're gonna be so proud!"

With newfound determination, the kid used his talons to climb even faster. Eventually, he arrived above the clouds and saw even more ruins all around.

"Huh? There are ruins here too?"

Shrugging, the kid jumped down from the vine and then walked a bit in the ruins. It was calm and silent: there was no signs of life anywhere.

"Alright, now I'm gonna find-"

However, the kid got interrupted in his thoughts as he suddenly felt a warm breath in his back, causing him to freeze on the spot. "Wait! Oli, lay down! Oli, I said lay down!"

Alex slowly turned around...and pushed a scream as he saw a giant white dog laying down on his stomach before him. "DON'T EAT MEEEEE!"

"You're the third one to venture in here." Alex turned around and saw none other than Om, the bald Prier, sitting on a ruin.

"W-Who are you?" he nervously asked.

"You're the one who fought Gedatsu, right?" Om asked.

"The octopus guy?" Alex asked. "Hum...yeah."

"Don't worry; one moron gone from this island is a good news, don't you think?" Om asked, but Alex remained silent and still looked nervous.

He started backing off and then tripped, falling on his butt. The kid looked down and gasped upon seeing the blood-covered body of a Shandia warrior. "D-Did you do that?!" he nervously asked.

"Don't be afraid; Oli's a well-dressed dog. He wouldn't attack for no reason. I'm the one who did this to this man," Om explained.

"That's even worst!" Alex shouted. "Who the heck are you?!"

"I'm Om, one of the great Priers." The man suddenly started...sobbing. "Man, I'm so disgusted by human's weakness!"

"Huh?" Alex asked with a confused look.

"Why are men fighting to the death? While their lives are so ephemeral. Happiness is the ultimate life goal: they want it more than anything else. And yet they fight to the death. Wouldn't it be better to not risk anything? Unfortunately, it's an unavoidable trap that nobody can avoid. Human nature is made like this, but there's an escape."

Alex looked even more curious. "What way?"

"...They must all die!"

Alex immediately widened his eyes. "How can you say such a thing?!"

Whipping his tears away, Om then looked back at Alex. "Why did you came here, kid?"

"Well, to find gold," he simply replied.

Om scoffed. "Your thirst for gold will only bring way. But I can save you."

"Save me? How?"

"...By killing you!"

"SO YOU WON'T TRY TO SAVE ME AT ALL!"

* * *

Meanwhile, back in Upper Yard, Laki was driving a ski on the Milky Road. While moving, she couldn't help but notice the many roasted bodies all around in the forest, both Shandias and sacred guards.

"Why are they all burnt like this?" she thought. "It's as if they had been stroke by thunder."

Eventually, she saw a way more familiar corpse laying beneath the Milky Road. "KAMAKIRI!" she shouted in horror before jumping down to go see her Komodo dragon friend. His body was all burnt, so she pulled her riffle down to check on him.

Kamakiri coughed as he was barely alive. "It's you...Laki...?"

"Yes, it's me," she confirmed.

"...Go away...Listen, Laki," he weakly coughed. "Right now, Wiper's heading for the Sanctuary! You need to stop him before he gets there. Raijin's too strong: we cannot defeat him. I couldn't touch him, no matter what I did!"

Laki just starred at him before taking her bag and putting it on him. "I'm gonna go get Wiper; you keep Aisa's back until my return, okay?" She turned around, and got back on her ski to drive on the Milky Road, leaving her injured friend behind.

* * *

"Man, is this ever gonna end?"

Blu was getting impatient: he had been walking for a long time now and the tunnel was still not ending. What the heck was this place anyways? And how did he even ended up here?

However, his martyr was gonna end soon as he finally reached the bottom of the tunnel...which was a dead end.

"ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!" Blu shouted, finally reaching the end of his patience. He started hitting the surprisingly tender walls with his fist. "I WANNA GO OUT!"

* * *

Meanwhile, back in the second level's ruins, Alex used his Reindeer Candy to run away from the Prier as fast as his hooves could go. He didn't really felt ready for another confrontation: the last one he had with Gedatsu pretty much drained a lot out of him. He only stopped running once he was sure to be far enough.

"There, I think I managed to put enough distance between us to be safe," the kid said as he returned to his normal form, still hiding behind a wall for cautious measures. "This guy really intended to kill me. I should go search for the gold now."

However, the kid barely made a few steps that he heard a loud scream coming from the distance: "You really thought you could escape me?! My Mantra allows me to see through all these walls!"

The kid froze in his tracks. He slowly turned around to see a blade flying right at him at an incredible speed.

SLASH!

The flying blade cut through Alex's abdomen, sending blood flying in the air and knocking him down. The kid gasped for air as his feathers were getting covered of blood and his eyes slowly closing.

"Sorry kid," Om said as he adjusted his sunglasses and brought the blade of his sword back to its normal form, "but you had zero chances of surviving the Iron Ordeal..."

* * *

Aisa pushed a loud shriek and tears fell down from her eyes, catching the attention of everyone else on the boat.

"What's wrong, Asia?" Margalo asked.

"Another voice went down! Someone else died!" she panicked and suddenly flew off the ship and toward the forest.

"Aisa! Wait!" Jewel flew after her and managed to catch her mid-flight. The little dove struggled and this led the two of them to fall down into Jewel's new Weaver which was parked down below.

"Let me go! Let me go!" Aisa screamed while struggling to break free.

"Calm down, Aisa!" Jewel said, holding her firmly. "If you go out there, you'll just get-"

She didn't got to finish her sentence as a giant snake jumped out of nowhere and plunged into the Milky Road, creating a wave that shook the Saldanha and pushed the Weaver away.

"What's that thing?!" Jewel asked in horror. "Aisa! Hold on!" she screamed as she grabbed the commands and started driving off the Milky Road and onto the forest floor with the little dove holding her waist.

"Jewel! Aisa!" Margalo called in horror as her friends faded into the forest with the giant snake following them.

* * *

Meanwhile, Wiper arrived at the Giant Jack and used his rollers to ride up to the upper level of it. However, as soon as he arrived, he got surprised by a sword slash from none other than Om which he luckily managed to dodge by jumping out of the way and onto the ruins' floor.

"Who allowed you to come here?" Om asked while sitting beside his giant dog.

"Om!" the Shandia warrior angrily said.

"There's no point in going to the Sancutary now!"

Everybody turned their head to see none other than Gan Fall standing on top of a building with Pierre at his side. "Gan Fall?!" Wiper exclaimed in surprise. "What are you doing here, old man?!"

"I didn't finish what I started," the knight replied, his cape floating behind him in the wind. "I come back from up there: I saw the Sanctuary." He then gave a serious look at the Shandia warrior. "It has been completely destroyed! And the monks are all dead."

Wiper gasped and looked in shock at that news. Gan Fall was trembling and then glared at Om. "What's wrong with you and Raijin, huh?!"

"Raijin is no longer at the Sanctuary?" Wiper asked with rubbing the back of his head.

CRASH!

Two figures suddenly broke through the stone floor and landed together. It was Dominic and Vladimir with the latter having turned his whole body into stone.

"Hey, it's two of the pirate's companions," Wiper remarked.

"Where are we?" Dominic asked with looking all around.

"I don't know, but it looks like we've entered a battlefield," Vladimir remarked as he noticed everyone in here.

They suddenly heard a loud scream and turned around to see none other than the giant snake who chased Jewel and Aisa coming in too via the Giant Jack. He putted his slit eyes toward all the warriors and licked his lips.

"Looks like it's gonna be the best Iron Ordeal I ever held," Om said with a smirk.

* * *

 **Jewel and Aisa got separated from the group, Alex got badly injured and a huge clash is about to occur between the many warriors! This is getting interesting, isn't it?**

 **On a side note, I'm passing my math exam for the second time tomorrow, so wish me good luck!**


	228. Iron Ordeal

**It's time for the fight between Dominic and Vladimir vs Om and Oli vs Wiper vs Gan Fall and Pierre vs the giant snake to start!**

* * *

All the fighters were standing motionless, ready to jump and start the fight at any time. Silence was reigning and only the wind could be heard.

"Alright, it's time for all of you to pay for your sins!" Om said with taking out his sword.

"You're too pretentious for your own good, Om!" Gan Fall said with pointing his lance toward him.

The Prier then jumped onto his giant dog's back. "Come on Oli, have fun!"

Gan Fall responded by jumping onto his pegasus' back. "Listen Pierre, I don't forget who's our target, but if we want to defeated Raijin, we must first take down the last Prier still standing."

"You're ready, Vladimir?" Dominic asked with taking out Eau De Mort and Snow Run.

"Always!" his friend replied and turned his body into stone.

"You're all just a bunch of trash!" Wiper angrily said and rose his bazooka toward the golden eagles. "Eat that, trash from the Blue Sea!"

Pressing the trigger, he shot a blue fire blast in their direction which created a giant explosion. This move having broken the ice, Gan Fall and Pierre engaged the fight against Om and Oli by clashing their weapons while diving down at them.

Meanwhile, Dominic and Vladimir had managed to dodge the bazooka shot from Wiper. "Not bad trick; got anymore?" Dominic asked with a smirk.

"Oh yes!" the Komodo dragon replied with a smirk.

As Dominic charged, Wiper blocked his saber swing with his roller and then jumped up to shoot another blue fire blast. Dominic performed many cartwheels and flips to dodge the attack and Vladimir tried to get his chance to smash the dragon, but missed as he used his rollers to jump away.

"This guy's tougher than I thought!" Dominic remarked.

Just as the fighters were about to clash again, the giant snake decided to get in the fight by jumping toward them with his jaw widen open. Pushing a swear, the avians and reptile somehow managed to avoid the monster, letting him bite into a building instead which immediately melted.

"I forgot; this guy can melt anything with his feng!" Vladimir realized, remembering this giant snake that separated him and Dominic from the others in the forest.

The duo then sensed something behind them and jumped back just in time to avoid a devastating punch from Oli with Om on his back.

"How can such a big dog move so fast?!" Vladimir asked in surprise.

"They don't call my Om Skybreeder for nothing; I taught him the art of fighting," the Prier replied.

CLASH!

At the moment he finished his sentence, Gan Fall passed by and swung his lance which Om blocked with his sword. "I was not enough to get defeated by Shura? You want more, old man?"

"Even if I lost to all four of you, I would never give up!" the knight firmly said.

"When are you gonna understand that you are nothing but rats in comparison to God?!"

* * *

There was also some action going on down in Upper Yard. "What are those goats?!" Jewel screamed as she was still driving the Weaver. She and Aisa managed to escape the giant snake, but were now getting chased by sacred guard soldiers.

"It's the sacred guard: if they catch us, we're dead!" Aisa panicked.

"Sacred guard? What's that?!"

"They are soldiers working for Raijin! We must escape them!" Aisa nervously said, still holding onto Jewel's waist.

"Okay, but where are we supposed to go?" the spix macaw asked. She then noticed the Giant Jack up ahead. "Hey, what's that?"

"It's the Giant Jack: Raijin's sanctuary must be at the top of it!" Aisa replied. She suddenly widened her eyes as she felt something. "Wiper is up there!"

"Who?" Jewel curiously asked. She then looked back and saw the sacred guard not too far behind. "Coconuts! Let's get up there then!"

* * *

The giant snake kept crawling across the ruins, destroying everything in his path and forcing the others to dodge.

"I'm getting tired of this big reptile!" Dominic angrily said after dodging yet another attack.

"Y-Yusef! Look!" Vladimir nervously said with pointing in a direction. Dominic rose a curious eyebrow before following his lead...and then gasped in horror too.

"ALEX!"

The two golden eagles spotted their snowy owl friend laying motionless on the floor and rushed at his side. Vladimir carefully picked him up in his wings and was shocked to see the cuts across his torso and him having visibly an hard time breath - coughing a little blood.

"Alex! Say something! Why did you came here alone?!" Dominic panicked while looking at his little friend.

"So this was one of your friends?" Om suddenly asked. "I'm really sorry. If you wanna know, I'm the one who did half the damage on his body. the other half has been made by the barbwire traps that are planted all across my zone."

Dominic just starred at his friend before backing up. "Vladimir. I leave him to you. Take him somewhere safe."

Knowing there was no point in arguing, Vladimir nodded and ran away with Alex in his wings. "Are you feeling a desire of revenge?" Om asked.

"...You have no idea how much...," the golden eagle replied and took out his sabers as he turned around and glared at the bald man.

* * *

Meanwhile, on the coast of Upper Yard, Stuart, Margalo and Sue were keeping the Saldanha while the crew was gone. Currently, the yellow canary was watching over the injured avians inside the ship.

She changed the wet towels of Apollo, Lazaro and Hernandez who were still laying unconscious on their beds, their skin burned and covered of bandages.

"I sure hope the others will be fine," she mumbled to herself in worry.

* * *

Gan Fall was still flying on Pierre's back, watching Dominic struggle to fight with Om and Oli. However, he was brought out of his thoughts when Pierre dodged a blue fire blast from Wiper whom he had completely forgot about.

"Wiper! Stop it! I'm not your enemy!" the old knight shouted.

"For me, there's no difference between you and Raijin's army!" the Shandia stubbornly replied.

"Are you deaf!" Gan Fall angrily said before Pierre performed a manoeuvre to dodge the giant snake.

Wiper jumped up to avoid getting squashed by the same reptile. He then rose his bazooka and shot a blue fire blast right on top of his skull which created a huge explosion. He smirked in victory...before the giant reptile jumped out, not looking too badly damaged. Needless to say the Shandia leader was shocked to see his attack had no effect on him.

He then used his rollers to avoid a jaw snap from the giant snake. Back on the ground, Dominic dodged all of Oli's punches with ease despite his speed.

"That's the best you can do? You're not that though!" Dominic mocked.

However, Om suddenly did something unusual: he rose his sword and the blade started changing form like a cloud before dashing toward the golden eagle and cutting him across the chest. This made him groan in pain before landing on his knees, dropping Snow Run, and holding his bleeding chest.

"What the heck was that?!" he groaned in pain.

"See, this is why fighters from the Blue Sea are weak," Om said and showed his sword. "This sword has been built from iron clouds. Which means I can change its form at will. In other words, I can touch my target no matter where she is."

To prove his point, he once again belted the shape of his sword and swung it toward Dominic. The golden eagle rose Eau De Mort to block it, but it still produced a metallic sound, as if it was made of metal.

"Okay, so it's like this is a mix of a sword and a whip!" Dominic thought. "I've gotta end playing with this clown!"

Om suddenly looked away from him and down to his dog. "Oli! Let's separate and fight on our own side!" The giant dog nodded and ran away, leaving his master with a confused Dominic.

Suddenly, more figures jumped out of the cloud wall and away from the Giant Jack. All the fighters turned around to see they were sacred guard soldiers and Shandia warriors.

"You're here," Wiper told his men.

"We're the only survivors and we're gonna help you reach Raijin's sanctuary, Wiper," one of his men said.

And then, someone else came out from the clouds below, driving on a Weaver with sacred guard soldiers following.

"Are you going to leave us alone?!"

Dominic, Wiper and Gan Fall all widened their eyes at unison.

"JEWEL!"

"AISA!"

"YOUNG GIRL!"

The three fighters jumped to knock away the sacred guard soldiers at the same time before they could harm their friends. Jewel stopped the Weaver and turned toward the three fighters.

"Aisa! What are you doing here?!" Wiper asked.

"Jewel! Why did you come here?" Dominic asked.

"Dominic!" Jewel beamed, glad to see her golden eagle friend. "Where are the others?"

However, before anything could be explained, Wiper suddenly rose his bazooka. "Aisa! Get away from this intruder from the Blue Sea!"

He then rose his bazooka and shot a blue fire blast toward the girls. Luckily, Gan Fall passed by and grabbed them with Pierre's help before they could get hurt. He was also holding the Weaver with his arm.

"Can you tell me in the name of divinity what you girls came to do here?!" the old knight asked.

"Well, we got chased by a giant snake at first and then-WATCH OUT!" Jewel explained and then screamed.

Irony of the moment, the giant snake jumped and caught the four of them and the Weaver into his mouth in mid-flight.

"JEWEL! NO!" Dominic shouted in horror.

"Aisa...!" Wiper mumbled with his eyes wide open.

Unfortunately, Om and Oli took benefit of their distraction to cut his sword into Dominic's shoulder and smash Wiper across the face and into a building respectively.

"You should know this: don't let your guard down even for a second!" Om said with rising his sword. "None of you will survive my Iron Ordeal..."

* * *

 **Things don't look very good: Jewel, Aisa, Gan Fall and Pierre have been swallowed by the giant snake and Dominic along with Wiper got hurt. You think they will manage to survive the Iron Ordeal or will Om and Oli triumph?**


	229. Iron Ordeal part 2

**The Iron Ordeal is gonna start right now!**

* * *

Om scoffed as he looked at Dominic and Wiper who were still laying on the floor after the surprise shots he and Oli gave them. "Come on! Get up! I know you're not done yet!"

"You coward!" one of the Shandia warriors who just arrived angrily shouted. "You attacked Wiper in the back!"

He then rose his bow and was about to shoot an arrow, only for Oli to surprise him with a quick kick which sent him right into a trap, barbwire jumping out of the ground and getting all over his body. The scream of agony he pushed froze his two companions.

"Come on Oli! Don't stop!" Om ordered his giant dog.

This last one obeyed and started running at an incredible speed all around the zone's perimeter. which activated the barbwire traps all around. These last ones flew high into the air and formed a dome all around the ruins, preventing anyone from entering or escaping.

"A barer?" Dominic asked after getting back up.

"Not any barer; this one is made of iron clouds!" one of the sacred guards said.

Before he could say anything else, Wiper suddenly jumped and kicked him right into the barbwire barer, causing him to deep cuts into his back and fall limp. "This means you can get badly hurt by touching it!" the War Demon said with a smirk.

"So there's no escape then," the golden eagle realized before rising his sabers. "Alright, I'm gonna take care of this giant snake first: he swallowed Jewel and the knight who saved Alex and Hernandez."

"Hold on, Aisa! I'm coming!" Wiper said, also looking at the giant snake.

* * *

Meanwhile, down below, Laki was still driving on the Milky Road, lost in her thoughts.

"Wiper... You're the one who told me everything, when we were kids..."

FLASHBACK

 _A younger Wiper and Laki were sitting together in their village during night time, right next to a warm fire._

 _"You know Laki, a long time ago, our ancestors lived in the Blue Sea," the young Komodo dragon said with a serious look. "The Great Calgara protected our home. But one day, four hundred years ago, the Knock Up Stream pushed our island in the sky."_

 _"This is how we ended here. It must not have been easy to be kicked out of their home without being able to do anything." Wiper then looked down. "As if that was not enough, the Skypieans declared that Shandora was their sacred earth and outright expelled our people. Our ancestors got chased and were never able to return to their home..."_

 _"They forbidden them from even touching their own hometown!" The young Komodo dragon's glare became more furious. "They got treated unfairly for four hundred years and it continues to this day! Upper Yard belongs to us, Laki! Not them! I will take it back one day!"_

 _From this day on, Wiper trained really hard in the art of fighting and became leader of the Shandia tribe, earning the nickname "War Demon" afterwards..._

FLASHBACK ENDS

Frowning, Laki charged faster with her ski. She soon reached the Giant Jack and drove it up until she reached the upper level. She quickly took notice of the barbwire dome and Wiper standing on the inside.

"WIPER!" she screamed and dropped her ski to run toward the dome.

The War Demon turned his head to see her arriving and then widened his eyes. "Laki?! What are you doing here?! Leave right now! It's too dangerous for you!"

"I have a message from Kamakiri! It's about Raijin!" the dove said in panic.

The Komodo dragon looked curiously at her through the dome...before suddenly glancing over her shoulder and widening his eyes, as if he saw a ghost.

"Y-You?!" he gasped.

Laki looked curiously before hearing an electricity noise coming from behind her. She turned around...and widened her eyes too. He was just standing there...

Raijin.

"Did someone called me?" the white wolf asked with a smirk and some lightning emanating from his body.

"...Raijin...!" the dove mumbled, her body frozen in shock.

"Don't touch her, Raijin!" Wiper screamed, dropping his bazooka and grabbed the dome's barbwire, even if it pierced his hands and made them bleed. "Leave her alone! She gave up on the fight!"

As the God slowly stepped toward her, Laki found the strength to rise her riffle in a desperate move.

POW! POW!

"...So it was true...," Laki mumbled as the two shots she gave the wolf only made holes through his chest which turned into thunder and fixed themselves alone.

Wiper angrily groaned as he kept shaking the barbwire, trying to go out and help his friend. "You're waisting your time!" a sacred guard said as he jumped behind the Shandia warrior and planted his hand into his back. "Eat that!"

The goat released an impact into the Komodo dragon's back. However, to his surprise, the proud warrior did not react, despite the blood flowing out of his mouth.

The dove remembered Kamakiri's words in the forest below and could feel her heart beat violently in her chest as she knew her time as come. She barely had time to turn around and look at Wiper one last time before Raijin touched her with one finger and released a huge lightning blast through her whole body.

Time seemed to flow slowly for the War Demon as he saw his friend collapsing on the floor, memories of all the happy times they had together resurfacing. As the dove laid on the floor, her body burnt and steaming, Raijing laughed while Wiper angrily groaned.

"YOU BASTARD!" he shouted in pure anger.

"Ignoring my impact, heh?" the sacred guard asked from behind. "Let's see how you fare against a double shot!" he said with placing both of his hooves against Wiper's back, ready to for a double impact.

However, before he could do anything, the Komodo dragon grabbed his head with only one hand slammed it against the barbwire dome, making shout in pain. As if that wasn't bad enough, he angrily rubbed his face against it, making him scream in agony as his face was getting torn off by the barbwire to the point it turned into a blood mess and dropped him down on the floor once he was sure that he was out for good.

"Wow, you're really a sentimental after all, Wiper the War Demon," Raijin remarked with a chuckle. "Why should I have sparred her? Because she's a woman? It doesn't matter: if you step out of the game, you get punished. Take this as a warning."

He then turned into thunder and teleported himself away. As Wiper looked at his burnt friend in shock and sadness, Dominic said: "So this wolf was God?"

"Dumb girl: she shouldn't have attacked God himself," Om said with a scoff.

Wiper took his bazooka back and turned toward the others with a glare. "You're all dead!"

He shot a blue fire blast toward Dominic who dodged it with a jump. Om followed by shooting his blade toward the golden eagle who used his sabers to block it in time. A sacred guard jumped and tried to surprise Wiper with an impact, only for him to block with his tribal shield, catch the goat's head between his feet, and spin to send him crashing to the ground.

Dominic gave a glare toward the giant snake. "I'm gonna have to take care of him if I want to save Jewel and the knight..."

* * *

Speaking of which, Jewel groaned as she slowly opened her eyes. She saw that she was laying on the floor of a giant dark tunnel with leftovers of ruins all around. Aisa was laying on Pierre's back and Gan Fall was holding Jewel's Weaver not too far.

"Guys! Are you alright?" the spix macaw asked as she rushed to Aisa's side.

"Yeah, I think," the little dove weakly replied.

"Where are we?" Gan Fall asked with looking all around.

"We're inside the giant snake. He ate us, remember?" Jewel said.

"Yeah, that's true." The knight suddenly turned his head and rose his lance. "Someone's coming toward us!"

Aisa went to hide behind Jewel while Gan Fall got ready to fight. However, they calmed down upon recognizing this figure.

"Blu?!"

"JEWEL!" the spix macaw beamed as he went to hug his girlfriend. The hug lasted for a moment before they broke and looked at each other with smiles. "What are you guys doing here?"

"I could ask you the same thing," Jewel remarked.

Blu then told her everything of how he got separated from his group, fought with Wiper, and then ended up here. Jewel also updated him and the whole situation.

"So we're trapped inside the giant snake?!" Blu exclaimed in shock. "And you're saying Dominic is fighting all those dudes outside?"

"Yes, I'm afraid so," Gan Fall confirmed. "We need to find a way out of here."

"...Think we can go out by his bottom?" Blu asked.

"ARE YOU CRAZY?!" all the other shouted at unison in disgust.

* * *

Back outside, Wiper jumped above the giant snake and shot a blue fire blast with his bazooka which still barely affected him. Groaning angrily, he shot another time and touched the snake's fork tongue, burning it and finally causing dome damage.

"Hold on, Aisa! I'm gonna get you out of there!" the War Demon angrily said.

* * *

 **Raijin appeared and possibly killed Laki right in front of Wiper's eyes! Blu and his friends got eaten by the giant snake and Dominic is amongst the remaining survivors in the fight! Who will make it out alive?**


	230. Duel of blades! Dominic vs Om

Wiper jumped to avoid getting snapped by the giant snake once again, shooting many more blue fire blasts on him with the result being that he was still unaffected. "I won't stop until you're dead!" the War Demon declared and stubbornly kept shooting at the giant reptile with his bazooka.

Meanwhile, Dominic went to hide behind a wall and caught his breath. "Darn this Prier and this shape-shifting sword! I must take care of the giant snake and save Jewel first!" He turned his head toward this monster who was still fighting with Wiper. "Time is running short..."

Just then, he sensed something coming and moved out of the way just in time as Om's whip sword came through the wall, destroying it. The golden eagle immediately started running away to put some distance between he and the Prier. He stopped behind a wall and looked around to see that his enemy was nowhere to be seen.

"Where is he?" Dominic thought.

Right after asking that, he had to roll away as the cloud blade once again came out of nowhere, cutting its way toward him. "What does it mean?! How can he always know where I am all the time?!" he asked himself. "It's almost as if he had a third eye! Does he gets those powers from his sunglasses?!"

"Don't let your guard down!" a sacred guard shouted as he jumped toward the golden eagle from behind.

SMASH!

Dominic easily knocked him down with a punch on the head without even turning to look at him. "Shut up! I'm thinking!"

 **(XD)**

"There's not many players remaining," Om mumbled after cutting down one of the three Shandia warriors.

"FALCON WINGS!" Dominic shouted as he suddenly dashed toward the bald man.

"Not so fast!" this last one replied with rising his sword and suddenly turning it into a wall, causing Dominic to bang his head into it and bleed a bit.

"What the heck?!"

"I already told you that I could change the shape of my cloud-made sword, you moron!" Om said before turning his blade into a whip and swinging it at the golden eagle who tried to dodge as best as he could, thought he still lost some feathers.

"This is not good!" the eagle mumbled while panting. "How can he predict each and everyone of my moves?!"

"Your saber is your only ressource!" Om said with a smirk. "You're gonna need to get close to me if you want to win!"

"I don't think so!" Dominic replied and suddenly rose his two sabers. "Take this! 36 Pound Canon!"

Om got a bit surprised, but then rose his saber and shot his whip blade once again, easily deflecting Dominic's attack, a leaving a little cut across his abdomen. Pushing a swear, the golden eagle realized he had no choice but to run away from the bald man.

"You have interesting sword techniques, eagle from the Blue Sea!" Om called. "But do you really think you're gonna win by using always the same ones? Even if you run to the end of the dome, I can always see you as if there was no walls between us! It's thank to my Mantra!"

Realizing what his opponent was saying was true, Dominic stopped running. Panting, he instead took out Sabor and putted it in his beak.

"Finally giving up? I'm a bit surprised, but that's a wise decision, considering there's no way out for you," Om said with rising his saber toward the eagle's chest.

"Alright, I have no other choice: I'm gonna try to triple my attack's power," Dominic thought and focused. just as Om shot his cloud blade toward him once again, he entered into action: "108 POUND CANON!"

Dominic swung his sabers and shot a new version of his technique which was three times stronger. To Om's surprise, it actually managed to break through his blade and flew straight into him, cutting through his torso. The Prier gaped as blood flew into the air and he slowly collapsed onto the floor. Defeated.

Dominic smirked as he realized he won and defeated the last one the four Priers...

* * *

Meanwhile, inside the snake, the group of avians (and Gan Fall) screamed as they fell down due to the giant snake switching to a vertical position.

"Hang on!" Blu shouted as he filled his belly with air to turn into a balloon onto which all of his friends landed.

"Everyone's okay?" Gan Fall asked with helping the little Aisa back up.

"Yes," Jewel nodded. "But we still gotta find a way out of here."

"You sure you don't wanna try the rear end?" Blu innocently asked.

"WE ALREADY SAID NO!"

* * *

Meanwhile, back in Shandora, the lost city, Arlene was still walking around by herself.

"Where's the golden bell and the Poneglyphs?" the scarlet macaw thought to herself. She suddenly spotted trolley rails on the ground. "Rails? What are they doing here?"

Suddenly, a laughing noise was heard from behind her. She slowly turned around and saw none other than Raijin sitting on a building, eating an apple.

"Beautiful place, isn't it? Even after being shot up in the sky, this place is showing all of its beauty," the wolf said with bitting his apple. "My predecessors were truly morons: they never found this city despite it being hidden underneath the clouds."

"Who are you?" Arlene asked.

"I am God," Raijin simply replied.

"What?" Arlene asked with a curious look.

"You truly impress me," Raijin said after taking another bite from his apple. "Is it because you're an archeologist that you found this city? It took me months before finding those ruins. The capacity to read those symbols on the walls must have helped you."

"But the gold you came to find is no longer here, y know. You're many years too late."

"Gold? I don't see any around here," Arlene remarked. "Did you took it away?"

"It's a very delicate metal. But it's so shiny that I like it," Raijin said with biting his apple again.

"So you also took the golden bell?"

Raijin rose a curious eyebrow. "Golden bell?" The wolf then finished his apple and tossed it away. "Say, what did you learned from the letters?"

"Nothing very interesting. But if you didn't find the golden bell in here, then it's that she didn't came up here with the city," Arlene deduced. "It's a shame: it was the pride of Shandora. I was also searching for a belfry, but didn't found it either."

"The belfry is here: it was in the very middle of this city the same day it came up in the sky." Raijin then rubbed his chin. "I once heard that a bell rang through the whole country at the very moment the island arrived in Skyland. The people decided to call it the 'Melody of the Island'. The bell that made this song was truly made of gold? Magnificent."

"My little game will soon be over; eight minutes remaining. After that, I'll be able to search the whole island at my will," Raijin said. "I will find this golden bell!" He laughed a bit before suddenly giving a bothering look. "I can sense a parasite on the island..."

* * *

Indeed, back in Upper Yard, a weak goat ran to the edge of the island before collapsing from fatigue. "HELP!" he called.

Luckily, the Saldanha was just there and Stuart and Margalo spotted him. The duo quickly went to check on him. "Mister! Are you okay?" Stuart asked with resting the goat against a tree.

"I'm...I'm one of the sacred guards," he weakly said. "I'm part of the guard that fought on the side of Gan Fall, six years ago."

"Really? But where were you?" Margalo asked in surprise.

"R-Raijin held us in a secret spot! Y-You gotta listen to me! It's important!" the goat said and the duo exchanged concerned looks. "Raijin's gonna destroy...Angel Island!"

"What?!" the duo exclaimed in surprise.

"Raijin wants to kill everyone living in the sky!" the guard said on the tone of panic. "He made me and the others build a giant ark! For six years he made us build a giant ark to navigate through the skies!"

Suddenly, a huge light appeared in the sky right above them. The three people gasped in horror as they realized it was the Heaven's Judgement - the exact same one that almost killed Margalo, when she warned Blu and his friends.

On instinct, Stuart pushed his avian friend back and into the Saldanha. Margalo seemed to watch in slow motion as she looked at her best friend smile at her before disappearing into the judgement's light alongside the sacred guard.

"STUART!"

* * *

 **Great! Dominic defeated Om...BUT STUART GOT KILLED! What was this ark the sacred guard talked about? And why would Raijin want to kill everyone in the sky? What was this golden bell he talked about with Arlene? Will Blu and his friends finally come out of the snake by his rear end?**

 **So many questions with so little time to answer them all...**


	231. Reunion into the Shandora ruins

Margalo groaned as she held onto the Saldanha for dear life. The ship was getting shaken violently by the waves caused by the Heaven's Judgement. Once the powerful beam was over and he strong light that came with it faded away, Margalo looked up and saw that the spot where Stuart and the sacred guard had been standing was nothing but a big hole in fire. Nobody could have possibly survived such an attack.

"S-Stuart...," the canary mumbled. She then fell on her knees and started crying at the realization that Stuart, her longtime friend she had knew since so long, was gone.

Sue then came and looked sadly at her avian friend. "Sue!" Margalo sobbed and hugged the little silver fox in her wings. After many minutes, she whipped her tears away and stood up.

"Now's not the time to cry! The guard said Raijin was planning on destroying everything and killing everyone: I must go warn the people of Angel Island before it's too late!"

Taking her courage into wings, the canary took her late friend's Weaver and headed for Angel Island, leaving Sue in charge of watching over the Saldanha and Apollo, Lazaro, and Hernandez.

* * *

Back in the upper level, Dominic panted as he still looked at the defeated figure of Om laying on the floor. "It was harder than I thought," he said with putting his sabers away. "That's the proof that I'm still lacking training..."

"WOOF!"

The golden eagle turned his head to see Oli, visibly angered that his master got knocked out, charging toward him with his fist risen. Scoffing, the golden eagle simply took out Sabor and slammed the handle tip into his forehead, knocking the giant dog out in one shot.

"Alright, now I can go take care of the giant snake!"

Speaking of which, Wiper was still shooting blue fire blasts at the monster, refusing to recognize that his strongest weapon was useless against him. "Why can't I hurt him even after so many shots?!" he angrily asked.

"I'm gonna take him down!" Dominic shouted as he suddenly ran past the War Demon and jumped toward the giant snake, slashing his sabers on multiple spots across his body. However, to his surprise, it didn't caused anymore damage than Wiper's bazooka.

"No effects?! Crap, this beast got a solid skin!" the golden eagle mumbled. "I hope Jewel's still alive..."

* * *

Meanwhile, in Shandora, Arlene looked in surprise at Raijin who's body was still emanating lightning. "W-What did you just do?!" she asked.

"I just helped a poor little parasite who needed help; it's my duty as God," the wolf replied with a smirk. "Now enjoy the show; you will understand the meaning of despair."

Arlene couldn't help but tremble nervously. "He have the powers of a Logia type Magical Fruit?!"

"Okay, I had enough making this game last; it's time to get to the final part so that I can put my plan into action," Raijin said, summoning a golden staff into his paw.

"Final plan?! What are you talking about?!"

The wolf just smirked and rose his paw up toward the sky. His body suddenly created a violent lightning that forced Arlene to cover her eyes before it flew up along the Giant Jack and destroyed the ruins of the upper level.

By doing so, all the ruins crumbled and started falling down toward Shandora with all the people standing on it - including Dominic, Wiper, Vladimir, and the giant snake - with it.

"What the hell?! The ground is falling!" Dominic shouted while falling.

"It's Raijin! He's the only one capable of doing this!" Wiper said.

"Yusef! What's going on?!" Vladimir called while falling, holding Alex in his wings.

"I have no idea! But there's something down below!" Dominic responded, seeing the ruins below coming closer as they fell along the Giant Jack's line.

Suddenly, as the giant snake was screaming while falling, Jewel came out of it on her Weaver with Gan Fall following behind on Pierre. "Wait! Where are Blu and Aisa?!" Jewel asked.

"Crap! They remained behind!" Gan Fall realized. "Pierre! Go back in there and save them!"

The pegasus nodded and flew back into the snake's mouth, leaving the old knight to fall too. It was then that they realized a detail. "Wait a minute! We're falling?!" the duo shouted in shock.

By the time the long fall was over, Arlene was looking curiously at all the ruins that fell from the sky. Suddenly, Dominic pushed his way out of a pile of rubles, panting in exhaustion.

"Well that was unexpected," he said with stretching his back.

"Dominic, you're okay?" Arlene asked.

The golden eagle turned his head toward her. "Oh, there you are, Arlene. I was wondering what happened to you after we got separated." He then looked around curiously. "Can you tell me where we are?"

"This is Shandora, the golden city I told you about."

"So this is the golden city? Strange, it's not that different from the level I just came from." He then looked back at the scarlet macaw. "Did you find any treasure yet?"

"No; unfortunately, there's not any trace of gold in here," Arlene said with looking down.

"At least we're all still alive." The avians turned around to see Vladimir joining them with the unconscious Alex in his wings.

"You're still alive, Vladimir," Arlene remarked before noticing the injured kid. "Alex?! Is he alright?"

"Yeah, don't worry; it's not the first time he gets a bad cut in the stomach," Vladimir reassured.

Meanwhile, Gan Fall helped Jewel getting back up after they somehow managed to survive the fall. "We're lucky that the ground here is made of cloud," he remarked.

"But Blu and Aisa are still trapped into this giant snake!" Jewel said in worry.

"Don't worry; I have complete fate in Pierre," Gan Fall positively said.

Jewel hesitated, but had no choice but to leave her boyfriend's fate in the hands of Pierre. She then gave a look around. "Do you know where we are?"

"Not really; it's the first time I see this place," the old knight admitted. "I'm a bit surprised such a place exists in Upper Yard; never seen anyone like this before."

Meanwhile, Wiper was looking at the place in complete awe. "I-Impossible," he mumbled. "Are we...in our homeland?!" Looking all around, he recognized the architecture and design of the buildings. "We're here... This majestic place our ancestors used to protect... Shandora!"

"You dumb snake," Raijin suddenly said as he rose one paw toward the giant snake and shot a lightning beam which flew through his whole body. The reptile pushed a loud scream of pain before collapsing, his whole body burnt.

"Aisa/Jewel!" Wiper and Dominic respectively shouted in horror, knowing their friends were still inside the giant snake.

"Yes?" Dominic turned around to see Jewel coming at him.

"Jewel! You're alive!" the golden eagle exclaimed, glad that his sister-at-arms was alive. "Are you fine?"

"Yes, but Blu's still trapped inside this giant snake," she replied with looking at the roasted reptile with worry.

"What?! Blu was inside this snake?!" Dominic asked in surprise.

Meanwhile, Wiper was looking at the giant roasted snake and trembling in anger. "One hit... It only took one hit for him to take down this beast while I could barely damage him, regardless of all my attacks...! Crap! Aisa must be injured inside this beast!"

Groaning in anger, Wiper swiftly turned around and shot a blue fire blast toward Raijin who had no problem dodging it. The Komodo dragon still kept shooting at him again and again, before stopping to catch his breath as the white wolf floated in the air.

"What's wrong? You're shooting anywhere anyhow now, Wiper the War Demon?" Raijin asked in a mocking tone. "Big way to thank me for bringing you on the land of your ancestors. Now calm down a bit: the game's not over yet."

"Game?" Wiper asked.

"Yes; a survival a game that you have the honor to participate in. Along with the people behind you."

Wiper turned around and saw Dominic, Arlene, Gan Fall, and Vladimir - who was no longer carrying Alex as he left him in the good care of Jewel - stepping forward at his side. The spix macaw was watching this whole scene from behind a wall with Alex in her wings.

"Congratulations, survivors, you're the last players in my survival game," Raijin said. "However, I'm afraid only one of you can come out winner and accompany me for the next part of my plan. Which means you'll have to kill each other to determine the winner."

The five fighters just starred at him before Arlene suddenly let out a scoff. "I hope you're joking."

"You're the one who's gonna die here!" Dominic declared with a glare.

"You're gonna pay for hurting my friends!" Vladimir said in anger.

"I will take back my homeland for the pride of Shandora!" Wiper declared.

"You know I cannot let your craziness go on any longer, Raijin," Gan Fall said.

Arlene rose her wings, ready to summon vines; Dominic took out Sabor and pointed it at the God; Vladimir turned his body into stone; Wiper aimed his bazooka at him, and Gan Fall pointed his lance.

"Oh, this should be interesting...," Raijin said with a smirk.

* * *

 **The survival game is reaching its end! Raijin, God of Skyland, is gonna face Arlene the plant-user archeologist, Dominic the future best swordsman in the world, Vladimir the enforcer of the Blue Thunder Crew, Wiper the War Demon of Shandia, and Gan Fall the Knight of the Sky! Talk about an epic encounter.**


	232. Raijin vs everyone

**It's time to take down the thunder god once and for all!**

* * *

Margalo was still driving toward Angel Island on her Weaver. Despite doing her best to stay focused, she couldn't prevent some tears from rolling down on her cheeks.

"I must succeed...for Stuart!" she thought with determination and whipped her tears away with her wing.

* * *

Back in Shandora, Raijin was still laughing out loud as if we told him the funniest joke ever. "So you really wanna take me down? I didn't expected anything less from the survivors. The only problem is that you don't seem to realize who you're up against."

He turned around. "You don't seem to realize what God's existence means." He then turned back toward the survivors. "An old man who wants peace in Skypiea, a dumb Shandia warrior who wants his land back, and a bunch of pirates thirsty for gold. I have no interest for the inspirations of a bunch of sheeps like you. The problem is that this island was a mistake since the moment it came to be."

Those words caused Gan Fall to frown angrily. "Enough for those arrogant words: tell me what you did with the sacred guard! What do you want in the end?!" he angrily screamed.

"I wanna go back home," the wolf simply said. "What more sensed than for God to return to his legitimate home after so much time in this dirty low world."

"What?! Must I understand that you wanna leave Skypiea?!" Gan Fall asked.

"Exactly. It is said that gods live on a particular place amongst the Celestial Islands where I was born."

"What is he talking about?" Jewel nervously thought, still hiding behind a wall with Alex in her wings.

"The name of this place is Fairy Vearth," Raijin continued. "In this country, the land is endless and reaches beyond your glimpse! You understand? This is the ideal world that I inspire to! Fairy Vearth is the only land worth of me! In comparison, your battle for Skyland is completely derisory!"

He then pointed his golden staff at the five fighters. "Listen to me! The reason you're fighting for is deeper than you think! This island doesn't mean anything at all!"

Gan Fall suddenly widened his eyes. "You're not gonna...?!"

"I'm God and as such, it's my duty that the laws of nature gets respected!" the wolf said as he slowly floated down onto the ground. "In other words, you understand: I'm gonna rid the sky of any life trace!"

This statement caused everyone to look at him in shock. "You're gonna destroy our country?!" Gan Fall asked.

"Nature demands it," the wolf simply said with a nod.

Gan Fall groaned and made a gesture with his arm. "Don't overestimate yourself, Raijin! God is only the title we give to the person governing this country!"

"Maybe not before, but now it does," the God simply said with scratching his ear.

"You bastard! You can't do that!" the knight angrily shouted.

"Gan Fall, my dear predecessor, you said earlier that you wanted to know what I did to your sacred guard?" Raijin sat down and started talking. "Six years ago, after defeating you with ease, I inherited 650 men who formed the sacred guard."

"This morning, they finally completed the task I gave them in this very island. And like I said earlier, there's only seven survivors on this island; all of us here. Trust me, it wasn't fun."

Gan Fall widened his eyes as he understood what Raijin was saying. "Y-You monster...!"

"I didn't eliminated them by pleasure: when I told them about my plan, they became mad and tried to attack me. Bad move," he said with laughing.

"T-They had families...," Gan Fall mumbled with a deadly tone.

"Don't worry; I also planned to go kill them so that they could be together in a better place."

Havin reached his breaking point, Gan Fall pushed a cry of rage and charged toward the wolf. "YOU WILL PAY FOR YOUR CRIMES, DEMON!"

He pierced his lance right into Raijin's chest and his back. However, just like it was bound to happen, this didn't affected the God who simply turned into lightning and appeared beside the knight.

"Let's see if you can survive a 20 million volts discharge," Raijin said with rising his paw and forming lightning with it.

Time moved slowly as Gan Fall thought about the day he lost Skyland to Raijin and his army and how he failed to bring back peace ever since.

"In the end...I couldn't change anything..."

As the 20 million volts discharge was shot through his body, the knight pushed a piercing scream of pain and agony.

"OLD MAN!" Wiper shouted.

"MR. KNIGHT!" Dominic screamed with his eyes wide open.

By the time Raijin was done, Gan Fall was all burnt with his armor looking like rust and he collapsed on the floor, either unconscious or dead.

"This guy's really strong: he took down the old knight in one shot!" Dominic nervously thought as he started sweating.

"You can still join me unless you wanna suffer the same fate!" Raijin declared toward the four others.

"And why would you destroy this island?" Arlene suddenly asked. "In case you forgot, you'll lose something precious if you put this plan into action."

Raijin just starred at the scarlet macaw...before suddenly breaking out laughing. "You mean the golden bell, right? Sorry to disappoint you, but judging by your reaction, I have a little idea of where she could be located."

Arlene gasped and widened her eyes. "He didn't...?!"

"Judging by the look on your face, I can say that I'm thinking of the same spot as you. What? You really thought you'd made me change my mind with this detail? Sorry, but you made a big mistake." The God rose one finger and shot a little lightning beam with it.

Unable to move in time, the scarlet macaw received the lightning beam right between her eyes and through her head. While it didn't cut through her flesh, it still sent probably millions of volts through her brain.

"ARLENE!" Dominic, Jewel and Vladimir exclaimed in horror.

The latter rushed to catch her in his wing before she coud hit the floor. Vladimir trembled as it left a burning mark between the unconscious avian woman's eyes. The golden eagle angrily groaned and glared up toward Raijin.

"How could you do that?! She's a woman!"

"So what? I'm God, remember?" Raijin simply said with a smile.

This pushed Vladimir to the edge and he charged. "STONE WAVE!" Smashing his stone fist hard into the ground, he sent his stone wave toward the wolf and surprisingly touched him, creating a lightning explosion.

"Too slow." Next thing he knew, Vladimir received a lightning beam through his left side which completely destroyed it. The stone eagle gaped before collapsing and passing out.

"VLADIMIR! NO!" Dominic shouted. Jewel was also scared to see her friend falling into unconsciousness.

Reaching the limit of his patience, Dominic unsheathed Eau De Mort and Snow Run before charging as fast as he could toward the God. "FALCON WINGS!" he shouted and slashed his sabers across his abdomen.

Just like it happened with all previous opponents, the sabers did cut through the wolf's body, leaving holes that turned into lightning. He didn't even seemed interested. "Impressive technique." He then grabbed Dominic's sabers with his paws. "But completely useless!"

Raijin sent millions of volts through Dominic's sabers and into his body, caused him to shout in pain and agony too. By the time it was over, the golden eagle's body was now in the same state as Gan Fall (well, a bit less as his feathers were not completely roasted) and collapsed onto the floor.

"DOMINIC!" Jewel shouted in horror at seeing one of her oldest friends getting defeated like this.

Raijin then noticed him coughing out some blood and panting. "Still alive huh? Impressive; I thought this would be enough to send you join your friends. Whatever..."

Just as the wolf rose his golden staff, ready to squash down Dominic once and for all, Wiper dropped his bazooka and jumped on him, wrapping his legs around his waist.

"Felling like playing heroes, Wiper?" Raijin asked before charging his body with lightning...only to produce nothing at all! "W-What the...?! Why can't I produce lightning anymore?!"

"Have you ever heard of Sea Stone?" Wiper asked. Jewel gasped as she remembered: it was the material Risky Boots used for the cage, back in Sequin, to trap them and also cancel Blu and Colonel Toxic's Magical Fruits' powers. "My rollers are made of this very material!" Wiper said with a smirk before placing his bandages hand on Raijin's chest.

The wolf quickly realized what he was about to do. "No! Wait!"

"REJECT DIAL!"

The powerful impact blasted through the wolf's whole abdomen. While the scream of pain Wiper released because of the feeling of his arm getting broken was powerful, it was nothing compared to Raijin's one as his spine and possibly whole torso broke under the impact.

The War Demon stepped back and held his possibly broken arm in pain before looking down at Raijin who was now laying on his back, his eyes closed and some blood flowing out of his mouth.

"It's over...you monster!"

* * *

 **Wow! Wiper managed to defeat Raijin while Dominic, Vladimir, Arlene and Gan Fall couldn't! That's impressive!**

 **...Or is he really defeated?**


	233. The Maxim Ark

Wiper was panting, holding his broken arm in pain while still looking over the defeated figure of Raijin, god of thunder and lightning. The Komodo dragon spat some blood, but at least, his pride was still there and his goal was finally reached. Dominic, whom had recovered from his injury, was starring down at the War Demon in silence.

"Arlene!" exclaimed Jewel whom had left Alex to go check on her scarlet macaw friend, hoping she was not dead. "Arlene, are you okay?" She also looked at the unconscious Gan Fall and Vladimir, worried about their safety as well.

TZZ! TZZ! TZZ!

Everybody froze as an electric noise accompanied by flashes were heard. They slowly turned around and widened their eyes as they saw the body of Raijin flashing at the chest level with buzzing noises. They quickly understood the situation.

Raijin was reanimating his heart all by himself!

The whole slowly rose back from the dead with a smirk on his blood-covered lips. By the time he was fully back on his feet, Wiper groaned in pain, the effects of the reject dial kicking in, and collapsed on his knees, coughing out more blood.

"It's not God that living people fear...it's the fear itself that he incarnate," Raijin said with slowly whipping his blood away.

"So that super powerful attack was useless against him?!" Dominic nervously thought.

"War Demon Wiper, I think I already told you so," Raijin said as he stepped near the weak Shandia warrior. "You shouldn't have used the reject dial. You're truly pathetic."

The Komodo dragon spat even more blood and was forced to rest on his elbows as the pain was becoming too strong. "Don't talk to me...in such a superior tone...," the warrior panted.

"Eight hundred years ago, the people of Shandora fought to change the fate of their city. We're the noble descendants of those great warriors. One day, we lost our homeland, and during those last four hundred years, we carried the regret of the Great Calgara. My ancestors had only one goal in mind: finding this place. And now that I've done it..."

To everybody's surprise, the War Demon actually managed to stand up on his feet, despite all the damage he took up to that point. "...you're in my way!"

Raijin scoffed and knocked the Komodo dragon down with a smash from his golden staff across his face. "It was hard to take back from your last attack. You used Sea Stone against me, and as if that wasn't enough, you enchained with a reject. It's already suicide for a living being to use it, but you made us of it twice and you still wanna get up?"

Indeed, the Komodo dragon still found a way to stand up through the pain. "Impressive. However, you're still not on my level."

The wolf slammed his golden staff on one of the drums pierced on the ring floating behind it. This created a lot of lightning which took the shape of a bird and flew right toward Wiper. "30 million volts! Lightning Bird Attack!"

Wiper could only look in death's eyes as the lightning bird came right at him and flew through his whole body. Feeling the millions of jolts piercing through his body, he pushed another loud scream of pain and agony that echoed through the whole city of Shandora.

Seeing an opportunity, Dominic unsheathed his sabers and charged Raijin from behind, hoping to cut down his drums' ring and cause some damage. "Wanna die too, swordsman of the Blue Sea?"

Raijin slammed his staff on another drum which this time created a wolf made of lightning that jumped on Dominic and bit him on the left side of his neck. The golden eagle screamed in pain as he felt like a thousand feng were piercing through his skin.

"DOMINIC!" Jewel screamed as she watched her friend collapsing with his body now completely burnt.

The spix macaw was getting close to tears as she saw all of her friends - Dominic, Gan Fall, Arlene, Vladimir, and Alex - falling against God and his army. It got even worst as the wolf turned around and looked at her.

As he started walking toward her, Jewel was trembling and sweating nervously. What could she do? If all of her friends failed, there was no way she could take him down by herself. Even the Wind Waker would be useless against him. What to do? What could she do?

...Alright, there was no other options.

"...Take me with you," she mumbled. "I'll follow you to your dream world. Except if you don't want of me...," she nervously said with an innocent smile.

Raijin just looked at her...before smiling.

* * *

Moments later, Jewel went to pick up her Weaver while Raijin was about to walk away. "What is it? Have you changed your mind?"

"No, not at all!" Jewel nervously replied as she joined him with her Weaver.

The wolf just starred at her vehicle. "Please, tell me you're not planning on bringing this engine with you."

"Huh, well, I like this vehicle, but I won't if you don't want me to," Jewel nervously replied.

"I don't think this will be of any use, where we're going, but do as you please," Raijin said and then started walking.

Jewel followed him from behind, turning around to give one last look at her fallen friends. She secretly pried that they would make it out alive.

"Are you worried for them?" Raijin suddenly asked.

"Huh?! No, no! Not at all!" Jewel nervously replied.

Raijin chuckled. "You don't need to take this compassionate look. All those guys were poor fools who couldn't understand God's power. Unlike you. honestly, people who cannot control their own fear are exposed to the worst case scenarios. Don't you share this opinion?"

"Huh... Yes, of course."

Raijin and Jewel walked together for a while, eventually reaching a forest outside Shandora. As much as she wanted to run away, Jewel knew this would be pointless and that she had to obey Raijin while waiting for a chance to escape.

They soon arrived at the feet of a mountain with a huge entrance covered by giant white sheets. After they walked inside and found themselves into a giant hallway, Jewel started feeling nervous.

"Hum...-"

"I'd ask you to stay quiet and follow me," Raijin cut her off before she could ask him anything about the place they were going in.

And so, the duo stepped through the long hallway before reaching the end. They arrived into a giant cave room...and Jewel gasped with her eyes wide open.

"So? What do you say?" Raijin asked with a proud smile.

Before them was standing probably the biggest ship Jewel had ever seen. It was so big that it could probably hold all the living birds in the world. The colossal ship had many wings and propellers to help it fly and a throne beneath a huge golden face.

"I present to you the one and only Maxim Ark!" Raijin said. "I'm the only one who can make this titan work with my thunder."

"It's not possible...," Jewel mumbled, still looking at the colossal ship in awe.

"It's perfectly normal that you're surprised, but this really exists thanks to years of hard work and a special material that can absorb the required quantity of energy."

"A special material that can absorb the right amount of energy?" Jewel asked.

"Exactly: this material is the gold that has been waiting for years on this island," Raijin said. "The people of this country should be thankful: before leaving this land, I'm gonna give them a bright light show."

"A flying ship?" Jewel thought. "I'll have seen it all."

"Thanks to this ship, we'll reach the dream world and get to the Fairy Vearth!" Raijin declared.

* * *

Meanwhile, back in Shandora, the burnt snake was laying on a building, still unmoving. Screaming noises could be heard before three figures came out of his mouth. Blu, Aisa and Pierre lande don the ground, covered of saliva which they shook of their feathers.

"Erk! Bacteria!" Blu said in disgust with shaking the saliva off his feathers. "I hoped that time with Luis would be the last!"

"At least we made it out of this monster at last," Aisa said with also shaking her feathers before looking all around. "Hey, where are we?"

Blu decided to fly up to get a good scoot of the arena. While the ruins were badly damaged, he soon noticed many figures in one spot and flew closer before gasping.

"Guys!" he quickly flew down followed by Aisa and Pierre. The spix macaw was shocked to see his friends laying unconscious with visible wounds. He picked Dominic in his wings first. "Dominic! What happened to you?!" He pressed his ear against his chest and was glad to hear his best friend was still alive.

He then rushed to Alex, picking him up in his wings and was shocked to see the cut across his belly. "Alex! Who did this to you?" He also checked the kid for any life signs and luckily, he was okay too.

He then went to check on Vladimir while Aisa checked Wiper and Pierre checked on Gan Fall. They were all shocked to see their friends wounded. However, the part that was bothering Blu the most was that Jewel was nowhere to be seen!

"Arlene!" Blu called as he ran and picked up his barely conscious scarlet macaw friend in his wings.

"J-Jewel...she left with...," she weakly mumbled.

"Shh, take your time, Arlene," Blu softly said. "You're trying to tell me she left with this guy, Raijin? Where?"

"I don't know..." She then looked seriously at her friend. "Blu...if you don't stop him...he will destroy all of Skyland..."

"What?!" Blu and Aisa asked together in shock.

"Blu...you gotta stop him...please!" Arlene weakly scoffed.

Blu starred at her before giving a determined look. "Raijin went to the golden bell, didn't he?"

"I can lead you to them!" Aisa suddenly said. "With my Mantra, I can sense their presence and I'm sure it's Jewel and Raijin!"

Blu carefully putted Arlene down and stood up.

"Let's go!"

* * *

 **Everyone fell before Raijin and Jewel was forced to follow him at the risk of getting killed. Will Blu be able to succeed where all the others failed and defeated the god of thunder?**


	234. The Pirate vs The God!

**I know you probably already guessed it by the title of this chapter, but it's time for our beloved protagonist to face this tyrannic god!**

* * *

After getting onto the Maxim Ark, Raijin used his thunder power to turn it on and they colossal ship rose out of the mountain via an opening above and was now taking off into the sky. Jewel could only look at the ground getting far below from the edge of the ship.

Raijin laughed as he was sitting on his golden throne. "Finally! The final phase of my plan is getting into action! Now, all we have to do is to go get Shandora's golden bell and then, we'll leave for the Fairy Vearth!"

As the God kept laughing, Jewel just sighed in sadness while looking down. She knew that leaving with Raijin meant she'll never get to see her friends nor Blu again. She could only hope that they would make it alive and leave Skyland to go pursue their quest on the Blue Sea.

"RAIJIN!"

Jewel froze upon hearing this familiar voice while Raijin just stopped laughing and gave a curious look. "Who's there?" he asked.

A blue figure flew up super fast like a rocket and then landed right in the middle of the ark's deck. He slowly turned around toward his beloved one.

"BLU!" Jewel beamed as she rushed to hug her boyfriend who returned the gesture.

"Jewel! I found you thanks to Aisa's Mantra. You're fine?" he asked in concern.

"The pirate of the Blue Sea," Raijin mumbled. "I suppose that you came to join me and your girlfriend on our way to the Fairy Vearth?"

At this question, Blu gently let go of Jewel and stepped toward the God with a glare. "Not at all! I came here to kick your butt and end the madness you've been putting on this country once and for all!"

At this statement, Raijin laughed out loud for many seconds. "Come on, be a bit serious, my friend. You really think a normal bird like you can take down God himself?"

"I already faced many cocky opponents like you before and they were all super strong. That didn't stopped me from taking them down!" Blu affirmed.

"Blu! Wait! You can't defeat him: he controls thunder and lightning!" Jewel said. "He defeated Dominic and all of our friends!"

"I see that I cannot change your mind," Raijin calmly said as he slowly stood up from his throne. "Too bad, you would have made a fine friend to have on Fairy Vearth."

As Blu pushed a cry and charged at him, Raijin charged his hand with lightning. "Heaven's Judgement!" The wolf ros ehis hand and shot his gigantic beam of lightning which engulfed Blu in mere seconds, creating a powerful light in the process.

"BLU!" Jewel screamed in horror while also having to step back to avoid getting touched. "Blu...No...," she mumbled and fell on her knees.

Raijin laughed as his giant electricity beam slowly faded away. "How foolish are you to try and face...God?!" The wolf's laughter faded away while Jewel widened her eyes.

After fading away, the beam revealed that it caused some damage on the ship's floor...but Blu was still standing there, completely unarmed!

"WHAT?!" Raijin exclaimed with a completely dumbfounded look. "IMPOSSIBLE! HOW CAN HE STILL STAND UP AFTER I HIT HIM WITH MY LIGHTNING?!"

Blu just gave an innocent smile before stretching his cheek with his wing. "I'm a bird of plastic. I ate a Magical Fruit too."

"WHAT?!"

As Raijin looked even more dumbfounded, Blu charged and stretched his leg to hit a whip slap across his face, knocking him back into the golden wall of his ship.

Jewel saw this in awe. "It's true! Blu's body is made of plastic which is immune to electricity and lightning! But then...it means that Raijin's attacks will be useless against him!"

Groaning because of the stinging pain he felt in his cheek from the hit he received, Raijin slowly forced himself to his legs. "That's impossible: no one in this world can resist my attack!"

He slammed his golden staff into one of his drums which summoned a lightning bird. This last one flew right through Blu with his 100 million volts. Once the light it created faded, however, Blu was still standing there, looking as good as always.

"That didn't worked either!" Blu said with a smirk before launching his wings backward. "POWER SLAM!" His wings slammed really hard into Raijin's stomach, causing him to spit saliva and getting knocked back into the ship's golden wall again.

"His attacks are really useless against Blu!" Jewel thought. "But it means that...Blu is the only one in this country that can stand a chance against him! He's the only one who can _defeat_ him!"

Raijin turned his body into lightning to teleport himself to the edge of the ship. "You're body's made of plastic, huh? No matter: I don't need lightning to defeat you."

"Stop underestimating me!" Blu shouted and ran toward the wolf once again.

This last one closed his eyes. "Mantra..."

As Blu launched his elastic fist toward him, Raijin swiftly moved to the side to dodge him and let the macaw jump off the edge of the ark. Refusing to stop, the avian flew back toward his opponent and this time launched a foot for a kick which the God dodged at the last second by teleporting away once more.

"He's fast!" Blu realized as he launched both of his feet for a double kick which Raijin avoided by teleporting away.

Jewel then remembered a detail. "The Mantra?! It's the same thing this balloon guy used against Blu and the others to predict his moves! So it means...Raijin can foresee Blu's attacks even before he thinks of using them!"

Indeed, the white wolf dodged all of blu's long-range attacks until the avian decided to catch his breath. "Alright, my turn!" He started swinging his golden staff at the macaw who dodged some of his attacks before eventually getting slammed in the face and knocked in the air.

"BLU!" Jewel screamed in horror as Raijin dashed up in the air and slammed her boyfriend again with his golden staff which sent him crashing into the same golden wall of the ark.

The wolf then appeared before Blu and pressed his golden staff against his chest, pinning him against the wall. "I have to congratulate you; you're the first living being in this world who manages to hurt me this much." He then narrowed his eyes. "But the fun's over now: a pathetic bird from the Blue Sea cannot defeat a God like me!"

As Raijin laughed out loud again, Blu started sweating nervously while squirming to break free of his hold.

* * *

 **It's a bit tight situation: Blu's immune to Raijin's lightning attacks thanks to his plastic body, but the God can still foresee his attacks thanks to his Mantra and is far superior in speed. Can Blu win this fight?**


	235. The Pirate vs The God! part 2

**The fight between Blu and Raijin continues!**

* * *

Jewel was still looking in horror from the edge of the Maxim Ark's deck as her boyfriend was still pinned against the golden wall by Raijin who pressed his golden staff against his chest.

"You're very courageous, you know kid?" Raijin said with a smirk. "But that's not a quality: if you knew how to fear God and its power, you would've probably lived longer than that."

"Shut up! I'll find a way to beat you!" Blu angrily said and stretched his leg for a whip slap which Raijin avoided by teleporting away. "Crap!" he angrily mumbled while looking at the spot Raijin teleported to.

"Alright, it's time to up the ante a bit," the God said before rising his golden staff. "Gloam Paddling!" Lightning suddenly charged up into his staff and the form started changing.

"W-What's he doing to his staff?!" Jewel nervously thought.

By the time the lightning faded away, it was revealed that Raijin's staff changed into some kind of golden trident. "How'd you do that?!" blu asked without letting his guard down for more.

"Gloam Paddling is a special technique that I myself created," the wolf said with a proud smile, showing his trident. "I use electricity to heat and melt nearby metal and then reshape it into anything I desire. Such as a trident," he chuckled.

Raijin then charged his body with lightning and dashed toward Blu who moved just in time to avoid the trident, still getting a triple cut across his torso in the process. Swearing, the macaw flew up on the ship's top and rubbed the blood off his torso with his wing.

Raijin laughed while looking up at his opponent. "So you're weak against cut attacks, huh?"

"Crap! He found out my weakness!" Blu nervously thought before then jumping down from the top. "FIST STORM!" However, before he could even launch his attack, Raijin teleported away again. "He disappeared!"

"Hello!"

This time, he appeared right behind Blu. The macaw somehow managed to move to the side in time to avoid the trident coming right at him, thought it still managed to cut some of his right side's flesh.

"Don't get the wrong idea: I purposefully missed you!" Raijin said with a smirk. "I wanna enjoy seeing despair overtaking you as you realize you cannot win against me!"

Groaning angrily, Blu wrapped his wing around Raijin's trident and launched his foot into the air. "AXE SMASH!" The wolf widened his eyes as he couldn't move in time and received the foot right into his stomach, sending him crashing onto the ship's deck like a meteorite and making him spit some blood.

Not wanting to give his opponent any time to rest, Blu quickly followed with a Fist Storm down toward him. Unfortunately, the wolf managed to grab his wings with his paws and jumped to make Blu swing and crash hard onto the floor as well.

"BLU!" Jewel shouted in fear.

"You really thought you could take me down with such a pathetic attack?" Raijin asked with a disinterested look. "Look, we're already halfway to our destination which is the golden bell. You still have some time if you really wanna make this fun."

Blu panted as he slowly stood up, groaning in pain from the last shot he took. "...Jewel!" he mumbled.

"Y-Yes?"

"I need you to get off this ship. Things are about to get violent and I don't want you to get hurt, okay?"

As much as Jewel wanted to stay and make sure her boyfriend would make it out okay, she knew that she would probably end up holding him back and his chances of winning were already slim. She just nodded and flew off the deck and away from the ship, silently prying he would win.

"Aww, how romantic," Raijin sarcastically said. "Too bad she won't be there to watch her little boy get taken down by fear and despair."

"I won't lose!" Blu firmly said, making the wolf look in surprise a bit. "I'm gonna be the strongest bird in the world someday! So I cannot afford to lose against a scum like you who thinks he's a God simply because he can make sparkles with his hands!"

Raijin blinked his eyes. "The strongest bird in the world?" He then smirked. "My, my, you're even more ambitious then I thought. It's gonna be so much fun to see your face, when you'll realize that this dream will never come true!"

Charging, Raijin launched his trident to pierce Blu, but this last one dodged in-extremeis. "Bastard!" he shouted with swinging his leg which got blocked by Raijin's forearm.

"You're fighting for nothing!" the wolf said and swung his trident which Blu avoided by jumping away. "I can predict all of your moves with my Mantra!"

"Crap! How can I beat him if he can foresee all of my moves even before I throw them?" Blu nervously thought. However, an idea suddenly popped into his mind. He turned toward the golden wall of the ship and rose his wings. "Fists Storm!"

"Are you blind, kid? I'm this way," Raijin remarked.

However, it was not what he thought: by throwing his Fists Storm into the golden wall, it caused them to curl and bounce in every part part of the ship's deck. Because of this, Blu's fists were flying all around at an incredible speed.

"You moron!" Raijin shouted with a smirk as he ran toward the macaw. "You really think that by throwing your fists in every direction, you will win-"

SLASH!

The wolf got silenced as one fist managed to rub against his cheek, leaving a mark there. He just got time to widen his eyes before receiving one punch in the torso followed by another in the face and more everywhere. He realized what was going on: super speed or not, he could not dodge Blu's fists as they were leaving him no space at all to dodge.

Blu pushed a scream of determination as he pressed on his attack until Raijin was knocked to the ground, blood flowing out of his mouth and forehead and many visibly hit marks on his whole body.

"Crap! That bastard is not dumb at all!" Raijin realized as he slowly stood up and charged lightning with his body again.

"No! I won't let you escape one more time!" Blu shouted as he ran toward the wolf and launched his wings backward. "POWER SLAM!"

The macaw hit his wings at full strength into the wolf's torso, making him spit a lot of blood and cough as he fell on his knees and spat his blood on the floor. "Impossible... A stupid bird like him can't possibly take me down! I'm God!" he angrily thought.

Just as he started getting back up, Blu charged once more, launching one wing behind while twisting it. "Riffle Smash!" His spinning fist hit the wolf in the stomach, making him spat more blood mixed with saliva and sent him crashing into the golden wall once more like spinning in a rotation pattern.

Blu panted from the nonstop series of attacks he had been giving. While he was determined to win, he hoped this fight would not go on for too long: he was starting to get tired from it. Unfortunately, the end wasn't for now as Raijin slowly stood up and chuckled despite his visible pain.

"You've got guts, kid. I'll give you that," the wolf chuckled despite the blood flowing out of his mouth.

"How can you still hold on after that?! It took me less to defeat Risky Boots!" Blu remarked without releasing his fighting stance.

"I'm God! You already forgot?"

"Of course, after you told it around...fifty hundred times!" Blu sarcastically replied.

Raijin just rolled his eyes and suddenly extended his paw to touch the golden wall. "Gloam Paddling!" Just like he did with his golden staff, a piece of the wall melted off and he started changing its shape. This time, he created a giant golden ball.

"What's that?" Blu asked with a curious look. "You wanna play bowling?"

"I don't know what bowling is, but this is the weapon I'm gonna use to take you down like the pathetic mortal avian that you are!" Rising his paw and charging it with electricity, Raijin shouted: "EL THOR!" and sent his huge lightning beam which pushed the golden ball at an incredible speed.

This time, Blu wasn't able to avoid it and received the golden ball full front, feeling the violent impact and getting knocked back over the ship's edge, breaking through the wooden security barer and sustaining some damages to his back in the process. After a moment, Blu managed to regain his composure and flap his wings to avoid crashing down below.

"Blu!" The macaw turned to see Jewel coming his way, she was using her Weaver. "You're okay?"

"Well, I just took a huge golden ball in the face, but except that I'm fine," he replied with rubbing his beak. "I must go back on this ship and beat him once and for all!"

Meanwhile, Raijin stood on the edge of his ship and smirked toward Blu before turning toward Angel Island which was in full view. "It's finally time to set my plan in motion and rid the world of this pathetic island."

Rising his paw, he charged his body with with lightning. The sky suddenly turned dark and a powerful growling noise could be heard from above. "Mamaragan!" Raijin shouted. suddenly, big, powerful lightnings jumped from above and stroke down on the island, causing massive damage and setting their hitting zones on fire.

"What a splendid show!" he laughed.

He then turned his head and smirked even more. The Maxim Ark was getting close to the top of the Giant Jack on top of which was standing a giant golden bell - there it was, the Shandora Bell!

"Finally, I found it!" the God said with a smirk.

"What's this bell?" Jewel asked with a curious look.

"I don't know," Blu replied...before suddenly widening his eyes. "Wait a minute! You remember what Bellamy said, back in Mock Town? He said something about ships disappearing and a bell ringing in the sky which supposedly led to people believing the existence of the Skyland!"

Jewel remembered that and widened her eyes. "You don't think...?!"

"Yes!" Blu said. "I don't know what he wants to do with this bell, but it can't be good."

"What are you gonna do?"

Blu gave a determined look. "I'm gonna hit that bell so hard that it will ring loud enough for the people down below to hear it! That way, they will see that the Celestial Islands do exist and that we have the right to dream! Jewel, you think your Weaver can carry the golden ball Raijin tossed at me?"

"Maybe. Why?" Jewel asked curiously to which Blu just gave a smirk.

* * *

 **The destruction of Angel Island have started! What idea Blu have and mind and could it work to stop the Thunder God? Let's pray for his success or it will be the end of Skyland for good!**


	236. The bell rings! End of the war!

**Alright, it's time to conclude the fight!**

* * *

"Hum, you sure it's gonna work?" Jewel uncertainly asked.

The two spix macaws went to pick up the giant golden ball Raijin tossed at Blu to knock him off the Maxim Ark and putted it on the Weaver which was somehow able to carry it up in the air. They were now flying toward the giant ship which was getting closer to the Shandora golden bell.

"It's physically possible, Jewel!" Blu optimistically said. He was flying behind the Weaver, making sure the golden ball was not falling. "If I provide a strong enough rotation with it, the ball should get enough momentum to-"

"Okay, okay, I get it," Jewel cut him off before he could go into one of his nerdy explanations that she couldn't understand. "Get ready to take action then: we're getting close!"

The golden bell indeed came into view. Taking position, Blu grabbed hold of the golden ball via a little hole with a curve which allowed him to hold on and few forward at full speed. "RIFFLE SMASH!" His plastic wing eventually dragged the golden ball his way and used the momentum to send it at full speed toward the Shandora bell. If he could just touch it and make it, ring it would prove the existence of the island to the people down below.

However, he failed to notice Raijin, who was still floating in the air, saw it coming and smirked. "You really think I'm gonna let you hit my treasure like this?" He suddenly charged his body with lightning once again. "Max 200,000,000 Volt Amaru!"

The lightning became super strong and Raijin's body suddenly grew up, turning into a giant body made of pure electricity. He easily grabbed the golden ball in his hands. "What?!" Blu and Jewel exclaimed at unison, shocked to see their enemy change like this.

Raijin made a huge grin. "Looks like your little plan failed, Gunderson. Like I was gonna allow you to win with the gold I myself melted-"

POW!

Blu looked in confusion as a blue fire blast came to hit the giant electricity wolf right in the face, causing him to drop the golden ball forward again. The macaw looked down in the direction the attack came from and was surprised to see a familiar Komodo dragon standing.

"Wiper?!"

Indeed, the War Demon somehow managed to stand up despite all of his wounds and was weakly holding his bazooka on his shoulder. He quickly collapsed on his knees again, but not before glaring up and screaming at full lungs: "GUNDERSON! BRING BACK THE FLAME OF SHANDORA!"

Blu just looked down at the War Demon...before smiling and nodding, not wanting to waste the opening he just gave to him. He turned toward the golden ball which was heading his way.

 _"Alright! This is my chance! For the people of Skyland, for the Shandia tribe, but most of all, for all my friends! I MUST DO IT!"_ Blu thought with determination and launched his wings backward as far as they would go.

"GOLDEN POWER SLAAAAAAAAM!"

His wings came flying forward at full speed and slammed so hard into the golden ball that it made him feel a little pain. However, the impact pushed the round material at an incredible speed toward the Thunder God. This last one recovered from the shot he received in the face and barely had time to see the ball coming before receiving it right in his face, knocking him back hard, as if he got hit by a rocket.

"Impo...ssible...!"

As the giant lightning wolf collapsed, the golden ball was free to fly toward the Shandora bell. "COME ON! RING IT!" Blu shouted at full lungs.

At last, the golden ball reached the bell and hit it so hard that the ball exploded into shards. Falling to the side, the giant bell started ringing loudly while falling down from the Giant Jack and toward the sea down below. At the same time, the Ark Maxim, no longer powered by Raijin's thunder, started losing power and falling down.

"I...did it...!" Blu happily said before letting fatigue take over and allowing himself to fall down.

* * *

Meanwhile, down below, back in the golden city, Gan Fall, Aisa, Pierre, Alex, Arlene (whom had woken up) and Dominic looked in surprise as they heard the ringing from the sky.

"This sound...?!" Aisa mumbled.

"It's beautiful!" Arlene said with a smile.

"What is it?!" Alex asked in excitation.

Pierre let out an happy sound while Gan Fall got his eyes filled with tears. "...I never thought I'd hear this sound again..."

Very far from there, Margalo and Sue (who had evacuated Angel Island with the White Berrets' help) also heard it on a boat and looked up in surprise.

"Sue, it sounds like...like the Vearth is singing," the canary said to which the little silver fox nodded.

"D-Does God really exists?!" Captain McKinley of the White Berets asked in awe.

"It's a true miracle!" The Shandia tribe also evacuated with boats. "After 400 years, I lost any hope of hearing this bell again!" the elder said with tears in his eyes. "Great warrior Calgara, do you hear the Shandora's flame song?"

* * *

Back in Shandora, Wiper was still looking up and listening to the ringing sound he thought he'd never get the chance to hear.

"The day has finally come...Great Calgara...," he mumbled with his eyes closed.

Even the giant snake, whom had survived Raijin's lightning, cried in joy with tears coming out of his big eyes.

* * *

At last, the Shandora bell crashed into the White Sea along with Raijin and the Ark Maxim for all the Skypieans and Shandias to see.

"You've seen this?! It was the Shandora Bell!"

"And God with his ship!"

Everybody looked in silence as the once feared God slowly faded away under the sea of clouds with his ship and the long-lost golden bell.

* * *

"The song of this bell represents the pride of the Shandora city which was once proud of its prosperity," Gan Fall said, with whipping his tears away. "This sound announces the end of the war! It finally told its message after four hundred years!"

Realizing this truth as well, Wiper smiled and finally allowed himself to collapse on his back, fading into unconsciousness.

* * *

Meanwhile, Blu and Jewel were resting on a cloud with the former's head on the later's lap.

"We did it, Jewel...! We made the bell ring!" Blu happily said with a smile. "I wonder of those idiots back on Mock Town heard it."

"I'm sure they did," Jewel said with a giggle and kissed her boyfriend's forehead.

* * *

Back in the golden city, Apollo, Lazaro and Hernandez (whom had recovered from their injuries) entered the city and rushed toward their friends. However, they were not alone.

"Aisa!" The young dove turned around to see Laki who was still alive, thought still visibly shaken from the thunder strike she survived.

"Laki!" Aisa beamed and rushed to go hug her.

The elder dove smiled and returned the gesture. "I got a little souvenir for you," she said with showing the bag she burrowed before leaving for Upper Yard.

Aisa just sniffed with a smile and whipped her tears away. "I don't think I'll need it anymore," she said, referring to the fact that the war was over.

Unknown to them, Kamakiri was watching this with a smile. The Komodo Dragon survivor was being helped along Genbo and Bram by other Shandi warriors who had survived Raijin's games.

"I must heal you now!" Alex said to Dominic who was sitting against a ruin. The snowy owl kid wrapped bandages around his torso, thanks to Apollo and the med kit he carried everywhere.

"It's okay, I can wait," Dominic assured. "There's someone else who needs medical attention more than I do," he added with pointing toward the unconscious Wiper.

The kid looked for a moment before nodding to his friend and going to check on the War Demon. Vladimir took that chance to come and talk to his friend.

"Yusef, I wanted to apologize for not succeeding in doing the slightest damage to Raijin," the golden eagle said, his head low and holding his wounded side in one wing.

"You don't have to, Vladimir," Dominic responded with a frown. "I wasn't able to do much against him either."

"I don't think any of us did," Lazaro remarked with a shrug. "Well, safe for Blu of course."

Aisa then arrived beside Wiper and Alex. "Is he gonna be okay, Mr. Snowball?" she innocently asked.

"I'm not a snowball, I'm a snowy owl!" Alex angrily replied. "But don't worry; he'll be fine."

This made the little dove smile. "Thanks a lot."

"So do you guys know what happened to the bell and Raijin's ark?" Lazaro asked.

"Well, I think they fell in the White Sea," Apollo suggested.

"Oh, looks like the golden city doesn't really deserve its name anymore," Lazaro sadly said.

"We're gonna have to live with what little gold we have for a little longer," Dominic shrugged with a smile.

"You know what would be cool?" Apollo asked. "It would be if they could at least give us some dials: I'd like to bring some of those awesome gadgets with us."

Once Alex was done saving Wiper's life, he went to Dominic and wrapped bandages over his wounds. "Is he safe now?" the golden eagle asked.

"Yes, he just needs to rest a little," the kid nodded with a cute smile.

"Guys!"

Everybody turned around and saw none other than Blu, Jewel and Margalo coming toward them. They were all carrying a large bag over their shoulder.

"BLU! JEWEL! MARGALO!" they also beamed in joy.

"I'm so glad you're all okay! I was afraid for you!" Margalo said and whipped her tears away while Sue snuggled against her legs.

"Say, what's inside those bags?" Dominic asked.

"In the forest; we found the food supplies of the Priers," Jewel explained. "We went there after flying down from the sky."

Dominic then noticed a bothering detail. "Hey Margalo, where's Stuart? He wasn't with you?"

This question made the canary look down in sadness. "Well... H-He saved me from Raijin's Heaven Judgement attack, but..." Her silence made everyone understand what she meant.

"He is...?!" Alex gasped.

"Oh no, poor guy!" Lazaro sadly mumbled.

"Yeah, I almost died," Stuart said with rubbing the back of his head.

"He was my friend...," Blu said.

Just then, everyone realized something. "STUART?!" they exclaimed with turning toward the white mouse.

"Sorry, I should have announced my arrival," Stuart admitted with a nervous smile before Margalo rushed to hug him with her wings.

"Stuart!" she happily exclaimed. "How did you survive Heaven's Judgement?"

Stuart returned the hug before replying. "I got knocked into the sea and got saved by a boat of Angel Island survivors. I asked them to bring me here. Unfortunately, since Angel Island no longer exists, they are all forced to go to Upper Yard."

* * *

Meanwhile, inside the mountain cave where Raijin created the Ark Maxim, Gan Fall and Pierre were watching with smiles as the sacred guards who got locked away and forced to work for Raijin were reunited with their families - wives and children.

"Thanks a lot, God!" they all beamed.

"Please, stop calling me like that," the old knight asked. "I'm sorry that you were forced to work in here for six years."

"We lost Angel Island - our home!" one of the wives cried. "And the Shandias lost their secret village too! Is the war really over?"

Gan Fall just looked down and did not respond...

* * *

Meanwhile, in another part of Upper Yard, the Shandia people who did not took part in Raijin's survival game were gathered to make a decision.

"We could not find the divine army's members," one of the warriors told the elder of the village who was Wiper's grandpa.

"Gramps, can 400 years old wounds really heal like that?" another one asked.

* * *

When night time fell, Wiper groaned as he slowly woke up from his unconsciousness. He blinked his eyes a few times before being able to scan his surroundings. He was visibly in one of the Shandora's buildings - probably the temple. He was laying on a soft cloud bed and the trio of Gan Fall, Stuart and Margalo were standing over him.

"Finally awake, Wiper?" Margalo said. "You're feeling okay?"

The Komodo dragon shook his head and looked around. "What's going on? Where am I?"

"You have the strength to stand up, Wiper?" Gan Fall asked.

"I-I think. Why?"

The old knight just smiled and stood up. "Follow me." Wiper found the strength to stand up on his own and followed Gan Fall with Stuart and Margalo behind. The old man pulled the curtains of the entrance aside to let him walk out. Wiper blinked a bit before widening his eyes in surprise.

A huge fire was shining in the middle of the city and there was a lot of people partying around it. The Shandia tribe, Skypiean people and even the Blue Thunder Crew were all having fun together around the fire.

"Let's party!" blu shouted as he danced with Jewel.

Dominic was having a drinking contest with Bram and Genbo; Alex was having fun dancing with Aisa; Arlene was watching the show with a smile and drinking some beer; Laki and Captain McKinley were laughing of good heart together; Vladimir was doing a traditional Russian dance and teaching it to Pierre; Apollo was telling some people his awesome stories; and Lazaro and Hernandez were eating food together.

Wiper starred at the scene for a moment before Gan Fall came with two beer barrels. "Why are you doing that face, Wiper? The war's over; have a drink!" the old knight laughed and drank from his barrel.

The War Demon just starred at everyone...before smiling and drinking his beer, joining in the fun as well.

* * *

 **They did it! They defeated Raijin and his divine army and peace has returned to Skyland once again!**

 **Now, I'm not gonna lie to you: even thought you probably noticed it, I rushed the end a bit. The reason is that I felt like this arc wasn't as good as the previous ones like the Valley Of Peace or the Sequin Kingdom. But trust me, I really did enjoyed writing this.**

 **Now, we only have a few tie-ins to finish and then, I'll be able to start the next arc which is one that I've been pretty excited to start for a while.**


	237. Off to the Blue Sea! A heartfelt finale

**Alright guys, here we are, the final of the Skyland arc!**

* * *

With Raijin defeated and the peace returned, the people of Skypiea, the Shandia Tribe and the Blue Thunder Crew celebrated during many days and night. However, after recovering from their adventure, it was time for the pirates to hit the Blue Sea again.

"Thanks again for all the things you did for this country, my young friends," Gan Fall said. The old knight had completely recovered from his injuries, which was a good thing since all the people of Skyland and Shandora wanted him back as the God to watch over all of them. The old man accepted in spite of wanting to take care of his pumpkins fields.

"You're welcome. Just make sure you take good care of it, okay?" Blu responded with a smile.

"With all the gold you gave us, we should be cool for a while," Lazaro remarked. During the celebrations, the giant snake allowed the crew to get inside him and get the gold he swallowed along the ruins which had been untouched by Raijin. They found so much of the gold that they filled many bags with it and got them all on the Saldanha.

"It's thanks to you all that we found the Shandora Bell once again and got to hear it ring," Wiper said with an unusual soft smile. "We will always be grateful for that."

Arlene was reading her notebook. Upon getting the Shandora bell up to the surface, she finally found the Poneglyphs that were marked on it. Unfortunately, it didn't told her anything about the Forgotten Century like she had hoped it would. Instead, it gave her infos about one of the three Antic Weapons, Poseidon - which was in the same category as Pluton, another weapon she read about in Sequin.

But the most interesting parts about those Poneglyphs, was that she found a little note marked right beside them. And it was made by none other than Archibald Beak himself! It was saying: "I was there. -Archibald Beak". While it did not told her about the Forgotten Century, Arlene at least learned that the greatest pirate of all time did came in Skyland after all.

"You got all the ingredients you wanted?" Laki asked Alex.

For what his crew did, the sky people accepted to give Alex some ingredients that could only be found in the sky to help him make special medicine or new candies. "Yes, thank you," the kid replied as he closed his now full backpack.

"And thanks a lot for all those dials," Apollo said with looking into his bag which contained so many dials he didn't knew what he could do with all of them. "They're gonna be very useful on the Blue Sea: I could upgrade the ship or even Jewel's Wind Waker with them."

"No probs. We still got many ones on this island; it shouldn't be a problem," Margalo said with a nice smile.

"I finished adding the modifications to your ship," Stuart said, coming back on the coast of Upper Yard where the Saldanha was parked. "With those metal wings to the sides, you should be able to go back safely on the Blue Sea."

"Great! Thanks a lot, Stuart!" Apollo happily said.

"We should go now; we still got a long way to go before finding the Treasure Planet," Blu said. "Let's go, everyone!"

As the whole Blue Thunder Crew jumped on the Saldanha, Gan Fall couldn't help but smile. "This kid...he reminds me a lot of old Archibald..."

The Skypieans and Shandias waved as the avians slowly drifted away on their ship and they returned the gesture. Stuart, Margalo and Sue decided to follow them on their Weaver all the way until they reached an opening similar to Heaven's Gate except it was written: "Cloud End".

"So this is it. We're going back to our good old Blue Sea here," Blu said, sitting on the edge of the Saldanha.

"It sure was a fun ride," Jewel remarked with a wing around his shoulders.

"I'm gonna miss this country of pure white," Dominic said, resting against the mat.

"Me too," Alex nodded in agreement.

"At least, we're also leaving all of its troubles behind," Apollo remarked.

"Thanks again for everything you did!" Stuart called from his Weaver.

"No probs! We're the super pirates of the sea and we help when we can!" Lazaro said with a confident wink.

"Show-off," Vladimir scoffed with rolling his eyes.

The three friends were forced to stop as the Saldanha started entering the gate. "Goodbye! good luck for everything you're planning to do!" Margalo called. "Just be careful during your fall, okay?"

"Sure, no problems!" Blu replied. However, he then noticed something. "Wait, fall?"

He quickly got his answer as, upon exiting the gate, the ship came off from the sea of clouds and into the emptiness, the Blue Sea right beneath them. Everyone remained silent for many seconds.

"...Crap!" Dominic finally said before they started falling.

"This is going fast!" Vladimir shouted while holding onto the security barricade.

"I'M GOING TO BE SICK!" Apollo shouted from the ship's wall, his face getting pale.

"YAHOO! THIS IS AWESOME!" Alex happily beamed while feeling the wind blowing hardly against his face and through his feathers.

"Hold on, Lazaro!" Hernandez called to his puffin friend who was gripping for dear life on his shoulders.

"Easy to say: I only have flippers!" he angrily replied.

"We're going back home!" Arlene happily said while looking downward at the Blue Sea below them.

"Here we go for the next voyage!" Dominic said with a smirk.

"This is even better than flying with wings!" Jewel remarked with a happy laughter.

"Did this really had to end like this?" Blu asked with looking at the fourth wall.

* * *

 **Yes Blu, it had to XD**

 **The Skyland arc is now officially over and our friends are back on the Blue Sea for their next adventures. I sure hope you liked this arc; lemme know your opinion in the review section.**

 **Now we're gonna leave the Blue Thunder Crew again to go see what's happening around in the world. Don't worry thought; we'll come back to them soon and I can guarantee the next arc will be so awesome you'll just enjoy them.**

 **In the meantime, stay cool and happy holidays ;)**


	238. Christmas chapter

**I know I said that the next chapter would be about an arc that I have been pretty excited to make for a while, but since it's the holidays, my friend Jameson suggested me to make a Christmas chapter and I accepted.**

 **So let's do it!**

* * *

A few days after leaving Skyland and hitting the Blue Sea again, the Blue Thunder Crew entered a winter climatic zone. This made the temperature very cold and there was even snow falling from the sky. However, on this particular night, the sea wind was coldish and the full moon somehow managed to pierce through the wall of clouds in the sky. Because of this, the Blue Thunder Crew decided to light up a good fire on the Saldanha's deck.

That, and another reason.

According to Blu, it was one of the most fabulous days of the year: Christmas! A day where we celebrate things such as friendship and family. Because of this, even though they were in the New World, the macaw convinced his friends to celebrate together this very night.

"This is awesome!" Apollo beamed. He and Lazaro were using a special broiler that Mr. Ping offered the puffin, back in the Valley, along with Apollo's whole new flame dial to cook some fishes in their supplies. "With our tools combined, we'll get the best holidays meal of all time!"

Lazaro couldn't agree more with his friend. "It smells good," said Arlene who was helping the others with decorating the ship.

"You're making us fish, guys?" asked Dominic who was setting the table with plates, utensils and most importantly, beer barrels.

"That and some dumplings Mr. Ping gave me too," Lazaro explained.

"It's gonna be awesome," Jewel said and kissed Blu on the cheek. The two were finishing putting a crown on the ship's door when Blu rose a mistletoe above their heads.

"You know the rule," Blu chuckled with a smile. Jewel just rolled her eyes (he clearly didn't need a mistletoe) and pulled him into a passionate kiss. The others looked at this with either charmed or amused smiles.

A few minutes later, Lazaro called everyone: "Okay guys! Food's ready! Go to the table!"

He didn't have to ask twice as everyone started getting hungry. It was only once they were all gathered around the table that Jewel noticed someone was missing. "Hey, where's Alex?"

"I think I saw him on the ship's head," Lazaro said. "I'm gonna go get him."

Getting up, the puffin walked away from the warm table near the fire (not that he really needed it; he was made for the cold weather after all) and headed to the head of the ship. There, he indeed found his little snowy owl friend sitting by himself on the ship's head, looking at the sky.

"Hey, little Al, whatcha doing?" Lazaro asked as he joined his friend. "Dinner's ready. We're just waiting for you."

"Coming," the kid calmy said, his eyes still locked to the full moon which somehow managed to pierce through the wall of clouds that brought snowflakes to the sea.

Lazaro just starred at his friend before sitting beside him. "You seem lost in your thoughts. What are you thinking about?"

Alex let out a sad sounding sigh. "I was just wondering if Yukio was watching over me from up there. You know that it was after Christmas that she...left for heaven."

Lazaro looked sadly at his friend, not enjoying seeing him sad such a happy occasion. However, he quickly changed it for a sympathetic look and put a flipper around him.

"I'll tell you what she's doing: she's looking down at her favorite little snowy owl from a soft cloud and smiling because he became strong and brave just like the rest of his crew."

Alex looked at the puffin and then chuckled. "You drank too much beer, didn't you?"

"I haven't put anything in my poor stomach yet," Lazaro replied just before his belly let out a growl. "Now let Yukio rest on her cloud and come to join us."

Alex smiled and looked up at the full moon one last time before following Lazaro back to his friends...no, his family.

The night turned out to be pretty fun with Blu and Jewel snuggling and kissing each other, Apollo telling his awesome stories which only Alex believed, Dominic and Vladimir having a beer drinking contest, Lazaro and Hernandez trying to see who could eat the most fish, and Arlene giggling at the crew's way to have fun.

"Guys!" Blu suddenly called. "I'd like to state that for me, nothing will ever matter more than all the people sitting around this table. You guys are my family and I want nothing more or less than reaching my goal with all of you." He then rose his beer barrel. "To finding the Treasure Planet and becoming the strongest bird in the world!"

"To make the world as free as possible!" Jewel said with rising her barrel too.

Dominic was next. "To become the best swordsman in the world!"

"To become a brave crafter of the sea!" Apollo said, trembling nervously a bit.

"To prove the smallest are also the toughest!" Lazaro shouted with launching a fish in the air before snapping it with his beak.

"To make sure my friend accomplish his goal!" Hernandez said with giving a slap on Lazaro's back which made him fall. "...Sorry."

"To make Yukio proud!" Alex beamed with a determined look.

"To become a great leader someday!" Vladimir finished and shared a toast with all the others.

Arlene did not say anything and instead giggled happily with drinking her own beer. She didn't know if she could consider herself part of the crew since she has only been with them for a few days and had yet to decide if she wanted to join them.

"Oh, by the way," Alex said, getting everyone's attention. "...It's also my birthday. I'm turning twelve today."

* * *

 **A fun little Christmas chapter to give a break from all the action to our favorite avians. I sure hope you enjoyed it. And Alex is now twelve!**

 **I'd like to take this opportunity to make an announcement: I got a new program on my computer that can fixe all the grammar mistakes on whatever I write. I'm gonna take benefit of it to re-write the previous chapters of this story and fixe any mistake along with seeing what I can make better. I know it sounds like a strange idea, but if you ever feel like going on a nostalgia trip one day, it will make it funnier.**

 **Except that, happy holidays in advance :)**


	239. Toka the thief

**It's finally time to start this arc I had in mind for so long! Now, this one will start my characters from my other franchise, "The New Legend Reboot". So some of you might be familiar with those characters.**

 **It will also be mixed with another movie I think you'll all be happy to see. So let's get started!**

* * *

Downtown, Zootopia, 4:20 A.M.

The modern, civilized city inhabited exclusively by anthropomorphic animals was pretty calm in this night. The only unusual thing going on was a dark figure running on the buildings' roofs. Using his feline agility, the stranger made his way from one top to the other until he finally landed on the rooftop of the Zootopia Police Department (also known as ZPD).

The figure then stepped out into the full moon's light to reveal a male snow leopard with grey, black-spotted fur. He was wearing jade green pants held in place by a black belt, a jacket that was also jade green and left open to expose his strong torso, a red backpack tied to his back, red shoes, and black fingerless gloves. An unusual feature about him was a tuff of fur on his forehead and between his yellow eyes.

The communicator tied to his right wrist started beeping; the leopard turned it on to hear a voice calling: "Toka! Come in! Toka! Do you read me?"

"Yes, Neyo. I read you. Loud and...very loud," the snow leopard named Toka responded.

"Sorry, I'm a little nervous. Trying to break into police departments does that," Neyo apologized.

"Get it over, Neyo. You're safe in the van. I'm the thief here - I've got to steal that file from Agent Judy Hopps."

"Well count on me to be your eyes and ears, buddy. Got their security system totally scoped," Neyo said. "To get inside, you're gonna have to go through an air vent somewhere on the rooftop."

"Alright, I'm going in," Toka said with a nod.

Then, another voice talked on his communicator - a female this time: "And don't forget you've got me at the wheels, Toka. All you got to do is grab the file and get back to the van. We'll do the rest."

"Just keep the engine running, Alena. I'll be down in no time," Toka said before turning his communicator off.

Using his feline agility, he managed to reach up to the air vent which he softly opened up with his raw strength, careful not to make any noise, and sneaked into the vent before putting the opening back in place as to not leave any trace of his passage.

The air vent was surprisingly large enough for him to walk through and he reached the end in no time. This led him to a hallway with many yellow lasers in the way.

"Be extra careful here, Toka," Neyo spoke over the communicator again. "Break one of those laser beams and you'll set off the alarms - not to mention you'll be fried to a crisp."

"Don't worry," Toka confidentially said.

The snow leopard once again used his feline agility to jump and sneak between the yellow laser beams. He managed to reach the end of the hallway without touching any of them. He then just had to go through a door before arriving into the office quarters of the building. There were many doors with agents' names and posters for criminals or missing people on boards.

"Nice job, you're in," Neyo talked again. "Agent Judy Hopps' office is at the end of the hallway."

Following his friend's lead, Toka walked to the end of the hallway and indeed found the door to Judy Hopps' office. He tried to open it, but it was locked. Of course, she wouldn't make it easy for him, would she?

Luckily there was an alternate way: the snow leopard opened a window and walked out, standing on a very tin brick wall. Falling would result in him landing in the busy streets of the city and he really didn't want that. He soon reached an open window to the office.

There was an office with many books and files scattered on it. Toka also noticed a research board with many pictures of clues made especially for him. This made him chuckle to see that the little bunny was still holding him #1 on her priorities after all the times they encountered.

Getting serious again, he searched on her board and ended up finding the file he was searching for. "I got it, guys!" he announced over his communicator.

"Nice job - you got it!" Alena said. "If you come down through the fire escape and head through the parking lot, we'll be waiting in my van."

"Alright," Toka said with putting the file into his backpack.

He then sneaked out by another window which led him on a fire escape staircase. However, he didn't have time to make a step before hearing someone: "Criminal!" He quickly froze...and smiled upon seeing a familiar figure arriving on the rooftop right next to the ZPD. It was Judy Hopps.

Judy is a young rabbit with a lithe build and round face. She is covered in gray fur with a lighter shade on her underbelly up to her muzzle and on her paws. She has large purple eyes, a short pink nose, long ears with black tips, and a teardrop-like tail with gray fur on the top and a lighter shade on the bottom. She was wearing the ZPD uniform which is a typical, navy blue ensemble with long sleeves, and matching pants. The ZPD insignia and a gold aiguillette (ceremonial cords) adorn her shoulders. She also wore a thin, black tie, a brass tie clip, and a standard issue utility belt.

"You foolish leopard!" she called, visibly not happy to see Toka. "I've caught you red-handed!"

However, instead of looking terrified, Toka smiled warmly. "Ahh, Judy. I haven't seen you since I gave you the slip in Tundratown."

"Which reminds me - you need to return the Fire Stone to its rightful owners," Judy firmly said with taking out a weapon - a little pistol cannon which was purple in color and had the ZPD logo on the sides.

"Aw, and I was going to give it to you as a little token of my - hey, you know that pistol really brings out the color of your eyes. Very fetching!" Toka said with a seductive smile.

"You think? This pistol packs a paralyzing punch," Judy said. "You ought to try it. Might snap you out of your crime spree."

"And give up on our little rendezvous?" Toka chuckled.

"Plenty of times for that once you're safely behind cell bars!"

"Love to stick around and chat, but I just dropped to pick up this case file. I think you've had it long enough."

And with that, Toka started running down the fire escape as the bunny chased after him, shooting paralyzing punches at him. However, the leopard was faster and reached the bottom in no time. As he started running across the parking lot, Judy ran as fast as her bunny legs could and kept shooting missing every time.

Before long, Toka reached a purple van at the end of the parking lot with the back door opening and he jumped inside after giving a goodbye hand wave to Judy. The van started driving away from the parking lot and the ZPD.

"You won't escape me forever, Toka!" Judy angrily shouted, realizing she failed once more.

* * *

 _"Once again, my friends and I gave agent Judy Hopps the slip. I was a bit surprised by how well she took it. Finally, the police file I've been searching for during all these years. With this, I could avenge my family and regain possession of our most valuable treasure."_

 _"It all began when I was just a kid bouncing on my father's knee. You see, I come from a long line of master thieves who keep all their secrets of sneaking and stealing in an ancient book. It's called "The Ultimate Guide of the Thief Masters". Anyone who reads it become a specialist in sneaking - which is why we specialize in stealing from criminals. After all, there is no honor, no challenge, no fun in stealing from ordinary people._ _You take down a master criminal and you KNOW you're a master thief!"_

 _"The night I was supposed to inherit the book, a group of visitors came unannounced to our door. My father tried to protect us, but the gang of villains known as the Fiendish Five overpowered him and ransack our house until they found the Ultimate Guide. I was sick to see such a treasure fall into their dirty hands. They tore the book into five parts and split it up before spreading across the five parts of the world to commit horrible crimes."_

 _"Broke and alone, I was dumped at my village's orphanage. Once I was old enough, I left and met with my two new partners. Neyo, a little hedgehog who's a techno genius and strategist master, and Alena, a badass black panther who grew up in the streets to become a great fighter and van driver. For a reasonable price, they accepted to help me hunt down the Fiendish Five, avenge my father and steal back the Ultimate Guide."_

 _"I knew I was about to face the toughest test of my life. On this mission, I would need to become a master thief like my ancestors before me...or fail and allow my family's name to bite the dust..."_

* * *

 **Big opening for the new arc, isn't it? I tried to go for an L.A. Noire style or spy movie like.**

 **For those of you who read my Kung Fu Panda work, you might have noticed that Toka's a little different: a thief instead of a Kung Fu practicer and a little more playboy in terms of character. Bet you didn't expect him to flirt with Judy XD**

 **Also yes, for you fury lovers out there, Zootopia is also part of The Dynamic Adventure's world. And she's chasing after Toka's group.**


	240. Isle of Wrath

**It's time for the introduction chapter for Toka and his friends!**

* * *

After riding out of Zootopia's downtown and escaping Judy Hopps, Toka and his friends drove with their van for a few hours before nighttime came. They decided to stop in the middle of a green field and camp there for the night. Right now, they parked the van and were sitting together around a campfire.

Neyo was busy doing some genius stuff on his computer (as always). A little hedgehog with light brown fur safe for his face and underbelly which were white. His back was covered of quills and as such, he only wore a pair of yellow jeans held in place by a black belt and a yellow bandana tied to his left arm. The little genius was the first friend who accepted to help Toka at a reasonable price...and he proved himself worthy of the money Toka gave him because he did an amazing job all the time.

As for Alena, she was eating some marshmallows they bought at the local store before making a stop. She was a black panther with black fur (of course) and yellow/ruby eyes. Her attire consisted of a pair of blue jeans and jacket that was left open to expose her light green crop top which itself was so small that it left her whole tummy exposed. Additionally, she had a pair of ruby fingerless gloves with zippers on the back which she always left open. Alena was a good driver and a good fighter thanks to her time in the streets. Which was why Toka wanted her in the team...and also because he found her pretty beautiful.

While his friends were doing their things, Toka was checking the case file he stole from the ZPD. "Found anything interesting, Toka?" Neyo asked, looking at him over his computer.

"Well, the road trip gave me the time I needed to study our next target; Sir Raleigh the frog," Toka responded without looking away from the open case file. "As a teenager, this amphibian grew tired of his life of luxury and privilege. On a whim, he tried his hand on a life of piracy which he found to his liking."

"Raleigh, who quickly became addicted to crime, was brought into the Fiendish Five as the chief machine. There, his evil genius rose to new heights. The last reported sights of his evil machine were somewhere near an island named Isle of Wrath in the middle of the Welsh Triangle..."

"So this is where we're gonna go?" Alena asked, her mouth half-filled with marshmallows.

"Exactly!" Toka said with a serious look as he closed the case file.

* * *

After around two days of driving in the van, the trio arrived at the Isle of Wrath. The Welsh Triangle featured a somewhat lush environment. Trees and thorns made up most of the area. Other features in here included steep cliffs; some even had waterfalls which flowed very far down into the sea. Out at sea, one could see lots of shipwrecks and other smaller islands that were inaccessible.

"This place is very sinister," Alena remarked while driving, using the windscreen wipers to get the rain out of the way.

Neyo couldn't help but look through the window at the van's back door and at all the shipwrecks all around. "Man, I feel bad for all those people who drowned...or worst."

"I'm gonna put an end to Raleigh's carnage before it can go any further," Toka declared with a glare.

Eventually, Alena stopped the van. "Well, this is as far as we can go with the van, folks."

"It's time for me to go then," Toka said, standing up and opening the side door to exit the van. "You know the drill, guys; Neyo will lead me through the obstacles with the communicator. And Alena, you stay here to make sure nothing bad happens to him. If I don't come back...you guys are free to leave or try to avenge me - it's your choice."

"And you, try not to get killed; or you'll have paid us for nothing," Neyo said to which Alena nodded in agreement.

"I can't make any promises," the snow leopard said before closing the van door and running along the path ahead.

Toka made his way through the path while enduring the cold rain falling on him and the mud under his feet. Eventually, he arrived at one point where he could see a massive boat at the center of the Welsh Triangle.

Neyo then spoke through the communicator: "According to my amphibious-positioning system, that big blimp is where Raleigh is hiding out."

Toka observed the storm machine above the boat with interest. "You know, that blimp looks more like a machine than a hide-out."

"You're right, Toka. That is a storm machine! It's the reason it never stops raining around here," Neyo explained.

"That explains all the wrecked ships."

"But why would Raleigh want bad weather at his own hide-out 24-7?" Neyo asked.

"Beats me. But rain or shine, I'm going to steal my family's book back. And if Raleigh gets in my way...it's on," Toka said in a bitter voice before hanging off.

After walking a while longer under the rain and through the mud, Toka arrived at the land's coast. As if fate was on his side, there was some debris coming from wrecked ships that he could use to make his way to Raleigh's ship. Good thing because he didn't know how to swim.

Jumping from one debris to the other, careful not to fall in the water below, Toka finally reached the feet of the ship where he spotted a rope leading to the upper level. Climbing it, he finally made it onto Raleigh's ship and went to hide behind some bushes before taking out his binoculars and look at the blimp in the sky.

"That blimp looks like the most secure location on this boat," Toka said in his communicator. "If Raleigh's as smart as the police file suggests, then that's where I'll find him."

"Wonderful idea, but your plan is flawed," Neyo deadpanned on the other side.

"Why?" Toka curiously asked.

"Because it is impossible to get near to him. To access Raleigh's blimp, you would need to sneak through a high-voltage power tube located north," Neyo explained. "To do that without getting electrocuted, you'd have to turn off the power generator which is located inside the boat, into the library, if I'm correct."

"Interesting," Toka responded with a smile. "So when are you getting to the impossible part?"

"Fine! I warned you. It's your funerals," Neyo annoyingly sighed. "The entrance toward the library is located west to your position; you can't miss it."

"Thanks, Neyo," Toka said before hanging off.

* * *

 **We're gonna stop here for now. Think Toka will find a way to reach the storm machine and Raleigh? Let's hope so; I really want him to get back the pages of his family's book.**


	241. Toka vs Raleigh

It took a long moment, but Toka finally found the power switch inside Raleigh's boat. It was located at the very core which he reached by making his way through the engine room, power room, and the library. He turned the switch off before returning on his steps. On the way, he passed through the library again and noticed a book about surviving in different landscapes such as the jungle or desert on a shelf.

"Could be useful," the snow leopard mumbled, picking up the book, putting it into his backpack, and resumed sneaking away.

Once he was back to the boat's surface and with the power off, he managed to safely sneak through the tunnel which led him on the other side of the boat. There, Neyo contacted him again.

"Astonishing! All my calculations led me to believe you would fail to knock out that generator!" he said through the communicator.

"Never was good at math," Toka chuckled.

"Well, here's a real test for you," Ney continued. "I've found a way up to Raliegh's hideout, but unfortunately, it is doomed to failure."

"What is it?" Toka asked.

"You see this defense cannon at the edge of the boat?" Neyo asked.

Looking around, Toka did spot a defense cannon not too far which was not guarded by anyone. "Yes. What is it for?" The silence Neyo left him made the leopard understand his idea...and he didn't like it! "Wait, you don't mean...?!"

"I'm afraid so: you're gonna have to shoot yourself up to the storm machine. It's the only way," Neyo confirmed.

"Bah, might be fun," Toka shrugged.

"You're really scaring me, man. Anyway, just get inside that canon and I'll control it remotely with my computer to shoot you up to Raleigh's hideout. You're ready for it?"

"If this is what must be done..."

Toka made his way over to the cannon and, after making sure no one saw him, opened the top of the defense engine before sneaking inside and curling himself in a ball. "I hope for you it will work, Neyo."

The engine turned on. Neyo remotely turned the cannon toward the storm machine above the boat and fire up Toka. The snow leopard screamed as he flew at a speed he never experienced before and, by some miracle, broke through the blimp's window and landed safely.

Looking around, Toka saw the inside of the blimp was a vast open arena filled with water like a lake. He managed to land on one of the six only octagon-shaped metal platforms that were present. Looking at the end of the room he saw a throne chair on which was sitting Sir Raleigh himself.

Raleigh is a green frog with brown eyes. He wore no clothes except for white gloves, white shoe spats over his feet and a distinctive blue top hat made of metal.

"How delightful," he calmly said. "We have a guest. The only thing is..." He suddenly widened his eyes into a glare. "I HATE UNEXPECTED GUESTS!"

"Listen, Raleigh. Wipe out my family and steal what's mine, you better expect company," Toka replied with a glare at the frog.

"Ohhhhhh, I'm ever so sorry," Raleigh said, though his tone was visibly saying otherwise. "How sloppy of me not to finish the job. Obviously, we should have snuffed you out as well. So, without further ado, let me make amends by, what..."

He then shot his eyes open in a glare again. "BLOATING TO GARGANTUAN SIZE, AND SQUASHING YOU LIKE THE INSIGNIFICANT BUG THAT YOU ARE!"

Toka gave a smirk. "Bring it on," he dared with taking a fighting stance.

He didn't have to ask twice as the frog shot his tongue out to eat a little fly passing by which suddenly made grow in size like a big balloon. He then jumped from his throne toward Toka, looking to squash him under his weight, but the leopard managed to roll out of the way in time.

Not giving up, the amphibian bounced over and over again, trying to squash Toka who easily dodged with his feline agility. Eventually, Raleigh returned to his normal size and Toka took the chance to deliver a strong kick to his face which knocked him into the water.

"That's the best you can do? I'm disappointed," Toka said.

"Oh, is that so?" Raleigh asked as he jumped back on his throne and pressed on the button of his remote. This made all the platforms sink down, forcing Toka to jump at the last second on a debris that was nearby. "Looks like I made things more difficult for you now!"

Eating a fly, Raleigh became big again and jumped toward the snow leopard who had nowhere left to go. However, there was no way he would get defeated like this after all the hard things he went through. Laying on his back, Toka rose his feet to counter the big frog and, despite his huge weight, pulled with all of his strength. By some miracle, he actually managed to push him back and send him to crash into the water.

The platforms then rose back to the surface. Probably were they programmed to remain underwater for a short period of time. Getting desperate, Raleigh once again swallowed a fly to become gargantuan and jumped on the same platform as Toka.

"Enough playing!" The amphibian opened his mouth and shot his tongue out before starting to spin. Toka was forced to jump and duck the tongue to avoid getting badly hurt.

Luckily, after avoiding the disgusting tongue tens of times, Raleigh eventually returned to normal. Toka charged and hit his fist in his face so hard that blood flew out of his mouth and his hat got knocked off as he fell into the water once again, defeated.

"Blast it all!" he said in pain. "You've beaten me! Well, gloat all you want, Toka. You're no match for Muggshot, my villainous cohort in Utah. You will see. Mesa City is so well-guarded, a fly wouldn't be able to fly in without setting off alarms!"

"Yeah, yeah, thanks for giving me the info of your comrade," Toka said. "Now tell me where you hide my book pages, Raleigh!"

* * *

 _"Finally, after defeating him Raleigh told me the locations of the Ultimate Guide's pages which I collected. They contained a lot of techniques from my ancestors which I could learn while on our way to the next of the Fiendish Five."_

 _"Finding my way off the boat was a bit tricky with the unexpected arrival of Agent Hopps. While she didn't found me, she at least busted Raleigh and his crew. With the storm machine out of commission, the sun came back and the memories of the Lost Triangle faded away for good."_

 _"When I returned to the van, Neyo and Alena were super happy to see my success and congratulated me upon seeing the pages of my book. However, the party would have to wait as we needed to leave the scene before the police could find us. And we also had to plan our trip to Mesa City..."_

* * *

 **Toka defeated Raleigh and claimed 1/5 of his book's pages. I wonder what he will learn from them.**

 **With Raleigh gone, it leaves four more of the Fiendish Five to take down. Let's hope our friends can do it as well. And for those of you who thought Raleigh was too easy to defeat, remmeber: the first one's always the easiest to fight. The others probably won't.**


	242. Mesa City

**It's time to start the hunt for the second member of the Fiendish Five!**

* * *

 _"It has been a while since I have been back in the U.S. Our next target: the notorious Muggshot, muscle mountain of the Fiendish Five. What he lacks in brains, he definitely makes up with his brawn."_

 _"Turns out he wasn't always that way. He grew up as the weaker of his town, being constantly bullied and made fun of. The only friends he could turn up to were usually on the big screen. It's there that he saw his first gangster movie and he instantly knew that's what he wanted to be."_

 _"He spent the majority of his life working hard to get there, pushing himself to reach his large dream of power and respect. With enough inspiration, he realized that dream. He became a hard-boil, street brawn, though as nails gangster ensuring that he would never get pushed around again."_

 _"So he resides in Mesa City, huh? I always wanted to visit this American town..."_

* * *

Alena was driving her fan through the desertic landscape of the USA. They had been on the road for three days now after leaving England and made a few stops into the western-like towns on their way. Right now, Toka was reading the pages he had collected while Neyo was still doing stuff on his computer.

"This is awesome!" Toka said with a smile. "Those pages hold awesome technique which I had the chance to practice during those last three days. With that, it should be easy to take Muggshot down."

"I wouldn't say that; from what I've heard, he has yet to be defeated in one-on-one," Neyo remarked, looking above his computer. "The only one he truly fear is the leader of the Fiendish Five. Except that, no one."

"We've arrived!" Alena announced and stopped the van. They indeed arrived at an entrance gate made of metal with a flash sign reading: "Messa City".

"Alright, since it's preventing us from riding any further, I'm gonna leave here," Toka said with opening the van's door. "You guys stay here until I take Mugshot down and get my pages back, okay?"

After the team nodded in agreement, Toka used his feline agility to climb up the gate and, once on top, he got a good view over the city. It was pretty far in the desert-like terrain. Off the steep, rigid cliffs, the desert expanse continued, and a narrow river was visible. The buildings and roads have fallen into disrepair, and the bridges were mostly broken, with train cars placed over them to advance from place to place.

"It's time to put in use the technique I learned from the pages," Toka mumbled as he looked at wire cables connected to a pole a bit farther. "The Ninja Spire Jump from my ancestor, Rioichi, which allows to land narrow spots."

Jumping, Toka swiftly landed on the narrow cable and managed to hold his balance. His three days of training totally paid off. Running along the cable, the snow leopard reached the end and made his way through the path leading to Mesa City.

While walking, climbing and sneaking all around, Toka couldn't help but feel something was...off. He who though Mesa City was going to be loud and busy, he rather felt like he was walking in a ghost town. There was no sound except the hot wind that was making him sweat. And there was nobody to be seen around either. A lot of broken cars and camping cars, but not a single living being.

After many minutes of making his way through this lifeless path, Toka finally reached a sewer-like opening into a cliff that would lead to Mesa City. However, before he could sneak inside, three figures came out of nowhere and blocked the path.

There was a bulldog holding a big bone, a husky with a black jacket holding poker cards in his hands, and a sausage dog wearing a prisoner costume and swinging a metal ball tied to his ankle around.

"Can I help you, gentlemen?" Toka asked with crossing his arms.

"We're the ones asking the question here," the husky firmly replied. "What did you came to do here?"

"According to you? Do I look like I came to pick up four-leaf clovers?" Toka sarcastically asked.

"Sorry pal; entry into our boss' town isn't free," the bulldog said before smirking. "However, if you accept to give us a generous offer of coins, we'll gladly let you pass with no problems at all."

Toka just rolled his eyes. "You know what, you came just in time; I wanted to try one of the fighting techniques I learned during those last three days."

Understanding he was not planning on following their demand, the three tugs decided to attack with the bulldog charging with his bone. Toka smirked and charged into him with his new technique: The Dive Attack from his ancestor named Drake. It consisted of jumping forward in a dive while spinning on yourself like a drill. With this technique, he easily knocked the bulldog down.

"Who's next?" Toka playfully asked.

The husky groaned and started throwing his poker cards which Toka managed to dodge at the price of getting some fur cut off. The leopard managed to get close enough to hit the canine with the Dive Attack once more. This only left the sausage dog whom he easily defeated with his Dive Attack after jumping over his chained ball.

"This new technique is awesome. Thanks a lot, far grandfather Drake," Toka mumbled before finally entering the sewer-like opening.

It took a few minutes, but Toka finally managed to reach the other end of the cliff and onto a platform which gave him a good view over the main part of the city. It consisted mainly of casinos and wrecked cars.

"This Muggshot certainly isn't shy," Neyo remarked from the communicator. "Okay, so we know he's here somewhere, but how are we supposed to find him? Mesa City is a big place."

"Given that he's a bulldog... it seems only reasonable to assume he'd chose to live in a giant fire hydrant," Toka deduced as he looked at the biggest casino in town on top of which was a flash sign of a red fire hydrant with "MUGGSHOT" written beneath it.

"That's some sound logic, Toka. Now you just need to find a way to break into the building's base."

Looking around, Toka saw the building's entrance was blocked by wooden boards for some reason. "Any idea on how I can do that?"

"I made some research and found out that one of Muggshot's men is in possession of a bazooka. It could easily destroy the entrance for you to get inside. But it's located onto one of the city's rooftops; pretty risky."

"Since when am I afraid to take risks?" Toka asked with a chuckle.

* * *

 **Toka and his friends arrived in Mesa City, but the path to Muggshot is blocked. Can Toka retrieve the bazooka and use it to break through? Find out in the next chapter!**


	243. Toka vs Muggshot

**The quest in Mesa City continues!**

* * *

After making his way through Mesa City, guided by Neyo's instructions, Toka finally at the right place. He had to climb a few ladders and fire exit, but he at least made it.

"Yuck! These rooftops are filthy!" Neyo commented with disgust through the communicator. "Well, they are the only way to get to the bazooka since my locator tells me it's in a jewel case somewhere near Muggshot's penthouse."

"Don't worry; I'll make it," Toka assured before hanging off.

He jumped and climbed from one rooftop to another, making sure not to look down below as a fall would certainly result in a deadly injury or even death. Suddenly, after climbing up on a rooftop, he saw a familiar figure jumping on another one nearby. A female bunny.

"Well, well, well...look who just walked into my crosshairs...Toka!" Judy Hopps said with a paw on her hip.

"About time you showed up, Ms. Hopps," Toka said with a smile. "Was getting worried about you. Thought you took a wrong turn somewhere back in Zootopia."

"The only one making wrong turns is you, Toka. I'd suggest you surrender before I paralyze you with my good friend, the shock pistol."

"Now see, a girl whose best friend's a firearm's got issues. A little dinner, a little dancing and I think I can help you out," Toka seductively offered.

"Mmm, sounds romantic. As long as you don't mind dining...in jail!" Judy replied.

"Nah, I hear the service is lousy," Toka politely denied.

"Once I catch you, you'll see for yourself!" And with that, Judy started shooting paralyzing shocks at Toka.

The snow leopard was forced to jump from one roof to another with his favorite bunny chasing and shooting after him. The ride was long, but after many minutes, he finally managed to lose her.

"I'm going to hunt you down, Toka! You can't escape me forever!" Judy shouted from her rooftop.

"I sure hope so," Toka chuckled to himself from his hideout. He made his way to the rooftop near Muggshot's penthouse and found the bazooka into a jewel case, just like Neyo told him. Using his fist, he broke through the glass and managed to pick it up. "Alright, with this, I'll be able to get into Muggshot's building!"

* * *

After coming down from the rooftops (which proved to be difficult while carrying the heavy bazooka), Toka returned to the main town and went to hide behind a spot from where he could see the barricaded entrance.

"Alright, time to make things blow up!" Toka said with a smirk.

"Be careful with that thing, Toka: it can make a lot of damage - specifically to you!" Neyo warned through the communicator.

"Exactly! Cool, heh?" Toka replied.

"You're making me nervous, Toka..."

Rising his gadget and aiming with it, Toka pressed the trigger. He was thrown back by the shot which flew right at the entrance and exploded loudly. Upon getting back up, Toka saw that the barricade was left practically no-existent...and there was even some fire.

"...Wow... That was more useful than I thought...," Toka mumbled before making his way into the casino.

Luckily, the inside hasn't been really damaged by the explosion. The place looked more like the entrance of a plaza hotel with a reception spot, many staircases leading to various rooms. The straight one led to a big bulldog entrance to what looked like an elevator. With so much emphasis put onto it, it would probably lead to Muggshot's room.

Using his thief skills, Toka made his way to the elevator, got inside and turned the engine on. The door closed and the elevator started rising up. Toka's ascension toward his next opponent was on...

After around a minute, the elevator reached the very top of the tall casino. The door opened and Toka walked out. He arrived into a pretty large open room with some slot machines here and there as well as some poker and other casino game tables. And at the very end of the room was sitting on a throne none other than Muggshot himself.

Muggshot is a massive bulldog with lilac fur, large muscular arms, and small and seemingly degenerated legs since he only focused on exercising his upper body. As he grew up lifting weights, he became a huge, muscular beast of a dog. His arms are so huge and long, he walks on his knuckles like a gorilla, while his puny legs dangle, having no other use except standing and kicking at a close distance. He has a thick mustache and mono-brow. He was wearing a white tank top and brown pants with a belt.

"What?" he exclaimed in surprise with a loud voice. "My boys have been yapping about a mysterious dude running around cracking skulls and, and this is it? You're the monkey wrench in my operation! Some dirty feline wearing a martial art costume...?! Wait for a second...I've seen a similar costume before."

"Maybe in my father's home while you were beating him down," Toka suggested with an angry glare.

"Your father? Wait, you're the son of that thieve bastard?!" Muggshot exclaimed in surprise. "You know, this Ultimate Guide of I-don't-know-what had a lot of nice pictures but WAY too many big words."

"So you don't mind just hanging it over?" Toka asked with his arms crossed.

"Who are you kidding? You break into my place, steal my stuff, trash the joint. I feel transgressed and violated. Let's rock!"

The bulldog rose on his giant arms and walked toward Toka like a gorilla before taking out the two gangster pistols tied to his back and shooting at him. Toka was forced to take cover behind some of the slot machines with some of them managing to take the bullet before getting destroyed.

It had taken Toka a few seconds to plan how he was gonna attack Muggshot, but a good strategy would suffice. Without another thought, Toka charged directly towards Muggshot who rose one of his arms and slammed the leopard. The strength of the impact had knocked Toka a good distance, causing him to hold his torso in pain.

"You cannot overpower me!" Muggshot taunted, raising his pistols to shoot again.

Despite the pain, Toka managed to roll to safety and avoid the bullets again. Deciding to take a different approach, the leopard climbed up a steel pipe on the wall and jumped down to surprise the bulldog with a dive kick to the face which stunned him.

When Muggshot recovered his senses, he watched as Toka delivered four punches right into his face. Despite the difference in size, the bulldog stumbled backward because of the punches. Toka prepared to hit a fifth time, but Muggshot was prepared for this time and caught his fist into his bigger hand.

"You think you'll defeat me so easily?" Muggshot asked as he started applying pressure.

Toka groaned in agony and could not even describe the pain his hand was experiencing. He began to crouch down as he attempted to break his hand free, but it was clear Muggshot was not letting go. As the bulldog was tightening his grip further, Toka rose his other fist and hit an uppercut right underneath Muggshot's jaw, causing him to stumble and finally release his grip.

While Toka nursed his injured fist, Muggshot raised his own and whacked the snow leopard away, knocking him to the floor. He mocked his opponent as he approached him with his pistol.

"You're not as though as I thought. Even your father was more of a challenge than you-"

The mention of his father was enough for Toka to find the strength to swiftly kick Muggshot in the face again. He followed by using Drake's Dive Attack, charging right into the bulldog's face which made him fall on his back.

"Okay, perhaps I was wrong," Muggshot admitted as he removed the blood from his face.

Swiftly, he grabbed his pistols and began shooting at Toka. The snow leopard was forced to run at an incredible speed to dodge the bullets and jumped behind a set of slot machines for cover once more. The bulldog angrily pulled his weapons away and made his way to the slot machines which he whacked away with his big arm, only to find out Toka was no longer there.

"Over here, dumb brain!"

Muggshot turned around to see Toka standing before the big window of the room which gave a big view over the back part of Mesa City. The bulldog groaned angrily and charged at the snow leopard like an enraged bull. Then, as he jumped toward him, Toka let himself fell backward as Muggshot flew above him (kinda like in The Matrix) and broke through the window, screaming as he fell down below.

Toka stepped at the broken window and looked down to see the bulldog had crashed on a rooftop below and was now laying down in visible pain. Toka jumped down to land beside and check on him.

"Dis is impossible!" the bulldog groaned and coughed some blood out. "A little pipsqueak like you, beating a big, strong bruiser like me? It ain't right! You want all of that stupid picture book, you gonna have to go down to Haiti and cross paths with Ms. Ruby. And then believe me you don't want to be you.

"Yeah, yeah, bad guy's talking," Toka annoyingly said. "Now tell me where are the pages of my book!"

* * *

 _"I found Muggshot's pages inside a strongbox. But getting out of town was proven to be a bigger challenge than getting in with Judy Hopps having called back up to catch me. Having failed to found me and my friends, she instead busted this big bulldog on steroids and once again passed for a hero in the eyes of Zootopia."_

 _"While that didn't bother me at all, I couldn't help but feel bad for Muggshot: he was not really a bad guy, just a kid who got bullied and fell on the bad side of crime because of it. Maybe he'll get to change someday."_

 _"But with the end of Muggshot's empire, the people of Mesa City could return to their peaceful lives without getting terrorized by gangsters. As for my friends and I, we allowed ourselves to get some fun and luxury in America. Apparently, Alena went to play in casinos and participate in races which earned her a lot of money. The little daredevil..."_

* * *

 **Muggshot has been defeated and Toka took back the second pack of his guide's pages. This only leaves three of the Fiendish Fives. The next one will be Ms. Ruby, according to Muggshot.**

 **Now I must warn you about something: the next chapter will follow a new character. Don't panic, it's not the start of a new arc. It's just a character that I want to flesh out before joining the current arc.**


	244. Suya the dancer

**Alright, it's time for you to meet the next major character of the Ultimate Guide arc. I present to you all Suya!**

* * *

Suya had always been an adventurer. She would often go exploring in nature as a child, from the forest behind her home to the tidal pools of the California coast. Her father, Maoxian Jian, had fostered that feeling, being an archeologist himself. He would often bring her back treasures from his trips, such as masks of African tribes or pieces of clay pottery from Greece, which she kept in her room in a chest with brass edges. Whenever her father would leave for another academic excursion, she would find herself opening the chest and looking at the pieces, wishing she could be exploring with him. Now, that chest of trinkets was all she had left of him, as he had disappeared on a trip when she was sixteen.

Now all she had left was her mother, Adelie, a white snowy owl belly dancer from Turkey. Adelie had been a belly dancer from sixteen, gaining fame among her village and others for her enchanting dancing style. People would come from miles to see her slender midriff move in ways no one had thought it could, including an evil drug lord. Coveting her beauty, he captured and enslaved her, forcing her to dance for him, as he awaited her to come of age at eighteen to marry her... and do much worse than watch. Luckily, the night before her birthday, Maoxian Jian had rescued her, escaping the drug lord's mansion on a rope swing. They fell in love, married, and moved to Maoxian Jian's mansion in California. Though she'd been forced to dance for two years, she never stopped loving it and continued to do it in the States even after having Suya. Though many pregnancies would destroy a woman's figure, her dancing had kept it as flat and toned as ever, and Suya could not remember a day when her mother had ever covered it up.

It was a combination of being normalized around her mother's body, and California culture, that informed Suya's own personal fashion of exposing a certain portion of her body at all times. That, and another reason. She had inherited her father's black spots, but her body came all from her mother, from her firm breasts, soft facial features, slender limbs, and flawlessly smooth feathered skin. Her belly was also mostly her mother's, but was longer, flatter, and more concave. After her growth spurt at sixteen, her torso was so tall that every shirt she'd tried on would show her midriff by virtue of simply being too short. Far from seeming unnatural or gangly, the length of her stomach only enhanced her beauty, with many a girl expressing envy at her figure, and many boys eyeing it lustfully. She'd given up trying to look modest, and following her mother's lead, fully embraced her tummy being visible to the world. She didn't do this as an attempt at sexiness, as many midriff-baring women do, but simply because it felt right. Luckily, the fashion standards of California were very amenable to such scant clothing, even if more conservative adults scoffed at the sight.

With the disappearance of her father, Suya and Adelie had become quite close. Adelie fully supported her daughter changing her dress style and did what she could to help Suya be comfortable with this choice. They would often go shopping together, coming up with all sorts of fashions, sometimes leaving stores in the same outfit! Adelie even taught Suya all her secrets to belly dancing. Suya mastered belly flutters, belly rolls, hip rolls, stretching, and much more (even quicker than Adelie had as a professional). They would practice together at home, and nothing had made Adelie prouder than introducing Suya for her first time publicly belly dancing at the school talent show (winning her first place)!

As Suya grew, her body and curiosity grew too. Suya's breasts formed naturally round and firm, large enough to give her a good bust, but not so much that they strained her with their weight. As they were quite capable of supporting themselves, Suya abandoned the need for her bras, keeping them only insofar as they might be needed for some of her ensembles. Her dancing had made her features very toned.

Suya also became more enamored with exploration, studying all the texts in her father's library, even reading books late at night. Stories of ancient cultures and artifacts around the world filled her dreams, as she imagined herself in an Indiana Jones costume exploring them all! Her childhood cartoon hero, Penny Gadget, had inspired her independence as a child. In adolescence, Kim Possible and Totally Spies - going on adventures in many cool outfits - inspired her to travel the world!

On Suya's eighteenth birthday, her mother gave a gift that the snowy owl would forever cherish: Adelie's belly chain her father had proposed with. Removing it from her own midriff, Adelie slid her wings around Suya's sides, latched it, and let it naturally fall into place. The chain was silver, a fine string that was nevertheless strong. The front of the chain dangled right below Suya's navel, as a smaller segment of the chain about two inches long with a blood red diamond at the end, dangled from the middle. Suya expected it to be cold but instead felt her mother's warmth on the chain as the dangling end danced along her lower midriff, tickling it ever so lightly. Suya had seen it so often, wondering how it would feel on her, and now she would get to feel that forever. She burst into tears, hugging her mother as hard as she could.

For the rest of the day, Rose couldn't help but toy with her new treasured jewel. It was just later that day that she noticed an upside down door. It was the door to the attic. She'd seen the door and knew where it went to, but for some reason had never gone in it. But this was her eighteenth birthday, and in the spirit of adventure, decided to ascend the stairs!

Reaching the top, it became clear to her that no one had been up here in a while, not even her mother. Thick cobwebs and dust covered every surface, with much of what was up here also hidden underneath sheets. Approaching one tall object, she pulled the sheet off... A skeleton! She shrieked and spun around, but in the process, became entangled in cobwebs! Normally this wouldn't do much to restrain anyone, but they were so thick that they were only just weaker than normal ropes. Her whole body became wrapped up as she spun out of control, falling to the ground, hogtied. In her struggles, her legs knocked over a pile of objects, and one item, a heavy leather-bound book, fell right on top of her stomach! With the wind knocked out of her, she had no choice but to calm down and regain her breath.

Still in shock, she sat herself up after cutting the webs with her talons and brushed the remaining webbing from her body and clothes. Her violent movement had knocked the book off, and she reached for it to scold it for falling on her. It was then that she noticed writing on the cover, and she froze in awe. "Maoxian Jian's' Journal." It was her father's handwriting! This belonged to her father!

* * *

 **What lies inside this book? Will Suya uncover her father's whereabouts? Find out on the next chapter of Suya's story!**

 **Extra notes: "Maoxian Jian" in Chinese translates to "Adventurer". A name that fits the character's personality! And Adelie's a common name in Turkey. This means Suya is half-Chinese and half-Turkish. A new trait for those who read my New Legend Reboot franchise.**

 **Now, before you point it out, I know this chapter felt oversexualized, but hear me out: I originally created Suya as a fanservice character. But don't worry I will never go too far as to turn this into an M rated story. And Suya will have other traits outside of her beauty.**


	245. The secret book

Suya rushed down the attic stairs, her father's journal pressed firmly in her wings as though holding it any looser might make it disappear. She was so excited to read it that she completely forgot to show it to her mother, and ran straight to her room. She closed the door to her room and flopped onto her bed. She was momentarily shocked at the feel of her belly chain pressing against her fluffy skin, as it was still brand new to her. It was then that she realized how she was still covered in cobwebs, though not nearly enough to threaten further restraint. Still, she figured her father's journal had waited this long, it could wait a little longer as she cleaned up. She stretched to reach a pillow to cover up the journal, as though it might prevent the book from flying away. She got up and went to the bathroom connected to her room and took a shower.

After a few minutes, she got out of the shower, dried, and dressed, putting on a matching pair of silky, blue, translucent, midriff-baring pajamas. Her top was loose, only just hanging over her bosom, leaving a large gap for air to caress her breasts. Her bottom was slung low, the pant legs cut midway up the calves. An onlooker would be able to see the outline, but not details, of her body through the light nightwear; but as it was just her mother in the house, she wasn't too concerned. Feeling fresh after bathing and with new clothes on, she could now turn her attention back to her father's journal. She once again flopped onto her bed and got the book out from under the pillow and began to read.

Her father had studied many cultures and had transcribed many of his adventures in his journal. His particular area of interest, though, was a study of the mythological Amazon warriors. These were a tribe of ancient, female-only warriors, famous for going into battle with their bodies almost fully exposed in combat. According to his studies, they trained like this to improve their fighting, as they had to work that much harder to protect their now vulnerable body from harm. They believed covering their bodies would cause warriors to get too comfortable within the safety of their armor, and compromise their fighting skill. In fact, the Amazons worshipped the female body above all else, seeing it as a sacred gift from Gaia, their god.

One tale caught Rose's attention more than all: the legend of the Pearl of Hope. Her father had uncovered that this was a holy artifact of the Amazons, housed on a belly chain of a secret, rare metal the Amazons had discovered. They believed that the stone had great powers that could only be accessed by one with the perfect beauty. While worn, the stone could give secret powers that have yet to be discovered even to this day. But there was a greater power still, accessible only when the wearer had reached their full potential, proving the worth of themselves to the mother-god. What that was, though, remained a mystery in the book, as it appeared her father had been unable to uncover that secret.

Only by finding the Secret Temple of the Amazon city, Andromeda, could that secret be unlocked, and her father was determined to uncover what it was. The journal ended with him explaining that he believed there was a lead in the Amazon Jungle to find the city and was just about to set off on his expedition. Despite the name "Amazon," his studies revealed that they did not necessarily live in the jungles of the Amazon, but he had to start somewhere. The date was right before Suya's 16th birthday.

Suya was shocked, staring at that last entry of the book. Was that where her father had disappeared? What did he find that would make him unable to return, or, perhaps, what found him? It was then that she had a startling revelation, as feeling returned to her stomach, once more feeling the slight obstruction of her mother's belly chain. She reached out to the chain, and picked up the dangling diamond, holding it as high as it would allow while still being wrapped around her waist. Could… could this be the Pearl of Hope? There was only one way to be sure.

She ran downstairs in a quick rush. She found her mother laying down on the sofa in the living room, reading, and also changed into her bedclothes: a small, white bra pushing up her breasts, and pink pajama pants only slightly loose around her legs.

"Mom… I wanted to ask… Can you tell me more about this chain dad gave you? I only know a little about it it seems, and now that you've given it to me, it'd be nice to know the whole story," she asked while holding out the chain.

Her mother looked at the chain, and back up to her daughter's face. Closing the book, she laid it on the ground. "Of course dear. I never realized I hadn't told you more about it." Much of Adelie's Turkish accent had vanished during her time in the States, but it was still perceptible after all this time. She inhaled heavily while Suya sat on the chair opposite her. "Where to begin?"

* * *

 **Where is Suya's father? What secrets hold the Pearl of Hope? And what's with this secret Amazon city? Stay stunned to find out more. But don't worry; we'll go back to Toka and co. very soon.**


	246. Adelie's story

Adelie breathed in deeply before staring off into space. "I suppose it begins even before I was born. You see, the people of my family are almost destined from birth to become belly dancers. As far as anyone can remember, my family tree has only ever borne women, and all have become belly dancers. How can't we? Our genes seem almost perfected to give us long, slender, flexible bodies, and packaging it with all the other features men like. Sure, we could have become seamstresses or cooks, but our passions are calling for us to be seen and shared. I, of course, was no exception. At sixteen, the sound of a drum made me need to move my body, compelling me to you might say. Of course, I enjoyed it as well, and my shows both on the street and stage proved to be very lucrative. You know how it is at that age when your body is perfectly flat and smooth, one can't help but be entranced by it." She giggled a little, seeming to remember something more about that, but she didn't share it with Suya.

Her laughter quickly passed, though, as she remembered a darker chapter of her past. "But some men aren't content with watching. This man, the drug lord Yilan, came to watch one of my shows. He had a lot of money and power and sat there in the front row. Expensive seats, let me tell you. I remember him sitting there. It was different from other men, who usually just gauped and whistled. No... he sat there, unmoving and cold, watching me as though he was measuring me with his eyes. I didn't know who he was at the time and turned my attention everywhere but on him for the rest of the night." She gulped and then started rubbing her wings nervously. "He didn't even wait for me to leave the theater. His goons broke into my dressing room, binding my hands and legs and shoving a chloroformed rag in my mouth. The next thing I knew, I woke up in a strange room, still in my dance attire, but bound and gagged. Yilan was there, waiting and watching. As I woke up, he told me I was his dancing girl from now on, and that if I didn't cooperate, he'd find my family and do terrible things to them. He promised no harm would come to me as long as I was a good little slave, and did what he said. Every day, I had to dance at his table as he ate and discussed matters of his drug cartel. He and his goons would eye me over.. Every night, I was locked up. He used a bike lock of all things. He seemed to take great pleasure in knowing he wasn't just locking me up, but enslaving my body. It kept me skinny, as he'd say that no matter what, that lock was going around me at night, and it'd be my fault for how tight it got. He put the end of a chain on it, attached to my bed, with only enough length to reach the bathroom and opening of the terrace. I could get so close to freedom, able to look outside into the night, but I was still so far. I tried everything to take the lock off, but my waist was too big and couldn't go around my hip bones, and it was impossible to get past my breasts, no matter how hard I tried to push them through. True to his word though, nothing worse happened to me. His men were too scared to overstep their bounds, though they certainly had no problem getting an eye full of me as they guarded my room. This was every day for me for two years, as I grew and flowered, and Yaris patiently waited."

Her tone was sad. There were surely not many good memories of that time. Suya found that she was crying, imagining her mother's hardship. Tears fell from her cheeks and onto the floor. But then, a smile returned to Adelie's face. "Until just a week before my eighteenth birthday. That was when I saw your father for the first time. Oh, Suya, he was so handsome and so different from the other men. I could only hear a little of his conversations with Yaris, asking for some equipment and provisions for an expedition of some kind. I later found out he had no idea Yaris was a drug lord, and only went there because he heard Yaris' resources were second to none. But Maoxian Jian never eyed my body as I danced in front of him. He locked eyes with me, and I knew he was different. Yaris had invited Maoxian Jian to stay a while and enjoy his hospitality, apparently very enthused with your father's tales of adventure. As he lead Maoxian Jian away, and I returned to my captivity, I dared another glance over my shoulder at him, and, to my surprise and pleasure, so had he." Adelie's face blushed through her snow white skin.

"Your father was a clever man and figured out where I lived. Though guards were posted outside my door, that didn't stop him. If you can believe it, he climbed down from his own room and onto my terrace! He figured the guards were just there for my protection but was horrified when he saw the bike lock around my waist. He promised to find some way to free me, and take me with him. I would later learn he found a way to tell my family where I was after all this time and got them to leave the country so Yaris couldn't hurt them. He visited me every night, telling me his stories, and trying to devise a way to leave with me. He was always a perfect gentleman, never making a move against me, and I found myself falling in love! The final night before my birthday, he learned Yaris was making wedding arrangements, and that I was to be his bride the next day, by force if necessary. Desperate now, we had to do something! Maxoian Jian managed to find a saw and brought it to my room. He knocked out the two guards who would have surely overheard the sawing and then started his work. At last, though, he got it undone, and as he was taking the lock off, he lost his balance and fell over me, and caught himself by laying his wing on my chest. He started to remove it, but I grabbed it and held it there, finally getting to enjoy the feeling of him against my feathers. Then we kissed for the first time and caressed the side of my face with his other wing. Before getting up, he pulled that chain from his pocket. Apologizing for not having a ring on hand, he proposed to me with it, and, of course, I said yes! He wrapped it around my stomach as we still lay there, delicately sliding his hands on my smooth, young body. I traded one chain of bondage for another of love. We only had a moment to enjoy our newfound engagement, as we could hear the guards sounding the alarm from the other side of the compound. He had tied a rope to the terrace of his room, and it was long enough to reach the ground. He put his wing around my back and held me tightly as we repelled down to two horses he'd left nearby ahead of time. We rode off into the night, the cool air against my feathers being offset by the warmth of my love for your father, and never looked back!"

Suya found herself blushing madly caught up in the romance of her mother's tale. She quickly hid this from her mother before Azra turned her head to look at her daughter. "Wow mom, that's a beautiful story! I had no idea!"

"Yes, and as you say, the rest was history! We moved to this mansion of his, and he continued his work while I stayed here and belly danced recreationally. Soon we had you, and you know the rest from there."

"Of course… Mom, I wanted to ask you another thing. Did… uh… did…" Suya found it hard to ask though, as her face flushed in embarrassment. "Did you notice anything, uh, change about you, after dad gave you the chain? Like... well, anything at all?"

"What do you… well, actually now that I think of it…" Adelie trailed off a little, as though realizing something for the first time. "I do remember that any flower or petals seemed to become particularly, uh, attracted toward me afterward. Mind you, I'm not really sure what that was supposed to mean as I've never been that much into flowers at all."

"Is that so? That's strange," Suya said with rubbing her chin.

"Yeah. Look for example...?!" Adelie looked in surprise as she rose one wing toward a flower on a nearby table, but it did not bend toward her, like usual.

"I guess so," Suya said, starting to rub the stone, looking down at it. "And… and I think dad knew too." She then told her mother about the journal, what was inside it, and what her father had said in his last entry. "Mom, I think I can find dad."

"My dear, your father is gone! It's been two years! Wherever he is, he either can't be found, doesn't want to be found, or you wouldn't…" She then started to sob into her wings, tears also falling on her stomach.

"Mom," Suya said, crawling on her knees up to her mother, "mom, I have to. We both deserve to know what happened, one way or the other. There's a whole library up there in the attic from his studies! I know I can retrace his steps, find the leads he did, and eventually find him…" She gulped. "Come what may." She then recalled one other thing from the journal. "More importantly, mom, I know I'll be safe."

Adelie looked up, red-eyed from tears. "How can you know this, my love? Nothing is ever certain."

"For the same reason that I think dad really gave you this chain." She put her wing on top of the jewelry. "Because the magic of this chain also promises to keep its wearer safe. I think he knew that by giving it to you, he was also keeping you safe. The… other stuff… is just a bonus I guess."

Adelie sniffed, smiled, and rubbed her daughters face. "I think you are right. Very well. But you aren't doing this half-cocked. You are going to study. Not just your father's stuff, but archeology and fighting and survival training and…" Suya interrupted her before she got wound up again.

"Of course mom. I wouldn't have it any other way."

* * *

 **Now that her course is set, Suya began her journey to becoming a great adventurer! What would she uncover in her studies? Where would she be able to start looking for her father after so long? Stay stunned to find out!**

 **Also, those who have read my New Legend Reboot franchise will probably know why wearing the Pearl of Hope makes flowers bend tower her. And also, on a quick note, you might have noticed I changed the pearl's color from emerald to blood red in this story.**


	247. Suya leaves the nest

**Time for the final part of Suya's solo adventure.**

* * *

"OOF" Suya exclaimed as the shinai smacked her straight in the stomach.

"That was sloppy, Suya," her kendo master, Nao, said in admonishment. "If you insist on leaving your belly exposed then you must protect your core! Assume the stance and begin again."

Indeed, Suya had very unorthodox kendo armor on. She still wore the iconic black robes, shoulder pads, and netted helmet, but did not wear the typical chest plate, or even a full shirt. Instead, she'd cropped the robes, and would refuse to wear chest armor there, leaving her abs totally vulnerable to being struck by the bamboo swords at full force. Well, almost totally. Suya's belly chain protected her midriff just as well as the armor, though she kept that to herself. In her studies, she'd learned that the chain did indeed have powerful protective qualities. It dulled any pain against her body, though it did not completely negate the feeling. Without the chain, such a blow to her naked feathers would have knocked the wind out of her, and caused her to keel over in pain; but with it, it simply felt like a hard slap - painful, but recoverable. The chain also healed wounds on her body quickly, so she didn't fear a bruise growing from the blow overnight. In fact, it provided more protection for her than any covering could, and so while she'd bared her midriff gladly out of fashion and comfort before, doing so now was a lifestyle choice, and one she had to prepare for.

In the last 5 years, she'd spent her time studying her father's journal, as well as the natural and archaeological sciences in college. It'd been hard to get professors to take her seriously, many viewing her as a simple diva trying to flirt with everyone, but her grades and quality of research proved them wrong. She'd also been preparing herself for her expeditions by taking wilderness survival courses, rock climbing, self-defense, and even a military boot camp one summer. She wanted to be ready for anything and everything out there. It'd been particularly hard to find someone willing to teach her martial arts, but master Nao had accepted her. He enjoyed the challenge she presented by willingly leaving a weakness to protect, and, being an old man, couldn't deny how much he enjoyed seeing a young woman contort her body through the various pieces of training

Suya assumed her stance, dropping her sword low enough to put itself between her master's attacks and her abdomen. Master Nao was very fond of jabbing with the shinai, and Suya couldn't allow for it to go into her body in a straight dash as, if it was a real sword, it would pierce and kill her. She practiced like this because, according to her father's notes, this is how the Amazons trained. He'd gone in search of them, and if she was to follow in his footsteps, she had to be able to think like an Amazon warrior to figure out where he would have gone. That meant her training had to have an emphasis on protecting her core. Even though the chain kept the pain down, it did nothing to deflect actual blows from wounding her. A knife, bullet, whatever, could still rip through her, so she needed to be able to defend it.

Nao charged at her, surprisingly quick for his age. Suya deflected the first blow, the second, then the third. Nao quickly changed his stance and swiped at her, and she had to suck in her tummy to avoid the tip of the sword. He ducked under her attack, stepped to her side, and swiped at her midriff again. Once again, she avoided the blow by arching her side, swinging her hips out, and curving the side of her stomach as much as possible. She took another swing at him, as he jumped and spun out of the way. She knew what was coming next. He charged with a jab aimed straight at her chest. Luckily, there was enough distance that she deflected the blade and stepped to the side as he ran past her. But Nao was quick too and took a backhand swing at her. She had no time to raise her sword and had to drop into a backbend, arching her back straight up, as the edge of the shinai passed a mere inch from her feathers. Nao stopped running, turned around, and bowed. "Very good, Suya. Excellent control of your body. You still need to work on your offensive, but your defense has improved greatly!"

Suya heard clapping and turned to see her mother, Adelie, walk towards them on the lawn. She wore a very airy outfit for the warm day, a fitted crop top exposing her shoulders and top of her breasts, with large, open sleeves. Her low slung pants could be mistaken for a dress, but each leg covering was simply large and flowing, with slits on the sides so her naked legs would pop in and out of them. "Oh, my dear that was wonderful!" Adelie made no attempt to hide how proud and impressed she was. "I dare say, that was as much belly dancing as it was karate, eh?"

"Not karate, ma'am, but you are right in the other regard," Nao corrected her politely. "The martial arts are as much a dance as it is fighting. Your body must be fluid as water to take full advantage of one's ability to attack and to dodge. Belly dancing particularly requires a level of command of the midsection, a place even many masters ignore except to grow muscles there!" He chuckled a bit, knowing he himself had not considered the abdomen to be very consequential in fighting save to protect it until he met Suya. "I believe your mother came here to do more than observing you spar. So, until next time, Suya." Nao bowed and took his leave.

"Is that true mom? What do you need?" Suya said. Suya had a distinctive voice. It was deeper than most women, though still clearly feminine.

"Well, my love, we both know you haven't been playing with swords just for fun. I told you that you had to prepare yourself before going on your adventures, and... well... I cannot deny that you've reached that point. You've gotten your college degree, you've taken all these classes, and every day I see your dedication to finding your father. It's a spark that's never wavered, and... and as much as I want you here with me, I can't keep you anymore. You're 23 years old now, a grown woman by any standard, and it's finally time." The pride in her daughter was still prominent in her voice, but with an obvious sadness as well. "I give you my blessing to go find Maoxian Jian."

Suya swung her wings around her mother's neck. "Oh, mom! I'm so happy to hear you say that!" She squeezed her mother again and closed her eyes in the embrace. Her mother rested her head against her daughter and returned the squeeze.

"Of course my dear." As she pulled Suya away by her shoulders, locking eyes with her. "But before you go, we must go shopping! Happy birthday!" Both the women laughed at this, as it was one of their most cherished mother-daughter activities. Suya ran up and got changed. For speed, she slipped on jeans and a white, cropped, mid sleeve, button-up shirt. It was light and went down to her ribs, but she left the top two undone to show a little fashionable cleavage. She ran back to join her mother in the car.

* * *

They picked up the usual outdoor gear between several stores. A satchel, camping supplies, hiking boots, sleeping bag, socks, more underwear (Suya preferred pink panties). Then it came time for Suya to choose her ensemble, the clothes she'd wear out into the wilderness every day. She thought back to the explorers she knew in fiction, and they always had lots of pockets. She tried on several pairs of cargo pants before finding one that she liked. It was brown and sturdy, form-fitting enough to fit along with her legs, but loose and baggy enough to not press against her feathers; airiness would feel good in the jungle. It was interesting having so much carrying space in her pants, a rare function in women's attire (annoyingly enough) and had a cord to loosen and tighten without the need of a belt. She especially liked how low the waist hem was, letting her hip bones peek out. She wasn't sure what the legend of her belly chain meant by "the perfect body" but figured it entailed showing as much of her feathers as possible. She didn't mind, of course, but now it wasn't just about finding clothes that would show her midriff but would show as much _as_ _possible_.

It was impossible to find a belly shirt she felt would be appropriate. It had to be tough, but also expose her midriff, and it seemed with all the shirts here, she could only choose one or the other. Anything that fitted her needs was too fashionable - things girls would wear to a club - with frills, patterns, and complicated ways to get them on. Anything that fit her fabric and simplicity needs covered her body way too much. This wasn't a new problem for her though, and she'd become quite adept at cropping shirts. She finally found a tan, button-up one that seemed like a good fit, forming around her breasts nicely and keeping them in place. Again, it was too long, but she'd fix that at home.

When they got back, Suya rushed up to get to work on her new top. Suya wanted to put the shirt on as soon as it was done. She made the cut around where she felt her lower chest just started, roughly five buttons down. She hemmed the frayed edge and held it up. It looked as good as if she'd bought it that way. Slipping it on, she started doing the buttons from the bottom. It started out easy but got harder as she went up. It seemed she'd cut it too short, and the lack of stomach covering put more stress on the buttons at the top against the firmness of her chest. Once she was three up, they were already straining to stay together and pressing the shirt tightly against her bosom, giving her an impressive cleavage (even more than usual). As she started to do the fourth button up, the stress became too much, and the very bottom one undid itself. Twisting her beak, she redid it, then went back to the forth. It happened again, making the very base of her breasts visible. She did this three more times until she finally relented and moved on to the top button. The same happened with the next lowest button, and that was just a little too much lower chest for her. Fine, two buttons would have to do. It seemed a little flaunty, but it wasn't like she'd never shown this much of herself off before, both in private and public. She slipped on her new cargo pants and looked at herself in the mirror.

She couldn't believe it. She'd never felt more like a female Indiana Jones than like this. She posed for herself, checking her backside first, then doing the usual beauty poses, and finally some stretches. Everything seemed fine until she stretched her wings up as much as possible. The natural concave of her belly sucked in what little was pressing against her pants and caused them to sag until one could see her underwear. As for her top, she'd forgotten about how much long sleeve shirts ride up, and the already short shirt raised up just to the middle of her chest, showing off the entirety of her lower part. Relaxing her wings, she adjusted her clothes. Surely she wouldn't be in _that_ position very much! While this outfit had the potential to be exceptionally more revealing than usual for her, she wasn't too worried. After all, she'd learned that archeology wasn't being chased by boulders or running from natives, but crouching and digging pottery for the most part.

She looked at herself again. This was it. She was going at last! She was going to travel the world, finally getting to be an explorer. She played with the dangling diamond as she imagined herself in the jungle in this outfit, slashing through the brush, listening to the chirp of insects and howls of monkeys! Grabbing her fathers journal, she rose it to her face with a smile.

"I'm coming for you, dad. First stop: South America."

* * *

Upon arriving in Cuba by plane...let's say that the journey didn't really start as Suya had expected it. The first night at her hotel saw a group of robbers burst into her room and tie her down on her bed. Despite her fighting training, the numbers game made that they overpowered her with ease.

Luckily, Toka's group happened to reside in the very same hotel, heard the noise, and come to beat the robbers before they could harm her. Suya thanked them all and the group told her that they planned to reach a dark, uninhabited part of Haiti. Since she didn't really have a clue as to where to start her researches, Suya demanded to accompany them and the team accepted.

It was the next day that the group met their first obstacle: apparently, the part of Haiti they wanted to reach was feared by the local people and no one wanted to take them on their boat to get there. All except one. A male bull named Claytus who came from England to make some researches. He said to think the group had a lot of potentials and offered them a deal: if they accepted to follow him on a trip to a wildland in Samoa to find a rare item, he would bring them to the land no one else wanted to get them to. Since there were no real alternatives, they accepted and embarked on a long trip to the lands of Samoa.

If only they knew what awaited them up there...

* * *

 **This concludes Suya's little story. I know you must think I went too fast with how she met Toka, Neyo, and Alena, but I can assure you the next part will be awesome!**

 **Speaking of which, the next chapter will start a part of The Dynamic Adventure which I had in mind for a very long time. You have no idea how excited I am! For those of you who read The New Legend Reboot, you must probably already know which character it will be about, since it's gonna take place on a Samoan wildland.**


	248. Two worlds, one family

**Finally! The day has come! Man, you don't know for how long I had this story arc planned into my head. I'm so excited to finally start it that my hands are trembling at the moment I'm typing this.**

 **Now, before we start, there's something you must know: in this world, there are beetles and spiders but they are different from what you think. Beetles are tall like humans (though a bit smaller) with dark blue exoskeletons, two arms and legs, three white fingers on each hand and two toes on each foot, white eyes with yellow irises, and arrow-shaped horns on their head. If you want a better idea, go check the cover page of my story "Koji's Story".**

 **As for the spiders, they are anthropomorphic too with four arms (each having three fingers) and two legs with three toes. The females have golden fur while the males have brown. They have four eyes which are also white with the irises' color varying.**

 **Also, males must cover their groin like any mammal while the females must cover their groin and chest. A good thing to know since this part of the story will include a lot of bugs.**

 **Without any further due, let's start the story of Koji...**

* * *

 **(Two Worlds One Family from Phil Collins (movie version) plays in this sequence)**

 _It's a dark, stormy night in the middle of the sea with lightning flashing in the dark sky. A ship is burning to flames as a mother beetle looks in fear while her husband is slowly pulling the escape craft in which she is sitting down toward the water. She is holding something wrapped in sheets into her arms._

 _Soon, the rope holding the craft breaks, but she lands safely in the water. She looks up in fear as her husband jumps in the water (his wings got damaged by the fire) and swims safely onto the craft. He pants in exhaustion and relief before looking up at his wife and the thing she's holding. He quickly removes the sheets to reveal a baby beetle giggling and visibly unaware of what was happening. His parents sigh in relief that everyone's safe and sound._

 **Put your fate in what you most believe in, two worlds, one family**

 **Trust your heart, let fate decide to guide these lives we see**

 _The family of beetles looks as their craft is heading toward an island with lightning showing glimpses of it. Their ship had sunk behind, they know they can't turn back and must head there for a chance of survival..._

 **A paradise untouched by man, within this world, blessed with love**

 **A simple life, they live in peace**

 _Inside the island's jungle, a tribe of spider is settling into the tree branches for the night. Amongst them, Riki, the leader of the tribe, and his mate, Teuila, are watching their newborn boy sitting in his mother's lap while trying to touch a chameleon crawling by with amusement._

 **Softly tread the sand below your feet now, two worlds, one family**

 **Trust your heart, let fate decide to guide these lives we see**

 _The next morning, as the family of beetles has reached the island's beach, they start walking on a sand path into this new world. At one point, their baby is pointing at something and the parents turn their head to see a large tree on the edge of a cliff that would make a nice house. The father chuckles with a happy smile and pat his son on the head._

 **Beneath the shelter of the trees, only love can enter here**

 **A simple life, they live in peace**

 _Riki looks in amusement at his son playfully runs all around him before getting caught in the hands of his mother who nuzzles his face and throws him in the air._

 **Raise your head up, l** **ift high the load**

 **Take strength from those that need you**

 _We see scenes of the beetle parents using whatever is left from their boat on the beach to build a house into the giant tree, doing their best to get a better future for them and for their son._

 **Build high the walls, build strong the beams**

 **A new life is waiting, but danger's no stranger here**

 _Eventually, we see a large plan of the family's complete house. However, we then see a reflection of a golden, green-eyed predator feline growling, hinting a foreshadow of danger._

 _One night, as the spider tribe is sleeping in the jungle, Riki and Teulia's son is laying awake into his mother's arms. He sees a black frog jumping by and, being the curious bug that he is, starts running after it. He does this for many minutes, getting extremely far from his parents and tribe._

 _Eventually, he freezes dead as he arrives before the threatening figure of the golden predator who roars. Scared off, the kid runs away while calling for help. The screams alert his parents who realize their kid is gone and dash off toward the source of the scream._

 _However, by the time they get there, the screams of their kid faded away. Riki stops running and put his arm before Teuila to stop her. It's too late._

 _Their son is gone..._

 **No words can describe a mother's tears**

 **No words can heal a broken heart**

 _Teuila widens her eyes and then shakes her head as she starts crying on her husband's shoulder who does the same. Some days later, Riki is leading the tribe who walks in silence across the jungle with Teuila closing the march, still sad of losing her son._

 _However, she suddenly hears what sounded like a baby crying in the distance. Widening her eyes, she turned her head toward the noise and ran away._

 **A dream is gone, but there is hope**

 **Somewhere something is calling for you, two worlds, one family**

 **Trust your heart, let fate decide to guide these lives we see**

 _Teuila runs away from the tribe and follows the sound of the cries across the jungle. Eventually, she reaches the house of the beetle family which is accessible via a rope bridge. The cries are coming from the upper level of the house..._

* * *

Climbing up the house, Teuila carefully opened the door and gave a peek inside. The room was dark and filled with foreign objects the spider had never seen before. She sniffed a bit and smelled the odor of...blood?

Carefully stepping inside, the female bug noticed that everything was broken and turned upside down - there has clearly been a battle in here. While searching for the cries she heard, Teuila froze upon noticing two bodies lying in a corner of the room with blood all around them.

She saw that some of the blood on the floor looked like footprints of a predator she was too familiar with. Backing up in fear, realizing that the Golden Predator has come here, Teuila stepped one of her feet onto something fragile which cracked.

Looking down, she saw some kind of...image on the floor behind broken glass. This image depicted two adult beetles - like the ones laying in the corner of the room. But there was a third person on this image. A baby beetle.

The cries were suddenly heard again. They came from behind a pile of objects at the end of the room. Teuila carefully approached it to see a little ball squirming underneath a sheet. Giving a curious look, she slowly reached her three-fingered hand down to remove the sheet...and gasped.

Underneath this sheet was hiding a little beetle kid like on the picture. He was wearing a diaper and had yellow eyes. He turned these last ones to Teuila who gave a curious look...which the kid cutely imitated.

Unsure of what this creature was supposed to be, the spider sniffed his smell which caused him to sneeze into her face. She backed up and whipped the sneeze that landed into her face.

She looked at the kid who remained silent before giggling cutely. He rose his arms and squirmed. Teuila understood from experience that it meant he wanted to be taken. Hesitating, she picked him up in her hands and scanned him from every angle. She also sniffed the diaper he was wearing and coughed in disgust for obvious reasons.

She then brought the little creature closer to her face which he hugged and giggled. A smile slowly formed onto the spider's mouth. Without really knowing how she was getting attached to this little boy. She felt...as if her son was back...

Taking him in a comfortable position, she made the kid rest against her chest as he yawned sleepily and snuggled into her golden fur. However, she suddenly heard a soft growling noise coming from above her. She turned her head to look up...and widened her eyes.

It was _him_!

* * *

 **What an opening, isn't it?**

 **I won't lie: I cried while writing this. Phil Collins has a way to make songs that always get to my heart. This one in particular always makes me feel so much. I know you must be shocked that I killed a kid (though it did not happen on-screen), but you have to understand that this is not a kids' story where everything always goes fine.**

 **The scene between Teuila and the infant, I will always find it so beautiful. Because it's not just the whole "two worlds one family" thing but it's the fact that they needed each other. The kid had lost both his parents and Teuila lost her baby. It shows that sometimes good things can come from bad situations. And I love the way the little beetle nuzzles against Teuila. I don't know why but it's just a very beautiful moment that always gets me.**


	249. A spider and her beetle

The Golden Predator pushed a loud roar and jumped down to start chasing Teuila across the room. The spider tried to make a go for the exit with the beetle kid in her hands, only for the feline to knock into her, making the two of them break through the house' wall and go fall down on a terrace down below.

The Golden Predator recovered first and pounded on Teuila who pushed him back with her two upper hands while holding the kid in her lower ones. At this very moment, she felt lucky to be a spider. Unfortunately, her enemy managed to claw her across the cheek, causing her to drop the kid who rolled off the edge of the terrace, much to her shock.

As the Golden Predator pushed her back and went after the kid, she grabbed his legs to pin him down and looked down to see the beetle had landed in a rope web below the terrace, much to her relief. Unfortunately, the Golden Predator clawed at her again and jumped down in hopes of catching the kid.

Realizing she wouldn't make it to him before the feline, Teuila instead sneaked one of her arms down a crack into the floor and, though she had a bit of a hard time making the beetle go through the crack with his arrow-shaped horn, she finally managed to get him up to her and to safety just as the Golden Predator jumped for him.

Teuila smiled and caressed the kid into her safe arms. The break was cut short, however, when the Golden Predator broke through the wooden floor, trapping Teuila at the edge of the terrace with the bridge she came from many miles below.

She spotted a lifeboat hanging on a rope just beside the terrace. It was her only hope. Praying for luck, Teuila jumped into the wooden boat which fell at an incredible speed. However, the rope got stuck just before hitting the jungle floor. Looking up, she saw the Golden Predator got stuck in the ropes and then jumped out of the lifeboat.

Fate was on her side.

She quickly rushed to the bridge she came from but did not leave without turning around to look up at the beast who killed her son and shouting angrily. He had already killed enough kids like that: he would certainly not get this one! Wrapping her arms around the beetle once again, she rushed across the bridge and back inside the forest.

* * *

Speaking of which, inside the forest, the spider tribe was looking around for their missing friend. Riki noticed his mate's absence and got really worried.

"Mama! Look over there!" a female baby spider called from her mother's back while pointing in a direction. "Teuila's back!"

Indeed, the female spider arrived toward the tribe and they all rushed toward their friend. Riki sighed in relief and smiled to see that his mate was alive.

"Are you alright?" one of the spiders who got near Teuila asked. They noticed the clawing marks on her and gasped. "You're hurt?"

"I'm fine, no really, I am," Teuila assured with a surprising soft smile they haven't seen in a while. "It's just that I got a little bit...side-tracked."

She slowly moved her arms aside to reveal the little baby bug snuggling into her fur. He yawned and woke up to see a lot of surprised eyes look at him and the spiders all mumbled amongst themselves.

"Wow! Well, isn't that, huh, well...," one of the female spiders mumbled.

"It's just so...," another one said.

Then, the little spider girl kid stepped closer and giggled. "It's freaky-looking, that's what it is."

"Sefina!" the mother exclaimed.

"Well, it is," the little girl named Sefina said as she stepped closer to the kid. "What the heck is it anyway?"

Teuila giggled a bit. "He's a baby." She gave the kid into Sefina's arms which made her groan in pain as the beetle grappled onto her hair fur.

However, he saw that he hurt her and gently patted her, and giggled. Sefina couldn't help but laugh too. "So where's his mama?"

"Well, I'm going to be his mother now," Teuila said with a tender smile.

This statement caused the other spiders to look in surprise. They then moved aside as Riki walked by, looking surprised upon seeing the little beetle.

"You know, he's not so bad once you get used to him," Sefina giggled before seeing Riki coming and nervously gave him back to Teuila. "Teuila's gonna be his mother now," she said with an innocent smile before running away.

Riki gave the little creature a confused look and sniffed him, coughing a bit at the foreign smell the kid had. "Riki, I saved him from the Golden Predator," Teuila softly said which made Riki look in surprise.

He then looked down at the little creature again and sighed. "Teuila, he won't replace the one we lost."

"I know that," she replied sadly before looking down at the beetle with a smile. "But he needs me."

Riki still didn't look convinced. "B-But Teuila, it isn't...look at him. It's not our kind. No; you have to take it back."

This order caused Teuila to widen her eyes in shock. "T-Take it back?! But he'll die."

"If the jungle wants him, then-"

"I want him!"

"Teuila, I can't let you put our family in danger!"

"Does he look dangerous to you?!"

Riki impatiently roared, but his mate didn't flinch, holding the kid firmly in her hands. Seeing his mate's firmness, Riki looked down and then back at her.

"Is he alone?" he asked.

"Yes; the predator killed his parents," Teuila confirmed.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, he has no one else," Teuila confirmed with a sad look.

Riki finally pushed a defeated sigh. "...Then you may keep him."

This made Teuila smile happily. "Riki, I know he will be a good son."

"I said you may keep him," Riki suddenly said. "But that doesn't make him my son for more. We will rest here for the night," he told the others and gave one last unhappy look to his wife before walking away.

Teuila sadly sighed at seeing her mate refusing the little beetle as his son. She then felt something poke her lower arm and looked down to see Sefina came back and looked curiously.

"So, how are you gonna call him?" she asked.

"How I'm gonna call him?" Teuila rubbed her chin, trying to think of a good name for her new son. A name that would sound good. After a moment, she snapped her fingers. "I know. I'm gonna call him...Koji."

"Koji?" Sefina curiously said.

"Yes. "Ko" as in "Kotara", the god who defends his family at any cost. And "Ji" as in "Jikota", the goddess of dance," Teuila explained. "I'm sure he will always defend our family, and I'll also make sure he learns how to dance."

"Koji...," Sefina mumbled before smiling. "That sounds actually good."

Her mother suddenly picked her up and carried her away to bed as nighttime had already fallen off, the kid whining that she wanted to spend more time with her new cousin. Teuila giggled and joined the rest of the tribe, finding herself a good spot of leaves to sleep on. Laying down on her back, she looked at her new son who yawned and snuggled into her cheek to feel his mother's warmth before falling asleep.

"Good night, Koji..."

* * *

 **Teuila found a name for the little beetle. How sweet, isn't it? Though those who read my NLR franchise probably saw it coming already ;)**

 **Now, for those of you who are mad at Riki for the way he acted, I'd like to specify something: he's not heartless. Think about it, he lost his baby and didn't even had the chance to properly mourn his loss as he had to keep leading his tribe. This kind of thing can change a person. I know it doesn't excuse his attitude toward Koji, but still.**

 **Also, don't bother checking on Google for Kotara and Jikota; I invented these gods exclusively for the spider tribe. You could translate Koji's name to "Dancing Defender". A name that will fit him well, you can believe me :)**


	250. Elephant hair

Many years have passed since Teuila found and adopted Koji, bringing him into the spider tribe. One morning, after a good night of sleep, the bug mother yawned and slowly opened her eyes to see...Koji absent from the nest?!

Her motherly instincts kicking in, Teuila began looking all around the nest in fear. "Koji? Koji, where are you?!"

"Right here."

She jumped and quickly turned around to see her son hanging on a vine. Over the year, Koji grew up from a baby to a kid, meaning he was a bit taller and could talk. He changed his diaper for a loincloth made of leaves which he managed to pull off by himself.

"Oh my, you scared me, Koji," Teuila said with a little laughter of relief.

"Am I so sneaky?" Koji asked as his mother picked him up and tickled him a bit, making him chuckle.

"Yes, you are. But it's a great quality, you can believe me," Teuila said with nuzzling her son before he ran away to go play around.

As the beetle ran on his four limbs, he suddenly bumped into a furred wall. He slowly looked up and gasped upon seeing the figure of Riki towering above him. The tribe's chief gave him a glare of hate. The same look he had been giving him since his very first day.

"Koji!" Sefina suddenly arrived and picked her beetle cousin into a big hug. "Teuila and I have been looking all around for you! We were so worried!" She then looked up at Riki. "Oh, Riki, you're such a wise chief! Thank you for finding him!"

However, Riki visibly saw she was pretending and rolled his eyes with a sigh of annoyance. Sefina mumbled: "Run!" to Koji before running away followed by her little cousin. She dragged him behind a tree and grabbed his shoulders.

"Are you crazy, dude?" she asked. "How many times will I have to tell you: if you want Riki to like you, avoid getting in his way, okay?"

Koji chuckled nervously. "It wasn't on purpose; I didn't saw him this time."

Just then, two spider kids ran by. "Hey, Sefina! Come on!" they called before running away.

"Coming right through!" Sefina responded.

"Where are you going?" Koji asked.

"I'll just go hang out with the guys at the elephant falls. See you later," Sefina replied.

"Oh! Can I come?" Koji asked in excitation.

Sefina rubbed the back of her head and looked all around. "Huh...yeah, about that. You could, if you were able to keep up with me, but...hehe," she chuckled nervously. "you can't. Go back to Aunt Teuila; I'll return soon. Bye!" And with that, she left.

* * *

Meanwhile, at the elephant falls. These last ones were a set of giant cliffs with many, beautiful waterfalls and deep lakes all around. Many wildlife including bugs, elephants (from where the name), and even fishes were inhabiting the place.

On one particular cliff, the two spider boys we saw earlier were playing wrestle until Sefina arrived. "Fun has arrived! Thank you for waitin'!" she said in a cool, singing tone.

"What took you so long?" one of the boys asked.

"I had a little pest control problem, but it's all taken care of-ARGH!" Sefina exclaimed as koji suddenly came out from the bushes and bumped into her back, causing the two of them to fall forward.

"Hey guys," Koji said with a chuckle and hand wave.

"Sefina, is that some kind of joke?" one of the boys asked, visibly unhappy to see the beetle.

"Tell me I'm not looking at the furless bug!" the other said.

Koji rose an eyebrow after washing himself up. "Well, Sefina said I could come along with if I could keep up."

"Oh no! Sefina, come on!" the boys whined.

"I'll handle this guy, okay?" Sefina mumbled before turning to her cousin. "Buddy, come over here. We got a tiny, little itsy bitsy problem here. Personally, I'd like to hang out with you, you know I would," she explained with wrapping an arm around Koji's shoulder and bringing him to the edge of the cliff they were on. "But the guys, they need a little convincing, y'know."

"Okay, what do I gotta do?" Koji asked.

"Oh, what you gotta do?" Sefina chuckled nervously and rubbed the back of her head. "It's so stupid!"

"What?" Koji impatiently asked.

"Well, you gotta..." Sefina then rubbed her head and removed an hair from it. "...You gotta go get a hair," she invented on the spot.

"A hair?" Koji asked with a confused look.

"Yes, a hair." Sefina suddenly heard an elephant's shout and a smile formed on her face. "An elephant hair."

This statement caused Koji to widen his eyes and look down at some elephants fighting down in the water below. "An elephant hair?!" he nervously mumbled.

"As I said, it's stupid, right?" Sefina said with a hand on her cousin's shoulder. "Listen, take it from me. Go home, okay?" she said with slowly bringing him back toward the jungle. "Who needs this aggravation? You know, I'll probably leave soon myself. So go, I'll catch up, alright?"

Koji nodded and then walked away. "See? Leave it to me," Sefina said with a proud smile. However, Koji suddenly ran past her and toward the edge of the cliff with a cry. "Koji! Koji, NO!" she screamed in horror.

The beetle jumped off the cliff and fell at tremendous speed before landing flat on the lake's surface, causing the other to wince in pain as it must've left a mark. Koji drifted down to the lake's bottom, landing on a hippopotamus' nose. The animal gave him a curious look while Koji waved with a smile. The animal started battling its paws to swim away. Koji did the same and returned to the lake's surface.

"There he is! He's alive!" Sefina happily beamed from the cliff's top.

"Hey, guys!" Koji waved his hand with a smile which the three others gladly returned. He then started swimming away toward the lake's center.

"No! Come back!" Sefina called in panic. "Come back!"

"This guy's great!" one of the boys said and elbowing Sefina into the shoulder. "You should bring him more often."

"Let's go get better seats to see this!" the other boy said as they walked away while Sefina just rubbed her forehead at the mistake she did.

Koji swam his way toward the middle of the lake were many animals including elephants were chatting. Not far from them was a white head duck with brown feathers on his body and wings, white for his head and a blue beak, tail, and legs. His neck, hair and facial marks were black. He was standing at the edge of the lake, hesitating to get in the water.

"Mom! Are you sure this water is sanitary?" he called his mom while looking unsure at the water. "It looks quite dirty to me!"

"It's fine, honey!" his mother replied. She was chatting with other animals in a group.

The kid carefully stepped into the muddy water and frowned in disgust. "This looks full of bacteria!"

"Mustafa, can't you see mommy's talking?" his mother replied before returning to chatting with the other animals.

The little duck named Mustafa rolled his eyes. He then widened his eyes and gasped as he saw Koji swimming underwater toward his mother's group. "Watch out! Something's underwater! It's coming right at you!" he panicked and ran to his mother.

"Honey, mommy's losing her patience," she calmly said.

"But I really see something!" Mustafa insisted. He then turned his head and saw Koji jumping, trying to catch an elephant's tail from behind. "Piranha! It's a piranha!"

"Honey, there are no piranhas in Samoa," his mother calmly said.

"Don't tell the kid that; of course there are piranhas in Samoa," an elephant friend said with a chuckle.

As the adults talked, Mustafa saw Koji still jumping after the elephant's tail. "Ah! It's right here behind you! Run!" he said with trying to push his mother away.

"Honey, for the last time, there are no piranhas in-"

"MY BUTT!" the elephant suddenly screamed as he felt Koji finally grabbing his tail.

"I told you so!" Mustafa said as everyone started panicking and running all around. As the elephant squirmed, Koji did his best to hold on to his tail, ultimately ending up getting thrown into the air and landed in the water.

All the animals gathered around and waited until Koji came back to the surface to catch his breath. "PIRANHA!" they all screamed in panic at unison and started running around, causing the water to shake badly. In the confusion, Koji got knocked underwater by an elephant's paw.

Meanwhile, Sefina and her two friends were watching this from the shore. "He's dead!" one of the boys said,

Suddenly, many elephants ran their way while shouting in panic. "WE'RE DEAD!" the other boy screamed and the three of them started running away.

Sefina managed to climb to safety on a tree branch. However, the elephant group dashed right toward where the spider tribe stopped to get a snack of termites underwater. Caught off guard, the spiders moved out of the way to avoid getting squashed. One of the kids almost got stopped on, only to be saved in time by Riki.

"Thank you, Riki," the mom said as Riki handed her the kid. He and everybody started chatting amongst themselves and looking toward where the elephants came from.

Back to the lake's shore, Sefina panicked as she dragged Koji's unconscious body back to safety. "Koji, buddy! Come on, don't die on me! Don't die on me; I didn't mean to do this!"

Mustafa suddenly ran by and noticed them. He stopped to grab the spider girl and pulled her away from Koji. "Get away from there! Don't you know a piranha can eat you whole in seconds?"

"What?!" Sefina exclaimed with pulling herself out of the duck's wings. "He's not a piranha! He's...," Koji suddenly started coughing water out of his mouth. "He's alive! He's alive!" she happily beamed and hugged her cousin while Mustafa also smiled despite not really understanding what was going on.

The spider's face suddenly turned angry. "You idiot! You almost gave me a heart attack! You're happy?"

"But I got it," Koji said with a smile and pulled a little hair in his hand. Sefina widened her eyes in awe.

"I don't believe it. You got the air?!" she asked with a smile of surprise.

"So that's what this is all about?" Mustafa asked with an amused smile. "You could've asked me; my friends are mostly elephants." This statement caused the three friends to laugh together.

"Koji!

"Sefina!"

The three turned around to see Teuila, Sefina's mother as well as the rest of the spider tribe coming. "Oh no," Sefina mumbled.

"Who's that?" Mustafa asked his two new friends.

"My mom," Koji and Sefina responded at unison.

"Koji! You scared me! What happened?!" Teuila asked as she rushed at her adopted son and picked him up in her hands.

"Well...," Koji mumbled before Sefina broke between them.

"Huh, it's sort of long and complicated because what happened was weird-"

"What happened?!"

Sefina froze as Riki arrived on the scene and looked pretty pissed off. As he stepped toward them, the young spider didn't know what to say. Koji decided to take her defense by stepping forward.

"It was my fault, Riki."

"Koji!" Teuila said in surprise.

"We were playing and...I'm sorry, Riki," Koji said with looking down. Sefina was very touched that her little cousin was taking the blame for her.

"You almost killed someone!" Riki seriously said.

"It was an accident, I swear!" Koji said as Teuila came to put two comforting arms around him.

"He's just a child, Riki," she said.

"That's not an excuse, Teuila! You can't keep defending him!" Riki seriously told his mate. "He will never learn! You can't learn to be one of us!"

"Because you never give him a chance!" Teuila angrily replied.

"Give him a chance?! Teuila, look at him: he will never be one of us!"

Getting tired of Riki's hurtful words, Koji broke free from his mother's hands and ran away. "Koji!" Teuila called. She sighed sadly, knowing her son was suffering a lot.

* * *

 **"There are no piranhas in IN MY BUTT!" XD, you gotta admit it was a funny one!**

 **Riki's really not giving Koji a break, is he? All the little beetle wants is to get accepted by his tribe. At least, Sefina's friends were willing to give him a chance (though at the price of risking his life). Will he ever get accepted by the spiders?**

 **Also, some of you might remember the new character in this chapter, Mustafa, from my other story "Power Struggle Tournament". I'm especially thinking about you, Grey Coincidence. You remember him, right? Yeah, I'm even willing to bring characters from my old stories into this one :)**


	251. Son of man

After Koji ran away from the tribe, he stopped by another lake with a waterfall filling it. Right now, it was dark as night time almost fell and the young beetle was staring at his reflection in the edge of the lake. Looking at the strange dark blue creature in the water, he angrily smashed his fist into it, hating it for being different. He even took mud underwater and rubbed it all over his face in hopes of looking like a spider - even just a little. Once he was done, he looked again into the water and saw...a real spider?

"Koji, what are you doing?" He turned around to see his mother standing behind him.

"Why am I so different?" Koji angrily asked with sitting down and crossing his arms.

"Because you're covered in mud, that's why," Teuila giggled and started cleaning her son's face.

"No, that's not what-"

"Close your mouth," Teuila cut him off as she whipped mud off his mouth.

"Riki said I don't belong in the tribe," Koji said.

"Never mind what Riki says."

"Yeah, but-"

"Hold still," she said and whipped the remains of mud from his face.

"Look at me!" Koji said with backing off and pointing at his own face.

Teuila's smile faded. "I am, Koji." It then returned. "And you know what I see?" She rubbed his forehead. "I see...two eyes. And...a little nose," she said with poking at Koji's slit which served as his nose, making him chuckle. "Two cheeks," she added with rubbing her son's cheeks which made laugh. "And let's see, what else?"

"Two hands?" Koji said with rising his hands.

"That's right," Teuila giggled and pressed two of her four hands against her son's. Despite the difference in size, Koji could clearly see they were practically the same. The two remained silent for a moment before the spider took the beetle's face in her hand. "Close your eyes, and tell me what do you feel?"

Following his mother's command, Koji closed his eyes and listened deeply. "...My heart."

Teuila nodded. "Come here." She took her son into her arms and pressed him against her chest.

"I can hear yours," Koji chuckled.

"See? They're exactly the same," Teuila softly said as Koji hugged her tightly. She returned the gesture with her four arms. "Riki just can't see it."

"I'll make him see it," Koji declared with a look of determination. "I'll be the best spider ever."

"Oh, I bet you will," Teuila said with nuzzling her son.

* * *

 **(Son Of Man by Phil Collins starts playing)**

 _As the music starts playing, we see Koji walking behind the spider tribe as they start crawling a big tree trunk. However, the beetle is unable to climb it. Riki climb passes him and gives him a glare before climbing up. Groaning, Koji tries to climb again but starts falling off, only to get caught by one hand. He looks up to see Sefina and they both smile as she pulls him up._

 **Oh, the power to be strong, and the wisdom to be wise**

 _Koji is trying to hang backward on a vine, like a chameleon, but it ends up breaking and he falls to the ground with his arrow horn planting into it. Sefina stands right beside him and shakes her head._

 **All these things will come to you in time**

 _We see many hippopotamuses jumping of a lake with the last one having Koji on his nose. The two look at each other and chuckles._

 **On this journey that you're making, there'll be answers that you seek**

 **And it's you who climb the mountain, it's you who reach the peak**

 _Koji watches a rhinoceros rubbing his horn against a trunk to sharpen it and decides to do the same with his arrow-shaped horn to get the same result._

 _He then gets into a wrestling fight with Sefina who easily overpowers him with her four arms and pin him down on the floor. Beside them, Mustafa also wrestles a younger spider and gets taken down due to being a non-violent duck._

 **Son of man, look to the sky, lift your spirit, set it free**

 **Someday you'll walk tall with pride, son of man, a man in time you'll be**

 _Koji runs in the branches and starts grabbing one vine after the other to advance at an incredible speed. This all goes well until he ends up catching a snake and slips down into a pool of mud down below. After recovering, he sees many alligators going after him and manages to avoid their jaws before seeking refuge onto a tree branch. He sighs in relief before turning around and seeing a ghost spider on the trunk, causing him to scream and running away._

 **Though there's no one there to guide you, no one to take your hand**

 _Koji runs from the ghost spider and seeks shelter under a tree's roots as the spider tries to bite him._

 **But with fate and understanding, you will journey from boy to man**

 _Giving a look of determination, Koji grabs nearby vines and wraps them around the spider's head to trap him inside while he runs out and smack his butt at him._

 _Koji and Sefina are standing on a tree branch, overlooking a flamenco whom they are planning to prank. The cousins jump down on his back and tie a vine around his beak, causing him to run away. He eventually throws the cousins over a low-hanging branch and, as they are still holding on the vine, starts dragging them up to hit their heads against the branch multiple times._

 **Son of man, look to the sky, lift your spirit, set it free**

 **Someday you'll walk tall with pride, son of man, a man in time you'll be**

 _Koji, now a teenager, runs onto many elephants' back at the elephant falls with his mother looking at him from a cliff with a proud smile. He jumps super high at one point during which he transitions into an adult and then lands in the water. Mustafa, also an adult now, swims under to get him on his back and brings him back to the surface, the two friends smiling at each other._

 **In learning, you will teach, and in teaching, you will learn**

 **You'll find your place beside the ones you love**

 _During a raining night, Teuila is having a hard time to sleep until the rain suddenly stops falling on her. She looks up to see Koji wrapping two leaves together to block the rain before flying down (he learned to fly during the last years) to nuzzle against her._

 _Koji messes with a snake who wants to eat him, only to end up trapped in vines with Koji chuckling at him._

 _Koji tries to climb up a waterfall's wall which is proven to be difficult due to the water falling on him and the muddy wall pulling him down. However, he puts on a determined look and refuses to give up, firmly climbing the waterfall up._

 **Oh and all the things you've dreamed of, the visions that you saw**

 **Well the time is getting near now, it's yours to claim it all**

 _Sefina and her friends are trying to get termites from holes into the ground which is pretty difficult. That's until Koji arrives, press Mustafa's beak onto a hole, and tells him to blow very strong which he does. This makes termites come out of the holes all around like geysers and the spiders are beaming in joy. Sefina is happily filling her mouth with termites and nudge her cousin on the shoulder which also makes him smile in joy._

 **Son of man, look to the sky, lift your spirit, set it free**

 **Someday you'll walk tall with pride, son of man, a man in time you'll be**

 _Riki is leading the spider tribe across the forest when he looks up and sees Koji swinging in the vines. The beetle eventually jumps and spins a lot before landing on a branch and slides it down like a rail. He then grabs another vine and spins it around a trunk before launching himself ahead and opening the wings on his back to fly above a lake and then run on the jungle floor._

 **Son of man, son of man's a man for all to see!**

 _The musical sequence ends with Koji running and stopping at the tip of a cliff overlooking the whole jungle, a proud smile on his face._

* * *

 **I cried once again.**

 **I know, I'm obsessed with Phil Collins, but it's not my fault if his songs are awesome and inspiring. And "Son Of Man" was perfect to showcase Koji going from a kid to an adult and adapting to the jungle. Also, Koji observing a rhino using his horn is a euphemism as he himself is based on a beetle called rhinoceros beetle.**

 **For my friends TheDragonsaver and The Grey Coincidence who though Koji's character left a lot to be desired in my NLR franchise, what do you think of him in here so far?**


	252. Koji vs Golden Predator

Many years after the whole elephant falls thing, Koji and his friends were now adults and more mature, but still very fun-loving. Our favorite beetle was hiding in bushes, looking at his mother sitting on a tree branch and picking up papayas for a breakfast. Chuckling to himself, the beetle silently sneaked his way behind his mom, filling his lungs with air, ready to make her jump-

"Don't even think about it," she said before he could make any noise.

Koji spat the extra air from his lungs and then jumped over his mom and landed before her. "How did you know it was me?" he asked. Throughout the years, Koji's voice also grew up and become more mature.

 **(To give you an idea, he has the same voice as James Arnold Taylor, the actor who voices Johnny Test, Ratchet from Ratchet & Clank starting from the second game, and Tidus, the protagonist of Final Fantasy X)**

"I'm your mother; I know everything," Teuila replied as Koji picked up one of her papayas and started eating it. "Now tell me where you've been."

Koji chuckled with his mouth half-full. "I thought you knew everything."

Just then, the beetle got knocked aside by his spider cousin. "Hi, Aunt Teuila. You look remarkably gloom today." Sefina's voice also grew up. She now had a Brooklyn accent in her voice (for some reason) and was the same size as her aunt.

"Hi, Sefina," Teuila simply said before Koji charged into her and the two started wrestling all around, just like they loved to. Riki saw this and just shook his head in annoyance.

Throughout the years, Koji learned a lot from wrestling with his friends and become pretty strong on the physical plan. The cousins fought all around the tribe, even bumping into Mustafa at one point. Over the years, the three of them became close friends and Mustafa would spend more time around the spider tribe than with his mother and her friends at elephant falls.

"Woah, Woah, it's all fun and games until someone loses an eye!" the duck said with backing up from the fight.

After a few more seconds of fighting, Koji managed to catch Sefina into a full nelson lock on her upper arms while holding her lower ones down with his legs. It was a technique he developed over the years and that would always allow him to win against his cousin.

"Ow! Ow! Okay, you win! Ow!" Sefina groaned. "Yo! Yo! Let me go!"

"Oh, sorry, Sefina," Koji said with letting go of his cousin.

"What kind of animal are you?!" the spider angrily asked with rubbing the back of her neck in pain. However, Koji was not listening. His attention turned toward some bushes from where he could hear noises and smell something strange yet familiar.

"You know, I've been thinking lately that Koji could be a subspecies of rhinoceroses," Mustafa suggested as he joined his two friends.

"What, you think he's a rhinoceros?!" Sefina asked with a dumbfounded look.

"Listen, he got a big horn, just like rhinoceroses," the duck insisted.

"He looks absolutely nothing like a rhinoceros!"

Suddenly, a roar was heard and out of the bushes jumped none other than the Golden Predator. This immediately alarmed all the spider tribe who went to hide high into trees while Koji did the same. Just as the Golden Predator was about to jump on him, Riki arrived, grabbed him by the legs, and tossed him down on the forest floor.

The tribe's leader was well-determined to take down the beast that murdered his son, many years ago. Everybody watched from branches as the Golden Predator jumped and bit their leader on the shoulder, only for said leader to push him back with his bigger strength and smash him on the floor.

Unfortunately, the jungle's most feared beast claws him across the chest, making blood fall, and then jumped on his back to bite his shoulder again. Riki just managed to throw him away before collapsing on the floor, his wounds getting to him.

Just as the Golden Predator bounced, ready to take another life, Koji suddenly pushed a battle cry and jumped down to deliver a big kick right across the beast's face. This last one glared up to see Koji giving a defiant look as he firmly stood between him and his leader. The spiders were pushing screams from the branches while Teuila looked in fear for her son, making it look like a gladiator fight.

When the Golden Predator jumped at Koji, this last one swiftly dodged his two first attacks before jumping and climbing a big trunk with the predator chasing him. Knowing he couldn't win on the physical plan, Koji tried to keep a good distance by flying up and then delivered a dive kick into the beast's face, sending him to land on the floor below.

Rubbing the pain off his face, the Golden Predator looked up and growled at Koji who replied with a glare and growl of his own. Jumping down, the beetle and feline walked around in circles, looking for an opening in the other's defense.

The Golden Predator jumped forward, swinging his claws and actually managed to land cuts across the beetle's torso, making him groan in pain. He then glared in anger and caught the Golden Predator into a headlock, trying to suffocate him. However, since he wasn't as strong as him on the physical plan, the feline tossed him over his shoulder, sending him to crash on a floor below.

As koji regained from the hit, the Golden Predator jumped really high and bounced on him, causing the two of them to break through the floor and disappear. Everybody looked in fear, waiting to see who would come out of there alive while the other would be dead.

After many seconds, something started coming out: it was a wall of golden yellow fur...followed by Koji who pulled the unconscious body of the Golden Predator out. His arrow-shaped horn was covered of blood and there was a big hole in the feline's chest. Everybody quickly understood.

Koji had defeated the Golden Predator.

The whole spider tribe exploded in joy and cheered for their beetle friend. This last one looked up with a proud smile, specifically at his mother, and pushed a battle cry. Soon, all the tribe including the kids, Sefina, and even Mustafa came to join and congratulate him. One of the spider kids even jumped to hug him which Koji returned.

"Okay everyone, move aside," Sefina said with making the spiders step back to give Koji some space. "Best friend coming through. That would be me." She then looked at Koji. "And you, don't make a habit out of it, okay? There are other ways to get attention, y'know."

"I'll try to remember that," Koji said with a chuckle. He then noticed Riki standing on a high spot, glaring down at him and walking away.

However, before he could, Koji suddenly arrived, carrying the Golden Predator on his back. The spider leader looked curiously as Koji softly pulled the corpse of his son's killer down right before him as a sign of respect.

Riki looked down at the corpse...and then up at Koji. His face softened a lot more than Koji ever saw. The spider and beetle just starred at each other in silence for a while.

POW! POW!

Everybody jumped as a loud noise came from the distance. They turned toward its source and saw birds flying away in the distance. "What was that?" Koji asked.

"I don't know," Riki admitted.

"It wasn't me," Mustafa swore as Sefina gave him a curious look.

"Everyone, move," Riki ordered and the whole tribe along with the duck started following as they walked away. Well, safe for Koji who was too curious and decided to go inspect the source of this noise.

* * *

 **Koji has grown up, overpowered his cousin, killed the feared Golden Predator and has won Riki's respect. Looks like all of his childhood problems are solved now, which is awesome!**

 **BTW, sorry to my KFP friends; I know I said Koji would be played by a different actor in this story, but I just like James Arnold Taylor too much.**

 **What was that noise they heard? All I can tell you is that it will be connected to the chapters of the arc before we met Koji.**


	253. Encounter between a bug and a bird

**I'd like to take the opportunity to inform you that I just started watching Attack On Titan on Netflix. And it's absolutely intense! Not as good as other shonens like One Piece and Naruto, but it's still fun to watch.**

* * *

Koji made his way through the jungle and toward the source of the alien noise they heard from the distance. His fight with the Golden Predator had drained a lot out of him, but the young beetle still had the energy for a little exploration.

He soon arrived on a site with a rather strange sight: a little bamboo forest with a path having been cut through and strange footprints on the ground. The beetle's curiosity grew bigger as he didn't really recognize those footprints and wasn't sure what kind of animal could cut through a bamboo forest like this.

Climbing the trees, Koji made his way to the other side of the bamboo forest and saw figures making the path he saw on the other side toward him. He decided to get down and hide into bushes and hide there until the figures would come out. The noise got closer and closer and, before long, a figure arrived at the edge of the bamboo forest cutting out of it.

It was a muscled male bull with dark brown fur wearing a yellow buttoned jacket and cargo pants. He used a machete to cut through the bamboo and also had a double barrel gun tied to his belt. Saying that Koji was shocked and surprised to see this creature was an understatement.

"Mr. Claytus!" Another creature joined the first one. This was light brown and small with a back covered of quills. "You did a good job, but could you make less noise?"

"I'm just trying to make this a quick path, Mr. Neyo," the bull named Claytus told his little friend.

"Did we really had to go through this bamboo forest? There are little sharps sticks everywhere," said a black female feline who seemed rather annoyed. She was followed by a male feline with grey fur.

"Sorry, Alena, but the fastest way isn't always the easiest one," he chuckled.

"Easy for you to say, Toka. We're not all sneaky thieves like you," the feline named Alena said.

"Wait for me!" The last one to join them was a female bird with snow white feathers.

"Got lost again, Suya?" Neyo asked.

Koji looked at this female bird with his eyes wide open. She looked absolutely gorgeous. He had seen a lot of things across this island throughout his life...but nothing could be compared to the beauty of this white bird.

"Hey, it's my first adventure away from my home, give me a chance," she said as Alena helped her get out of the bamboo forest.

Koji didn't understand what they were saying (they were not talking the same language as him) but still wanted to learn more. He stepped a bit closer to them but was stopped as Claytus swiftly grabbed his barrel gun and shot right before where the beetle was standing.

"Claytus! What are you doing?!" Toka asked in surprise.

"I heard something in the bushes!" Claytus said.

"Don't shoot like this just because of noise! You could hurt someone or make the spiders flee!"

"Oh my gosh, guys! Look!" Neyo suddenly said and pointed at the ground where there was some kind of nest made of leaves. "You know what this is?"

The group looked down and Suya gasped. "A spider nest!" she exclaimed. She then looked around and saw a few more. "Many nests! there could be a whole family out there!"

"Family!" Claytus asked and chuckled. "Excuse me, Miss Suya, but those spiders we came to see are wild creatures; they have no things such as families."

This statement caused him to get glares from the four others. "That's not true, Mr. Claytus; wild animals can have families just as much as you and I," Neyo said.

As the two continued the conversation with walking ahead, followed by Toka and Alena, suya was going to follow them but then stopped as she noticed a little red ant with yellow flames design on its exoskeleton walking on the floor and eating a kumquat. This made her giggle as she found the little ant pretty cute.

"My, aren't you an adorable little ant?" Suya softly said as the ant looked curiously at her with its black eyes. She pulled out a sketchbook from her cargo pants and started making a drawing of the ant on one page. Sweet little...?"

She then the ant was no longer there. Feeling a weight on her shoulder, she jumped upon seeing the abnormally big ant standing there, his black eyes looking curiously at the drawing she made of it.

"What do you think?" Suya asked with a giggle.

The ant seemed rather impressed and picked the sketchbook from the owl's wings into his own pinches. "Hey, no, it's mine!" Suya said, taking the book back. The little ant whimpered and filled his eyes with tears. "No, no, no. Not crocodile tears on me, little one."

As she turned around to leave, Suya suddenly froze as a whole colony of red ants was standing before her...and they looked pretty angry that they made one of them (a kid) cry. "Oh my gosh...!" she nervously mumbled before starting to run as the tribe chased after her.

Just as she opened her wings and was about to take off, something grabbed her from behind and rose her up in the air. The young owl was confused before looking up and seeing that her savior was a male beetle flying up with her in his hands. She would have probably screamed in fear, had he not been her savior.

The beetle dropped her up on a high branch before getting down and turning toward the ant tribe that stopped before him. The leader and Koji started talking before the former pointed at Suya. Koji flew up to the confused owl and grabbed her sketchbook. He curiously looked through the pages and ripped the one with the drawing Suya made. He flew down and gave it to the leader who left with his tribe after giving it to the kid.

"Okay, I'm caught in a jungle with dangerous ants and heroic beetles," Suya mumbled to herself before allowing herself to rest her back against the tree.

Koji suddenly jumped to join her and started making his way toward the owl with a curious look. "No, stay back, don't come any closer," Suya said with trying to push Koji back with her foot only for the beetle to take it and starting to twirl her toes.

"Hahaha, no!" the owl laughed as it tickled her. Koji then tried to look into her cargo pants, which made her blush and kick him in the face. "Get off!" Koji shook his head from the kick before getting close to her again.

"You stay away! Stay. Away," Suya said, like a mother scolding a kid. "I'm warning you." Koji got pretty close to her and touched her cheek with his hand. "No, that's close enough. How dare you-"

She tried to slap him, but Koji caught her wing with his hand. Looking at it, the bug put his other hand into it, feeling its softness. Suya couldn't help but feel curious about the bug's interest into her, as if he had never seen a bird like her before.

Koji then looked up into her eyes and the two just stared at each other in silence. Eventually, the beetle leaned his head to press his ear against the owl's soft chest. This made her blush, but he just wanted to listen to her heartbeat which was just like his mom's.

The beetle smiled and gently took the owl's head before pressing it against his own chest. "Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear," Suya mumbled while blushing a bright pink. She then pulled herself off. "Yes, thank you, it's a lovely heartbeat. It's very nice."

Koji looked curiously before saying: "...It's. Very. Nice."

"Yes, thanks for saying...," Suya said before suddenly widening her eyes and looking at the bug. "Wait, you can speak?!"

The beetle smiled and pressed his hands on his own chest. "Koji," he said.

Suya stared at him. "Koji?" The beetle nodded with a smile and looked at her. She understood he waited for her name. "Oh, I see."

"Oh, I see?" Koji pointed at himself. "Koji." Then at her. "OhIsee?"

This made Suya giggle. "No, no, no." She cleared her throat. "I'm Suya."

Koji rose an eyebrow (even though he didn't have any). "Nonono *clears his throat* ImSuya?"

Suya giggled again. "No, no." She pointed at him. "Koji." Then at herself. "Suya." She repeated the process. "Koji. Suya."

Koji starred at her. "Suya..."

The owl smiled. "Exactly."

POW!

A gunshot was suddenly heard at the distance and they both turned toward it. "Argh, Claytus!" the owl said with rolling her eyes in annoyance.

"Claytus?" Koji asked thinking that was the name of the sound.

"Yes. Come on, let's get back to my camp," Suya said with opening her wings and taking off. Even though he didn't understand what she said, Koji flew off with her.

* * *

 **Why do I feel that this is the most romantic scene in the entire Dynamic Adventure? I mean this has the pure simplicity of a bug with no contact with civilized people before, pure curiosity with something you do not know and yet feel familiar with.**

 **This look he gives her of pure curiosity and innocence to me is more talkative than any other Disney movies (of course I love all classics and some of them are greatly romantic like Beauty and the Beast). I think this no words romantic encounter and love that slowly builds with months to me is much more romantic than the "once upon a dream" of Sleeping Beauty!**

 **Except that, I wish you all a very merry Christmas. Enjoy it with your friends and families, and as always, stay cool.**


	254. Jungle Jazz

**Another musical chapter. I'm really obsessed with these.**

* * *

Sefina, Mustafa, and some of their spider friends were walking toward the source of the noise they heard earlier. After Riki's order to move on, Koji had gone missing and the friends decided to search for him.

"You think he has found something interesting around here?" one of the spiders asked Sefina.

"Come on, what could be more interesting than us?" she asked in return as they came out into an open arena and gasped.

"What's everybody looking at?" Mustafa asked before looking in the same direction as them and also gasped. Before them was standing a large camping site belonging to Toka's group and had many tents and exploration equipment. "Oh my gosh! The horrors!" Mustafa exclaimed as he laid down and covered himself with his wings.

"Hold yourself together. You're embarrassing me," Sefina annoyingly said as Mustafa looked at her curiously. "Those things aren't alive."

"I-I knew that," the duck said as the spiders chuckled at him.

"Koji!" the group called repeatedly as they searched for their friend across the camp. As they did so, Sefina couldn't but look at strange instruments scattered across a table.

"What kind of primitive beasts are responsible for this mess?" she mumbled before noticing a taping machine and pressed one of the buttons. She backed up in fear before pressing another button and smiling. "Wow! Come here, you guys! Come here, come here, look at this!"

Some of her spider friends gathered beside her to observe the machine. She pressed another button and the machine restarted the page. This caused the friends to go "Ooooh!" in awe before she pressed on some buttons until the DING! part signaling the restart. At the same time, another spider slammed a plate on the floor.

"Yeah. Do it again," Sefina said as she pressed on the taping machine until it did DING! followed by the spider breaking another plate. "Yeah, let me hear it, big fellas," Sefina said as the spiders started using the camp's stuff to make a beat.

Mustafa even grabbed a lampshade to blow in it and make a trumpet noise. "Yes! Come on, Mustafa!" Sefina said as the duck kept playing his new instrument. "I love this! Stay with me, fellas: I feel something happening in here!"

 **(Trashin' The Camp from Tarzan starts playing)**

 **Sefina: Shooby doop dobby dop dobby doop dobby dah dah doo dap**

 **Spider friends: Shooby doop dobby dop dobby doop dobby dah dah dobby op**

 **Everyone: Shooby doop dobby dop dobby doop dobby dah dah doo dap**

 **Do bop she doo who**

 _Sefina used spoons to make a beat with pots of tea just before her friend did the same but with Neyo's equipment which made a different noise. They repeated the same thing over many stuff around the camp, Sefina even using a skeleton model to make clacking sounds._

 **Everyone: Ooh, shooby doop dobby dop dobby doop dobby dah dah doo dap**

 **Shooby doop dobby dop dobby doop dobby dah dah dobby op**

 **Sefina: Wap pap pada doo wa wa**

 _Meanwhile, in the distance, both the spider tribe and Toka's group heard the noise coming from the camp._

 **Everyone: D** **o bop she doo whoo**

 **Do bop she doo whoo**

 **Do bop she doo whoo, whoo**

 **Do bop she doo whoo**

As the song ended, koji and suya both landed near the camp. Upon seeing the bugs, the owl widened her eyes in amazement and exclaimed: "Spiders!"

Koji then ran toward the spiders and made noise to announce his presence. Everybody turned toward him and smiled before Sefina ran to encounter him and the two started wrestling for fun. Suya couldn't help but stare at them.

"He's one of them...," she mumbled.

Eventually, their wrestling ended as Sefina noticed Suya's presence and widened her eyes. When koji saw what she was looking at, he smiled and pushed her to go meet Suya. The female spider walked before the owl and they both looked at each other. Koji smiled to see his cousin meeting his new friend, but then widened his eyes in shock.

Suya heard something landing behind her. Turning around, she came face-to-face with none other than Riki. "Oh my!" she exclaimed before the spider roared, causing her to fall on her back and crawl in the opposite direction out of fear.

The spider leader snorted at the owl before roaring and ordering everyone to move out. Mustafa grabbed Sefina by the arm to pull her away while Koji kept looking at the surprised Suya. However, Teuila then came to take his arm and drag him away. The beetle glanced back one last time at her before following his tribe.

"Suya!" Just then, Toka, Alena, Neyo, and Claytus arrived. "Are you alright?" Toka asked as he looked at his owl friend for any sign of injuries.

"For the sake of beans, what happened here?" Alena asked, noticing how their camp got trashed.

"We've been looking everywhere for you," Neyo added as he put a hand on her shoulder.

"Oh, my goodness, guys!" Suya then said, coming back to her senses. "I was walking out when a little baby that I drew a picture."

"Yes, go on," Neyo said.

"Suddenly, the little ant starts crying, but I turn around and there's a whole colony of them. A whole army of ants screaming at me. Many red ants."

"Oh, fire ants then," Neyo deduced.

"I was afraid, but then, I got taken up into the skies."

"What is she talking about?" Claytus asked to which the others shrugged.

"And then, we came back here and there were spiders," Suya continued.

"Spiders?!" everyone exclaimed in surprise.

"You saw spiders here?" Claytus asked as he caught Suya by the shoulders. "Where, Suya? Where did they go?"

"He left with them," she replied.

"Who, Suya?" Toka asked.

The snowy owl smiled at all of them. "...Koji the beetle."

"Koji the beetle?" Toka asked with a curious look.

* * *

 **Looks like Koji is about to meet with Toka's group. Seriously, I always liked this song in Tarzan (I wonder how many kids trashed their home in an attempt to reproduce this). You don't have to find lyrics for every song; you just need to find the right beat.**


	255. Strangers like me

After the whole episode with Toka's group, Riki gathered the spider tribe into a spot of the forest to make a statement. "Everyone, we will avoid the strangers," he said. "Do not let them see you and, and do not seek them out."

"They mean us no harm, Riki," Koji said, deciding to stand up for them.

"Koji, I don't know that," Riki replied, looking down at the young beetle.

"But I do. I've spent time with them."

"You might be willing to risk our safety, but I'm not!"

Koji glared and angrily jumped into his leader's face. "Why are you threatened by anyone different from you?!"

Riki growled in response to Koji's outburst. "Protect this family and stay away from them."

Koji's glare became even more intense and he spat in disgust before walking away. "Koji, for once, listen to Riki," Teuila told her son.

The beetle turned toward his mother with a mad look. "Why didn't you told me there were strange creatures like me?" Teuila looked down as her son flew away in anger.

* * *

Meanwhile, back at the camp, Suya was trying to explain what she saw to Neyo.

"He didn't stand outright. He sort of, crawled, like that," she explained with making a drawing of Koji and his stance on a board. "He supported his weight on his knuckles and knees, like the spiders."

"Extraordinary!" Neyo said with a positive smile.

"It was amazing!" Suya then got down and imitated Koji's way of walking. "He walked like this."

"Oh, I see, like a gorilla," Neyo said and did the same. In the distance, Toka and Alena chuckled while looking at them while Claytus rolled his eyes. "That's awesome! A beetle who can communicate."

"I know, and with no personal bounds," Suya added.

"What do you mean?" Neyo asked as they got back up. "He got this close, Neyo," Suya explained with putting her wing right in front of her face to show how close Koji got to her. "Staring at me. He seemed...confused at first." She then started drawing Koji's face on the board. "As if he has never seen an owl before. His eyes were...focused and...intense...I've never seen such eyes..."

Neyo looked at Suya's strange gaze and the board. "Oh, should I, uh, leave you and your board alone?" he asked which made the two of them chuckle.

"Neyo, stop it," the owl giggled. "Point is: think of everything we could learn from him. We must find him."

Hearing this, Claytus got annoyed and walked over to them. "Mr. Neyo! We are here to find spiders, not fulfill some girlish fantasy."

"Fantasy?!" Suya exclaimed with an undignified look. "I didn't imagine him: Koji is-" As if on cue, Koji suddenly jumped out of nowhere and landed between her and Claytus with the latter looking totally surprised. "...real," Suya finished with a smile.

Needless to say, the beetle's arrival caught the other's attention as well, particularly Neyo, who rushed to him while in a state of ecstasy. "Oh my! It's him, it's him, it's Koji!" he beamed while Koji just looked at him with a confused look, wondering why he was jumping like a frog.

"Neyo! Suya! Step back!" Claytus suddenly said as he grabbed his barrel gun and aimed.

"No!" Toka shouted and ran to push the gun away with a kick, causing Claytus to shoot in another direction.

"Claytus." Everybody froze and then turned toward the beetle who just talked. "Claytus," he repeated, making Neyo chuckle.

"Huh, have we...met?" Claytus asked with a confused look. "How does this little scoundrel know my name?"

Suya giggled. "He thinks it's our word for "gunshot"," she explained.

Koji then made his way toward her and got right into her face. "Suya."

"Yes, hello, Koji," the owl said with a blush at how close their faces were.

"Oh-oh, I see what you meant about those personal boundaries," Neyo chuckled at the bug's reaction.

Next thing he did was walking around Toka to inspect him and tried to mimic the leopard by humping his chest up and showing muscles. "What's he doing?" Toka asked with a chuckle.

"I think he's trying to see what we're made of," Alena replied with a paw on her hip. Koji looked at her and imitated her gesture, though it looked pretty uncomfortable with him, making the others chuckle again.

"A beetle moving like a spider. He could be our missing link," Neyo deduced.

Claytus then smiled. "Or our link to the spiders."

"Oh, yes, that's a good idea," the hedgehog nodded as Claytus walked over to Koji and cleared his throat.

"Where are the spiders?" he asked to which Koji replied by grabbing one of his horns and playing with it. The bull angrily pulled his hand away and shouted: "SPIDERS!"

"SPIDERS!" Koji shouted back in return, though with an amused look.

"Shouting won't help, Mr. Claytus; he doesn't understand English," Suya explained.

"I'll make him understand," Claytus said with a smile as he headed toward the board she used earlier. "If I can teach a parrot to sing God Save The Queen, I can certainly teach this savage a thing or two," he said with making a drawing on the board. He then turned around to reveal a drawing of a spider...which looked more like a ball with strange legs. "Spider."

Koji gave a curious look and picked one of the chalks from the board. "Spider...," he repeated.

"Oh, he's got it!" Neyo said in excitation.

"Spider." Koji then smiled and started drawing a complete mess on the board. "Spiiiider!"

"Oh, that's not it," Neyo said in disappointment.

Claytus snapped the chalk from Koji and shook it in his face. "No, no, no, no, no," he firmly said.

Koji snapped the chalk back and shook it in Claytus' face the same way. "No, no, no, no, no," he repeated.

The two then started struggling to get the chalk with Claytus being annoyed while koji was amused, thinking it was a game. Eventually, Suya snapped the chalk from both boys.

"Mr. Claytus, I think I'll take it from here," she said.

* * *

 **(Strangers Like Me by Phil Collins starts playing)**

 _As the song starts playing, Koji is inside the group's tent, poking at the camera Suya is starting up. The group wants to show pictures of the world to their beetle friend. They start by showing him the drawing of a spider, like one from his tribe._

 **Whatever you do, I'll do it too**

 **Show me everything and tell me how**

 _Koji made his way to the picture the camera projected on the wall and then turned to look at his friends. Suya pressed a button which made the picture turn into that of a noble from China. Koji rose a curious eyebrow and then took a firm expression and pose like the noble, making his friends chuckle._

 **It all means something, and yet nothing to me**

 _The next picture is that of a jungle which Koji steps forward because it's familiar to him. However, the next ones are of territories like a city and Egyptian structures which makes Koji step back because they are unfamiliar._

 **I can see there's so much to learn, it's all so close and yet so far**

 **I see myself as people see me, oh I just know there's something bigger out there**

 _The next picture is that of a couple dancing. koji gives it a curious look before smiling and grabbing Suya's wings to drag her and start dancing like the couple, making her laugh in surprise. As they dance, the others smile in amusement and Toka even claps his paws together while Claytus just rolls his eyes in annoyance. Koji soon stop dancing as he sees the next picture which is that of the galaxy. Looking at it curiously, Alena came and put a paw on his shoulder, telling him to follow her._

 **I wanna know, can you show me?**

 **I wanna know about these strangers like me**

 _Everyone (except Claytus) is outside and Alena is pointing at the night sky for Koji, explaining him things about stars, the moon, and space. She then makes him look into a telescope to see a shooting star fly through space which makes him look up in pure awe._

 **Tell me more, please show me**

 **Something's familiar about these strangers like me**

 _Neyo is sitting with Koji inside a tent, using a book to teach him how to speak their language. Later on, he teaches him how some of their tools such as the van or his portable works. And again after that, Toka gives him a fighting lesson with the two of them trading blows, ending with Koji catching the snow leopard into a sleeper hold._

 **Every gesture, every move that she makes makes me feel like never before**

 **Why do I have this growing need to be beside her?**

 _While still holding Toka, Koji notices Suya practicing her dancing skills. An amazed smile forms on his face before Toka takes the chance to throw him over his shoulder and catch him into a sleeper hold at his turn. However, Koji doesn't mind and keeps staring at Suya._

 **There are some emotions that I never knew, s** **ome for the world far beyond this place**

 **Beyond the trees, above the clouds,** **I see before me a new horizon**

 _At night, while the whole spider tribe is sleeping, Koji lays wide awake, looking up at the sky and thinking about his friends, what they taught him and what they will teach him. Later, during the early morning, Koji sneaks his way out of the tribe that is still sleeping and flies away to go see his friends. Unknown to him, his mother, Sefina, and Mustafa see him leaving. Teuila sighs sadly while Sefina puts a hand on her shoulder and Mustafa just rubs the back of his head._

 **I wanna know, can you show me?**

 **I wanna know about these strangers like me**

 _Koji returns to the camp and besides Toka. Crawling on his knuckles at first, Koji switches to walking on his two feet like his snow leopard friend. He then sees Suya trying to make a drawing of a butterfly standing nearby and smiles._

 **Tell me more, please show me**

 **Something's familiar a** **bout these strangers like me**

 _As the butterfly flies away before Suya can finish her drawing, Koji comes and give her a flower before making a noise with his mouth to catch the butterfly's attention. This last one turns around and comes back. He looks at the flower before eating it and nuzzles affectionately against Suya's cheek, making her giggle. Before long, all the butterfly's fleet, including caterpillars and more butterflies come to nuzzle against her. The owl giggles nervously while Koji chuckles and smiles at her._

 **Come with me now to see my world, where there's beauty beyond your glimpse**

 **Can you feel the things I feel right now with you?**

 _Later, during night time, Koji holds onto a vine and offer his hand to Suya. She looks at it before taking it with her wing. They hold to each other before koji jumps and the two swing with the vine, laughing at unison._

 **Take my hand**

 **There's a world I need to know**

 _After the swinging hands, Suya looks at Koji's eyes with a smile. The moon was shining on her face, making her look absolutely beautiful. Koji gave one of the most sincere and happy smiles he ever had. The snowy owl then rests her head on the beetle's chest who, in return, wraps a gentle arm around her._

 _"We've wasted all this time on what HE wants!" Claytus told Toka's group, the very next day. "The boat could come back any day. Now ask him straight out."_

 _As Koji was toying with Neyo's model of the planets around Earth, the group came behind him. "Koji," Suya softly said to get his attention. "Would you take us to the spiders. Do you understand?"_

 _Koji's smile dropped as he looked down. "I...understand," he said, finally being able to speak their language._

 _"Great!" Neyo said._

 _"Well?" Claytus asked._

 _"...I can't," Koji replied._

 _This caused the group to look in surprise. "What? Why not, Koji?" Suya asked._

 _"Riki," the beetle simply replied with flying away as the others exchanged curious and disappointed looks._

 **I wanna know, can you show me?**

 **I wanna know about these strangers like me**

 _Claytus grabs Koji by the shoulder and shows him a spider drawing, telling him to show him the tribe. However, Koji just shakes his head and go join his friends. The bull angrily rips his drawing apart._

 **Tell me more, please show me**

 **Something's familiar a** **bout these strangers like me**

 _As the others are busy doing their thing, Koji keeps looking at pictures with Neyo's camera. The beetle looks in awe at all the pictures of the world he never saw, his eyes shining like stars._

 **I wanna know**

 _As the song ends, the last picture Koji sees is that of a nobleman offering flowers to a woman who looks charmed. This noble is kneeling down with a hand on his chest. Koji gives a curious look before looking to Suya who's sleeping in a sleeping bag. He then looks back at the picture and smiles as an idea comes to his mind._

* * *

 **Man, I think this was one of the most pleasant chapters I've written for this story. Writing about Koji learning about the outside world beyond the wildland is so much fun. Another reason to add yet another Phil Collins song.**

 **So what do you think of Koji's character development so far? I sure hope you are enjoying it, my friends :)**


	256. Meeting the spider tribe

After many days of learning things about the outside world with his new friends, Koji was busy collecting all kinds of flowers in order to make a beautiful bouquet for Suya. While he was busy doing his work, Sefina and Mustafa were watching him on the job.

"Sefina, I don't think I've ever seen him so happy," the duck remarked with a smile.

"Yeah? It will pass," the spider replied in jealousy while crossing her four arms and looking away.

Once the bouquet was completed, Koji made his way back to the camp, ready to give his gift to Suya. However, upon arriving on the scene, he realized something strange was going on. Many men were picking up the camp's material and carrying it away. Koji also noticed Claytus was arguing with one of the men who was apparently the captain.

"You're the captain! Just tell them you have engine troubles and give us two more days!" he said.

"And be late to every port from here to London?" the captain replied.

"But we'll have come all this way for nothing," Suya said.

"I'm sorry, Ms. Suya, but I just can't," the captain said and walked away. This made Suya look down in sadness and Claytus to glare angrily at her.

"This is your fault!" he said with an accusing finger. "I should've followed my instincts and set traps for the beasts!"

"You think I'm not disappointed about the spiders?" the owl asked in return. She then saw Koji landing before her with his flowers. "Oh, Koji!" she exclaimed before smiling. "I was so afraid you wouldn't get here in time. Our boat has arrived to get us back to civilization. To Cuba. And, hum..." She looked down. "The others and I wondered...well, we'd really you to come with us. Would you?"

Koji gave a curious look and turned his gaze away. "Go to Cuba today, coming back home tomorrow?" he asked.

"Oh, no... You see, it's very difficult to come back here. Well, for us," Suya tried to explain with rubbing the back of her head.

"No coming back?" Koji asked with widening his eyes.

"No, no, no, I know it sounds awful, but you won't be alone; you'll be with me, Toka, Alena, and Neyo," the owl said in her most sincere tone.

"Suya must stay with Koji," the beetle said with kneeling down and holding his flowers to her. Trying to remember the picture, he saw, koji placed a hand on his chest to complete the pose.

"Stay here?" Suya asked. She then looked down sadly. "Sorry, Koji, but I can't stay. I have a mother, back in California, and I came out here on a quest to find my father-"

"Suya," Koji cut her off with taking her wing and giving a sincere look. "Stay."

The snowy owl looked down sadly, tears forming in the corner of her eyes. "I...I can't!" She then flew away, leaving Koji to look sad. Claytus then came to put his hand on the bug's shoulder.

"Aww, women," he sighed. "They are so hard to understand. Even if you were born into our world, you'd have a hard time finding your way to their hearts." The bull turned around and walked with a sad look. "But you have to see things through the eyes of your friends: they all have dreams to accomplish out there in the world. Even Suya. That being said, I'm sure she could consider staying with you if she would have found the spiders."

This caused koji to look at the bull in surprise. "Claytus think that seeing the spiders could convince Suya?"

"Well, yes, I'm sure about it," Claytus replied with his back facing Koji, and a smirk forming on his mouth. "Unfortunately, we didn't found them, which is very bad."

Koji looked down, thinking of his next move. After many seconds, he said: "Wait, Claytus, I can fix this problem."

* * *

"Sefina, all you have to do is lurk Riki out of the way," Koji told his cousin.

The spider folded her arms and looked away while Mustafa smiled friendly. "Well, I'd be happy to lurk Riki-"

However, Sefina closed his beak with her hand before he could finish. "Shut your beak and let's get out of here." She dragged her duck friend away from her cousin. "Can you believe that guy? Drops us like a newborn giraffe and then walks in here, expecting us to-"

Koji jumped before her and looked at Sefina in the eyes. "Sefina, I'm asking you as a friend," he said with the most sincere look he could give.

This made the spider girl groan angrily and try to look away. "Argh! The guy's asking it with the face and the eyes and-Argh, okay fine! We'll do it. But don't make me do anything embarrassing."

Koji rolled his eyes. "Well..."

* * *

"I'm gonna kill him!"

Sefina was forced by Koji to wear one of Suya's outfits which consisted of a black tube top around her chest and black shorts which were both very uncomfortable. As for Mustafa, he was wearing the same outfit as Toka, jacket, Karate pants and all.

"Actually, I'm thinking this looks pretty good on you," Mustafa complimented his friend.

"Oh, thanks, though it's a bit revealing," Sefina chuckled a bit. However, they immediately started running away as they heard a roar and Riki came out of the bushes, chasing after them.

* * *

Hearing the distant roars of Riki, Koji smiled and led his friends through the jungle. Before long, they arrived at the spider tribe's territory and the first person they came across was Teuila. This last one was about to speak to Koji but then widened her eyes upon seeing Suya, Neyo, Toka, Alena, and Claytus.

Suya gasped upon seeing her. "Guys, look!" she mumbled and they were all surprised to see Teuila.

"Careful, guys," Neyo mumbled, trying not to make any hard move.

"Wow, she's beautiful," Suya added with looking at the spider.

"She's my mother," Koji informed his friends.

They all looked at him in surprise. "This is your...mother?" Toka asked before slowly looking at her with a smile.

Koji then started talking to her in his native tongue, but his mother backed up in fear. "What is he saying?" Alena asked to which Toka shrugged.

"It's getting away!" Claytus exclaimed and was about to run after her, only to get stopped by Alena.

"Wait! You'll just scare her even more!" she mumbled.

Suya then kneeled and took the same position as Koji before trying to talk the same language as him. "Good idea!" Neyo said with a smile before they all did the same thing as Koji together.

"What are you doing?" Claytus asked in annoyance. He then looked up and widened his eyes. "Oh my...!"

The others also looked up and gasped in amazement. On the branches above them were several spiders looking at them with either curious or scared looks. Neyo even fainted. Suya giggled in awe before looking down and seeing three kid spiders making their way toward her with curious looks.

She kneeled down and waved her wing. "Hello." The kids looked at each other before one of them jumped into her wings. "Nice to meet you too," she giggled.

Meanwhile, some spiders gathered around the unconscious Neyo and started inspecting him. they poked at many parts of his body which made him chuckle in his sleep.

"Nice to meet you all," Toka said with extending his hand for a shake with the spiders. One of them grabbed it and shook it pretty hard.

Alena giggled as the spiders poked many parts of her body, and her tank top was not really helping this case.

"This is wonderful!" Neyo said upon getting up. "Mr. Claytus, look; they're inspecting us."

"Yeah, yeah, wonderful," the bull replied while drawing an X on a little map. Suddenly, one of the spiders tried to get his map. "Hey, give me that!" he said with pulling the map away. One spider started poking his head which made him push him away.

The spiders then stole his map and gun. "No, leave that! You know how much those guns cost in my country?! You must not play with it!"

Suya giggled a lot as the three spider kids were playing in her feathers and snuggling int them. Eventually, they saw Koji and ran to go play with him which the beetle enjoyed a lot. Suya couldn't help but smile (she had a sweet spot for men who loved kids).

She walked over to them. "Can you teach me?" she asked.

"Teach you what?" Koji asked.

"To speak Samoan," Suya said as she picked on the kids in her wings.

"Sure," Koji nodded and got before her. "Suya o le a nonofo ma Koji."

Suya wasn't sure she got it correctly, but tried to repeat it: "Suya o le a nonofo ma Koji." The kids suddenly beamed and hugged the owl's slender tummy. "What did I say?"

"That Suya stays with Koji," the beetle happily said.

Suya looked at him in surprise. "Stay? B-but I must..." The snowy owl looked down in sadness. "Koji, listen, I-"

"KOJI!"

Everybody jumped as Sefina and Mustafa suddenly came in. "Riki's coming back!" the duck shouted in fear.

Indeed, the spider leader arrived on the scene...and immediately widened his eyes upon seeing the strangers on his tribe's territory. Most noticeably, he saw Claytus getting his gun back and glaring at the spider who took it from him.

"I'll teach you to steal what's mine!" he said with pointing his gun at him.

Riki pushed a roar and rushed to knock the bull down before he could shoot. He was about to attack again when Koji suddenly jumped on his back and held him back in a full nelson, just like he used to do with Sefina.

"Guys Run!" he screamed at his friends who were all looking at him in worry.

"But Koji-" Toka said.

"RUN!"

Seeing they had no other choices, Toka's group accepted to run away from the tribe, just as Riki managed to break free. He then gave a look to Koji - not a glare, but rather a look of shock and disappointment.

"I-I told you to protect this family...and instead, you bring danger directly to it?" he asked.

Koji's glare softened as he looked at his leader. He tried to speak, but no word came out of his mouth which trembled. The beetle then closed his eyes and ran away, tears starting to come out of his eyes.

Teuila looked sadly at her son. "Koji..."

* * *

 **Man, that was an emotional chapter! Right after winning his leader's respect, Koji manages to lose it.**

 **I don't know what to say other than...merry Christmas to you all.**


	257. You'll be in my heart

Koji was sitting by himself on a tree branch, lost in his thoughts. After what happened moments ago, he knew that Riki would no longer accept him in the tribe. The only option left for him seemed to leave with his new friends, but he didn't really want to leave the island where he lived all of his life so far. It was his home after all. What was he supposed to do?

The view of the sunset falling on the horizon and the calm noises of the jungle were not enough to make him feel peaceful. The only thing that barely got his attention were the steps coming behind him. He knew without even turning around that it was his mother.

"...I'm so confused," he mumbled without looking away from the sunset.

Teuila sighed sadly before looking at her son. "Come with me. There's something I should've shown you long ago." Koji turned around and followed his mother, curious as to what she would want to show him at this very moment.

The walk was relatively quiet, neither the mother or son saying anything. By the time night fell over the jungle, the two arrived at their destination; an old wooden house in a large tree standing on the edge of a cliff overlooking the sea. As they crossed the wooden bridge and started climbing the tree, Koji couldn't help but feel this place was...familiar.

They soon reached the top of the house and arrived before a wooden door that was broken open. Looking at his mom who nodded, the beetle carefully stepped inside the room. It was old, very old. Most it of it was destroyed and covered of dust and vegetation. Having never seen this place before, Koji could feel the familiar sensation growing up with each step he took.

Koji took his time to slowly inspect the whole room. His attention drifted toward a particular spot at the end of the room where many items were gathered as if trying to cover something. Koji peaked inside and saw a pile of old sheets which he took with one hand. The smell and texture of this sheet felt even more familiar to him.

Still holding the sheet with both of his hands, Koji looked all around the room for more clue, when he suddenly stepped on something that cracked. Looking down, he saw that it was some kind of wooden plate with the front being covered of dust.

Leaning down to pick it up, Koji used his hand to rub the dust off from the front...to reveal a picture of a beetle family behind broken glass. There was a male, a female, and a little baby held by this last one. Koji carefully held the object in his hands and analyzed the picture with attention. He particularly looked at the little baby.

"This is...me?" he softly asked to which his mother softly nodded behind him. "And this is my father. And my..." Widening his eyes, Koji slowly turned around to look at Teuila.

"Now you know," she mumbled. Looking down sadly for a few seconds, she then looked up at her son. "Koji, I just want you to be happy whatever what you decide." Teuila turned around and walked out of the room, leaving her son alone to make his decision.

Koji looked at her leaving before looking at the picture and starting to think of his choice...

For the next many minutes, Teuila just sat by herself on the edge of the house, silently waiting for her son to make his decision. She soon heard footsteps behind and, despite fearing what her son's answer would be, she forced herself to turn around and look at him.

Koji walked out of the room...with a new costume. Indeed, the beetle had changed his loincloth made of leaves for a pair of purple trousers he found inside his father's stuff. It felt pretty weird in comparison to what he had been wearing for all his life, but he'll probably get used to it.

The sad look on his mother's face made the beetle understand that she knew this was probably their last moment together. As tears started coming out of her eyes, he walked over to her and whipped her tears away before looking into her humid eyes.

"No matter where I go...you will always be my mother," he softly said and hugged her.

"And you'll always be in my heart," she responded with hugging her son as hard as she could.

The two hugged each other for at least ten minutes before breaking it and looking into each other's eyes. Koji held his mother's hand before slowly walking away and letting go of her. He gave her one last weak smile before flying away.

"...Goodbye, Koji..."

The beetle flew many minutes before needing to stop on a branch. He had forced himself to hold back his tears as he didn't want the last image his mother would see of him to be a sad face...but now that he was far enough for her to not see him, he let out a cry and allowed all the tears of his body to come out...

* * *

 **...I cried again.**

 **"No matter where I go...you will always be my mother." I think that was the most powerful quote of this entire story. Remember, always cherish your time with the people you love...because you never for how long it will last.**

 **Now, if you'll excuse me...I HAVE TO GO TELL MY MOM HOW MUCH I LOVE HER!**


	258. Betrayal on the boat

**I know I already said it in my previous chapter, but Merry Christmas to you all!**

* * *

By the time Koji was done crying all the tears of his body, morning came. Knowing time was short, he quickly made his way to the land's beach where his friends were justly about to take off. Suya, Toka and the others were super happy to see that he decided to come with them and invited him to get on their craft which they were gonna use to return to Claytus' boat.

Just as they left, Sefina and Mustafa arrived on the beach, panting from visibly running a lot. "Koji!" Mustafa called.

"We're too late! I can't believe it! You had to pull off and ask for direction!" the spider angrily told her friend.

"...We didn't get to say goodbye," the duck sadly mumbled.

"Well good riddance, heh!" Sefina angrily said and started tossing rocks into the water. "We don't need you! Come on, get out of here, you arrowhead! You're just a big ingrateful for all I care! go!" After taking all of this out, the spider sat down and panted, pain visible in her face. She then turned to see Mustafa looking at her. "What are you looking at?"

The duck sighed. "I'm gonna miss him too," he said with compassion.

Sefina only looked down before pushing Mustafa and walking away, trying to hide the tears coming out of her eyes. Mustafa only gave one last glance at his beetle friend far at the horizon before sighing and leaving with Sefina.

Meanwhile, the group's craft reached the boat and they started climbing it via a ladder. "Koji, you can't imagine what's in store for you," Suya said in excitation. "You're gonna get to see the whole world, the big cities, undiscovered places, and awesome treasures!"

Koji just smiled at the owl. "And I'll get to be with Suya."

This statement made the owl blush cutely. "Yes...with Suya." She then started climbing the ladder followed by Koji and Claytus closing the walk behind them.

Midway through the ladder, Koji marked a pause and turned around to look at the island - his home for the last time. He got invaded by a mixed feeling of sadness and joy. Sad that he was leaving his home, his friends and his mom...but happy that he was gonna get to see the outside world, live adventures, and be with Suya.

Climbing up the ladder, Koji got on the boat...and then looked curiously as the people on board started walking toward him with evil grins. "KOJI!" The beetle saw Toka, Suya, Alena, and Neyo getting carried away by many of those guys with the felines fighting to break free. "IT'S A TRAP!"

"RUN!" Toka ordered, elbowing one of his captors in the face.

Realizing the danger, Koji jumped to fly off, planning to get on the boat's highest spot to think of a strategy. However, one of the thugs caught his legs and, due to his weight, started pulling him down. Two more of them came to grab the beetle's arms and pressed him against the metallic wall, completely subduing him.

POW!

"What's going on here?!" Claytus asked after shooting with his barrel gun.

"Claytus! Help me!" Koji called while struggling to break free.

The bull walked over to him...and gave a curious look. "Have we met?"

"What?" Koji asked in confusion.

Claytus then rose the beetle's head with the tip of his gun. "Oh yeah, the wild beetle."

Then, Koji realized what it meant; Claytus had betrayed them! This made him glare angrily. "Claytus! You traitor!"

As an answer to this, the bull pressed his cold barrel gun against Koji's tummy, pushing him back with it and making him groan in pain. "I'm sorry about the rude welcoming, wild boy, but I couldn't get you to see when we'll put your bug friends in their cages," the pull said with a smirk and pointed at metal cages behind him.

"W-Why?" Koji nervously asked.

"Why?" Claytus asked with leaning toward the beetle. "Bugs from the wildlands are known for being great workers. On the black market, there are plenty of people who would be willing to pay a fortune just to get one of them as their slave." He then smirked. "Actually, I have you to thank, my boy. I couldn't have done it without you."

Koji widened his eyes and looked down in shame. What an idiot he was! He just doomed all of his family! As Claytus walked away after ordering his men to lock Koji up with the others, the beetle glared and pushed a loud scream that managed to reach the jungle.

Inside this last one, Mustafa widened his eyes and turned around. "That sounds like Koji. His distress call. He must be in trouble."

"Yeah, well he's got his new friends to help him. I don't care," Sefina dryly said and resumed walking.

However, Mustafa suddenly gave an angry glare (probably for the first time in years) and grabbed his spider friend by the collar, putting her face in front of his. "That's it! I'm done with you and your emotional constipation! Koji needs our help and we're gonna help him! You hear that?!"

Sefina was surprised to see her usual calm and nervous friend getting suddenly firm and angry. She slowly nodded as he pulled her on his back.

"Now get ready! We got a boat to catch!"

The duck ran across the jungle with his friend on his back and then jumped off a cliff, landing in the water with a huge splash that instantly left them wet.

"I NEVER FELT SO ALIVE!" the duck beamed.

"Well enjoy it 'cause I'm gonna kill you!" Sefina angrily told him.

"No time for that now, missy," Mustafa said and then brought the two of them underwater as a craft with Claytus, his men, and capturing material passed by.

The two then got back to the surface and looked at them. "Hey, wasn't this guy one of Koji's friends? Why is he going in the jungle with all those guys?"

* * *

Meanwhile, inside the boat, Koji was charging and slamming himself against the metal walls, trying to get out. Toka also tried to use his thief skills to find a way out, but despite their efforts, it was useless.

"Koji, it's no use, don't!" Suya said, sitting down and looking at her beetle friend. When she saw him still slamming his fists against the metal wall, she rushed to grab his shoulder which made him turn around to look at her with a glare.

The beetle then looked down. "Claytus..."

"Yes, Claytus betrayed us all," Suya angrily said. "I'm so sorry, Koji."

"Just wait 'till I get my paws on him; he's gonna regret ever being born!" Alena said with a glare.

"No, I did this. I betrayed my family," Koji said with looking down and started sniffing. "Riki was right. I'll never be a real spider..."

"Oh, those magnificent bugs," Neyo said. "Shoved into cold cages. What is this world coming to?!" he shouted and angrily slammed his fist into the wall beside him.

Suddenly, the boat leaned to the side, causing everyone to crash against the wall slammed by the hedgehog."...Wow, I didn't know my own strength."

The boat then returned to its normal balance, making everyone fall to the other side. "What was that?" Suya asked as Koji helped her back up.

Suddenly, the ceiling's door opened and Koji saw a familiar duck looming over them. "Mustafa!" he beamed.

The duck smiled and grabbed his hand with his wing to bring him back up on the deck. "Nice to see you again, pal."

Sefina then locked her cousin into a big bear hug. "Oh, you little! I thought I'd never see you again!"

Mustafa suddenly wrapped his wing around the spider and pulled her away. "Sometimes, you're embarrassing me," he said with shaking his head as a call back to all the times she said the exact same thing.

Toka's group then came out and joined them. "Alright, everyone! We must catch up with those bandits before they reach the spider tribe! Let's go!"

And with that, the group swam/flew back on the wildland and headed toward the spider tribe in hopes of getting there before it was too late...

* * *

 **What a shock! Claytus betrayed our heroes and is planning to capture Koji's family! Will they be able to save them before it's too late?**


	259. Showdown with Claytus

**Alright, kids, it's time for the showdown with Claytus' group!**

* * *

Night time fell over the jungle. The spider tribe was settling into their nests for a good rest. Riki made a little walk to make sure everyone was okay. As he did so, he noticed that his mate, Teuila, was sitting by herself in a corner. She hadn't moved from there since last night when Koji left.

While he still felt a bit mad at the beetle for bringing the strangers to their home, he couldn't help but feel bad for his mate. He knew how much she loved him. In fact, he wondered if he hasn't been unfair to him. Yes, he was not his real son, but he worked so hard throughout the years to be a real spider, going as far as taking down the Golden Predator and avenging his son.

Suddenly, a shooting noise was heard and a red flare exploded in the air, alerting everyone. Riki covered his eyes before turning his head and seeing Claytus' crew arriving with cages and weapons. Pushing cries, they cut through the vegetation and charged at the tribe.

Glaring, Riki charged to encounter them, but they suddenly rose guns to shoot a big web that entangled and neutralized him. This allowed the hunters to catch the helpless spiders who desperately tried to escape, but in vain. Even Teuila who tried to flee with one kid ended up getting caught.

Refusing to allow his family to get kidnapped without fighting, Riki summoned the strength to rip the web apart and started attacking the thugs with violent smashes. Unfortunately, the number's game took over and the hunters managed to pin him down with whips and more webs.

"Aww, I remember you," Claytus said with a sinister smirk as he calmly charged his barrel gun and walked toward the powerless spider. "I think this one will be better off staffed."

Even as he was about to die, Riki gave a defiant glare to the coward bull. However, before he could shoot, a scream was heard and Koji suddenly jumped out of nowhere to deliver a violent kick right across Claytus' face, knocking him away. Many animals of the jungle such as elephants, rhinoceroses, and bugs joined in the battle.

"CHARGE!" Neyo called as he and the rest of the team arrived.

Koji rushed to Riki and released him from his bounds with his arrow horn. "You came back," Riki said with looking at the beetle.

"I came home," Koji replied with a proud smile which his leader returned. He then widened his eyes and smashed a thug who sneaked behind Koji across the face.

"Wow, thanks for that," Koji said with a chuckle.

The other hunters were also receiving a good correction from Koji's friends with Toka and Alena working together to take them down in close combat. The leopard's self-defense training, as well as Alena's time learning the street fight, were sure helping in there. Suya also got the chance to put her fighting training with Master Nao in motion as she defended Neyo from the hunters with agile and elegant moves.

Meanwhile, three hunters ran away and went to hide into one of their own cages as Sefina charged at them with a roar and saliva flowing out of her mouth, as if she had rage. Seeing the frightened looks on their faces made Sefina chuckle and wipe the saliva off her mouth.

As she turned around, however, one of the hunters pointed a spear at her. Luckily, Mustafa grabbed him from behind before flying up and tossing him in the cage with the three others.

Meanwhile, Koji worked with Riki to release all the spiders who have been captured which Claytus didn't fail to notice. "Everyone! Take what you can back to the ship!" he ordered.

Two of his men obeyed and started carrying Teuila, who was locked inside a cage, away to the ship. Luckily, Suya saw it and flew up to knock one of them out with a dive kick to the head. The next one was about to attack her, only to suddenly getting submerged by the fire ant colony Suya met earlier on the island. The little kid even took a moment to nuzzle into her cheek before joining his colony.

Suya then turned her attention to Teuila who was calling for help. "Don't worry; I'll get you out in seconds," the owl said and tried to open the cage in vain. The hunter she knocked out earlier got back up and was about to attack her with a crowbar, but Toka snapped it off his hand and knocked him out instead. Suya turned to see him and said: "Oh thanks, this will be useful," not having a clue of what just happened.

The owl and leopard worked to with the crowbar to force the cage open. Teuila immediately got out and hugged Koji who returned the gesture, the two of them thinking they'll never see each other again. Suya and Toka smiled happily.

POW!

Koji suddenly groaned in pain as he felt a gunshot pierce his bicep. White blood started flowing out and, as Toka, Suya and Teuila watched at him in concern, Riki saw Claytus hiding behind a tree root and about to shoot at the beetle again.

Pushing a roar, he ran toward the bull, determined to save Koji. However, Claytus saw him coming and, just as he jumped toward him, rose his gun to shoot. POW! Koji turned around and widened his eyes as Riki collapsed on the forest floor.

"RIKI!" Koji shouted in horror and rushed to his leader around whom a pool of blood started to form. He then turned toward the bull with a deadly glare and pulled a cry of rage before charging at him.

Claytus shot one round which Koji managed to avoid before being forced to take cover behind a tree as he wouldn't be able to get to the bull without getting shot. Suya pushed a screech before jumping at Claytus and landed a few cuts on his face before he knocked her back with a gun smash across the face. He then shot right into Toka's shoulder, causing him to fall down in pain.

"A little challenge, huh?" Claytus asked with looking up. "Good, 'cause hunting you while you're crawling on your little knees would be too easy!" Claytus laughed maniacally.

Koji climbed up a vine to get some distance, but the wound on his bicep was making it hard. Pushing through the pain and with Claytus climbing the same vine as him, Koji managed to get into hiding before Claytus reached a branch. Lightning started flashing in the sky as the hunter scanned the branches, looking for his prey.

Suddenly, Koji jumped out of nowhere and knocked the bull down onto a lower branch and pinned him down. He managed to knock the gun out of his hands, but Claytus quickly regained the upper hand by punching into the beetle's wound, making him scream in pain, and then turned him around, pinning him down.

Luckily, Koji managed to press his feet against Claytus' abdomen and pushed him away with his legs. The bull smashed himself on many branches before landing on a final one. He coughed in pain before smirked as he landed right before his barrel gun.

He reached his hand to grab it, but Koji suddenly grabbed his legs and pulled him back before jumping to catch the barrel gun. Claytus charged, only for Koji to smash him across the face with his own weapon and then point it at his throat.

As he was pinned back against the trunk with his own weapon pointed at him, Claytus smirked. "Go ahead, shoot me. Be a man."

As much as he wanted to make Claytus' head pop for betraying him and hurting his friends and family...Koji just couldn't pull off the trigger. He didn't want to give this monster what he wanted. Sure, he did kill the Golden Predator, but that was only to protect his family. And this predator was available to fight while right now, Claytus was defenseless. Maybe he could just tie this guy down and take him away with his friends' help.

Shaking his head, Koji just spat in his face and then snapped the gun in two with his knee. "I'm not a man like you!" Koji firmly said with throwing the broken gun down below.

"No!" the bull said in shock. Then, glaring at Koji in anger, he unsheathed his machete and started swinging at him.

Koji was forced to hide into the walls of vines behind him. Refusing to let him go, Claytus jumped and started cutting through all of them with angry shouts. Eventually, Koji got backed up against a trunk with nowhere else to go. Claytus was getting closer and closer to him.

Seeing no other option, Koji threw vines which got wrapped around the bull's body and held him back. "YOU WON'T ESCAPE ME!" As he started cutting all the vines, Koji noticed that some of them got wrapped around his neck and he was about to cut the vines he was holding onto.

"Claytus! No!" Koji shouted.

But it was too late, Claytus cut the last of his vines and started falling down below with the vines wrapped around his neck. Koji jumped down and followed his scream which came to an abrupt end. Upon landing down below, Koji looked up...and gasped with a look of horror.

The vines stopped Claytus' fall before he could touch the ground...but in the process, they broke his neck. The bull's corpse was hanging from the vine for Koji to look at it in horror, his body completely frozen.

As another lightning flashed and rain started falling, Suya came to gently put a wing on the bug's shoulder. This made him turn to look at her in sadness. The two starred silently before turned to look at a spot where all of their friends were gathered. Koji gasped upon seeing it was around Riki.

Despite fearing what was about to happen, Koji slowly made his way to his leader who was laying in Teuila's arms. This last one's eyes were wet and it wasn't because of the rain. She turned toward her son as he arrived and sniffed a bit before they hugged again.

After they broke from the hug, Koji turned toward Riki and walked over to him. He was panting a lot and his torso was covered of white blood. He weakly opened his eyes to look at the beetle. "Koji...," he mumbled.

"Riki," Koji said with a trembling voice and put his hand on his leader's shoulder. "Forgive me."

"No...," Riki weakly mumbled. "...Forgive me...for not understanding...that you've always been...one of us." Hearing those words caused Koji to start whimpering with his eyes getting wet. "Our family...won't have me anymore..."

"No, Riki...," Koji said with a trembling voice.

"Take care of them...my son...," Riki mumbled with putting one hand on Koji's shoulder. The beetle's whole body trembled as he took the hand into his own. "Take care...of...them..."

Those were the last words of the spider tribe's leader before he let out one last sigh, closed his eyes, and dropped his hand to the ground. Unable to take it anymore, Koji wrapped his hand around Riki and broke down in tears as his second father was gone.

All the spiders along with Mustafa lowered their head in sadness. Suya cried a bit with Alena hugging her and Toka and Neyo also looking very sad. They couldn't help but feel guilty for his death. Had they not come here, Koji's father would probably still be alive. But Teuila was crying the most for losing not only her biological son but also her mate.

Everybody cried under the rain as Riki, leader of the spider tribe, was gone...

* * *

 **I broke again.**

 **I think Riki was one of the best characters I ever wrote. Because behind his appearance of a rude and aggressive spider, he was so much worried about the protection of his owns. I think he never really hated Koji, he just feared for the safety of his family since the beginning, with the coming of a beetle he did not know among them. Even while dying, his last words were intended to his family ("Take care of them..."). It shows how much he was worried about his family's safety, until his last breath.**

 **The next chapter will conclude Koji's story in here.**


	260. Birth of a New Legend

**Alright, boys, it's time to conclude this side story!**

* * *

Following the events with Claytus, Koji and his tribe buried Riki's corpse in their former home where his heart belonged. The next day, it was finally time for Toka's group to leave Samoa and resume their quest for the Ultimate Guide. The group was gathered at the beach with Koji and Suya having one last talk together.

"The world will look so small in comparison to all of this," the snowy owl said with looking down in sadness.

"I will miss you, Suya," Koji said.

"Suya! You come?" Neyo called. He and the felines go on the craft to return to the boat.

"Yes!" Suya said before looking down again. "Well...I supposed this is goodbye..."

The bug and avian held hand and wing, feeling each other for the last time. Knowing he was gonna miss the softness of her feathers, Koji looked up at her and said: "Goodbye..."

Looking into each other's eyes for the last time, just like they did upon meeting for the first time, Suya started sniffing and, unable to take it anymore, flew off to go join the others on the craft.

"Goodbye, Koji! Goodbye!" Toka called as they started drifting away with the craft.

"Aw, I'm gonna miss that little guy," Alena said with a sad sigh which the others shared.

As Koji remained still on the beach, watching his new friends leaving, tears started forming in his eyes. He suddenly felt a hand on his shoulder (the one that was bandaged because of the gunshot he received) and turned to see his mother looking at him with Sefina, Mustafa, and the spider tribe behind.

"Koji, I can't help feeling that you should go with them," she softly said.

"Mom, I can't. M-My home's here, you guys are my family, and-" As the beetle named his reasons, Teuila made him look at her again.

"But Koji, you love her," she said which made Koji look toward the craft leaving. He stared for a long moment and then back at his mother who smiled. "Go."

Koji widened his eyes before smiling and hugging her very tightly. After breaking the hug, he looked at his friends who all nodded before he turned toward the sea and ran just before taking off toward the craft. Upon seeing him coming, Suya widened her eyes.

"Koji?!" Smiling, she opened her wings as he landed into her, knocking the two of them to the floor. But she didn't mind and the two hugged each other really hard, happy that Koji decided to stay with them.

After they broke from the hug, Koji coughed a bit before spitting out Suya's belly chain into his hands. Claytus took it from her after the betrayal on the boat, thinking it would be valuable. Koji handed the jewel to his owl friend.

"Oh, thanks. Thank you, for getting my chain," Suya said and picked the little jewel which she shook the saliva off from before tying it back around her tummy. "Thank you..."

Koji then nuzzled his face against her cheek, making her blush and return the gesture. This lasted for a moment before she opened her eyes and coughed a bit. koji turned his eyes and smiled as he saw his three friends looking at them with amused smiles.

Toka chuckled before taking Koji's hand and helping him back up. "Welcome to the team, Koji!" he said with hugging the beetle who returned the gesture.

"Guys," suya softly said and then gave a determined look. "I thought about it and...I think we should stay together. You know...as a team and face the challenges as one."

Everybody stared at her with the statement she made. Alena then smiled. "It's true that we actually make a good team, guys."

"It doesn't take a genius to see all the things we can make together," Neyo also said with a nod.

Toka stood up and looked at his fist then back at his friends. "You know what? My father was a great thief and accomplished a lot of great things, just like all my ancestors. But that's just what they did on their own. If we stick together, we'll be able to accomplish way much more. We'll find the world's biggest treasures, see all of its mysteries, and it's gonna be the start...of a NEW LEGEND!"

Right after he said that all of his friends cheered in joy.

 **(Two Worlds One Family (Finale Version) starts playing)**

 **Put your fate in what you most believe in, two worlds, one family**

 _Toka smiles and chuckles a bit at seeing his now official team happy. He then turns his head toward the boat as they are ready to leave the island._

 _Sometimes later, the team is back in the city of Cuba and, after filling their supplies, Toka is running on his four limbs from one roof to another with his feline instincts._

 **Trust your heart, let fate decide to guide these lives**

 _Alena joins Toka, running beside him on her four limbs. Toka spots a pot of flowers on his way and grabs the flowers which he gives to Alena after a jump. She grabs them and blushes._

 _Suya then passes and flies beside Toka. She performs many aerial moves before moving aside._

 **To guide these lives we see**

 _After suya moves on, it's Koji who joins Toka by sliding on cables like he used to do with the jungle's branches. He looks at Toka and gives the thumbs up before missing the next cable and falls with a scream, making Toka roll his eyes._

 **Put your fate in what you most believe in**

 _As Toka jumps from a roof, Neyo jumps by, shoots a cable that wraps itself around his waist, and launches him in the right direction with a smile._

 **Two worlds, on familyyyyy!**

 _Toka runs on a few more roofs before jumping and landing on the boat that will lead his team to Haiti. He gets joined by the four others who all take position beside him._

Toka then turns toward Neyo and ask: "So? How long before we reach Haiti?"

"I tell you that right away," the hedgehog replied and looked at his computer.

 _"And so, this day marked the birth of a New Legend..."_

* * *

 **The New Legend team of Toka, Alena, Suya, Neyo, and Koji is now officially in The Dynamic Adventure! I sure hope my KFP friends are happy. Let me know if you enjoyed Koji's side adventure.**

 **I'd like to take the opportunity to point out that today, on the day of the 2018 Rio Awards hosted by my friend snightfly123, I won SEVEN awards which include: Story of the year (The Dynamic Adventure), OC of the year (Dominic), Funniest moment of the year (All the times Alex denied a compliment), OC couple of the year (Snow Kid and Natasha), Romantic moment of the year (When Crane and Mei Ling confessed their love), Song of the year (I'll Make A Man Out Of You), and Fight of the year (Blu vs Risky Boots).**

 **I wanna seriously thank everyone who voted for me. I promise you all once again that I'll do my best to keep this story great and entertain you!**

 **I know it's a bit evident by now, but the ending was inspired by that of Disney's Tarzan. Seriously, this ending with Tarzan and Jane branch skating in harmony is just too epic! I bet we all tried to do like them at least once in our lives.**

 **Now, for those of you who think this was so long, it should have been an arc all in itself, I stop you right there: Koji's story arc here was a side story which is still a part of the Ultimate Guide arc.**

 **Well, I have nothing else to say except that this side story was fun to write, but now, it's time to chase the Fiendish Five once again. but this time, it won't only be Toka, Alena, and Neyo: it will be with the New Legend!**


	261. Arrival in the swamps

**First of all, happy new year to everyone! Now, it's time for the New Legend to resume their quest for the Fiendish Five!**

* * *

 _"Our trip the Samoan wildland will be one I'll never forget as it led to me winning two more friends - Suya and Koji - and the official birth of our team. But for now, it was time to resume our quest for my family's guide..."_

 _"The third member of the Fiendish Five was the infamous voodoo maker, Ms. Ruby. Born into a family of mystics, the other children found her scary, pushing herself to summon the undead to get a few friends. A career in crime allowed an adult Ms. Ruby to punish the world for rejecting her as a child. Her mystic powers allowed the Fiendish Five to break the laws of living beings."_

 _"Yet, despite being a worldwide known criminal, she faded into obscurity. The last spottings claimed they saw her out of civilization and into the ancient jungle. And so, this is where us, the New Legend, decided to head for..."_

* * *

Alena was driving her rental van through the vast swamps of Haiti's ancient jungle. The black panther was pretty on nerves because she got locked in said van for many days with her four friends which was getting pretty annoying. Sure, she enjoyed their company, but still.

"Koji! Would you stop touching everything you see?" the black panther shouted as her beetle friend was reaching his hand above her shoulder to press on the buttons over the board.

"Come on, Alena, he's just discovering our world," Suya said, sitting at the back of the van with the other boys.

"Well, I'd appreciate if he could discover it without disturbing my driving!"

"You've been really on the nerves these last days, Alena," Toka remarked, resting his back against the van's wall.

"Considering all the time we have spent in this dirty van that honestly could smell better, it's no surprise," Neyo pointed out. The hedgehog was still planted in his portable computer, searching info about their next destination as well as Ms. Ruby.

"Well, luckily for us, it looks like we arrived at the destination," Alena remarked and stopped the van before the entrance of a swamp. A very dark swamp with scary-looking trees lightened up by skull-shaped torches all around.

"W-What kind of jungle is that?" Koji asked, not liking the scary aspect of the zone.

"It's not exactly a jungle but more of an ancient swamp," Neyo explained. "It's up to you now, Toka."

The leopard nodded and exited the van alongside Koji and Suya. This was going to be the very first time he would go scoot the arena for the Fiendish Five member with help. Alena and Neyo had to remain in the van to secure their only way out and fill him with information respectively, but the two new members of the New Legend didn't really have any reason to stay behind.

While Suya flew up in the air to scoot the arena and Koji headed north by jumping through the trees, Toka went south by jumping across the small lands that were not sunk into the deep and gross swamp water. As he marked a pause to scratch his fur because of the humid air, Toka received a call on his communicator and responded.

"Sorry Toka, but this is one mission you guys will have to accomplish on your own," Neyo said on the other side.

"You don't believe in ghosts, do you?" Toka mused.

"Sure I do. My scanners have picked up verifiable paranormal activity. But that's not the problem. This swamp is oozing with disgusting mold and bacteria!"

Toka chuckled at his hedgehog friend's disgust for the swamp before hanging off. This swamp was the perfect opportunity for Toka to try the new technique he learned from the pages of the Guide he took from Muggshot's pages: the Rail Walk. This technique was similar to how Koji was sliding on tree branches and allowed him to do the same on branches and vines. In fact, the beetle helped him master this technique during their trip through Haiti.

The leopard combined his feline agility with his new technique to slide on the wet vines which drove him deeper through the swamp. He was bothered by the little rain falling through his fur which was not helping with the humid atmosphere nor was it washing away the disgusting smell invading his over-developed nostrils.

Eventually, by the time his fur was all messy, Toka reached the top of a tree from where he could see some kind of skull-shaped temple in the middle of an open arena of the swamp.

"My paranormal scanner is maxing out on that structure!" Neyo informed him through the communicator.

"A reading like that could only be coming off of Ms. Ruby herself," Toka deduced.

"I think you're right, Toka. If you want a crack at Ms. Ruby, you're going to have to find a way inside that skull temple."

"Alright, time for me to make an Indiana Jones entrance," the snow leopard said with a smirk.

* * *

 **Today was supposed to be my last day of vacations before going back to school, but I had the misfortune of catching a dry cough which makes it hard for me to sleep. Due to this, I'm gonna take an extra rest day. On the positive side, it's gonna allow me to start working on this story again after a full week of inactivity.**

 **For 2019, I wish to progress toward my goals, I wish to see Drew McIntyre becoming WWE Universal Champion, I wish that Disney, Pixar, and Dreamworks will keep making awesome movies as always, I wish that EA will learn from their mistakes, and I wish you all peace, health and love.**


	262. A deadly dance

After some climbing and rail walking, Toka finally reached the inside of the skull temple via the big jaw of the skull. He landed on a big tooth-shaped platform and immediately spotted a crocodile standing on another platform in the middle of the room.

A dark green alligator with a light green belly and mouth, along with sharp teeth, spikes on her tail and dark blue hair. Her attire includes what appears to be a pinkish-purple sleeveless shirt, a red bandanna on her head tying up her hair, one gold ring on each of her ankles and two of them on her wrists. She also has her fingernails and toenails painted red in addition to the ruby in her belly button, and a gold necklace around her neck. Her appearance is typical of a voodoo priestess. Due to her species, she is notably larger than Toka.

"Mmm, I could feel that thief vibe coming. Most distastefully bad juju," Ms. Ruby said in a slow, mysterious tone upon seeing Toka entering her skull temple.

"Yeah, well you give me the creeps too, lady," Toka replied with his arms crossed. "Playing with ghosts isn't a very nice pastime if you want my opinion."

Ms. Ruby only chuckled at this statement. "Oh, Toka. I see your mouth moving but all I hear is blah, blah, blah! Well, if jaws need to flap, then let them flap. See you in the next world, Toka."

Having enough of her nonsense, Toka leaped onto the same platform as her, ready to engage the fight. The big crocodile turned around and tried to squash him, only for Toka to swiftly roll to the side and jump to deliver a spin kick into her face.

However, right after doing that, Ms. Ruby teleported herself away, reappearing on the next platform which was separated from Toka by a long river of dirty water. "Come back here! You can't run away forever!" Toka called.

"Quite true, quite true," Ms. Ruby giggled. "Why don't I have my servant, Chumley, escort you over here."

Toka rose a suspicious eyebrow. "That's too kind. What's the catch?"

"Oh, not much. Just a little game I like to play with all my annoying guests. I want to see how well you pay attention."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I'll unleash my mighty mojo magic upon you. If you repeat what I do, you'll dodge it just fine. If not, you'll get zapped, hahaha!"

"A little voodoo Simon says, huh? Sounds easy enough," Toka confidentially said.

He then jumped on Chumley, a little tortoise floating over the lake who slowly made his way toward Ms. Ruby. The lady crocodile started the game by shooting voodoo energy balls toward the snow leopard who was forced to copy her moves in order to avoid them as the little tortoise was not really giving him room to dodge.

He managed to pass the first 1/3 of the way without much trouble. "Not bad, young Toka," Ms. Ruby chuckled. "How about we pick up the pace a bit?"

The lady crocodile did just that, sending her voodoo energy balls faster. While Toka still managed to dodge them, some were close calls and rubbed some of his furs, leaving burn marks. Okay, maybe he should have asked Suya to do this; she was a way better dancer than him.

By the time he made 2/3 of the way, the leopard was getting tired while Ms. Ruby only laughed. "Very impressive, little cat. Time to get to the maximum speed!"

"I'll never be able to keep up with her if she goes faster!" Toka nervously though, sweat dripping from his head. However, he then closed his eyes. "No, I CAN do it. Just remember what Master Yoshi told me: empty your mind, stay focus, read your opponent's moves and perform them even before him."

Shooting his eyes open, Toka slowly stood on one leg, taking a strange Kung Fu pose, and gave the most focused of all looks right into Ms. Ruby's eyes. This last one briefly wondered what he was up to before shaking this up and returning on the attack.

The crocodile started shooting her voodoo magic at full speed, but Toka swiftly dodged them with incredibly agile moves. It was as if he could foresee what she was gonna do even before she did it. It was impossible!

In spite of her doing everything she could, Ms. Ruby could not stop Toka from finally reaching her platform. Jumping off the tortoise's back, he landed before her with a confident smile. In a desperate attempt, she swang her huge tail at Toka who leaped over it and delivered a final smash across her face which knocked her onto her stomach and ultimately defeated her.

"You've certainly got some rhythm, kitty," Ms. Ruby chuckled in pain and defeat. "But it won't help you none if you're fixing to go after the Panda King. He's though with a capital T. If you go poking around his stronghold in China, you're likely to get poked back."

"Yeah, well if he's anything like the rest of you, I think I'll manage," Toka replied with a confident smile.

* * *

 _"Ms. Ruby's pages of the Ultimate Guide held notes from my Egyptian ancestor, Thunkamen. His invisibility technique allowed him to steal from greedy people and noblemen with ease. This was certainly going to be helpful for the rest on my team's mission."_

 _"Right on schedule, Agent Hopps arrived to arrest Ms. Ruby for her use of dark magic over the local folks and left her with a life sentence behind bars. While my friends and I enjoyed a few weeks under the tropical sunshine, we took time to rest, plan our next journey to China, and learn the technique of my ancestor..."_

* * *

 **That fight was too easy? Well, Ms. Ruby has always been one of the weakest bosses in the Sly Cooper franchise. Not much to work with here.**

 **Three of the Fiendish Five have bee defeated. Only two to go and the New Legend will have succeeded in their quest. Let's hope Toka's new technique will help them with their next target, the Panda King.**


	263. Fire in the sky

**Before we kick off this new chapter, I'd like to point out a detail: this is NOT same China as with the Kung Fu Panda world where Po and his friends reside; it's a different one.**

* * *

 _"The road trip gave me the time I needed to study up on the Panda King. Born poor into the streets, he was fascinated by the fireworks lightening up the skies every new year. He spent a decade learning the art, but when he tried to offer his work to the noblemen, they couldn't see past his shabby clothes and sent him away."_

 _"Humiliated, the Panda King took revenge on those who rejected him by using the tools of his work for the crime_ _. The Fiendish Five recruited him as their demolition expert and ever since his firepower became feared worldwide. He is rumored to be hiding in the Kunlun Mountains of China, preparing some sort of new destructive weapon..."_

* * *

The New Legend was driving in their old van which Alena took back upon returning from Haiti. The vehicle was making its way throughout the beautiful landscape of the Chinese mountains which were covering all the horizon. Snow was falling from the dark and peaceful sky as Koji enjoyed the cool breeze flying over his exoskeleton while sitting down on the van's top.

"This place is beautiful!" the beetle beamed as Suya was flying near him. He noticed that she looked down with a joyless expression. "Problem, Suya?"

"No, nothing. It's just...this is the native country of my father...," the owl replied with a sad look.

Koji reached his hand to gently pat her shoulder. "Don't be sad, Suya; we will find your father very soon." This statement made the snowy owl smile which the beetle returned and she gave him a kiss on the cheek.

"We've arrived," Alena announced after the van crossed a bridge and parked it down. Toka opened the back door to exit, but not before Alena called him: "You sure you don't wanna take warm clothes before getting into those cold mountains?"

"Don't worry Alena; he's a snow leopard which is made to be in cold zones," Neyo pointed out.

"Totally; cold won't slow me down," the leopard said with a confident smile before heading out of the van with Koji and Suya. The trio passed through the entrance gate of the bridge which had a panda head design on it. A clue that they were probably on the right path.

Walking through the cold snowy mountains, the three friends eventually reached a spot from where they could see a huge stone panda statue standing proudly on the side of the mountain. A big firework flew off that statue and through the sky.

"Would you look at that? A fireworks show!" Suya exclaimed in surprise and awe.

The firework suddenly went to crash and explode against another mountain, causing a huge avalanche. Unfortunately, there was a village laying right below that quickly got buried under the snow because of said avalanche.

"Oh my gosh, that's awful!" Koji exclaimed in horror. "That poor village just got buried in freezing snow!"

"The rocket came from that giant statue," Toka said with looking at the architecture. "And you can bet the Panda King lit the fuse. We've gotta find our way up there and fast before that lunatic squashes another town."

The three friends made their way toward the other side of the mountain. The problem was that the path heavily guarded by patrols of rhinos and monkeys. Luckily, Toka's invisibility technique came in handy as well as Suya's ability to bend with the snow and Koji's one to sneak undetected through the field as he did in the wildland were also helpful.

Before long, they finally made it to the Panda King's compound from where they could get a clear view of the statue. Koji was shivering from being exposed to the cold for far too long.

"I feel like I've been bathing into water that has not been exposed to the sun forever!" he said with rubbing his body for some warmth. He then looked at his two friends. "How can you not freeze? You're as naked as I am."

"I'm a snowy owl, duh," Suya said with nonchalantly dusting a snowflake off her beak. "My species was made to live in cold environments."

Neyo then contacted Toka via communicator: "Nice job breaking into the Panda King's compound. Now we just have to find a way to reach the top of that statue."

"Any idea?" Toka asked.

"Actually, yes. I spotted a powerful firework that has a 99% chance to get you safely to the statue's top. It's located on the very far west part of the mountain."

"Okay...and what's the remaining 1%?"

"Well...you crash into the statue and explode."

"Okay, worth the risk."

"Sometimes you're worrying me, dude."

Telling the info to his friends, Toka headed west with them. They soon made it to a little-abandoned village and started climbing up rooftops toward their destination.

"Freeze, leopard!" a familiar voice called.

Turning their head, the trio saw Judy Hopps standing on a rooftop with her paralyzing pistol aimed at them. While Suya and Koji looked curiously, Toka smiled.

"How can I freeze when my heart warms at the very sight of you?" he seductively asked.

"Shut up, you scum!" Judy roughly replied. "I don't know what you and your two new friends are doing here in China, but I'm sure it can't be good for whoever owns the place."

"You must only have eyes for me if you're too blind to see what's going on around here," Toka said with crossing his arms.

"All I see is a pathetic thief who has escaped justice for far too long."

"I'm proud to be a thief, especially when I'm stealing from a vicious extortionist like the Panda King. Open your eyes, Hopps - these temples are a front for an illegal explosives factory."

"Don't try to confuse the issue. You criminals are all the same and none of you will escape justice." The conversation being done, Judy started shooting paralyzing blasts at the trio who started making their way through the rooftops.

"Who's that girl? you know her?" Suya asked Toka while flying around to dodge the blasts.

"An old acquaintance!" Toka replied while running on all four. "This bunny has bee chasing me since the start of my adventures."

"What's a bunny?" Koji curiously asked.

The chase lasted for quite a while before the trio managed to hide in a spot with Toka using his invisibility technique and Suya wrapping her wings around Koji to help him fit in with the snow around. Judy looked all around before angrily groaning.

"Watch your back, Toka! When you least expect it, I'll be there!" she angrily called before jumping away.

"Man, she looks really mad at you," Koji said after Suya released him.

"Yup, and that's exactly why I love her so much," Toka said with a chuckle.

* * *

 **LOL. Another encounter with Judy filled with comedy. These two are just too cute together, aren't they?**

 **Except that, I can't wait to write next chapter as Panda King is one of my favorite Sly Cooper vilains and character in general. He's a bit like Po mixed with Lord Shen's backstory.**


	264. Kung Fu vs Flame-fu

**Time for Toka to face Panda King!**

* * *

Toka, Suya and Koji found the big firework Neyo told them about and returned to the Panda King's compound with it after making sure Agent Judy Hopps was gone. They settled the tool in position with Toka holding onto it as he was ready to fly up to the statue's top.

"You sure you don't want our help with the Panda King?" Koji asked his friend.

"Sorry Koji, but I'm used to fighting those scums by myself. You'd get in the way," the leopard replied while holding onto the firework's rope.

"And you sure it's safe to use a firework to get up there?" Suya asked with an unsure look.

"Either that or I get blown up. Neyo's words." The leopard shrugged and used a stone to rub his claws over it and create sparkles which light up the rocket's lit. "Pray for me."

As the little rope completely burnt, Toka was sent flying through the cold air at full speed with the rocket. He shouted in joy while flying up until he finally reached the statue's top and jumped down just before the rocket exploded in the sky.

The top was a circular platform with a figure waiting for him in the middle: Panda King! The Panda King was a large, male giant panda who casually wore flame-striped red pants and a blue sash around his waist.

"I see you carry the notorious jacket of the thief family," the big pear said with a deep voice and jumping on his feet. "Have you come here for revenge? To steal back the Ultimate Guide?"

"That was my plan at first, but now I'm more interested in putting an end to your avalanche extortion racket," Toka replied.

"Why should you care if I bury a few worthless villages in snow? You are a thief, just like me," Panda King pointed out.

"That's only half right. I am a thief from a long line of master thieves, while you...you're just a frustrated firework artist turned homicidal pyromaniac," Toka replied.

"Insolent child!" Panda King angrily groaned. "You shall pay dearly for your disrespect! Still, to honor your thief ancestry, I will send you to your doom with the beauty of my new firework technique...Flame-fu!"

"Flame-fu, huh? Sounds fun," Toka said with a smirk before charging on his four limbs toward the bear.

The Panda King charged his fist with fire before going for a strong punch. Toka managed to roll out of the way and out of the panda's sight, letting him smash the floor where he left a crater. Panda King was surprised and searched for the snow leopard.

Next thing he knew, a painful kick was delivered straight to his cheek, causing him to stumble back a bit. He rubbed his cheek to ease down the pain a bit.

"You are fast, little leopard!" he said before charging his hand with fire and going for a horizontal Karate chop which Toka avoided by jumping and hit a Superman Punch to the panda's jaw to stun him.

He followed with his Dive Attack right into the Panda King's stomach who made him bounce back and broke through a panda statue. Toka groaned because of the pain shooting through his whole back before opening his eyes just in time to see a fireball coming right at him and moving out of the way in time to avoid it. The Panda King threw one fireball after the other with his paws which didn't stop the leopard from reaching him.

The Panda King charged both of his paws with fire, really wanting to hurt Toka bad, and performed a series of flaming Karate chops which Toka managed to dodge with swift, agile moves. After dodging at least a dozen more flaming Karate chops, Toka hit a violent headbutt to Panda King's head followed by another Superman Punch before ultimately concluding with a Dive Attack to his face which knocked him down for good.

"Your skill with Kung Fu is unparalleled," Panda King coughed in pain while laying on his side.

"It's because I had a good teacher," Toka said before looking down in sadness. "I'm sorry for what happened to you. You didn't deserve it. But that's no excuse to blow up things and kill people. I hope you'll realize that one day."

Panda King stared at his leopard enemy's sympathy before groaning and passing out. "Toka!" Neyo suddenly called through the communicator. "I did a cross-analysis of the metal used in that high-tech blasting vehicle and it turns out it can only be found in one place - the Krack-Harov volcano in Russia. That's got to be where we'll find the fifth member of the Fiendish Five. So get what you came for and let's get out of here!"

* * *

 _"Retrieving the Panda King's section of the Ultimate Guide gave me the chance to learn about my technical ancestor, Otto Van. Not known for his physical capabilities he relied on vehicles for his criminal acts. Taking inspiration from a few of his blueprints, I decided to share them with Alena and Neyo, hoping they could make some cool upgrades to our van."_

 _"A frustrated Agent Hopps came down the mountains and threw the Panda King in jail, putting an end to his "avalanche protection services". This ensured the security of villages all across the mountains of China. My friends and I took some time off in China to rest, make some shopping, and plan our next move."_

 _"While we were in my native country, I brought my friend to a local dojo I once trained in so that they could learn a bit about Kung Fu. We also checked around for Suya's father in hopes that he was around for a nostalgia trip but in vain. This made our poor owl very sad. Good thing Koji was there to comfort her."_

 _"After a full month of relaxing, learning Kung Fu, and upgrading our van, it was time to enter the last part of our quest..."_

* * *

 **That's it, only one of the Fiendish Five remaining. We're getting close to the end of this arc, my friends...and it's tomorrow that I'm returning to school.**

 **See? That's why I like Panda King; unlike the other Fiendish Five (safe for Muggshot and Ms. Ruby to a certain level), he is a good guy that became bad because society was mean to him. Judy Hopps says her system is justice while in fact it's not; just an organisation with power that can get easily corrupted if given money.**


	265. A daring rescue

**Time to start the final part of the arc!**

* * *

 _"We were on our way to the Krack-Harov volcano in Russia. While looking at the very little info I had about the final member of the Fiendish Five, I began to notice something. On the cover images of the Guide's pages I recovered so far, there was the shadowy figure of some sort of owl-falcon standing in the background looking very similar to the police images of the criminal known as Clockwerk."_

 _"Is this a strange coincidence or did I missed something?"_

* * *

After many more days on the road, the New Legend finally reached their destination: the Krack-Harov volcano. Alena drove the van (which they equipped with a stronger metal to resist the powerful heat) through a landscape of stone, dry magma, and pools of lava everywhere. If the atmosphere of the Chinese mountains was super-cold, the one they were currently in was totally burning. Despite their airy outfits, Toka and Suya were drowning in a river of sweat due to being animals made for cold temperatures. Even Koji was finding the heat hard to endure.

Alena stopped the van before a metal door blocking them from going any further into the volcano. It was shaped like a robotic owl-falcon head with deadly yellow eyes. The black panther peaked her head out of the van by the window to look up at Toka who was sitting behind the defense turret they installed on the van's roof.

"Hey Toka, the road to Clockwerk's fortress is blocked. Do me a favor and shoot out that lock for me, would ya, pal?" she called.

"With pleasure," Toka replied and shot a laser blast at the gate's lock, destroying it and opening the door. This allowed Alena to start driving forward into the passageway ahead of them.

While slowly and carefully conducting her vehicle through the slim stone path ahead, the group noticed a metal tower in the distance which was shaped just like the previous door: with a robotic owl-falcon head.

"Bingo!" Neyo beamed behind his portable at the back of the van. "My scanners indicate that Clockwerk is holed up in that owl-shaped tower!"

"First things first! We've got hostile contact ahead, Toka!" Alena exclaimed in a hurried voice.

Indeed, robotic flacons came out of nowhere and flew in the air above the van. As they let out robotic screeches and dove to try and claw at Toka, the leopard understood they were not friendly. Rising the turret, he started shooting at them. They were hard to catch due to their number and random patterns of moves, but Toka managed to make them all explode in the air.

However, the break was cut short as the owl tower suddenly shot a ray on the top of a hill they drove close to, causing many boulders to fall in their direction.

"That's no tower - it's a giant death ray!" Neyo panicked. "Toka, take out those rocks or we're all doomed!"

He didn't have to ask twice as the leopard quickly turned the turret and shot the boulders, making them explode into little pieces before they could reach them. After a few more minutes of driving, the van arrived before a smaller metallic door in a stone wall. They all came out of the vehicle and tried to open it, but it was locked.

"Darn it!" Toka groaned.

"I'm gonna get it open!" Nyo said with opening his computer and managed to unlock the door after a few minutes. "Bingo!"

"Huh, guys?" Everybody turned around to see Koji pointing toward more robotic owls coming their way.

Toka took his fighting position but got stopped by Alena before he could charge. "No, Toka. We can take care of those robots. You go stop clockwerk and retrieve the last pages of your book."

"What?" Toka said in surprise. "But guys..."

"Toka, this is what we came here for!" Alena said with the most serious gaze she ever had. "If you don't get them back right now, all those months of work we did, all the thugs we defeated, and all the training you spent years doing will have been for nothing. Don't you trust us, Toka?"

The leopard didn't reply and just stared at his four friends who all gave him confident smiles, indicating they were not going to give up on him. Smiling back, he nodded. "Fine, but I'll be back for you later, okay?"

"Of course! And we'll cheer for you all the way from here!" Koji called as his friend ran inside the door with Neyo closing it behind. the friends then turned toward the robotic owls and took their fighting stances.

"It's time to put our training to use!" Alena declared with a growl.

* * *

After getting through the door, Toka entered into some kind of machinery room with a pool of lava down below. The best way to go would be the sides from where he could climb up and get faster toward the death ray. However, he noticed a detail: in the middle of the room was a small chamber with glass windows behind which was looked a familiar figure.

"Judy!" Toka gasped. "Oh my gosh, she's trapped!"

"Serves that cop right!" Neyo said through the communicator, the sound of brawl being audible in the background. "She's been dogging us from the start."

"It's just a misunderstanding. I have to free her!"

"Are you crazy, Toka? Clockwerk probably stuck her there to trap you!" Neyo protested.

"But if I don't do anything, Judy is doomed. Besides, stealing just wouldn't be that fun without her."

"Toka, your ridiculous leopard logic sends shivers up my quills. But if you insist, do as you want," the hedgehog sighed before hanging up.

Toka made his way into the room and before the little glass prison where Judy was locked up. She looked in surprise upon seeing the leopard arriving.

"Toka! I should have known you were behind all of this!" she said with an angry frown.

"You got me wrong, Ms. Hopps," Toka defended himself. "I'm here to rescue you."

Suddenly, just as he said that a glass wall closed behind him, locking him up into the room, and green smoke filled the room. He coughed up as he started feeling sleepy - sleeping gas - and soon dropped down on his stomach.

"Ha ha ha!" a deep, evil voice laughed through speakers. "You sentimental fool! Empathy has always been the downfall of your clan!"

"Crap! I knew this was going to be a trap!" Neyo said through the communicator. "Looks like I'm going to have to do some fast and furious hacking to shut down that gas before Toka's brain gets turned to cheese!"

* * *

 **Toka has fallen in a trap to save Judy. Can Neyo save him before it's too late?**


	266. Showdown with Clockwerk

**Final chapter of this arc, guys! I hope it will be good enough to satisfy you.**

* * *

After doing some hacking with his computer, Neyo finally managed to stop the sleeping gas. Toka groaned as he came back to his senses and weakly stood back up. He blinked his eyes a few times before looking at Judy who was giving him a soft stare.

"Toka...I was wrong about you. Break me out of this force field by smashing its base and I'll make it up to you somehow," the bunny nicely offered.

Toka nodded and used his Dive Attack to break the base of the field and make it crumble. Judy then used her paralyzing pistol to break the back door of the room and headed for the exit.

"Follow me!" she called to Toka before heading out with the leopard behind her.

The two came out in the open arena of the volcano with the death ray being really close and accessible by an electric cable. Judy then turned toward Toka.

"I don't get it, Toka," she said with rubbing her arm. "I've hunted you for years, tried to throw you behind bars - but when you get the chance to leave me in a cage, you set me free. Why?"

"Judy, we may be on opposite sides of the law, but you're not my enemy," Toka responded with the most sincere of looks. "Now the homicidal robotic owl that built this death ray and nearly gassed us to death - that guy's on my list!"

"I see your point," Judy said with a smile. "Alright, until Clockwerk and his evil schemes are destroyed, I suggest we work together."

"Together at last!" Toka beamed with a smile.

Judy just rolled her eyes. "If you can, make your way to the top of the death ray. I stashed my emergency jetpack there before clockwerk captured me."

"Now that we're a team and all, I'd hate to leave your side," Toka said with a seductive smile and his hands on his hips.

"Hold on, this truce is only temporary. Once we beat clockwerk, I'm coming after you," Judy said with a serious look before mumbling: "Well, maybe I'll give you a ten-second head start."

"Alright, darling," Toka said before sliding the cable down and getting to the feet of the death ray tower. just then, Neyo called him through the communicator.

"Toka! The magnetron support field for the death ray got destroyed while you were saving Judy Hopps! You'd better hurry; this whole thing is about to fall apart!"

Indeed, the tower shook and started slowly sinking down into the pool of lava down below. Toka started running for his life, using all the thief skills he learned during his journey to get up toward the death ray's top.

He managed to get there and spotted Judy's jetpack laying there. He wasted no time he wrapping it around his waist and getting off just as the whole tower faded into the lava. The young leopard couldn't help but be in awe as he was elevated by the jetpack and could now see all of the volcano...which looked like hell.

"WOOOH! This jetpack is awesome!" Toka beamed.

"TOKA! BEHIND YOU!" Neyo suddenly screamed through the communicator.

Rising a curious eyebrow, Toka slowly turned around...and widened his eyes. Before he was flying a giant robotic owl head with a falcon body. Its eyes were yellow globes somehow filled with hate and his giant wings were causing big gusts of wind with each flap.

"Toka," he said with a threatening, robotic voice. "You have escaped my gas chamber and destroyed my death ray. Remarkable. Thieves like you always find a way to beat me!"

"Always?!" Toka asked in surprise. "So it WAS you in the background of all those old pictures in the Ultimate Guide. How old are you?"

"Perfection has no age...," Clockwerk replied.

"What? You're immortal?"

"Revenge is the primary ingredient in the fountain of youth. I've kept myself alive for hundreds of years with a steady diet of jealousy and hate, waiting for the day I would finally eclipse your family's thieving reputation," clockwerk said with malice in his voice.

"Toka!" Judy called from a stone down below. "My blasts don't hurt him but seem to create holes in his armor. Shoot into the gaps I create!"

"Okay!" Toka replied and started moving around with the jetpack to avoid the blasts Clockwerk shot with a turret from his back.

"Of all the thieves I've faced, you're the weakest!" Clockwerk mocked while shooting.

Eventually, Judy shot a paralyzing blast into his wing, making an opening for Toka who shot at his wing with the jetpack's canons until it exploded. The giant robot groaned.

"My skills are superior!" He swung his wing at Toka who ducked under it and then shot at his talons after Judy stunned it.

Toka and Judy repeated the process with Clockwerk's tail, head and his other wing which damaged him just enough to send him crashing into the lava down below with a huge splash.

"Nice shooting, Toka! You got him!" Neyo beamed. However, Clockwerk came back to the surface and roared. It was not over yet. "Now your only chance, Toka! You've got to get to his head and destroy before his auto-reconstruction circuitry kicks in! Quick!"

Nodding, Toka flew down with the jetpack and landed right in the owl's badly damaged face. "I am...blue seven...flowers...never...lavatine...lay...feet together...I will live...indirect enemy," he mumbled distorted words.

Toka didn't understand what this was supposed to mean (probably was Clockwerk's system filled with lava), but he honestly didn't care. All he wanted to right now was unleash his anger and pain over the robotic owl who caused him so much pain. He delivered one violent punch in his face that knocked some metal pieces away.

"For my father!"

A second one.

"For my book!"

A third one.

"For sending me to the orphanage in loneliness!"

A fourth one.

"But most of all...FOR ALL THE CRIMES YOU COMMITTED AND THE SHAME YOU BROUGHT UPON MY FAMILY!"

He delivered an ultimate punch that was so powerful that Clockwerk's head was knocked off his body and flew down into the lava. Toka panted as he realized what he accomplished.

He defeated clockwerk and ended the Fiendish Five's schemes.

 _"It took some tricky work, but we managed to snap off the last pages of the Ultimate Guide from Clockwerk's claws. I took down every member of the Fiendish Five: Raleigh, Muggshot, Ms. Ruby, Panda King, and Clockwerk himself. I beat them all one-by-one and reclaimed my birthright."_

Toka jumped away from the lava and onto a safe platform of metal after recovering the last pages of his now complete book again which he held in his paws with pure proudness.

 _"Of course, there was no way I could have done all of this without my friends."_

Toka turned his head to see the van arriving at the edge of the volcano and his four friends waving at and cheering at his success, making him smile even more.

 _"I know this hasn't been easy for them, but they stook with me 'til the end. Alena, she's a tough as nails girl and a great driver, but she's got more heart than she thinks. Thank Neyo; without his giant brain, I would have never made it so far. Suya, she's an explorer with as much bravery as beauty. I'm planning on helping her find her father. And Koji, this little guy is full of surprise. I know having grown up in a wildland that he can take care of himself, but I'm still gonna keep an eye on him, like a big brother."_

 _"A thief could not ask for a better gang of friends...and who could forget the lovely Judy?"_

Turning around, Toka saw Judy Hopps on the platform, pointing her pistol at him with a set of handcuffs in her other hand.

 _"Now that clockwerk was defeated, we're back to playing cops and robbers. I thought for sure she was gonna slap the cuffs on me right here and there...but instead, she was true to her words and gave me a ten-second head start."_

Toka and Judy just stood there, glaring at each other.

 _"10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3...2..."_

Toka suddenly jumped and kissed Judy on the cheek.

 _"...1!"_

Judy widened her eyes and blushed like mad. She looked away bashfully...just before realizing her hand was tied to the platform by her own handcuffs. She turned to see Toka blow a kiss at her as he ran away and she angrily screamed at him.

 _"I felt a bit guilty of abandoning her on a platform like this, but I left the keys close to her; she should be fine. I'm sure we'll meet again someday."_

Toka joined the others in the van which they used to drive away from the volcano which would forever serve as Clockwerk's grave. The time was at celebrations as everyone cheered and congratulated their leopard friend on restoring the Ultimate Guide.

"I can't believe we actually did it," Neyo said, whipping a tear away.

"Where should we go now?" Alena asked while driving.

Toka looked at his guide and then smiled. "How about we go back to China? We could train a bit more in Kung Fu...and steal a few ancient relics..."

* * *

 **Toka has defeated the Fiendish Five and reclaimed the whole Ultimate Guide! Hooray! The New Legend will now go enjoy some relax time in China. I sure hope you guys enjoyed the Ultimate Guide arc - especially you, Grey Coincidence and TheDragonSaver.**

 **Speaking of China, my next arc will take place in the Kung Fu Panda world. I'm sure you guys want to know what happened since the Blue Thunder Crew's passage and how Po is handling his Dragon Warrior role.**

 **Until then, have a nice day you all :)**


	267. Mongolia

**Time to return to the beautiful land of Kung Fu Panda's China, my friends!**

 **Now, the story arc I'm about to start might be familiar to those who have read the third season of my New Legend Reboot franchise before I deleted it. So don't be surprised if there are details that sound familiar ;)**

* * *

Mongolia. The Land of the Eternal Blue Sky. Rightfully feared but equally misunderstood. The birthplace of conquerors.

Since the beginning of civilization itself, the Emperors and lords of China have fought restlessly with the people on the other side of the wall marking their territory. And to China, all the people on the other side were called _barbarians_. And yet, those "barbarians" have humbled this so great land that was China more than once.

Despite its beautiful sky and natural majesty, the north part of Mongolia didn't have the same amount of food and goods as the south. Those to the south always had full bellies and a huge wealth while those to the south didn't have the same chance. The ways of the world have never been fair, but what one does not have can always be taken by force. What they lacked in governmental structure, the Mongolians always made it up with their taste for brutal warfare.

Their skills with swords, axes, and arrows became the stuff of legends. War had become their routine, but not their only goal as they were very religious and the code of honor was not beyond them. But in such a hostile world, the children grew up learning one reality: happiness is not given; it is taken.

Things will always be this way. That's what the Kahn had concluded about his homeland. While sitting on his throne, his advisors were bringing him the same problems that his father, grandfather, etc had faced before him.

"The clans are at each other's throat! The people are starving! We don't have the required funding to supply the army!"

Getting bombarded by those bad news caused the leopard to slam his fist onto his throne chair. "Enough of this! You're not learning me anything new: I KNOW that this country is going to trash!"

"What if I told you there was an easy solution to all your problems, Great Kahn?"

The leopard quickly looked up to see a figure wearing a red hoodie standing at the entrance of his room. In a split second, all the guards in the room pointed their swords, spears, arrows at the intruder, ready to protect their Kahn from him.

"Who are you, stranger?" the Kahn asked with standing up from his throne.

"Do not worry, Great Kahn, I didn't come here for harms," the figure said and slowly walked toward him. Somehow, the Kahn knew he wasn't in danger and waved his paw to his guards, telling them to low down their weapons.

He waited for the stranger to come close enough so that he could get a good view behind the hood covering his face. Once he arrived at the right angle, the first thing he noticed was a pair of red eyes burning with malice...and then gasped.

"You...You're a peacock?!" the feline exclaimed from his throne. "But then...this means you're from Chinese royalty."

" _Was_ would be the better word, excellence," the hooded peacock replied. "I have been forbidden from my heritage for a very, VERY long time now."

"Mmm," the Kahn said with sitting back on his throne with an almost interesting look. "So why did you came here for?"

"To make you a proposal you are almost sure to accept," the peacock replied with a smug on his beak. "I am not learning you anything new when I say that your country is currently laying in chaos for a thousand reasons. What if I told you there was an easy solution to end all of it?"

This statement caused everyone in the room to exchanged curious glances. "And what would that solution be?" the Kahn asked.

"It's very simple; invading China!" The whole room widened its eyes in surprise. "Your country is divided because food and supplies are not enough to feed everyone. But if you can conquer China, there will be plenty for everyone - both for the north and the south. Of course, such an ambitious plan would be impossible without the proper strike force...which I just happen to possess."

This statement created even more chats amongst the guards. Ther Kahn looked even more interested. "And who exactly could an outcast from the royal family find the required strength to take over a whole country?"

"It's very simple, Great Kahn: during all those years I've spent in exile, I had the chance to recruit many criminals and mercenaries to my cause by promising them a place in my army after taking over China," the hooded figure said. "Also, during the recent weeks, I discussed with and convinced many high authority figures of your country to join my cause. This includes Knyaz Tugtomor of the Trade Federation that will fill us with all the supplies we need; Knyaz Jundu of the Techno Union that will design the best weapons possible for our soldiers; Khagan Husun of the Corporate Alliance that will fill us with ships and other vehicles to get the advantage over China...and also, believe it or not, but I also convinced none other than Lord Hakakku."

This statement made the room fall silent. The Kahn though he might have misheard what the peacock said. "Wait...did you just say Lord Hakakku?"

"Perfectly, my dear Kahn," the peacock confirmed. "His fortune and respect ensured the best fighters across this country and the ones nearby accepted to join my cause. You must probably know by now that I already have enough power to attack China whenever I want. I was just wondering if you, Kahn, ruler of Mongolia, would be interested in joining me as well to make sure my goal of taking over China as well as ensuring the future of your country gets insured."

Everyone in the room turned toward their beloved Kahn who lowered his head and started thinking about the proposition he was given. "This proposal is, to say the least...unusual. To accept it would risk me the wrath of the Emperor for betrayal."

"I wouldn't call it betrayal as you never had any loyalty to the Emperor. Like I say, nothing ventured, nothing gained, Great Kahn. And besides, you know that with all the power behind me, victory is a certainty."

"Very well then, if it's for the future of my country, then I accept your offer," the Kahn said with standing up from his throne. "Besides...it's been a very long time since we, Mongolians, had a war that anticipating."

"Wise choice, Great Kahn," the peacock said with a smile and rubbed his wings. "Just one last detail: the name of our great alliance is...the Silver Coalition!"

* * *

 **Who's this evil peacock plotting with Mongolia's biggest figures against China? Is he from Gongmen's royal family? Is the Silver Coalition gonna take over China? A lot of questions for a start.**

 **"Khan" is a title for a sovereign or a military ruler, used by Mongols living to the north of China. The title Khan is also used as a variant which refers to Pashtuns (Pathans) or people who have Pashtun ancestry in South Asia. Khan has equivalent meanings such as "commander", "leader", or "ruler", "king" and "chief". Long story short, a Khan is the Mongolian equivalent to China's Emperor.**

 **"Knyaz" and "Khagan" are also titles of nobility in Mongolia.**


	268. Rain, feathers, and stripes

**It's here that we're going back to Po for real as we didn't really get to see him in the previous chapter.**

* * *

The Dragon Warrior as another bolt of lightning flew over the mountains at the horizon. Heavy clouds were gathering at the distance, probably bringing a violent storm with them. This wouldn't hurt the Valley of Peace, but still.

The panda was sitting in a lotus position beside the sacred peach tree where Grand Master Oogway lived his last moments. His eyes closed, Po breathed in as much air in his lungs as he could and made sure his whole body was loose and relaxed, but the raindrops started coming down, ruining everything in a split-second.

This made him sigh in anger as he hoped to get a little peace after all the work he did as the Dragon Warrior since earning the title. Not only did he had to protect the Valley from bandits but he also had to do tasks like cleaning the training hall and assist important festivals and reunions. Guess it would be for another time.

Po walked back into the palace to get dried. On his way through the hall of heroes, he met up with a familiar red panda. "Good morning, Master Shifu," he said with bowing.

Shifu returned the bow and gave him a towel he brought prior to meeting him so that the panda could get dry.

"Got caught by the rain while trying to meditate?"

"Yeah, pretty much," Po replied while cleaning his fur.

"At least you didn't get hit by lightning and turned into ashes," Master Shifu said and the two chuckled. This reminded Po how much better life at the Jade Palace got since Shifu had lightened up a bit. He didn't think it would have been fun to get bullied all the time, like the red panda used to do during his first days.

"It's just that there hasn't been anything interesting to do around here lately, so I've been kinda bored," Po explained.

"Bored?" Shifu asked with a surprising smile. "How fortunate for you then; I just happen to have a new mission for you."

Predictably, the Dragon Warrior got excited by this announcement. The Jade Palace masters hadn't had a real mission for quite some time now, not since the battle with Tai Lung. Of course, there was always the usual bandit raid to keep him and the other masters occupied, but they were usually little wannabes who didn't put much of a fight. While it was fun to have a strong reputation, it was significantly less fun.

"Awesome! We gotta protect a princess?" Po asked while jumping in excitation.

"No, panda," Shifu simply replied. The Dragon Warrior started rambling about many other case scenarios from a group of courageous bandits to the most dangerous bandits escaping prison and attacking the Imperial City. When he heard enough, Shifu rose his arm for a gesture that the panda understood meant "Please, shut up".

"The mission I have for you, Dragon Warrior, is quite simple," Shifu said and lowered his arm. "I have received words from the northern provinces that the infamous Kung Fu relic, the Tiao She Sword, has been located. Someone in the city of Mei Bo has put it for sale to the highest bidder. I want you to find the current holder of the relic, give them a lot of money, and return it so that we may keep it safe here in the Hall of Warriors."

"Awesome! But...Master Shifu, isn't that sword kind of dangerous? Isn't that what some of the outside warlords used to nearly conquer all of China?"

"Yes, that's the one," Master Shifu confirmed. "I suspect Master Oogway had a record of the relic, but I couldn't find any in the library. The weapon's unique power has not been seen on the battlefield for over two centuries."

"How does its power works?"

"No one really knows. It has the reputation of being just as dangerous for the opponent as for the user, but nothing is certain. The only thing most people are sure of is that the sword has a unique design with the blade having a snake drawing on it."

"This sounds dangerous," Po said to which Shifu nodded in agreement.

"You should take big precautions when transporting such an artifact. In the wrong paws, it could create a lot of chaos. You should choose two of the Furious Five to go with you."

"You can count on me, Master," Po said with giving a bow which Master Shifu returned before leaving the hall.

"I have total faith in you, Dragon Warrior," the red panda mumbled. Though he couldn't help but look at the unlucky Urn of Whispering Warriors with a cringe.

* * *

Crane finished putting on the last touches to his composition and then stepped back to admire his work with pride.

The painting he made was of him and his fellow Furious Five comrades alongside the new friends they made during the battle with Tai Lung; Fenghuang, Mei Ling, and of course, their Dragon Warrior, Po. With the Five and masters perfectly portrayed in defensive stances around the panda, this piece was near-perfect.

This was the only thing Crane has found to distract himself as his girlfriend, Mei Ling, had left on a mission with Grand Master Fenghuang to a city far from the Valley and would only return in two days. Just this was seeming insanely long for the avian.

The heavy steps coming from behind alerted him of the panda's arrival. Crane just had time to turn around as Po opened the door and gasped as he gazed upon the masterstroke of artistic genius before him.

"Crane! T-This is amazing!" the panda beamed.

"Oh, thanks, Po," the avian replied with looking away to hide his bashful blush. Ever since he joined the Jade Palace, Po had become good friend with Master Crane and the two could have conversations without causing an awkward like they did the first time.

After a moment, Po snapped out of his gaze over the painting and turned toward his creator. "I almost forgot what I came to tell you."

"What is it?" Crane asked with an eyebrow.

"Master Shifu tasked me with a mission! A quest to take a relic of awesomeness back from the paws of anonymous ownership!" Po explained with his endless enthusiasm. "He allowed me to choose two of the Five to join me and I thought about you! So what do you say?"

"So...we're going to shop for Master Shifu's relic collection?" Crane asked with a wry smile.

"...Yeah, pretty much," Po nodded with rubbing the back of his head.

"So, care to give me any more details about this relic we're going for?"

Po proceeded to tell Crane all the info about this mission that Master Shifu told him.

"Alright, I'm in. When do the two of us leave?"

"First thing tomorrow. But it's gonna be the THREE of us," the panda corrected.

"Three?"

"Yes. I'm gonna ask Tigress to go with us too." He left Master Crane's room.

* * *

Po knew finding the master of Tiger Style would be easy; even though it was a day off, she would surely be sharpening her skills, as always.

Po was greeted by the smell of shattered wood as he entered the training hall. Rather conveniently, the striped feline appeared to have just finished for the day and walked over to Po where he had entered.

"Hey Tigress, you got a minute?" he asked.

"What do you want, Dragon Warrior?" the master asked with bowing. Ever since he defeated Tai Lung, Tigress was now on good terms with Po. Sure, she was still firm toward him and didn't hold back during training, but at least, he had her respect.

"Master Shifu got a mission for us. He wants me to get a sword relic for the Hall of Warriors. I'll have to go to a town north and I was wondering if you'd join me and Crane."

The feline gave one of her very rare smiles (though it became more frequent since she became nicer after the whole Dragon Warrior story)and gave him a bowing salute with her palm in fist.

"I would be honored to join you, Dragon Warrior."

* * *

 **I hope I did well in updating you guys about what happened in the Valley since the Blue Thunder Crew's passage. But yes, everything has been cool, the Jade Palace heroes are doing their stuff, and Fenghuang and Mei Ling are gone on a mission.**

 **"Tiao She" translates to "Dancing Snake". Let's hope Po, Tigress and Crane can get it back.**


	269. Lord Hakakku

A month of travel. The three masters had gradually left the gorges of their native valley and started to enter central China in the direction of the Qin Mountains. The journey was rather difficult, especially for Po who wasn't used to run long distances like his comrades. Adding to this the fact that Tigress had the advantage of running fast on her limbs and Crane could easily avoid the route's obstacles by flying up.

This journey allowed Po to socialize more with two of his idols. At night, during their rest time around a campfire, Po would always convince Tigress and Crane to tell him stories of their adventures and accomplishments. While Shifu had taught them about humility, it wasn't that bad to boast about their exploits for once.

The first thing that the three masters noticed about the village that was their destination upon arrival was how huge it was, much bigger than they anticipated. Tracking the relic's owner would certainly be harder than initially expected.

The second thing they noticed was that the city was evidently ancient. Some of the buildings in the town center looked like they hadn't been in the architectural norm for about twelve hundred years. As they passed under one of the massive gates in the city's walls, Tigress remarked that this was one of the Song Dynasty's northernmost strongholds against the Mongolian puppet states of the Jin Dynasty.

The streets were muddied from recent rains, and there were great masses of people in all directions. Tigress took the lead as they weaved through the maze of wooden and moss-grown stone buildings.

"This weapon being up for sale will surely attract all kinds of trouble. Keep your eyes open for anyone that looks like they don't belong: foreign mercenaries, black market traders, soldiers that aren't wearing Chinese uniforms. They'll be able to lead us to whoever the seller is," Tigress instructed while cutting a path through the crowd. Crane, I want you to get a height advantage and scout the merchant district. Po and I will try to get information about the seller's whereabouts."

Nodding, Crane flew up in the air while Tigress and Po went to question the local people. One of them, a bull, gave them very interesting info.

"Do you know where the seller of the sacred relic weapon will take place?" Tigress asked him.

"The sell of the sword?" the bull asked with a surprised look. "I'm sorry, miss, but you're late; the seller has already been done."

"What?!" Tigress exclaimed in shock. "Who bought it?! Where did they go?!"

"Well, believe it or not, but the person who bought it was none other than Lord Hakakku."

"What?!" Tigress exclaimed, widening her eyes in shock. "Lord Hakakku?! But that's impossible!" She didn't pay attention to Po who didn't have a clue of why she panicked. "Where did he go?! It's urgent!"

"He went to the city's imperial meeting palace but I don't know why," the bull said. "That was only one hour ago; you may catch him if you hurry up."

Tigress quickly thanked the merchant before grabbing Po's arm and running toward the location he mentioned. "Tigress, what's the hurry?!" Po asked while being dragged against his will. "I understand that you want to get the relic back, but why did you start panicking after he mentioned Lord Hakakku? Who's that?"

Tigress sighed and let go of his arm. "The meeting palace is still far from here; I guess I have time to tell you the whole story."

"Early in his life, Hakakku was taken in by the Kung Fu Council and became Master Thundering Rhino's disciple in the era of ancient China. In doing so, Hakakku relinquished a family fortune that would have, by simple virtue of its size, guaranteed him a place amongst Mongolia's most powerful and influential beings. He eventually attained the rank of Kung Fu Master and took Master Shifu as his disciple. Shifu later became a Kung Fu Master himself. Shifu had at least some contact with his old Master and after taking Tai Lung as his apprentice, spoke highly of his student to Hakakku, although Hakakku never met the young Tai Lung in person"

"With time, Hakakku had become disillusioned with Kung Fu Council and China's corruption. He left the Council, becoming one of very few members to return to his hometown of Mongolia. He returned to his ancestral home and reclaimed his family title of Lord. With his reclaimed title, he also took possession of a family fortune so vast that it placed him amongst the wealthiest and most influential beings in the country. Despite his newfound wealth and power, however, Hakakku all but disappeared from public life after his resignation. Most believed that he had gone into a sort of self-imposed exile with the intention of founding an offshoot of the Kung Fu Council. We never heard about him ever since."

"He was with the Kung Fu Council and trained Master Shifu?!" Po asked in surprise. "But why did he resurfaced only now? And why would he want the Tiao She sword?"

"I have no idea, but we better hurry up if we wanna know. Let's go!"

* * *

The two Kung Fu masters eventually made it to the imperial meeting palace which, of course, was closed to them. They had no other options but to sneak through an opening in the roof. They eventually managed to get inside and found a spot to look into the whole room from the ceiling.

The first thing that caught their attention was that all the guards spread around the room were not wearing Chinese uniforms. "Are these...Mongolian guards?" Po mumbled.

"Looks like it...but I think they are the least of our worries right now," Tigress said in an unusual nervous tone.

She pointed to the end of the large table where someone was sitting down. It was a male wolf with snow-white fur and yellow eyes. He was wearing black Mongolian robes with a light brown cape over his back. An unusual feature was that he had a little beard that indicated his old age...which didn't make him feel less intimidating.

"This wolf...it's Lord Hakakku," Tigress mumbled which surprised Po to the point he almost gasped but managed to plant his paws on his mouth in time.

Just then, the room's doors opened and people walked in. Those were visibly important people accompanied by highly armed guards (all Mongolians) and sat at the table with Lord Hakakku. This last one stood up from his chair to start talking.

"Welcome to you all, my dear Knyaz and Khagan," he started. "Our friends from the Trade Federation have pledged their support, and when their soldiers are combined with yours, we shall have an army greater than any in the whole country."

"An army?" Po mumbled.

"It is an honor to stand before you, for you represent the freedom and the future of our country," Hakakku continued. "The once-great China and Kung Fu Council have become victims of their own ambitions, and the Emperor is no more than a pawn of corporate monopolies. As a people you called out for change, you called out for leadership, and I humbly answered that call. Together we challenged the system. We asked for equality. And how were we met? With war! The Chinese noblemen's real ambition was revealed, and their treachery was far greater than we could have imagined! Countless living beings—these Kung Fu Masters created by China itself—have been sent to their deaths, while we sacrifice pour children in our everyday life. Our soldiers of flesh and blood are willing participants! They are your fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, who fight not because they were grown and designed to do so, but because they know in their hearts that they are fighting for a just and noble cause!"

Everyone in the room clapped and cheered loudly while Po and Tigress were only looking in shock.

"They are gonna invade China?!" Po mumble yelled with his eyes wide open. "This is terrible! We must warn our friends about this!"

"However," Lord Hakakku suddenly said with a smirk, "there is one more detail that must be taken care of before ending this meeting."

In a second, the old wolf reached his paw to take an object tied to his belt. It was a sword with a curved-hilt handle and a very long red blade that had a golden snake pattern over it. Hakakku threw the sword toward the masters' location, forcing them to jump away. This resulted in them falling and landing in the room for everyone to see.

"Looks like we have unexpected guests," Lord Hakakku said as his sword came flying back into his paw.

* * *

 **Hu-ho! Looks like Po and Tigress are in trouble. Will they make it out of this room alive?**

 **BTW, for those of you wondering how my new OC, Lord Hakakku, sounds, imagine that he's voiced by the late Christopher Lee. Rest in peace, legend!**


	270. Po and Tigress vs Hakakku

"Po! Defend yourself!"

As soon as the two masters made their presence known, they got attacked by the guards who were not busy evacuating their Knyaz and Khagan out of the room. Luckily, they were able to easily dispatch them off. This left them with Lord Hakakku who strangely did not leave the room with the others.

"Master Tigress," he calmly said while standing up and calmly walking around the table. "Leader of the Furious Five. I heard quite a lot about you. I can't wait to see if you are up to your reputation, milady."

"Don't call me like that, traitor!" the feline firmly said with taking her fighting stance. "I'm gonna make you pay for corrupting Tai Lung!"

The Lord frowned at the mention of his student. "Do not blame me for what your Kung Fu Council did to my student. I shall avenge him this very day," he said with giving a pointing look toward Po. "You are the famous Dragon Warrior I heard so much about, correct?"

"Yeah, correct, pal!" Po said, his fist risen, and trying to hide the fact that he was excited to be known even amongst Mongolian people.

"So those rumors were not false; you really are a panda," the Lord calmly said. "I never saw one in person. This is an honor." He then took out the same saber he used to surprise attack the masters.

"The Tiao She Sword!" Po exclaimed in surprise. He then started to jump in place. "It's the legendary sword of the conquerors! I can't believe I get to see it in person!"

"Oh, so you know about this sword?" Lord Hakakku asked with a smile and a risen eyebrow. "Then you will be honored to see this sword become the tool of your own doom." The old wolf took a fighting stance by raising his sword in one paw while putting the other one in his back.

Growling, Tigress charged and went for a series of punches which the old wolf dodged or blocked with swift and elegant moves. He eventually pushed her back with a kick across the jaw just as Po charged for an attack, only for Lord Hakakku to swiftly dodge and land a cut across his back with his sword. It wasn't deep enough to put Po's life in danger, but enough to bleed.

"Ouch!" the panda groaned and rubbed his back. "What Kung Fu style is that? I've never seen it before."

"My style is called Form 2 also known as Makashi," the Lord explained while calmly walking around the two masters. "I developed it myself during my time in Mongolia. It's a Kung Fu style only I know of."

While he was talking, Tigress charged and tried to hit a double palm strike. However, the Lord suddenly rose the paw in his back and shot a jet of red lightning that touched the feline and knocked her back against the wall. "TIGRESS!" Po exclaimed in shock as his friend laid on the floor, groaning in pain with red electricity emanating from her body.

"Oh, did I forgot to mention?" Lord Hakakku asked without any hint of mockery in his voice. "I possess Chi, like most masters, and can manifest it as what I like to call Evil Lightning. It's like normal lightning...but way more painful."

Po realized he was at a serious disadvantage: his Panda Style required him to return his opponent's strength against him, but it would pretty difficult with an opponent like Lord Hakakku. He decided to stay on the defensive for now and try to find an opening in his stance.

Understanding he wouldn't make the first move, Hakakku stepped forward and started elegantly swinging his sword at the panda who tried to dodge thought his large size was making it hard. He eventually saw an opening and caught the old wolf's arm to make him flip over his shoulder.

Unfortunately, he easily landed on his feet and replied with a back elbow into the panda's face which stunned him. He followed by knocking him down with a jet of Evil Lightning from his other paw, just like he did with Tigress.

"I could've easily done this earlier with the fat panda that you are, but I wanted to toy a bit with the killer of my student," Lord Hakkaku calmly said as if he was just having a boring conversation. "And I must say...I don't understand how someone like you could have defeated my student. You must have been VERY lucky."

CLANG!

Just as the Lord was about to finish off the two masters, Crane broke through the palace's window with an unhappy look. "WINGS OF JUSTICE!" He flapped his wings to send a powerful gust of wind that knocked Lord Hakakku back to the other side of the room.

"Crane!" Tigress called as she weakly stood up. "We need to get out of here and return to the Valley to warn Master Shifu! It's an emergency!"

Nodding, the avian grabbed his two companions and flew out of the palace by where he entered - thought Po's weight was making it a bit hard. In a desperate attempt, Lord Hakakku shot a jet of Evil Lightning which missed the avian who flew away from the city by air.

The Lord frowned as this meant China would be aware of the plans he was taking part in. A big inconvenience...

* * *

The three masters managed to escape the city and made the journey all the way back to the Valley of Peace. There, they wasted no time in going up the Jade Palace and report everything they saw and heard to Master Shifu.

"So Mongolia is plotting to invade China?" the red panda asked in front of the palace's gate while rubbing his beard. "This seems very serious indeed."

"And Lord Hakakku is at their head, Master," Tigress added in a sad tone.

"Yes, Tigress," Shifu replied, sharing his daughter's pain. "I never thought I'd hear about him again. And certainly not learn that he is leading an army to invade China and created his very own Kung Fu style. He changed so much since the days of ancient China..."

"What must we do now, Master?" Crane asked.

Shifu gave them a serious look. "Get the messengers ready. We must warn the Kung Fu Council, the Emperor, and the Imperial Army of this invasion at once!"

* * *

Meanwhile, back in Mongolia, Lord Hakakku walked into a very large encampment located in the middle of nowhere. He stepped into a tent and bowed before a hooded figure.

"Our plans have been discovered by three masters from the Jade Palace, my lord," he said. "China will now be aware of our invasion."

"Welcome home, Lord Hakakku," the hooded figure simply said, not sounding bothered at all. "You have done well."

"You are not disappointed by this?" Hakakku asked with standing up.

"Not at all; those are excellent news. Everything is going according to plan. The war is starting..."

* * *

 **Po and his friends discovered the Silver Coalition's plans, but that did not seem to bother this hooded figure. I wonder why?**

 **For those who wanna scream about Crane carrying Po and Tigress away, let me tell you this: Crane managed to carry all four of his comrades back to the palace after getting defeated by Tai Lung. Don't underestimate him, the boy is strong.**

 **The war for China is about to start...**


	271. Within the woods part 1

**Sorry for not updating in like three weeks guys. I was working on other stuff. But I'm now back!**

 **It's time that we go back to the four ninja birds. I know you want the Blue Thunder Crew's adventures to continue, but I'm sure you also wanna know what happened to our ninja friends after their intense fight with the returning Blood Talon and his Foot Clan.**

* * *

My name is Tiny and this is the story of the darkest time of my life.

Just as we thought that the streets of New York were now safe, the Foot Clan returned. Blood Talon was with them. They attacked Lilly and badly injured to the point she almost didn't survive. After that, they attacked my home and, despite having Master Yoshi and Ryker helping us, we were ultimately overpowered by the enemy and trapped. They set fire to my house and everything exploded.

It was a miracle that we made it out through an old exit my dad built there when he was the owner. Unfortunately, we lost Master Yoshi and we didn't have time to find him. We had to escape before our enemies could catch us. Luckily, Ryker had a van which we used to escape the city and the city landscape altogether.

After riding for two long days, we finally reached a secure spot which was Ryker's home in the countryside in the shape of a farmhouse near the woods. There, the Foot Clan wouldn't find us for sure.

When we arrived, we unloaded the unconscious Lilly inside the house and onto a bed, stripping her of her ninja attire, and gave her medicine in hopes of making her heal faster. Kowalski never moved away from her bed, constantly watching over his sister. Meanwhile, Sparky helped with the chores and goofed around, Sky built up a lab in the barn, and Ryker was working on repairing an old truck.

* * *

The burrowing owl rolled out from under the vehicle and then removed his protective helmet which was a nice changing from his usual hockey mask. He turned toward Skyler who was currently working on some stuff into her new workshop inside the barn.

"Hey, whatcha doing, Sky?" Ryker asked her.

The elf owl turned around and showed a little bottle containing a lime green liquid. "I'm trying to make a special medicine that will help Lilly recovering faster." She then gave a sad look. "If she ever awakes that is."

"Don't think like this," the burrowing owl said with putting a wing on her shoulder. "Lilly is one of the toughest avians I know and it will more than a few wounds to take her down."

Sky just slightly nodded. Just then, another bird came in, it was Tiny. "Hey guys, are you gonna come for training or what?"

"Oh, we forgot! Sorry, Tiny," Sky quickly apologized and got out of the barn with Ryker.

A few moments after, Sky, Ryker, Tiny, and Sparky were gathered on the farmhouse's field to train. While Sparky was swinging his nunchucks at the burrowing owl who blocked with his hockey staff, Sky was swinging her bo staff at Tiny who tried to dodge while fighting back with a metal fan in her wing.

"Where did you get that fan, Tiny?" Sky asked her friend with a curious look.

The green bird sadly looked at it. "Master Yoshi gave it to me before you moved in my house. He said that he originally planned to give it to his daughter when she would be old enough to carry this weapon. He told me that she would around my age today and wanted me to have it, saying it'd help me to be a great kunoichi - a ninja woman."

Seeing the sad look on Tiny's face, Sky decided to give him a comforting hug. "I miss him and New York too."

"You know," Ryker said after finishing his sparring match with Sparky, "I can't help but feel frustrated. We should be in New York fighting those bastards instead of hiding here in my grandparents' farm."

"Come on, buddy; it could've been worst," Sparky said with wrapping a wing around him.

"Worst? Master Yoshi is gone and Lilly might never wake up! How could it be worst?" As Sparky backed up, the burrowing owl smashed the ground. "I hate feeling so powerless..."

Just as everyone started feeling sad, a loud scream came from the house: "GUYS! COME QUICK!"

"Kowalski?!" everyone exclaimed at the same time.

The four birds rushed into the house and upstairs to see Kowalski smiling, much to their surprise. They quickly understood why though: Lilly had her eyes open and looked at them with a weak smile. "Hi," she waved at them.

"LILLY!" they all beamed at unison and hugged her tightly.

"Guys!" the spix macaw groaned as the hugs hurt her.

"Oh, sorry," Sparky apologized as they all backed up. "I thought you were never gonna wake up, sister!"

"You know me, Sparky; it takes a lot to keep me down," she said with winking at him.

A few moments later, everyone was downstairs in the living room with Lilly sitting on the couch as Sky checked on her. She was inspecting every part of her body to find anything out of the ordinary: she didn't want to risk losing her sister after losing her father figure.

"So? Is it as bad as I feel it?" Lilly asked her sister.

Sky gave a little smile. "You're lucky; there is nothing too bad and you should make a full recovery. However, it's gonna require a long rest and you're gonna have to take it easy for a while," the elf owl then took out the bottle of lime green liquid she worked on earlier. "Here, it's a medicament I made to make you heal faster."

Lilly took the bottle and drank a bit of it, wincing because of the taste. "Erk! It tastes like two months old bleach!"

Kowalski then pulled his wing on his sister's shoulder. "Don't worry, sis; I'm sure you'll be back on your feet in no time with training."

* * *

 **This chapter was short, but we're gonna stop here for now.**

 **So yeah, Master Yoshi disappeared, Lilly is badly wounded, and our heroes are gone to the campaign. Let's hope she gets back up soon so that they can keep fighting.**


	272. Within the woods part 2

The day after Lilly awoke from her coma, Kowalski took her out in the woods to work up his sister's weakened muscles. Sky made her a wooden crutch for the occasion, but even then, the spix macaw seemed to have a hard time walking.

"I don't feel good, Kowalski," Lilly said as she stumbled on her crutch.

"You just need a little training walk, Lilly," the barn owl encouraged her as he walked ahead. "Your body will feel better after it."

"I don't know, Kowalski. I just... I feel like I'll never be the same again," Lilly sadly said.

"Don't say that, sis," the barn owl frowned. They soon arrived across a river and he jumped over to the other side. "Come on, join me here," he said with pointing at rocks forming a creek.

Lilly looked at them and took a deep breath before crossing the rocks one by one with her injured leg making it hard. She somehow managed to cross the creek before feeling a huge pain in her shoulder.

"Crap! It hurts!" she said and reached to her belt to take out a glass flask of Sky's medicine. She drank some of it, hoping it would make her feel better. However, it did the opposite: she felt dizzy and nauseous, dropping the flask and vomiting on the ground.

"Lilly! Are you okay?" Kowalski asked as he rushed at her side.

The spix macaw coughed before wiping some vomit off her beak. "Sky's medicament made me puke. I don't feel really good," she said with clutching her stomach.

"Ok, that's enough training for now; let's get you back at the house," Kowalski said with putting his sister's wing over his shoulders and started leading her back to the house.

Little did they know was that Lilly's vomit trickled into the ground where a pair of glowing green eyes appeared...

* * *

Later that evening, everyone was resting in the living room, watching a new cartoon that Sparky ADORED on television. It was about a barbarian fighting alien or something.

"This show is awesome!" Sparky happily beamed.

"I must agree with you on that one," Sky said with an amused smile.

"So, you really started training in the ninja's way, Tiny?" Lilly asked her green friend.

"Yeah, and she's progressing pretty fast," Kowalski said to which the green bird blushed a bit.

"So...any idea of where Master Yoshi could be?" Lilly asked which made everyone look down in sadness.

"No, Lilly; we lost him after the explosion and didn't have time to search for him," Tiny sadly said.

"You think he's still alive?" Ryker asked.

"I'm sure of it; he always finds a way out," Lilly positively said.

Suddenly, the lights went off and the TV too, plunging all the house in the dark. This caught everyone by surprise. "NOOO!" Sparky cried while hugging the television. "The show barely started! Why?!"

"Calm down, Sparky," Sky said with turning a flashlight on. "It's probably just a blown fuse; I'll go check this out."

"I'm gonna go cut some wood to make a fire if this takes too long," Kowalski said as he walked out of the room while Sky left downstairs to go see the power source.

* * *

A few moments later, Kowalski was outside the house, in the dark of the night, chopping wood with an axe for the fireplace. He managed to cut a few trees in the forest and was working hard to cut them into pieces. He was taking the chance to unleash his anger of not being able to do anything against the Foot within each strike he was giving.

As he finished chopping his fifth trunk, the barn owl heard something behind him and swiftly turned around with his axe rose, ready to fight. "Who's there?!"

Kowalski remained tense, waiting to see who was the intruder...who revealed himself to be a roe. He just looked at him before running away in the woods. Kowalski let out a relieved sigh.

"Just a roe. I got scared for nothing." Chuckling a bit, the barn owl picked up the wood rolls he made and started heading back to the house.

However, midway there, he felt something grab his legs and make him fall before dragging him away. "Hey! Let me go! HELP!" was the last thing he screamed before being dragged far into the woods...

* * *

"Kowalski!" the others called up. They decided to go out of the house and search for him since he left and hadn't returned for hours.

"Kowalski, can you hear us?!" Ryker called.

"I don't think he can answer," Tiny nervously said.

"I think we should split up," Lilly said. "Tiny and Ryker, you go this way. Sky and Sparky, you get this one."

"Splitting up? Are you serious, sis?!" Sparky asked.

"Tiny and Ryker, alone?!" Sky asked with a shocked look on her face.

"Just do it!" Lilly annoyingly said and started going back to the house.

"What are you gonna do?" Tiny asked.

"I'll stay at the house in case Kowalski comes back. I won't be of much help out there anyway," she sadly added before going back inside the house while the others headed toward the forest with their flashlights.

* * *

"You really lived in here before?" Tiny asked, staying close to Ryker who pulled his hockey mask on and was walking forward with his flashlight.

"Yup. As a kid, I was afraid of those woods because I thought there were monsters in here, but now, I know the only monster in here is Ryker," the burrowing owl declared with a smirk.

They soon arrived in an open area with a scarecrow in the background. Tiny suddenly stopped walking and held her head in pain. Ryker noticed it.

"What's wrong, Tiny?"

"I don't know...I'm feeling...bad vibes," the green bird said with holding her head in pain.

"Bad vibes?" Ryker asked with a confused look.

"Yeah...I think something's watching us." The pain soon eased and Tiny took Ryker's wing. "Come on, let's get out of here."

* * *

"Kowalski! Where are you?!" Sparky called as he followed Sky from behind. "You think he got eaten by a giant squirrel?"

"I do not think that. No, I'm just freakin because Ryker and Tiny went off on their own. Alone," Sky seriously said.

"Why? They forgot to bring a compass?" Sparky curiously asked.

"No, genius. What happens when two teenagers who like each other go out into the woods alone?" Sky asked with a serious look.

Sparky starred at her before it clicked in his head. "Ooooh...that's gross."

After a few more minutes of walking, the two elf owls found some old shack. "What's this?" Sky curiously asked.

"Let's go check it out," Sparky said as they opened the door and carefully stepped inside. "Hello?"

This shack was old and had tools such as an axe and hammers. Sky noticed a spot in the shack where a little flask containing lime liquid was surrounded by candle lights.

"Hey, I know this. It's the medicine I made for Lilly!" Sky said with her eyes wide open.

They suddenly heard a groaning noise and Sky turned the flashlight to see a badly beaten down Kowalski laying in pain in a corner. "Kowalski!" Sparky exclaimed as they rushed at his side.

"Are you okay?!" Sky asked her brother, but he was too weak to answer.

"I'll go get help!" Sparky said with running out of the shack, only to let out a yelp. "HA! Sky! Help!"

The female elf owl quickly turned around and ran out to see her brother caught in ropes tied around his body which held him backward. Before she could do anything, Sky received a punch that knocked her against a tree. As she rubbed the pain off her head and felt dizzy, she moved her head just in time to avoid a big pitchfork that was thrown at her and planted itself into the trunk.

She then looked up to see her attacker was very big - at least seven foot tall. It was muscled and his body seemed to be made of plants. He was wearing blue dungarees and a potato bag over his face.

* * *

Meanwhile, Tiny and Ryker were still walking side by side when they heard a scream in the distance. Tiny immediately recognized it.

"That's Sky! She's in danger!" She turned toward Ryker...only to find out he was no longer there. "Ryker? Come on, this isn't funny!"

She heard grumbling noises and turned in the other direction to see the plant creature holding Ryker's head in his big hand. The little green bird widened her eyes before taking out her metal fan and, remembering her last days of training, launched it to cut the creature on the shoulder.

This made him drop Ryker and Tiny launched her metal fan right into his head. However, the creature stared at her and simply pulled it out of his head, making clear liquid flow out of it. As Tiny looked in fear at how her attack didn't affect him, the monster kicked her down and wrapped vines from his arm around her body.

"Don't touch her!" Ryker shouted with smashing the creature in the back of the head with his baseball bat and then repeatedly hitting his head with it. However, the monster soon blocked him and tossed the burrowing owl into a tree causing, his back to crack and to drop both his bat and hockey mask.

"Ryker!" tiny exclaimed as she rushed at his side. She soon saw a shadow over her and turned around to see the creature removed his potato and replaced it with Ryker' hockey mask, making him look more intimidating.

Panicking, Tiny started running away as the monster grabbed his pitchfork and chased after her. Just as the little green bird looked back to see if she had escaped him, she bumped into a strong wall and fell on her rear. To her shock, it was the monster standing before her...

* * *

Meanwhile, Lilly was trying to train against dummies with two new katanas Sky built for her during the time she was unconscious, replacing the ones Blood Talon destroyed. However, without her crutch, she could barely stand up.

"Come on...," she mumbled, resting on her new swords. "You can do it, stop whining." She was about to attack again, but her shoulder suddenly hurt her badly.

"Lilly..."

The spix macaw turned around and saw Tiny weakly walking toward her. Before she could do anything, vines jumped from the forest and grabbed her legs, dragging her backward.

"Tiny?!" Lilly exclaimed in surprise.

"Lilly! Help!" the green bird begged as she was dragged back in the forest.

"TINY!" Lilly shouted and tried to go after her, only to collapse on her knees in pain.

Realizing she had no choice but to save her friends herself, Lilly pulled her ninja gear back on and made her way into the forest with her crutch, following the trail left by the monster. She ended up finding the shack and prepared a trap for the monster.

"Hey, you freak!" she screamed.

The monster soon walked out and searched for Lilly but couldn't see her anywhere. He soon received a shuriken in the back of the head and turned around to see Lilly glaring at him.

"Give me my family back...freak!" she said with a glare.

The monster pulled the shuriken out of his head and started walking toward her. Realizing she'll have to fight, Lilly tossed her crutch aside and took out her katanas, positioning herself to fight. The freak charged at her and went for a smash which Lilly dodged by rolling to the side and swung her katanas which he blocked with his pitchfork.

The freak managed to land a punch on her face before trying to stab her with his pitchfork. The macaw swiftly dodged until the freak knocked one of her katanas away. He then tossed his pitchfork at her and while she managed to dodge, it still left a cut on her cheek. Groaning angrily, she charged and slashed her remaining katana across the freak's face.

While he was holding his face in pain, Lilly charged again, looking to finish him off, only to get her wing caught in one of his big hands and her face in the other. She groaned in pain as the freak lifted her and glared at her with his glowing green eyes, roaring in anger. He started slamming Lilly on the ground multiple times before tossing her away, making her land with a loud thud.

This combined with Lilly's previous wounds made her suffer a lot. Looking up, she saw the freak making his way toward her. She saw her crutch not too far and started crawling toward it for her life. Just as the freak got behind her, ready to stab the macaw with her own katana to finish her life, Lilly grabbed her crutch and, in a split-second, planted it into the monster's eye, causing him to back up and roar in pain, dropping her katana in the process.

Taking advantage of the monster being in pain, Lilly grabbed her katana and stumbled her way into the shack where all of her friends were tied up in vines.

"Lilly!" Tiny happily said. "Quick, get us out of here!"

Nodding, Lilly used her katana to free her friends before collapsing on one knee in pain. As everyone checked on Lilly to see if she was alright, a growling noise alerted them off and they turned to see the freak, with Lilly's crutch piercing through his skull, glaring at them. Realizing the danger, they all closed the door and Sky held wooden boards on it while Sparky used nails and a hammer to secure it.

Ryker took out his hockey stick while Lilly rose her katana, Sparky swung his nunchucks, Sky rose her bo staff, Kowalski took out his sais, and Tiny opened her metal fan, all ready to fight. they waited nervously for the freak to break through the door.

"You know, this sounds very much like a horror movie I saw once," Sparky mumbled before being silenced by Sky who pulled a wing on his beak.

Suddenly, a plant hand pierced through the side wall of the shack and not by the door as they expected. Everybody screamed in fear and Ryker slammed his hockey staff across the freak's face until he grabbed it in his hand and snapped it.

"Shit!" the burrowing owl swore and backed up.

Sparky took the tag by charging and delivering hits with his nunchucks and kicks as well while Ryker grabbed a shovel in a corner and used it to attack instead. The freak was having a lot of transparent fluid flowing out of his head, but he still didn't die. Breaking inside the shack, he punched everyone back until Lilly was the last one remaining.

The macaw and freak stared at each in silence...before the later charged and tried to grab the former, this last one pushed through the pain, jumped over him and, in a swift move, swung her katana through his neck. The freak gaped at her for a moment before his head fell off and rolled on the ground followed by his collapsing body.

He was defeated.

"You did it, Lilly!" Sky happily said as everyone came to see her sister's success.

"You see, sister? I told you you were strong even with those wounds," Kowalski said with a smile as he put a wing on her shoulder.

"Yeah, you were right. Thanks, Kowalski," Lilly said with a smile. "I'm gonna resume training with you guys."

"That way, we'll be able to take New York back," Ryker said as he took his hockey mask and pulled it back on.

* * *

 **For those of you who didn't get it yet, the freak monster was an homage to Jason Voorhees from Friday The 13th. My favorite horror movie villain.**

 **I hope you enjoyed this first new story for our return to the four ninja birds and...well, stay stunned for the next chapter ;)**


	273. Vision Quest

**It's time to start this story arc for the four ninja birds which I have been pretty excited to start for a while!**

* * *

Lilly sighed as she remained still on her tree branch. Her sight was locked on a lonely deer which she planned on taking down with her bow and arrows. Usually, she prefers to avoid killing animals, but their food supplies were getting low and they needed to get more right away.

Just as she prepared to shoot her arrow, the deer turned his head toward her and ran away. Probably smelled her and heard the noise she made. Sighing in disappointment, she jumped down, twitching in pain as she landed on her bad leg. Even with Sky's medicine, her body was still hurting like hell.

Hearing a noise, she turned her head and saw the deer glaring at her. His black eyes were locked onto her...and he soon ran away after a scoff. Lilly understood that he didn't leave because he was afraid of her...

He just wasn't interested in her.

* * *

Meanwhile, back at the farmhouse, Kowalski, Sparky, and Sky were giving a ninja lesson to Tiny. "If you wanna break the Foot's face, you must first learn how to break some wood," Kowalski said as Sparky held a wood board before him.

"Test your might," Sparky said with a loud voice.

"Stop saying that every time, Sparky," Sky said with rolling her eyes.

Kowalski swiftly swung his wing, breaking the board in half. He did the same with the next two. "Like that?" the barn owl asked with a smile toward Tiny.

"Your turn, Tiny," Ryker said with holding a board for her. "Sure you don't want me to soften it up for you?"

"Remember; it's not only physical strength that breaks the wood. It's also inner strength," Sky advised her green bird friend.

"I got this!" Tiny delivered a spinning kick to the board. While it did not break, Ryker was pushed back a bit. "Could be better," the burrowing owl chuckled.

They then stepping sounds and turned around to see Lilly arriving with her crutch, collapsing on one knee in pain. "Lilly!" Sparky exclaimed as he and Kowalski helped her back up. "Are you alright?"

"I...I had a realization in the woods," she said with looking at them. "It's just...what we need."

"What do you mean?" Sky curiously asked.

"We're all so caught up in telephones, and junk food, and TV that we've become at odds with nature. A true ninja must become one with nature to master himself."

"Hey, leave TV out of this," Sparky said with an undignified look.

"Yeah, even Master Yoshi said it," Sky said with a feather on her chin. "He said: only when you become one with nature can you make peace with yourself."

"Peace? Are we hippies? We're ninjas!" Kowalski exclaimed.

"We'll do three days of meditation and practiced awareness in the wild, only eating what we can forage," Lilly announced her siblings.

"Three days?! We're gonna live like animals!" Sparky exclaimed.

"We ARE animals, bro," Sky said with rolling her eyes.

"Camping sounds like a good idea," Tiny said with a smile.

"Sorry, Tiny, but this trip is for ninjas only," Lilly said with stopping the green bird with her wing.

"What? But I'm on my way to becoming a kunoichi!" the green bird sadly said.

"Just almost," Sparky replied as he and his siblings toward the farmhouse to get ready.

Ryker then pulled a wing on Tiny's shoulder. "Don't worry; we'll make popcorn and watch old movies."

* * *

After the four siblings finished filling their backpacks, they left the farmhouse and made their way into the woods. Lilly was leading the way with her siblings following behind.

"We've mastered our weapons, stealth, and hand-to-hand combat. But we haven't achieved the very first part of the ninja discipline: the spiritual refinement which any true ninja must master," Lilly explained while walking.

During their expedition, the ninjas meditated in the woods, crossed rivers (with Lilly having a hard time because of her injured leg), practiced their ninjutsu, and meditated on top of trees. One night, as they were heading back to their camp, Lilly noticed the same deer she chased looking at them from a distance.

"Guys, look," the spix macaw said, pointing toward the animal "It's the same deer I've been hunting. I think it's following us."

"Yeah; he's probably laughing at the four lost avians of these woods," Kowalski sarcastically said.

"Actually, in the Shinto religion, deers are considered messengers from the divine," Sky said with looking toward the deer...who disappeared.

It suddenly came out from behind a tree in a strange humanoid form. He was very tall, his horns were longer, and the white marks on his otherwise brown fur looked like Japanese poetry. And he still had this glare he gave Lilly back in the forest.

Before they could do anything, the animal scoffed and ran away into the woods. "No, wait! Come back!" Lilly called in vain.

* * *

Later on, the four siblings were sitting around a campfire. Night had fallen and the air got colder. As Sparky was preparing a little fruit soup for himself and his siblings, Sky was checking notes on her cell, Sparky was resting his back against a tree, and Lilly couldn't stop thinking about the strange deer. The macaw let out a loud sigh, wishing Master Yoshi was with them to guide her and her siblings right now.

Suddenly, the fire warming them turned blue, immediately alerting the four siblings. The ashes started dancing above the flames and took the form of a familiar falcon.

"Master Yoshi?!" they all exclaimed at unison.

"Go aisatsu, watashi no kodomo-tachi (Greeting, my kids)," the falcon said.

"Is this a...ghost?" Sparky nervously asked.

"My spirit has become detached from my body and that body still lives," Yoshi said, looming his ash eyes over his kids.

"You're...alive?!" Lilly asked, standing up. "Where are you, Sensei? Let us help you!"

"You cannot help me. There is so much you must overcome. If you cannot find your inner spiritual strength, you won't stand a chance against Blood Talon," the old falcon said.

Lilly looked down toward the ground. "But...Sensei. My leg injury, it's physical...until I heal..."

The ghost of Master Yoshi put his wing on his daughter's shoulder. "We all choose what holds us back and what moves us forward." As he removed his wing, Lilly briefly looked down before looking at her master and nodding.

"You will all learn this. Each of you must journey out alone and face your spiritual adversary," Yoshi said with turning to his three other kids. "Kowalski, your temper is like a fire you must learn to control in order to use its power." He then turned toward Sparky. "Sparky, your mind is overrun with distractions. Learn to be strong and calm like the forest." He turned toward Sky. "Skyler, you rely too much on your mind and not on your body. Be strong like the mountain." Finally, he turned to Lilly. "Lilly, you are the leader in body AND spirit. Be like the wind, let nothing wear you down."

All four of them nodding, Yoshi smiled. "Sleep now, my children. Your greatest challenges remain on the spiritual plane and will be as dangerous as the ones you will face in the real world." After saying that, the ash form of Master Yoshi faded away and the flames returned to their normal color.

"...Did we all do the same dream?" Sparky innocently asked.

* * *

 **The four ninja birds are about to face their greatest challenge yet. I won't tell you what it is, but I'm sure you'll think it's awesome!**


	274. Vision Quest part 2

The next morning, after sleeping well just like their sensei instructed them, the four ninja birds wasted no time in getting ready for their spiritual challenges. Lilly was the first up.

"Master Yoshi made our quest clear. It's time we begin, ninjas," she said, turning toward her siblings with a serious look. "Each of us will forge new armor and weapons. Then we will journey out alone where we will face our challenges at the spirit plane where the unreal becomes real. Where we'll meet our ultimate fate."

Nodding to each other, the four siblings left to get to work. They spent many hours forging their armor and weapons with all the supplies they could get their wings on. Kowalski made himself a grey hoodie and belt along with a longer version of his red bandana which rested on his cheeks. As for his new weapons, he made himself steel claws on his wings like Blood Talons' and a flamethrower on his back which was connected to his wings.

Sky also made herself a white hoodie and belt along with a white circular mask that covered all of her face and had two round holes for her eyes. Her new weapon was a long axe that she could use to cut hard materials like trees.

Sparky made himself a white version of his yellow bandana which covered the top of his head, a white belt, and black painting marks on his cheeks. his new weapon was a pair of dual mini scythes.

Finally, Lilly made herself a white hoodie, belt, and gloves for her wings. Her katanas were now tied to her left hip instead of her back where her bag of arrows was now resting. Her new weapon was an upgraded version of her bow which could shoot farther.

Having finished with the crafting part, the four siblings stood before each other, knowing it was departure time. "It is time for us to face dangers just as bad as Blood Talon himself," Lilly said. "Good luck, my siblings."

Bowing one last time, the four siblings turned around and walked in opposite directions. Toward their spiritual challenges...

* * *

Lilly wandered alone in a misty forest. The mist was so tight that she could barely see anything ahead or around her. This forced her to rise up her ears in case she would sense anything out of the ordinary around her.

Suddenly, a gust of wind sent mist in her face, forcing her to cover her face. When she opened her eyes again, she realized that she was no longer in the forest but on a wooden bridge stretching above a seemingly bottomless pit. What the heck? How did she end there?

Turning around, Lilly came face-to-face with the deer once again - in his anthro form. She sighed annoyingly. "What do you want from me? Why are you stalking me all the time?"

The deer just glared at her and then faded away into smoke. Before Lilly could sigh annoyingly, arrows came out of nowhere and she managed to dodge them thanks to her ninja reflexes. They were followed by shurikens which Lilly blocked with her bow. Who did this?

She quickly got her answer as figures started heading her way from both sides of the bridge. To her shock, they were Foot ninjas! "Okay, not cool. Definitely not cool," Lilly mumbled as she got ready to fight.

* * *

Meanwhile, Kowalski came out of the river he plunged into which led him into a cave. This cave was pretty large and illuminated by torches on the walls. Strange.

"So much for finding a pirate ship. What a waste of time," the barn owl mumbled as he made his way out of the water and onto the rocky ground. He couldn't help but curiously glance at the torches, wondering how they could stay lighten up like this.

He quickly got his answer as many Foot ninjas walked out of the shadows and soon, the whole room was filled with them, all glaring at Kowalski.

"Figures," this last one mumbled and prepared his new steel claws.

* * *

Meanwhile, Sky somehow ended up climbing up a stone mountain. She walked along a small path and looked down to see the mist prevented her from seeing the ground.

"I'm not even sure this is the right path." The elf owl sighed. "I really miss GPS guidance right now."

Suddenly, the mountain started shaking, causing the elf owl to almost lose her balance. Looking up, she saw three Foot ninjas using big hammers to smash the mountain's wall, making it tremble.

"Hey! You're gonna make the whole mountain collapse, guys!" she shouted. "Unless...you don't care about it because you're apparitions from the spirit plane?"

The Foots replied by slamming their hammers again which caused a huge piece of rock to fall toward the elf owl who rolled out of the way in time to avoid getting then jumped down toward her.

"Yup, that confirms my doubts," Sky mumbled with taking out her big axe.

* * *

Meanwhile, Sparky was walking alone in the misty forest where he could barely what was ahead of him. He remembered Master Yoshi telling him to clean his mind and stay focused, but right now, there was so much going on into that little mind of his.

Suddenly, he felt two kicks hitting him out of nowhere before seeing blurs passing out. "Hey! Who did that?!" Following the little noise he could hear, the elf owl tossed a shuriken in its direction.

To his shock, out of the mist came many Foots ninjas, one of them holding the shuriken he tossed. He pushed a swear before taking out his dual scythes.

* * *

Lilly had started fighting the Foots, shooting three arrows at three of them which connected and made them fade into smoke. The proof they were not real. Another one tried to attack him from behind, but Lilly swung her bow at his face, knocking him into smoke too.

The bridge suddenly started shaking and Lilly realized the ropes were starting to snap. She managed to catch one rope just as the bridge broke in half and she was sent to hit the rocky wall of wherever she was. She climbed her way back to safety and panted.

"At least I'm still alive..."

* * *

Sparky was using his newly forged dual scythes to cut down the Foots ninjas with agility and precision. In a matter of seconds, there was no Foots left, making the elf owl think he had won. Of course, this was not to be as he received a kick in the back that sent him crashing into a tree.

Groaning in pain, he turned around to see the responsible one was some kind of black wolf with yellow globes for eyes. "W-What the heck is that?!"

"Hello...," the dark wolf said in a sinister tone as he made his way toward the elf owl.

"H-Hey, come on, good dog. If you act nice, I'll have a bone for you," Sparky nervously with walking back.

"Oh, you have many bones that I will feast one." Pushing a growl, he charged toward his prey.

* * *

Kowalski pushed a screech as he slashed his new metal claws into the Foot ninjas who turned into smoke. "I would've come into this spiritual plane sooner, have I know I'd get to kick some Foots around!" he declared, having the fun of his life.

As many Foots came his way, Kowalski rose his wings and used his new flamethrower to shoot jets of fire that burnt them down into smoke. The barn owl scoffed and blew the smoke coming out of his pipes. that was too easy. However, his attention soon got caught by bubbles coming out from under the lake in the middle of the cave. What was that?

He quickly got his answer as some kind of red piranha with two arms and legs jumped out and tried to bite him, only for Kowalski to roll out of the way in time. What the hell?! Where did that fish come from?!

* * *

Skyler was using her big axe to block the two Foots staff as they attacked her while also dodging the rumbles falling by the ones upwards, still smashing the mountain's wall with their hammers. She swiftly cut down her two opponents to smoke before dodging a huge falling rumble. Having enough of them, she ran up the mountain's wall and swiftly cut the hammer Foots with her axe in a split-second.

"I hope you learned your lesson," the elf owl panted, pulling her axe away. "This spiritual trial is not that bad. All it takes is a bit of quick thinking and-ARGH!"

The wall behind her suddenly exploded and something came out of it. It was a big tiger that looked visibly hungry at her. Ok, was that a spirit too? The tiger curled his paw like a fist and punched her in the face, knocking her to the ground.

"It's not just an illusion," Sky thought with rubbing her cheek in pain.

* * *

Lilly was also walking up a mountain path (different from Sky's). She once again spotted the deer - in its normal form - glaring at her. "What is it? What is your lesson?" she asked.

"Lesson?"

The spix macaw gasped as she could recognize this loud voice anywhere. She turned around...this metal armor, sharp talons, and hate-filled red eyes. It was HIM!

"B-Blood Talon?!" Lilly gasped and immediately pulled out her katanas as the evil falcon took out his metal claws and headed toward her.

"You've already failed. You are no worth of standing with a master like me!" he mockingly said.

Groaning in anger, Lilly charged and started clashing her swords against the falcon's metal claws. Being more experienced, Blood Talon blocked with ease and fought back with strikes that the macaw had more difficulties to block.

"You can barely stand on one leg!" Blood Talon mocked and landed a kick into Lilly's bad leg, causing her to scream in pain.

* * *

Things were not going better for Sparky; the wolf was chasing him as he was covered f clawing and biting marks, bleeding all over the forest ground. He used his mini scythes to block the wolf's jaw, struggling hard.

"Time out! Please, stop!" the elf owl begged to the merciless wolf.

* * *

Sky rose and slammed her axe into the rocky ground which collapsed and brought the tiger down with it. Of course, felines always landed on their feet and he jumped back to Sky's level, pinning her down, and growled hungrily as he licked the terrified elf owl's cheek.

* * *

The piranha knocked Kowalski into the lake and, being a fish, was able to swim around quickly and smash him without him being able to do anything as he was disadvantaged in the water. He eventually, knocked him back to the surface, making him land hard with a thud.

* * *

Lilly was maybe in the worst spot as she was backed up to the very top of the spiky mountain. She dodged as well as she could and saw the rocky wall behind her. She used it to jump up and tried to strike her nemesis down with her swords. Of course, Blood Talon easily blocked it with his claws and then kicked it out of her wing before catching it in his wing.

Lilly stumbled back from the pain and tried to attack again, only for Blood Talon to snap her other katana out in his other wing. He planted them both into the ground as a mockery sign and started making his way toward his now helpless prey.

* * *

Sparky panted in exhaustion, covered of blood and on his knees. The black wolf was toying with him. He struck him from dead angles before fading away into the mist. He wouldn't win at this rate...unless...

"Remember what Master Yoshi told you: focused and strong like the forest..." Sparky closed his eyes and blocked any thought in his mind. He could win. He just had to focus.

Sparky focused, feeling only the sound and life of the forest. He listened to the wind, the raindrops...and then moved to the side with his eyes still closed to dodge the wolf who jumped from above. Swiftly dodging his clawing attempts, Sparky shot his eyes open a, pushing a battle cry, planted his scythe into the wolf's muzzle. He slashed the other across his throat, making him fade into smoke.

Sparky succeeded in his trial.

* * *

Sky grunted as she fell down the mountain, landing on a stone platform with a loud thud. Luckily her wing wasn't broken. The tiger laughed at her from the upper level as he used her own axe to smash the mountain's wall and send rumbles falling toward her.

The elf owl managed to dodge them all, but most of her platform got destroyed. The tiger growled and jumped down on the other side, visibly ready to pounce on her. Sky was afraid. She needed to retreat and plan her move...

"No, I have to stand my ground," Sky said in determination as she pulled her white mask over her face and turned to face her opponent. "Be strong like the mountain. That's what Master Yoshi told me..."

The tiger roared and pounced toward Sky. The elf owl waited at the last second before dropping onto her back and catching the tiger with a monkey flip which sent the feline falling down the mountain. Sky smiled as she saw the tiger disappear into the mist below.

Her trial was a success.

* * *

Kowalski panted in exhaustion after taking back from his beatdown, resting on his knees. "Master Yoshi is right; I need to concentrate. Control my anger.

Hearing the piranha coming out of the lake behind him, the barn owl took out his claws and pulled them on fire with his flamethrower. He then turned around and let out a raging cry as he charged and planted his burning metal claws into the piranha's abdomen, making him fade away into smoke.

"Eat it..."

* * *

Lilly weakly stumbled on her bad leg away from her soon to come death. "Your wounded leg is like a chained ball dragging you down toward defeat," the falcon mocked as he slowly walked toward Lilly.

The macaw girl quickly grabbed an arrow from her bag and tried to stab her opponent in the face with it. This last one was quicker, however, and caught her wing in his own while catching her throat in the other.

"Pathetic!"

He started giving her violent punches in the face and knee strikes in the stomach, finishing with a spin kick to her face, knocking her back and making her spit out some blood. Lilly started sobbing on the stone ground.

"Blood Talon's right. My injuries are always gonna hold me back. I can't win...," she sadly thought.

Suddenly, she heard a noise and looked up to see the deer floating in the air and looking down at her. He slowly stepped down toward her and leaned his head to sniff at her bad leg. Lilly looked at it...

"Unless...the pain is just in my mind... It's just an excuse... It's not real!"

Suddenly, a clap of thunder was heard and Lilly turned around to see in shock a giant Blood Talon even bigger than the mountain coming up. The deer suddenly appeared in his anthro form beside Lilly. He turned into blue dust and flew into the macaw's forehead, becoming one with her.

"It is time we end this, macaw!" the giant Blood Talon said out loud.

"I agree!" Lilly responded with newfound determination.

Blood Talon launched his huge blade the Lilly, but she jumped, landed on the blade and ran on it. Jumping up in the air, she charged and shot an arrow straight into the giant falcon's eyes, making him roar in pain.

He faded away into smoke and Lilly landed back on the mountain. Her wounds were no longer existing. She walked down the mountain to grab her katanas and looked at the sky. "I beat here today and one day, I'll beat you in the real world!"

* * *

Back at the farmhouse, Tiny finally managed to break in half a wooden board held by Ryker. "you did it, Tiny!" the burrowing owl happily said.

"Yeah! I'm a champion!" She then stopped her victory dance and saw Ryker looked in surprise at something behind her.

The green bird turned around and gasped as she saw the four ninja birds returning with their new armor and weapons. They stopped before them and Lilly gave them a serious look.

"We're ready..."

* * *

 **Sorry for not updating this for a while; I had my head in other things.**

 **Bad news guys: Yesterday, I got diagnosed with pneumonia and I don't stop coughing. That held me back from my work for a bit. I take a lot of meds now.**

 **The good news: My doc allowed me t skip school for the next week! And with a free week of school coming afterward, it means I'm gonna be free for a total of 16 days! That's awesome!**

 **Also, I started watching Star Trek on Netflix. It's not as good as Star Wars, but that's only the first three episodes, so there's a lot of time to make me fall in love with it.**

 **Stay cool ;)**


	275. Return to New York

**The day has come, guys: the gang is gonna return to New York!**

* * *

The four ninja birds decided to take some rest after successfully passing their vision trials. Right now, they were relaxing before the television in the farmhouse, watching Sparky's new favorite TV show.

"Man, this show is SO AWESOME!" the young elf owl excitedly beamed in the couch.

"You say that about EVERY new show," Kowalski said with rolling his eyes.

"It's because they are!" Sparky said defensively which made his friends chuckle.

Suddenly, just as the show was about to start another battle, it got cut and replaced by the news channel, Channel 6. "We're interrupting this show for an important announcement," said the anchorman.

"HEY! HOW DARE THEY INTERRUPT MY SHOW FOR A STUPID REPORT?!" Sparky shouted, his eyes filled with fire.

"Shh, listen to what they say," Lilly said with a feather in front of her beak.

"Ever since the invasion that is known as the invasion of new york, humans want to know what is going on. Everything is...fine. No human is allowed in or out of the city until Kraan-uh, the military allows it. This is Carlos Kraang O'briengambe," the anchorman said in a strange, nervous and a bit robotic-like tone.

"Hmm, did this guy sound a little strange to you?" Sparky asked.

"Not just a little, bro," Lilly said.

"What's that invasion they talked about?" Tiny asked.

"No idea," Sky said with a shrug. "But if they locked the city, it's gonna be hard to sneak inside. What's the plan, Lilly?"

"Step one is, storm the castle walls. Sky?"

"We can use Ryker's wall to get in there," the elf owl said. "It's not as heavily armored as the Feathered Plane, but it's more maneuverable, has more weapons, and gets better gas mileage."

"Then let's stop jabbering and build this sucka!" the burrowing owl said with a smirk.

* * *

And so, the team of avians started working on Ryker's van, upgrading everything they could and adding ameliorations such as a new gear with metal plates, weapons with everything they could find, and finally, a new paint job of green, white, and red.

"Ehem. The new and improved... Party Wagon!" Ryker announced as he removed the blanket from his van to reveal the new look.

"It's so awesome!" Kowalski said with nudging his rival owl.

"All right, team! Let's do this!" Lilly said with hitting a fist in her palm.

After packing up all their stuff, the six avians jumped into the Party Wagon and started driving away from the farmhouse and back toward New York...

* * *

After two days and two nights of driving nonstop on the road, they were getting close to New York's sector. Right now, it was night time, the sky was dark, and they were sitting in the Party Wagon driven by Ryker.

"All right, team. First, we track down Master Yoshi. Then we hunt for Blood Talon and free the city," Lilly explained to everyone.

"So what's the plan, fearless leader? Ninja-y or all-out attack?" Kowalski asked.

"Ninja-y. We park at the gate and sneak in. Then we split up and search for Master Yoshi."

"Okay..." Sky smiled and then looked ahead of the Party Wagon and her happy face dropped. "...Not good."

They arrived in New York, but the city was surrounded by a wall protected by a lot of military forces.

"Oh, man! They got us, dudes! The jig is up, homeslice!" Sparky panicked.

"Citizen! This is EPF quarantine sector 7-b. Roll down your window. Authorized personnel only. No one goes in or out of New York City," the commander of the forces called through a microphone.

"Whatever you say, army dude," Ryker sarcastically said.

"You think this has something to do with the invasion they talked about on television?" Tiny asked.

"They're all controlled? Like..."Invasion Of The Brain Suckers"?" Sparky asked.

Before anyone could reply to Sparky's pop culture reference, Ryker pressed the Wagon's pedal and charged at full speed into the blockade's gate. The vehicle was strong enough to break through and the military forces started shooting at them from behind, but they were already too far into the city.

"What are you doing, Ryker?!" Tiny asked, getting back up after falling from the sudden charge.

"What were you thinking, man? You got any brains behind that hockey mask?" Kowalski asked, visibly annoyed from getting his head hitting the car's wall.

"I had no choice, Kow; they were getting their guns ready," the burrowing owl replied while looking ahead of where he was driving.

After driving for a while, the group was roaming in the streets of Manhattan. A detail that bothered them a lot was that no matter how long they walked, they still didn't spot a single soul. The city was empty.

"Um, guys? Where are all the people?" Sky asked.

"You think it's because of the Foots?" Sparky asked.

"I doubt it; why would they do with millions of humans and animals?" Lilly asked.

Before they could come up with more theories, the avians stopped their vehicle as they came across two figures in the street. However, they were no humans or birds. They were metallic robots with purple eyes.

"What the heck are those things?" Kowalski asked in confusion.

Sparky noticed familiar brains with faces into the robots' chests. He then gasped: it was the same ones that they fought and that tried to capture Tiny when they came out of the sewers and to the surface for the first time.

"Guys! It's these brain heads I told you about!" the elf owl suddenly exclaimed.

"Brain heads? Which brain heads?" Lilly asked in confusion.

"Hello, the brain head I said attacked me after we saved Tiny." Everybody stared blankly at Sparky. "The one I told you about during the second chapter of our story arc!" he said, breaking the fourth wall.

After a few seconds, lightbulbs appeared above Sparky's siblings' heads (comical effect). "Oh! Yeah, I remember he told us that and we didn't believe him," Sky said.

"That was more than 200 chapters away though. I'm sure everyone forgot about that detail," Kowalski said, also breaking the fourth wall.

"It is the avians known as Lilly, Kowalski, Sparky, Sky, Tiny, and Ryker. Kraang! Eliminate for Kaang!" one of the robots said as they started shooting pink lasers shots at them with their blasters.

Luckily, the Party Wagon was solid enough to resist. "Man, the defenses," Lilly happily said.

"Readying the soda canons," Sparky said, going to a control board in the wagon and pressing on some buttons.

"Loading breath mints!" Sky said, pressing on her own buttons, making canons appear on the wagon's roof and charging them.

"Fire!" Pressing the buttons, Sparky shot soda cans filled with disgusting smell at the brain robots.

"Argh! It stings! It stings!" the robot groaned as the smell was terrible for them.

Ryker then pressed the pedal and charged into both robots, knocking them down at once. "In ya face!"

"Sparky, I'm really sorry for not believing you," Lilly apologized to her little brother.

"Yeah, we're sorry about that," Sky added with Kowalski rubbing the back of his head.

"It's cool, guys," Sparky said with a smile.

"Take a left, Ryker," Sky said. "There's a secret entrance leading down to our lair."

* * *

After a few more minutes of riding, the team reached the garage and parked the Party Wagon inside before quickly closing the door. They exited the vehicle and saw the Feathered Plane was still there.

"Glad they didn't touch it," Kowalski said with patting the vehicle.

"This is gonna make two vehicles for us," Ryker said to which Kowalski nodded in agreement.

"Let's go in," Lilly said and they all entered the secret elevator and started going down.

A few moments later, the elevator opened and they stepped inside their good old lair. Nothing had changed. A rush of nostalgia hit them as they walked around, seeing their good old stuff.

"No sign of Yoshi...," Lilly mumbled with touching the wall with her wing.

"At least those Kraangs or I don't know what didn't touch our home," Kowalski said with crossing his wings.

"Why not just go take it down and move back in? I miss our home. I miss my comic books, my VHS tapes, my action kick unicorn man, my collection of human underwear," Sparky said with a sad look.

Lilly sighed sadly. "It's not that simple, Sparky. We can't just move back in."

As Sparky looked down in sadness, Sky put a wing on his shoulder. "Don't worry, little bro; we'll move back here eventually. Just not today."

Suddenly, Tiny started groaning and held her head in pain. "G-guys...I-I think I'm sensing...Master Yoshi nearby..."

This earned the green bird curious looks from her friends. "Feel him? What do you mean?" Lilly asked.

"I don't know. Ever since we got to Ryker's farmhouse, I had this strange...feeling inside my head. I can feel vibes, presences and this kind of things," the green bird tried to explain.

"I'm not sure to understand," Sky said. "But you can feel Master Yoshi nearby?"

"Yes, hurry up!" The green bird started running out of the lair, her friends behind her.

* * *

Following tiny, the group ran through the sewer system, searching for their sensei. "Is he still far, Tiny?" Lilly asked.

"I don't know... I think he's...somewhere around here," tiny said as they arrived into an open area.

"Where?" Kowalski asked. "You sure your things works? 'Cause I don't see-"

"Sensei!" Sparky suddenly exclaimed.

Everybody turned to see where he was looking and they saw a familiar figure wearing a brown kimono with its back facing them. It could only belong to one person.

"Master Yoshi!" Lilly happily beamed and rushed toward her father.

However, as the falcon turned around, they didn't saw the warm, welcoming smile they were expecting, but the look of an animal that got disturbed. He even hissed at them, causing them to stop dead in their tracks.

"S-Sensei?" Lilly asked.

The falcon pushed a screech and then jumped right onto Ryker, biting into his hockey mask. "Whoa! Ah! Ah, get him off of me! Get him off of me!" the burrowing owl panicked.

Sky pushed the falcon back with her bo staff. "It's okay, Sensei. It's us! We're your kids! Try to remember," she tried to resonate with him.

However, he kicked her away and then grabbed Sparky by the throat with his wing. "Ugh, too strong!" he choked.

Lilly hit a dive kick to his face to knock him off. "Sensei, it's us. It's us. Calm down," she begged.

Before the falcon could reply, he suddenly got caught in a web shot from above. Looking up, the avians saw Foot ninjas using guns to bring the web up and the screeching Yoshi with it. Before the ninjas could do anything, the Foots were already far above the surface.

"Sensei!" Lilly shouted.

* * *

 **A lot of things happened there. Our ninja friends are back in NY, but the Foots and aliens are fighting to control the city. In the process, we finally discovered what was this brain head Sparky saw at the beginning.**

 **For those of you saying: "Hey, the Kraangs are from TMNT! You're copying TMNT!" I say: "Thanks for specifying to all the morons who didn't understand what I was referring this story arc to since the beginning."**


	276. Return to New York part 2

Blood Talon was sitting on his throne chair in his lair with Dragon Face kneeling before him. "Master Blood Talon... Your enemies are defeated. Do we wait for the lowly Kraang to mutate the entire earth? Destroy all of humanity?" he asked.

"Be patient, Dragon Face," Blood Talon calmly told his disciple. "I am well aware of the Kraang's plans. When the time is right, we will destroy those putrid aliens, and the city will belong to me. Now...keep searching for any remaining rebels."

Suddenly, the door of the room opened and the Foots carrying Yoshi in a web entered with the falcon pushing loud screech.

"What?! It cannot be...!" Dragon Face exclaimed in surprise as he saw the falcon he thought dead.

"Hamato Yoshi lives?" Blood Talon said in surprise as he stood up from his throne chair and walked toward his nemesis. "He survived, but not intact. He has clearly lost his mind, become the animal I always knew he was."

As the Foots pinned the falcon down, Dragon Face walked and held his foot above the falcon's head, ready to stomp on him. "Should I put him out of his misery, Master?"

"No," the Foot leader said, rising his wing to stop his disciple. "Taxe him to Dr. Dexter."

* * *

Speaking of which, inside an underground lad at the Foot headquarters, Dr. Dexter was working on his new project which was a trio of pretty tall crabs. Ever since his last failure with Blood Talon, the poor human got forced into a robotic body which has a screen of his face, but that was all that remained of his former body.

"A little more anthropoid DNA, and I should be able to make you work," he mumbled to himself.

"Dexter!" The robot jumped and almost dropped his bottle of liquid as Blood Talon arrived in his lab with Dragon Face and the crazy Master Yoshi. "I want you to restore Yoshi's mind. I want him to be fully aware of who he is...when I finish him off."

Dexter gulped. "Yes, Master..."

* * *

Luckily, the ninja birds found access to Dexter's lab. At the moment, Sky was using her high-tech knowledge to work the door's cables. " I'll have this baby open in no time. Like a bird does."

A few seconds later, the door was open. "Pat yourself on the back later. Let's move," Kowalski told his sister before they ran into the lab.

However, they barely made a few steps that someone came across their path. It was some kind of tall red crab that was around half their size.

"Hey, who's that little guy?" Sparky asked curiously

"It's kind of cute, like a shrimp," Tiny said.

However, the crab then narrowed his eyes and jumped to slab his pincer on top of Kowalski's head, making him stumble in pain. "What the heck?! You little freak!" The barn owl jumped on the crab and the two fought for a moment as all the others watched. Of course, Kowalski came out on top with the crab being defeated. "And stay down!"

After this awkward encounter, the team walked into the lab which was filled with computers and cells containing strange abominations. Soon, Lilly gestured for everyone to get cover as they saw Dr. Dexter in front of a cell containing Master Yoshi.

"You want this meat, don't you?" he teased with moving a piece of meat (still raw, berk!) in front of the falcon who slammed against the cell's glass. "You want the nice sweet piece of meat, yeah? Hmm, come on. Take the meat. Come on. Hahahaha...," he kept teasing.

"I'm gonna reduce this robot to pieces!" Kowalski angrily mumbled. Soon, Dexter left and the avians made their way to the cell of their master.

"Sensei. Sensei!" Lilly mumbled but Yoshi hissed and backed up further into his cell.

"It's okay. It's okay," Tiny calmly said. "There's got to be a way to reach him."

"Tiny, think you can use that psychic power or I don't know what magic stuff of yours to calm him down?" Ryker asked his little green friend.

Sky looked at Tiny and rubbed her chin. "Hmm, based on my research on telepathy, it might be possible. But there is only one way to find-"

"What is this?!" The group jumped and turned around to see Dr. Dexter looking at them in surprise. "The ninjas? Here? You were destroyed!"

"How's this for destroyed?" Kowalski angrily asked, cracking his wing knuckles.

"Look out! Tiny, try and wake Yoshi up," Lilly said as she and her friends took out their weapons.

Dexter, not wanting to let that happen, used his robot body to charge toward the green bird before she could do anything. "Oh no, you don't!" Kowalski said with delivering a dive kick in Dexter's robotic face, knocking him back.

"Let's even the odds, shall we?" Dexter pressed on a button over a remote which opened the cell containing three more big crabs. And they looked angry.

"Sweet mother of mutation," Sparky mumbled.

"Do you like my crab mutants? They make excellent watchdogs, hahaha!" the scientist laughed evilly.

The three crabs charged and engaged the avians in combat. Lilly swung her katanas at one of them, but couldn't pierce its shell. "These guys are fully armored! Ugh!" she groaned as the crab hit her in the stomach.

Kowalski was not faring better as he took many hits across his body. "Ugh, Ah, Ooh! This guy's like fighting a four-armed dump truck."

Sky kept swinging her bo staff at one mutant crab who swiftly dodged in spite of his size. "Hold still, you little dendrobranchiate. Ah!" The crab eventually caught her bo staff and tossed her away.

This gave Sparky the chance to kick him away. "Whoo-whoo!" he beamed.

Meanwhile, Tiny and Ryker managed to break the cell glass with the burrowing owl's baseball bat and started calmly walking toward the still hostile Yoshi.

"Yoshi? Wake up, Yoshi," Ryker calmly said, pulling his baseball bat away.

"You are not a rat," tiny calmly said, reaching her wings toward the falcon. "You are Hamato Yoshi."

The flacon looked at her...before suddenly jumping on Ryker and biting his hockey mask again. "Not again!" the burrowing owl annoyingly said.

Meanwhile, the ninja birds were starting to do better against the mutant crabs. Sparky smashed one of them with his nunchucks before finishing him off with a strong spin kick that knocked him back.

"Aw yeah! Victory for me!" the elf owl beamed and rested his wing against something behind him without looking. Suddenly, the room turned red and an alarm went off. Sparky looked back to see he rested against an alarm button.

"SPARKY!" Lilly, Kowalski, Sky, and Ryker shouted at unison at the elf owl who smiled innocently.

Meanwhile, Tiny was still trying to get to Yoshi, but he just bit her wings away. "Come on, Master Yoshi, come on!"

"I got this, little one!" Ryker said and jumped on the falcon's back with his baseball bat wrapped around his neck, holding him back as he tried to struggle away.

This finally gave Tiny the chance to touch his head with her wing and used her strange mental power to try and get things right once more. "Master Yoshi! Look!"

Reaching deep into his memory, Tiny started bringing the memories of his sons and all the things they went through together into the mind of the old falcon. It took many minutes, but then, the falcon's eyes returned to normal.

He suddenly jumped and attacked the mutant crabs his kids were fighting, knocking them all out with quick, precise and violent strikes. In a matter of seconds, all the crabs were down for the count. Yoshi then slowly turned back toward his kids.

"Father?" Kowalski asked.

"Sensei?" Lilly added.

"My kids," the old falcon happily smiled.

In a split-second, Yoshi got trapped in a big hug from all four of his kids. "I-I can't believe it," Sky mumbled, tears in her eyes.

"How have I missed you, my children," Yoshi said. He then looked at visibly happy Tiny and Ryker. "And the rest of my family too."

"Just please don't try to eat my face anymore," Ryker chuckled.

The happy reunion was cut short, however, as the lab's door opened and out of it came Blood Talon and Dragon Face. "So the ninjas live. And the animal thinks like a man again. Now you will know when my blade is at your throat," he said with unsheathing the blade of his gauntlet.

Master Yoshi glared at his old nemesis and was visibly ready to engage him in a fight, only for Lilly to stop him with her wing.

"Wait, Sensei," she said.

Yoshi looked at his daughter and sighed. "Yes, now is not the time to fight."

"Goodbye, sucka!" Sparky said with tossing a smoke bomb on the ground. Blood Talon and Dragon Face charged, but their enemies were already gone.

The Foot leader pushed an angry roar.

* * *

Moments after making their escape, the team now reunited with Master Yoshi returned to the Party Wagon and started driving away.

"We made it," Sky happily said.

"Yeah, by the skin of our feathers," Kowalski joked.

"So where to now? We have no home to go back to," Sparky sadly said.

"Homes are transitory. What matters is that we are together," Master Yoshi said, reminding what he told his kids the day they moved to a new lair.

"But we still need a place to hang our masks, Sensei. Where are we gonna live?" Lilly asked.

"Well, there's the old power plant, or maybe an abandoned subway tunnel," Sky suggested.

"Wait, I have the greatest idea ever!" Sparky suddenly said in excitation.

"Do we really want to hear this?" Kowalski asked with an annoyed expression.

"It's secret, fortified, and no one would ever think to look for us there..."

* * *

"Perfect, right?" Sparky asked.

He led them to Antonio's Pizza-Rama which, as the name implied, was...a pizza restaurant.

"I wouldn't exactly say perfect," Kowalski said with crossing his wings.

"It will serve for now," Master Yoshi simply said.

"Next up, take the city back," Ryker said with holding out his fist which everyone (except Yoshi) connected with.

The battle for New York had started...

* * *

 **Master Yoshi is back! And the gang is reunited once more! Whoo-hoo!**

 **Now, before concluding this chapter, I'd like to point something out...finally, I don't like Star Trek that much. I know I said otherwise in the previous chapter, but 7 episodes later, and I lost interest. I mean no offense to any ST fans out there, but I djust don't understand what is going on in any episode. the characters are boring: I feel like I'm watching robots doing random stuff with no motivation. And the story is always the same: they find a new planet, Captain kirk meets a beautiful woman, some alien or illness hits the ship, someone dies, end of story.**


	277. New ninja in town

**Time for a chapter that will introduce a character I'm sure Skyler The Elf Owl will be happy to see :)**

* * *

The full moon was shining in this beautiful night over New York. Our four ninja bird friends were following a new mutant roaming in the streets from the rooftops. It was some kind of giant plant snake with tentacles coming out of its back and big glowing yellow eyes.

"Stop!" Lilly ordered and the whole team came to a stop.

They saw that the mutant (that Sparky affectionately nicknamed "Snakeweed") came across a pizza guy on a motorcycle and caught him in his tentacles before dragging him away.

"NO! Not the pizza guy! Take Skyler!" Sparky sadly called, causing his sister to glare at him.

"Snakeweeds' getting away!" Sky said as Snakeweed sneaked his way into an alley.

The four siblings jumped on the rooftop above the alley and Lilly started coming with a plan: "Ok guys, we're gonna attack him from above and use these clotheslines to tie him up," she said with pointing at nearby clotheslines.

"Wrong idea," Kowalski suddenly said, causing Lilly to turn at him.

"What do you mean, wrong idea?"

"We should attack him head-on; this would certainly be more successful and paramount," the barn owl replied.

"No, it's too risky," Lilly said with shaking her head.

"Because your plan is not too risky maybe?" Kowalski continued.

"Less than yours!" Lilly started getting annoyed and got in her brother's face.

"Huh...guys?" Sparky mumbled.

Lilly and Kowalski stopped fighting and turned their heads to see that, while they were fighting about how to proceed, Snakeweed escaped by the tunnel sewers. Great!

"And the away for the worst leader goes to-" Kowalski sarcastically said which caused Lilly to glare angrily at him.

"How am I the worst leader?!" she snapped.

"If we did this my way, Snakeweed would be toasted by now," the barn owl said with crossing his wings.

"Man, that sounds like nasty toast," sparky chuckled which made Sky elbow him.

"This way would have worked if you haven't wasted time second-guessing my orders, you moron!" Lilly spat back at her brother.

"Well, don't make bad orders and I won't second guess them!" Kowalski angrily responded.

"You know what, Kow. If you think you can do better, why don't you lead?!"

"First good idea you've had all day!"

"We'll compromise. I'll lead," Sparky said, but the glare he got from his siblings made him understand to shut up.

"Good luck then, new leader," Lilly sarcastically said and stormed off, jumping on the other rooftops.

"I can't believe he's gone!" Sparky sadly said.

"It's okay, Sparky," Sky said with putting a wing on her little brother's shoulder. "Lilly, well, she just needs some space..." She then realized something. "You meant the pizza guy, didn't you?"

"Yeah..."

* * *

"This stupid barn owl...!" Lilly angrily groaned while sulking and kicking stones on the ground. "He thinks that's so easy to be the leader? I can't wait to see him try: he'll find this so hard that he'll come to beg me!"

As if this situation couldn't get worst, Foots ninjas jumped out of nowhere and surrounded her. "Foots, huh?" Smirking, she took out her sabers. "You just made my night."

The Foots charged with their sabers...only for Lilly to knock them out in a matter of seconds with violent kicks. The spix macaw let out a sigh of relief. "Aww, I feel so much better."

However, the victory was short-lived as a landing noise was heard. She looked up to see a figure on top of a chimney that she couldn't see in the dark. Luckily, she jumped down and landed not too far from Lilly and this last one could get a better view at her now.

It was a female macaw that was slightly taller than Lilly. She had midnight black feathers and three head feathers on the back of her head. She had red streaks marked over her amber eyes and her body was rather slender and athletic. She was wearing a jumpsuit fitted with silver armor, black material worn under her armor, and a purple belt with a design on it like the Blood Talon's.

"Not bad," she calmly said, a smile on her grey beak.

"Thanks?" Lilly replied unsurely.

"You might actually be a challenge," she giggled while slowly making her way toward Lilly.

This last one rose her katanas, understanding she was visibly a Foot. In a swift movement, the black macaw grabbed a blade from her back and swung it to send smoke in Lilly's face. This caused her to cough and cry from her eyes and allowed her opponent to deliver a violent dive kick that knocked her on her back, making her drop her katanas. She tried to get back up, but the black macaw planted her foot onto her chest, preventing her from getting back up.

"Guess not," she calmly said with a giggle. "My name's Karai. See you around." Smiling, she pulled her little blade away and then ran away from a surprised and impressed Lilly.

"...What was that?" Lilly wondered with rubbing her head.

* * *

Meanwhile, back at the lair - which was the pizza restaurant -, Sky was working on a map to pinpoint the location of Snakeweed's hideout (through the lengthy process of elimination).

"Sky, we need to find Snakeweed," Kowalski seriously told his little sister.

"I know, I'm working on it," she annoyingly replied.

"Then work faster!" he yelled.

"Do you really think yelling is going to help?" the elf owl angrily said, getting into her brother's face.

"No, I think HITTING is is going to help!" he replied. He and Sky just glared at each other before the room's door opened and Lilly walked in.

"Hey, Lilly's back," Sparky happily said before noticing Lilly's swollen eyes from the smoke Karai shot in her eyes. "And she has been crying. Aww, come here," he said with going to hug his sister.

Lilly just pushed him back. "It's not what you think; I've got hit with blinding smoke," she said with walking toward Kowalski.

"Sure, big softie," her little brother chuckled.

"And where have you been?" the barn owl asked.

"I don't see how that's your business," his sister dryly responded.

The siblings just glared at each other before Kowalski scoffed and turned around. "Yeah, whatever."

Sparky suddenly came to put his wings on their shoulder. "Guys, can we just be cool with each other? Let's hug this out." Kowalski responded by elbowing him in the guts and walked away. "Ok, maybe not."

"I think I might have figured out where Snakeweed's hideout is!" Sky suddenly exclaimed, getting up from her chair.

"Where?" Lilly asked.

Sky started pointing on the map. "After making elimination of zones, I came to the conclusion that Snakeweed's hideout is at 422-"

Kowalski suddenly planted his wing on the map, preventing his sister from finishing. "Actually, you won't need to know."

Lilly sighed angrily at her brother and walked away once more. She decided to go sit in the room that had a television and started watching a sci-fi show on it. Soon, Master Yoshi walked by and noticed his daughter.

"Lilly, where are your brothers?" he asked.

"I have no idea," Lilly simply replied. Yoshi noticed the mad tone in her voice and rose a curious eyebrow.

"What do you mean, you have no idea?"

"Kowalski thinks he can lead the team better than me, so I let him."

"That is not your decision to make," Yoshi said with a suddenly serious tone.

"Why not, Sensei? I've had to make every other decision and I'm tired of it! Those guys have no idea what kind of pressure I'm under and all they do is complain. Is it too much to ask for a simple "Thank you."?"

The old falcon suddenly banged his staff on top of his daughter's head, making her groan in pain and look at him. "Of course it is! Leadership is not about being appreciated, it is about responsibility. It doesn't matter that the burden is heavy, It matters that you carry it. Now go find your siblings!" he firmly said.

* * *

Obeying her sensei, Lilly got out of the lair and was now walking alone in an alley. "But what if I don't want of that burden?" she angrily mumbled to herself.

"You're always talking to yourself?"

Lilly jumped and turned around to see none other than Karai standing there with a smile and a wing on her hip.

"Just sometimes," Lilly said, turning around with a smile as well. "Sometimes, I'm the only one to listen."

"Oh, I'll listen," Karai said, taking out her little blade. "When you beg for your life."

Lilly smirked at the challenge and took out one of her katanas. "Let's see how well you fare against someone who can see."

"Let's see how well YOU do against someone who's better than you."

"Let's see how YOU do against someone... Let's just do it!"

The two avians glared at each other and engaged the fight when Karai charged and clashed her blade against Lilly's. Swinging at each other, Karai jumped and landed behind Lilly before attacking her aggressively, pushing Lilly back. She started fighting back, but Karai jumped out of the way, landing far from her.

"Predictable," she said with a smile. Lilly attacked a little more and Karai was forced to retreat again. "Not bad. No wonder we haven't wiped you out yet."

"Like Blood Talon hasn't tried," Lilly chuckled.

"I know. It's all he talks about all the time. Revenge, revenge, vendetta, vendetta," Karai chuckled.

"Really? Funny."

They engaged the fight once again, clashing swords, and this time, Karai managed to land many kicks on Lilly, including one to her jaw which made her stumble back.

"Not bad, but I've seen better," the black macaw commented.

Lilly chuckled. "With one blade maybe. But not with two." She took her second katana in her wing, making Karai smile with interest.

* * *

Meanwhile, Kowalski, Sky, and Sparky were walking in the sewers down below. Sky was leading the group with her map.

"It smells bad," Sparky coughed.

"We're in sewers, Sparky; that's normal," Kowalski said.

"I mean it smells worse than usual. Where is all this stuff coming from anyway?"

Sky and Kowalski exchanged a glance before Sky walked to her brother. "Hum, Sparky, all this dirt in the sewers is actually..." She leaned toward him and mumbled in his ear.

"WHAT?!" he exclaimed and jumped out of the water. "We were living in that all this time?!"

"Be quiet, guys!" Kowalski annoyingly said while walking forward.

"You sound just like Lilly," Sky said with rolling her eyes.

Kowalski stopped dead in his track and turned toward her. "You say that one more time, and I knock you out!"

She just scoffed. "You sound like Lilly."

Kowalski gave up and just resumed walking. Soon, they arrived into an open area...and widened their eyes as it was filled with tube-like plants.

"What the heck are those things?" Sparky asked.

Suddenly, he and Sky looked into one of the tubes...and saw a human submerged into a liquid. This made them gasp.

"He's growing humans?!" Sparky asked in disgust.

"No, you moron. He's holding them captive," Sky said.

"Why? He's a plant; he can't eat them," Kowalski said with crossing his wings.

"Maybe he's turning them into fertilizer," Sky suggested.

"Eww, is that really where fertilizer comes from?" Sparky asked.

"Actually, most fertilizer comes from..." Sky leaned and whispered into Sparky's ear.

"WHAT?! Is there anything that doesn't come from that?" Sparky asked in disgust.

"Enough, let's cut them lose," Kowalski said and started taking the humans out of the plant tubes. Before long, they were all out, lying unconscious on the ground. "Not only was that a good job, but that was a good job without Lilly."

"My fertilizer!" They all jumped and turned around to see Snakeweed standing there, visibly unhappy.

"What now, boss?" Sparky nervously asked his brother.

* * *

Meanwhile, back at the surface, Lilly and Karai took the fight to the rooftops. They marked a pause to pant from all the action of their duel.

"You know, I'm starting to think you're not as bad as you pretend to be," Lilly commented.

"What part of swinging a sword at your head do you not understand?" the black macaw replied.

Lilly chuckled. "Back on the rooftop, you could have finished me off, but you didn't."

"Because you're the first thing in this city that doesn't bore me." Karai shot shurikens at Lilly who blocked them with her katana, only to get a dive kick in the jaw. "Besides, I don't think you're as good as YOU pretend to be."

Lilly suddenly managed to land a kick on her, pushing her back against the wall, and pointed a sword at her.

"Looks like I hit a nerve," Karai chuckled.

"Because I beat you?" Lilly asked.

Karai responded by headbutting her, making her stumble back, and then pointed at a building behind her. "You see that high-rise?"

"Yeah?"

"Meet me there at midnight," Karai said with pulling her saber away.

"Why?"

"I wanna show you something." Winking at Lilly, Karai started jumping from one roof to the other and away from a confused Lilly.

* * *

 **Lilly is learning the hard side of being the leader of a team. I kinda forgot to do that in the previous four ninja birds arcs, so I'm trying to make that up for now. What does Karai want with Lilly? Will Kowalski, Sky, and Sparky survive Snakeweed? We'll find out next time.**

 **Karai is an OC of my Skyler The Elf Owl (she owns 3/4 of the OCs in this storyline). She appeared for the first time in my friend BluePhoenixLord's story "Rio Origins: Skyler" alongside two other OCs. They will also appear in my story. I think you know who I'm refering to, Sky ;)**


	278. New ninja in town part 2

The fight of the ninja birds (minus Lilly) against Snakeweed was not going well. The plant mutant was easily knocking them back with his tentacles, making it near impossible to touch them. Kowalski started regretting not taking his flamethrower with him.

"We're totally losing!" Sparky panicked.

"Really? I didn't notice!" Kowalski sarcastically said as a tentacle slammed him away.

"Get your head in the game, bro; you're supposed to be the leader!" Sparky exclaimed before getting smashed away.

Sky was currently using Battle Turtle, her little turtle robot, to block the plant's attack and shoot lasers that were doing little damage. "Get back in there!" Kowalski ordered.

"And do what?!" Sky asked, pressing on her NES controller.

"Go for the head!"

"I already did that...three times!"

"Well do it better!" Kowalski nervously said.

"Oh, yeah, four times in a row, he won't see that coming," Sky sarcastically said before calling Battle Turtle back to her belt as he sustained too much damage.

Reluctantly following the chief's order, Sky went for the head again, only to get smacked down by one of the tentacles. Kowalski was sweating nervously. "What now, boss?" Sparky asked, awaiting orders.

"Go...for the head..." The barn owl's tone was unsure.

"Third time's a charm!" Sparky went for Snakeweed's head, only to get caught by his tentacle and launched head first into the wall which caused a cracking noise and made him land with a loud thud.

"Sparky!" Kowalski exclaimed in horror.

Realizing things were getting out of control, Kowalski looked at his sister. "Sky! Let's grab Sparky and get out of here!"

"Finally a good idea," she said as they grabbed their unconscious little brother and rushed out of the zone before Snakeweed could catch them

"I'll get you, avians!"

* * *

Meanwhile, in a way much sinister place that was Blood Talon's throne room, Karai entered and walked before her master, kneeling before him.

"Karai," he said with looking down at her with a loud voice. "I've heard that you had the opportunity to dispatch Lilly. But you let her go instead."

"That's not true; he escaped," the black macaw said, looking up at her master.

"I find that hard to believe."

"She escaped from you, didn't she?"

Blood Talon's eyes turned into a glare and he growled. "Enough!" The black macaw froze and bowed even lower as Blood Talon stood up and walked before her. "Next time you see Lilly, you must finish her! Understood?"

Karai slowly rose her head. "I understand...Father."

* * *

"Help!" Kowalski said as she rushed into the lair with Sky and an unconscious Sparky.

"Set him down!" Master Yoshi said as they pulled their brother down in the living room's couch. "Where's Lilly?" he asked, pulling a wing on his son's forehead.

"I-I don't know," Kowalski nervously said. "Sensei, this is a disaster. I don't understand what happened. I just...froze up. I mean, I'm okay with risking my life, but risking my siblings'..."

Yoshi sighed. "Now you see the price of leadership. Responsibility."

"Yeah, I hate it."

"So you understand the burden that Lilly wears."

Kowalski nodded his head in shame. "We need her back. I need her back."

"Then go get her."

* * *

As midnight came, Karai was standing on top of the high-rise, waiting for her date. She smiled upon hearing someone landing behind her.

"You don't fail to disappoint." She turned around to Lilly. "You're true to your words."

"So, what's this about?" Lilly asked.

Karai tossed her a pair of goggles at Lilly and pointed her wing down. "This."

Lilly followed her wing and looked with the googles to see a store which had a pretty good-looking saber in it. It looked very ancient. Lilly gasped. "That's the sword of Miyamoto Musashi."

"The greatest swordsman in the history of Japan," Karai nodded with a smile. "It's ancient, it's priceless...and it's yours. IF you help me."

"Help you what?" Lilly curiously asked.

"You know what. We're gonna steal it," Karai said with a smirk.

"No, we're not."

"Come on, this sword is just standing there, collecting dust. You know you deserve that sword. Certainly more than some old, rich guy." She then pulled her black wing on Lilly's back. "Stop waiting for people to give you the life you want. Stop being responsible, Lilly. Go take it."

Lilly stared at Karai...before closing her eyes. "No."

"I'm getting that sword, Lilly. With or without you. Choose."

"I can't; it's wrong."

"You're starting to bore me," Karai said and was about to take out her blade, only for Lilly to pull her wing on her black one.

"Karai, you don't have to do this."

"I know. that's what makes it fun."

In a split-second, Lilly found herself on the ground ad Karai made her flip over her shoulder.

"Lilly!" Both girls turned their head to see a confused Kowalski standing there. "What the? Who's that? What's going on?!"

"Huh, Kowalski, Karai. Karai, Kowalski," Lilly nervously made the presentations.

"What are you? Friends with her?" Kowalski asked, visibly shocked. "We're out there risking our lives and you're up there, holding wings with a Foot?"

"I-I can explain!"

"This should be interesting," Karai giggled.

"You see, Karai and I are actually-WHAT THE HECK?!"

Kowalski turned around to see Snakeweed climbing onto their roof and gasped. "I finally found you, avians!"

He started swinging his tentacles at the ninjas who evaded the attacks. "We need you as the leader again, welcome back," Kowalski quickly said before he and his sister started cutting the plant's tentacles with their weapons.

Eventually, Lilly got smashed and dropped her katanas, Snakeweed wrapped one tentacle around her and started dragging her toward him. Kowalski wanted to help but got knocked away as well. She looked toward Karai who was watching the whole scene from the edge of the rooftop.

"Karai! Help!"

The black macaw smirked and tossed her blade toward Lilly. However, instead of touching her head, the blade flew into the wall beside her head.

"Sayonara," Karai said and jumped down the rooftop.

Lilly didn't really understood what that meant, but grabbed the blade and quickly used it to cut herself free and then deliver a kick in Snakeweed's face. Kowalski joined in and the siblings kept cutting the plant's tentacles before it pushed one last scream and collapsed on the ground, dead.

"Nice work," Kowalski complimented his sister with pulling his sais away.

"Thanks. Good to be back," Lilly replied, pulling her katanas away.

"And, hum...sorry," Kowalski mumbled.

"What did you say? I couldn't hear," Lilly teased.

"I said I'm... SORRY!l" Kowalski shouted loud enough to hurt Lilly's ear.

"Apology accepted...man," she mumbled, holding her ear in pain.

* * *

Back at the lair (the pizzeria, not their old one), Lilly held a piece of pizza near Sparky's beak. The unconscious owl smelled it and started regaining consciousness.

"Mmmmmm...pepperoni," he said with slowly reaching his wings toward the piece of pizza.

"Works every time," Lilly giggled.

"Sparky! You don't scare me like that! I thought we lost you, buddy!" Kowalski said, hugging his little brother tightly.

"I-I'm okay, Kow, I'm okay," sparky uneasily said.

Kowalski then took Lilly's wing and pulled her away to have a private discussion. "So what's with the girl who tried to kill you?"

"She didn't try to kill me, she saved me."

"She threw a knife at your head."

"She threw a knife NEAR my head."

"She's in the Foot Clan."

"Nobody's perfect."

Lilly looked down at the blade Karai launched at her and smiled, hoping they'll get to meet again someday...


	279. Arrival of a new strike force

**Before we start this chapter, I'd like to point out info that was just given to me by Skyler The Elf Owl herself: Karai is voiced by actress Michelle Rodriguez. You probably know from the Fast & Furious franchise.**

* * *

Blood Talon was sitting in his throne chair with Dragon Face and Karai by his sides. One of his Foot soldiers soon came to announce: "They have arrived, Master."

"Very well, let them enter," the masked falcon ordered.

Obeying, the Foot soldier opened the door and in walked two avians. One of them was a male black macaw like Karai. He was tall, skinny and wore blue jeans, a white t-shirt, a blue vest, and silver gloves over his wings. He had two swords tied over his back.

The other one was a male black macaw as well. He was pretty muscular and was wearing a red special ops vest and red shorts as well as a red bandana around his neck. He had two pistols tied to his belt and a big machinegun tied over his back.

Karai smiled and walked over to them, exchanging a hug. "It's been so long since we've last seen each other."

"You didn't change at all, Karai," the skinny macaw said.

"Hum, excuse me, but do I know them, Master?" Dragon Face asked as he didn't recognize the two new black macaws.

"No, you do not, Dragon Face," Blood Talon said, standing up. "Those are my other disciples. The little one is Jonas. He's from Sao Paulo, where he was a Brazilian street urchin. He was a master thief until he was sent to prison following his failure to steal money from a bank. There, he fought to survive every day and even created his own weapons with what he could find. I found him during a trip to Brazil and I decided to recruit him as one of my top henchmen."

Dragon Face nodded. "And who is the muscled one?"

"This is Stryker, my most dreaded yet revered assassin and bounty hunter from Russia. He has traveled many lands and is strong enough to be my second-in-command."

"The city is surrounded by military forces; it was a hard time getting inside," Jonas said. "What is going on in here, Master Blood Talon?"

"Believe it or not, but we are currently at war with a group of aliens named Kraangs," he responded. "This is why I ordered to all my allies across the world to come back here as soon as possible. But for the moment, I need you for a specific task."

"What is it, Master?" Stryker asked, eager to hear what this task could be.

"I have trouble with a group of ninja birds belonging to the clan of Hamato Yoshi. I tried to take them down before, but I have some problems with my own clan as well," he said with glaring toward Karai who looked down. "I want you to take them down this very night."

"This will be done, Master. I already have a plan on how to proceed," Jonas said with an evil smirk.

* * *

Back at the pizzeria that served as their lair, Sky and Sparky were playing a video game on an old SNES they had found in the back of the restaurant. Of course, Sky was dominating and defeating Sparky...for the fifth time in a row.

"And that's 5-0 for Sky!" Lilly said.

"No fair! This remote must be broken!" Sparky angrily said.

"Yeah, of course," Sky said with a giggle.

"I WANT A REVENGE!"

Sky giggled and put her controller down. "Sorry Sparky, but it's time for me to go. It's my turn to patrol tonight." She got up and walked toward the pizzeria's exit.

"Be careful, sister," Lilly said. "You don't want to get caught by the Red Dragon, the Foots, or the Kraangs."

"Don't worry; I'll be careful," Sky said with a wink before exiting the pizzeria.

"You want a revenge, Sparky? You'll get one," Lilly said with picking up the vacant controller and starting a new game.

* * *

Sky jumped on the rooftop,s keeping an eye open for any potential danger. Luckily, outside of the occasional Kraang patrol passing by, there was nothing out of the ordinary.

"Ok, looks like I can return to the lair now," Sky mumbled and turned around to leave. However, someone landed behind her before she could. "Who's there?"

"You shouldn't walk alone at night like this, young lady," Jonas said with a smirk at the elf owl.

"W-Who are you?" Sky asked with taking out her bo staff for security measures.

"Me? I'm just the good black macaw who was sent to bring you back to Master Blood Talon."

"You're from the Foot Clan?!" Sky exclaimed. "Great, he's got new soldiers to sacrifice now?"

"We can stand here all night and chit chat, but unfortunately, that's not why I'm here."

"What are you here for then?"

"You."

Without warning, he attacked her. Sky blocked a kick that was aimed at her head but couldn't block the second kick that hit her in the stomach. This guy was visibly a Capoeira fighter. Sky fought back by swinging her bo staff, but Jonas dodged his attacks. He then counter-attacked with a sweep kick and Sky fell.

"Come on. Are you holding back because I'm a handsome man-"

Sky interrupted him by kicking his foot, making him twitch in pain, and then spin kicked him in the jaw, making him stumble back in pain.

"Hey, not bad. Not many people can surprise me like that," he said with a chuckle and took his swords out.

"Catch this," Sky said before launching at him with a flying kick.

The golden cat ducked his kick by performing a backflip, leaving her to knock over a wall instead.

"Gonna have to try harder than that, sweetheart," he taunted.

Sky rolled her eyes as she rushed at him. He was ready for her assault. He then jumped and front flipped to deliver a heavy axe kick. Sky managed to block his leg with her staff but he brought the other one up to flip kick her in the face. She was dazed but managed to shake it off.

"He sure kicks hard," the elf owl thought to herself.

The black macaw came at her with a sword swing which Sky ducked and went for a leg sweep. She followed by pushing the tip of her staff into his stomach, making him spit some saliva.

"What happened to that overconfidence?" Sky mocked.

She raised his staff to smash him, but before she could, someone behind caught her weapon. She whipped around to see Stryker holding her back. He then kicked Sky six feet away from his comrade. Sky hit a brick wall and groaned in pain.

"Jonas, I told you not to fight her alone," Stryker said with helping Jonas back up.

"Come on, I was having fun, Stryker," Jonas said, cracking his neck.

"Yeah, it really looked like you had everything under control," Stryker sarcastically said.

"Two of them? Not good," Sky thought.

Stryker turned toward her. "I thought you'd be hard to find, but here you are out here, all alone and defenseless."

"I'm hardly defenseless," Sky said, getting back in his fighting stance.

"We'll see," Stryker said as he did the same.

Sky charged for an attack, but Stryker caught her bo staff in one wing and headbutted her violently in the face before Jonas slammed the handle of his sword in the back of her head, knocking her out.

"Over already? It was starting to get fun," Jonas said.

"Stop boasting. Let's bring her back to the warehouse and proceed with our plan," Stryker said, taking the elf owl over his shoulder.

* * *

"Skyler? Sky!"

When their sister was gone missing for too long, Lilly, Sparky, and Kowalski went to search for her. They arrived at the spot where the fought took place and saw the signs of fighting in that place were clear.

"Something happened to Sky...," Lilly seriously said.

"W-Where could she be now?" Sparky asked in panic.

"Let's follow the signal of her cellphone," Kowalski said, taking out his own cellphone. "Let's go!"

* * *

Sky groaned as she started regaining consciousness. She felt a strong wing gently caressing her tummy. Opening her eyes, she saw Stryker standing over her with a seductive smile. She tried to jump on him, but she couldn't move her body. Upon further investigation, she found herself into some kind of abandoned warehouse, strapped down on a table with a strap over her neck, waist, wings, and ankles. Stryker was beside her, but Jonas was nowhere to be seen. And her weapons and gadgets were gathered on another table.

"Slept well, birdy?" Stryker asked in amusement.

"W-Where am I?" Sky asked.

"Just in our little playhouse," Jonas said as he came to her with a needle filled with a lime green liquid.

"W-What's with the needle? I hate needles," Sky nervously said, trying to get out of her predicament.

"Don't worry; it's just a little creation from Dr. Dexter that he made to create special mutants. We're gonna see how it reacts on an elf owl." Jonas smirked and planted the needle into Sky's tummy, injecting the green mixture inside.

"W-What will it do?" Sky nervously asked.

"No idea; we'll find out soon."

"Let me go!"

"Not now...or ever... You're my little trophy. And you shall like what we'll do to you," Stryker said with a smile as he gently rubbed Sky's tummy.

"Oh no, not there!" Sky nervously thought.

"Don't worry, little one; you'll make a good mother for a few eggs...or more!" Jonas said and laughed out loud.

"I don't think so!"

Before Jonas could turn around, Kowalski jumped down and punched him in the face. This knocked him away from Skyler and it caught him by surprise. Before Stryker could react, Lilly hit him with a dive kick to the head.

He tried to retaliate with a punch, but she grabbed his arm before he could hit her and turned around to flip him over on the ground. She was going to finish him off with a downward punch, but the black macaw rolled out of the way, letting her hit the ground instead.

Stryker got his feet up and attempted to kick her, but Lilly backflipped. She swung her katanas at him, only for the black macaw to dodge and jumped away.

"What were you going to do to our sister, you freaks?!" Lilly angrily asked as he and Lilly got ready to fight and Sparky went to free his sister.

Jonas was about to engage the fight, but Stryker held him back. "Let's not waste time here; we did what we came for. Let's go back to Master Blood Talon now."

Jonas jumped out by the window while Stryker escaped using his jetpack. Kowalski wanted to chase them, but Lilly held him back. "No, Kowalski. We saved Sky and that's all that matters."

"Are you okay, sis?" Sparky asked as he finished releasing her from the table.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she said with getting up and picked her staff back.

"This guy talked about making a mother out of you," Kowalski angrily said. "What a freak!"

"I'm fine, I assure you," Sky said with a smile. "Let's go back to the lair now. We must warn Master Yoshi and I want to rest too."

They all nodded and made their way out of the warehouse. Before leaving, Sky felt a strange feeling in her stomach and looked down before gasping. A strange round and glowing red symbol appeared on her abdomen before slowly disappearing.

"Sky, you come?!" Lilly called.

"Y-Yeah! I'm coming..."

* * *

 **Big surprise for you, ain't it, Skyler? Our almost forgotten trio of Stryker, Karai, and Jonas is back and Sky has a strange red symbol on her abdomen. Wonder what that could be? XD**


	280. Battle in the bank

**This is the final chapter of this arc before we leave the four ninja birds. I'm sorry if you find this is too soon, my friends.**

* * *

Sky was standing before the mirror of the bathroom in her lair. She couldn't stop thinking about what happened with those two black macaws, Stryker and Jonas. How they captured her and injected this strange mixture into her body.

Her wing instinctively got up on her tummy. The strange red symbol appeared a few more times since she got it, but she had no idea why it was there or even what it was supposed to mean. She planned on making some study on herself when she will get the chance.

"Sky!" Lilly suddenly called from the living room.

"Yeah?" she responded, snapping out of her thoughts.

"You should come and see this!"

The elf owl rushed out of the bathroom and joined her siblings who were sitting before the television. It was on the channel news and a lot of action was apparently going on. "What's this?"

"The bank on the 45th street is under attack," Lilly told her sister without looking away from the screen. "All the police forces that tried to interfere have been defeated and the robbers are currently into the bank. Probably taking out everything in it."

"What are we waiting for?" Kowalski asked with slamming a fist in his palm. "Let's go stop them before they steal all the money and cause a financial outbreak!"

"I agree with Kowalski. Let's go!" Lilly said and ran out of the pizzeria with her three siblings following behind.

* * *

When the four ninja birds arrived at the bank, they could see the front door was broken - visibly because of an explosion - and many cars were destroyed with policemen getting escorted away by medical staff. Those robbers were not messing. they entered by a window on the bank's rooftop and made their way inside.

Soon, they arrived into the main vault where all the doors had been open and the money taken out. "Wow, there has been a party and we've not even been invited!" Sparky said with a pout.

"My mind tells me that this must be your usual bank robbery, but my guts tell me that it's worst than usual," Sky said, rubbing her chin.

"Look out!" Lilly exclaimed as the vault's door flew open and two figures came out with laughing loudly, carrying huge bags filled to the edge with money.

One of them was a male cardinal that was taller than the ninja birds. His feathers were red with black facial expressions. He was wearing a red warm-up vest with the Foot symbol in black in the back, black pants, a pair of golden headphones around his neck, and golden eyeglasses hiding his eyes. He had a chainsaw and an assault rifle tied over his back.

The other was much more imposing. A male golden eagle who had more muscles than all the four ninja birds combined and was even taller than his cardinal comrade. He was wearing a military green open jacket that barely fit his size, military green pants, and a pair of green goggles on his forehead. Over his back were tied a giant sledgehammer and what looked like a mix between a heavy gun and a grenade launcher.

"Who the heck are you?!" the eagle asked upon seeing the four ninjas.

"I bet they are those ninjas from the Yoshi Clan Master Blood Talon told us about!" the cardinal said, dropping the bag of money.

"They are with Blood Talon!" Sparky exclaimed.

"Why am I not surprised?" Kowalski sarcastically asked.

"Great, this will give the chance not only to bring the money MAster Blood Talon asked, but even the heads of his enemies!" the golden eagle said with taking out his sledgehammer. "Two for the price of one for DJ Bird and Stone Eagle!"

Kowalski ran at Stone Eagle and didn't really an attack plan except...attacking. He saw Stone Eagle rising his sledgehammer in the air like he was about to crush him. He rolled to the left as he brought his weapon to the ground, turning up dust.

He then delivered three hard kicks to his side, but it didn't seem to affect him that much outside of angering him. He attempted to back fist Kowalski, but he ducked under his wing, avoiding the blow. He looked up to see his face was open for an attack and gave him a quick uppercut to the chin.

That hurt him, but he recovered quickly and attempted to punch the barn owl with his right. Kowalski had no room to dodge so he had no choice but to block. He raised both arms to receive the blow, but the impact was too strong. The punch sent him back around five feet from where he has been blocking, making him crash into the vault's wall.

"Damnit!" Kowalski thought to himself as he slammed his fist into the ground.

As Lilly continued the fight with Stoen Eagle, Sky and Sparky were caught with the one called DJ Bird. He took out his chainsaw in his wings and turned it on.

"A chainsaw?! Are you serious?!" the elf owls exclaimed simultaneously.

"Nothing's too cool for DJ Bird, babe!" He started swinging his weapons at the elf owls who had to dodge at any cost under the risk of getting seriously wounded. Eventually, Sparky threw three ninja stars which DJ Bird barely managed to block with his chainsaw. This gave the siblings an opportunity to surprise him in close combat. Though they both were pretty good, the elf owls were a bit at a disadvantage as they couldn't block the cardinal's attacks at the risk of receiving a dangerous wound from his chainsaw.

Seeing that close combat wasn't a good idea, the duo jumped to a higher level and shot shurikens at the cardinal who managed to dodge them with surprisingly fluid movements in spite of his size. He soon replied by taking out his assault rifle and started shooting lasers at them, forcing them to take cover.

Back to the others, Lilly rolled out of the way to avoid getting squashed by Stone Eagle's sledgehammer. Defense wasn't working at all. Lilly decided to jump up and swung her katanas at the eagle who blocked with his weapon and easily pushed her back. The spix macaw tried to shoot shurikens which Stone Eagle easily blocked with his beak. Was it made of stone or what?

"Alright, enough playing! We got money to bring back to Master Blood Talon!" Stone Eagle took his heavy gun out and shot a grenade at huge furniture of metal which fell toward the four ninja birds. While they managed to dodge it, it still caused them to be separated from their opponents who grabbed the bag of money and left with it.

"Aww, man! I thought I was gonna get turned into a feathered pizza!" Sparky exclaimed as Sky helped him back up.

"Those guys escaped with the money," Kowalski unhappily said with crossing his wings.

"The Foot Clan is growing bigger and stronger by the days," Lilly said. "For now, let's go back to the lair before more cops arrive here."

* * *

 **And the arc ends here!**

 **Man, so many things happened: our friends moved to the campaign, fought with a plant version of Jason Voorhees, went on a vision quest that helped them overcome their problems, returned to New York to find it under invasion by aliens, retrieved Master Yoshi, and faced new Foot Clan members in the form of Karai, Jonas, Stryker, Stone Eagle, and DJ Bird.**

 **I know you must hate that I end my arcs on cliffhangers, but what can I say? It's a big world, dudes. Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this arc - especially you, Skyler - and I'll see you again for the next arc ;)**


	281. Revali's new friend

**Hello! Time for a new arc to start!**

 **Here's the surprise, this arc will take place in one of my favorite video games of all time: The Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild! If you wonder why, first, it's because I have a storyline idea in mind for it, and also because I once wrote a story about the game but never ended it up. I decided to compensate it by making it part of this story for my friends - I'm especially thinking about you, KR-Orion.**

 **So if you've never heard about Breath Of The Wild, I recommend you go see a bit of it online before reading this arc. Otherwise, have fun :)**

* * *

In Hyrule, there lived a young Rito by the name of Revali. This particular Riot was rather different than most other Rito children. His parents had abandoned him due to being "too weak" and "not having a chance". Although the whereabouts of his parents remained unknown, Revali has been taken under the care of the village elder, Kaneli.

even though the other Rito were giving Revali glances of either sympathy or speculation on why he was abandoned, the elder always told him to 'never mind them' and to "not worry'. Then, one day, the elder asked if Revali wanted to join the other children of the village to learn the Ancient Rito Song. Revali, being the curious little Rito and always eager to learn from his foster father, gladly but hesitantly accepted. He was never around anyone besides the leader, so he thought that might be a good opportunity to make some friends.

Meanwhile, another Rito awoke from his slumber. He had orange feathers with the ones at the tip of his wings and tailfeathers being light blue just like the marks around his eyes. His beak was yellow and he had dark blue eyes. An unusual trait of him was that he had a round white spot on the middle of his belly with his navel being in the middle of it. His name was Rukkic.

He was shook in his sleep by his mother that urged him to wake up. "Five more minutes, mom...," he replied and got back to sleep in his bed. His mother was not in the mood for his morning laziness, so she merely had to take matters into her own hands, or wings rather, by pushing the youngling out of the bed and onto the floor of the cottage they had. He landed with a resounding thud that startled passerby. Although their neighbors were used to these kinds of shenanigans the two had, his father always deemed it a rather harsh ordeal that he himself wanted to stop.

He just watched every time the two would do these 'morning rituals' that unfolded almost every morning, knowing that his wife was a force to be reckoned with.

"Alright, alright! I'm up!" complained Rukkic as he was rubbing his backside where the pain dulled a little.

"When will you learn, Rukkic?" his father just sighed. His son never was one to wake up early nor was he an early sleeper. His wife having more the spirit of a Rito warrior than of a caring mother.

"Eat your breakfast with haste now because the village elder has called all of the young ones to do a sacred Rito tradition," his father urged as he started eating the food in front of him.

"Huh? What tradition would that be, Father?" Rukkic asked as he finished the last bits of his breakfast.

"It's called the Ancient Rito Song. Everyone here in the village, including myself and your father, have been taught since we were as young as you," his mother replied seeing as his father was preoccupied with eating.

"Everyone? Even my friends need to learn?" Rukkic was feeling mixed emotions about this. On one hand, he liked to try new things, but on the other, he never was a good singer.

"Yes, son. Now go to the Warbler's Nest. The elder said for every young Rito to meet there," his father said as he too finished his breakfast.

"Oh! Before you go, son..." He didn't need to hear the last part as his mother nuzzled him with love, making him blush furiously.

"Mom!" the orange Rito shouted, embarrassment clear in his voice. He saw in the corner of his eyes that his father was snickering, causing him to give a glaring look.

"I love you, son! Be careful on the way back!" His mother waved goodbye as his father just nodded in acknowledgment.

On his way to the entrance of the village, Rukkic saw a lone Rito about his age all alone and visibly shaking in fear. He had dark blue feathers with the ones on the tip of his wings and his head being white. His beak and eyebrows were golden yellow, and he had red spots on his cheeks and around his green eyes. Rukkic approached him with a warm smile on his face, thinking that he might just have a little travel buddy on the way to the nest.

Revali heard footsteps behind him and glanced to his right to see one of the children heading toward him. He mentally prepared himself as he was never around anyone else besides the leader.

"Hello! Are you heading to the nest too?" Rukkic asked with a positive atmosphere surrounding the two of them. Revali flinched as he was trying to respond.

"Huh...yes," he replied with slight hesitation.

"Are you waiting for someone else or do you want to go together?" Rukkic asked with holding his wing out to Revali. Revali just stared at the Rito's wing as he contemplated on whether he would wait for the elder or go with him.

"Come on, my wing's getting tired! Besides, we're gonna be late for the practice too!" Rukkic was getting a little bit impatient and he already wanted to get this done so that he could learn from his father at the flight's Range after the practice.

"S-Sure, I guess. My name's R-Revali." He took the wing as Rukkic dashed off to the nest. Revali had a bit of trouble keeping up, but he managed.

"Cool name! Mine's Rukkic!" he shouted with enthusiasm as they both sped off.

By the time they reached the Warbler's Nest, they were both exhausted and panted as the other Rito were chatting amongst each other. As they approached the group of Rito, one of them grabbed the attention of three other Rito and pointed toward the two. Revali flinched at this particular Rito and ran off to the tree near the edge of the nest, thinking that they might hurt him.

"Hey, where are you go-" Before Rukkic could finish his sentence, a wing wrapped around his shoulder and he was pulled toward the group.

"Who was that, Rukkic? A friend of yours?" asked a Rito who looked like a light blue cardinal. This was Drew, one of Rukkic's friends.

"Sorta. I saw him all alone near the entrance of the village. I thought he might've needed a friend to get here." Rukkic trailed off, wondering why Revali just ran off. Must be really shy around new people. Come to think of it, Rukkic never saw him in the village before.

"Well, whoever he is, let's just give him some alone time. He seems troubled," Drew said.

Rukkic and the others just nodded in agreement. As they talked amongst each other, a female Rito flew by and announced that the elder had postponed today's recital. Everyone seemed rather disappointed by the news, but just went with it and got to their respective home. Rukkic, however, noticed that Revali was still beside the tree, just looking up at the pillar in the middle of the village.

Rukkic approached the unaware Rito and coughed to get his attention. Revali flinched and turned back only to see his friend and calmed down. He motioned Rukkic to come and sit by him on the tree. The orange Rito gladly obliged.

"Thank you," was all Revali said with a warm smile plastered on his face while Rukkic sat down.

"For what? I didn't do anything particular in order to get a thank," Rukkic said, rather confused by his friend's sudden change in behavior.

"You know, only you outside of the leader has ever talked to me," Revali said with standing up and motioned for Rukkic to follow him.

"How's that somewhat important to you? Don't you have any other friends?" Revali stopped in his tracks when Rukkic asked.

"No, you're the only friend I have. The reason behind it is because the others think I'm weak, and just ignore my presence." Revali's tone sounded depressed right at the end.

"I don't think that you're weak. The others can't just see where your other strengths are. So cheer up!" Rukkic gave him a reassuring smile.

"Thanks." Revali suddenly hugged Rukkic. The orange Rito just smiled and hugged back. When they parted, they headed back toward the village and, as they were nearing the entrance, a question was lingering in the back of Rukkic's head.

"Hey, Revali? Can I ask you a question? If that's alright with you," Rukkic asked, hoping that it won't bother his new friend.

"Sure, I guess," Revali said with a nod.

"Do you know the song that we were supposed to be taught earlier?"

"Oh yes, the village elder sang it sometimes, whenever we were eating." Revali scratched the back of his head a bit out of embarrassment. He wasn't fond of talking to others about the elders and their personal lives.

"Really? Can you sing it for me? I'm really curious about what the song's like," Rukkic urged him.

Revali took a deep breath, not really a singer himself, but he thought he was decent enough.

"The pride of the Rito, pillar in the sky,

its heart lights up when the sun is high.

The sun shines upon a path not whole,

but a warming flame can stir its soul."

Rukkic was a bit confused by the lyrics but was amazed nonetheless. "Wow! Your voice sounds amazing when you sing!" Rukkic praised Revali, making him blush.

"Oh, come on. I'm not that great." Revali's face was heating up, not being used to receive compliments.

"Hush! When I say you're good, you're good!" Rukkic retaliated. He was about to praise Revali some more when he glanced at the position of the sun. "Hey, huh, I gotta go to the Flight Range. My father's teaching me some archery today." Rukkic dreaded the thought. He wanted to hang out with his friend some more.

"Oh, it's okay. You probably shouldn't keep him waiting..." Again, Rukkic noticed the tone of his friend's voice. Then, a thought popped in his head.

"Why don't you come with me? It'll be cool with my dad, plus archery's a really cool thing to do!" Rukkic once again held out his wing.

'The elder probably wouldn't mind if I stay stayed a little bit with Rukkic. He did say he wanted me to get a friend," Revali pondered, thinking this was a win-win for both of them.

Revali grabbed Rukkic's wing and the kids sped off to the Flight Range. As they were speeding through Dronoc's Pass, they were met with the sight of Rukkic's father waiting inside the cottage while cooking some Staminoka Bass.

"Father! I'm here!" Rukkic shouted as he climbed the ladder up. Revali just followed suit.

"Oh, so it seems. You even brought a friend with you. What would your name be, little one?" Rukkic's father beamed a smile toward his son's friend.

"I-It's Revali, sir," Revali nervously replied.

"Although I do appreciate it, no need for such formalities here. Would you two care for some? I already some a while ago." Rukkic's father stood up and got a nearby Falcon Bow.

The two young Rito devoured the fish presented to them, savoring the rich flavor within the bass. Once they were done, they both turned their head to Rukkic's father.

"I assume that you would like to learn how to wield a bow, hmm?" Revali just nodded in response. "Very well then, we'll start with the basics..." As Rukkic's father started rambling on, Revali started to take mental notes on what their instructor said. Taking notes on the stance, how to properly wield a bow and the sort. He showed them how to replace a broken bowstring and shot a few targets with only perfect bull's eyes. This astonished Revali to no end.

By the end of it all, Revali was quite absorbed on archery. He wanted to try and shoot an arrow, but alas, the sun started to set.

"This took much longer than I thought it would. This concludes our lesson for today. Tomorrow, we'll see if you can shoot well enough on the ground." Rukkic's father gave the kids a look of strictness mixed with a calm demeanor.

The kids just nodded at unison. By the time the trio arrived at the village's entrance, darkness began to spread, only the luminescence of the moon helping them.

"I'll see you tomorrow I guess." Revali seemed quite down on leaving his friend. But there was tomorrow, so there was no reason to worry about. They'll meet again.

Revali climbed up the stairs and headed for the elder's cottage. "Hello? Father? I'm home!" Revali noticed a worried look on the elder's face.

"My, Revali, what took you so long? the practice for the song was postponed hours ago." The elder reached out to Revali to give him a hug which the latter gladly returned.

"Sorry to worry you, Father. But I just went to the Flight Range with my friend. His father taught us how to be proper bowmen." Revali's voice was a bit muffled by the elder's hug.

"Oh? Do tell, what would your friend's name be? I'm glad that you finally made acquaintance with someone other than me." The elder set Revali down as he motioned for him to sit beside him.

"His name is Rukkic. We'll also continue our lesson tomorrow if that's okay with you." Revali hoped his father would approve. That was the only thing he ever asked for.

"It's more than alright, my boy, just as long as you don't get injured." Revali started to yawn, only beginning to notice his fatigue.

"I suggest that we get some sleep now, don't want to lag behind your friend." The elder began to flap his wings and rested in the hammock above their cottage. Revali lazily flew toward his and as soon as he landed, he fell right into a deep slumber.

* * *

 **Revali made himself a new friend in the form of Rukkic who's my OC. I sure hope I got this representation of BOTW correctly as I did a lot of researches online for it. For the next chapter, we'll get to see them bond with each other and train in the art of archery.**


	282. Arrows and jealousy

**New chapter! BOTW is owned by Nintendo. The OCs are mine.**

* * *

Morning came and Revali was still asleep. Kaneli had decided that he might need a little more time to rest, knowing what escapades his foster son would get into.

Kaneli cooked up some Hearty Salmon for breakfast. 'He'll be up within a moment's notice once he smells this,' he thought with a grin plastered on his beak.

Soon enough, the aroma of the salmon to spread within their cottage. Once it hit its mark, Revali bolted up and landed not-so-gracefully on the ground. He was already drooling when he got to the elder's side.

"What's the occasion, Father? You never cook Hearty Salmon unless something special's happening!" Kaneli just laughed at Revali's behavior. He never saw him this happy before. This Rukkic fellow might've been a really good friend for Revali.

"Oh, I just felt like cooking some of your favorite. Besides, we have a lot more stashed away." He finished the salmon by using some rock salt to add the "final touch' as Revali quoted it sometimes.

"Dig in! You'll need every little bit of energy in you." Revali scarfed down every last piece of fish that was on his plate, while the elder slowly ate his, savoring the rich taste.

As Revali finished, he cleaned the mess that he made and gave the elder a hug before departing to Rukkic's. It took him a while, but after some asking around the village, albeit he was nervous to do so, he found Rukkic waiting for him in front of his cottage with his father.

"Oh, there you are. You're ready for today's lesson?" Revali just nodded in affirmation.

The trio headed toward the Flight Range, passing by a few travelers along the way. Dronoc's Pass was soon within their sights, and Revali was feeling all the more eager to shoot his very first arrow.

"So, are we all ready to begin?" Rukkic's father asked and the kids both nodded. "Good. I've prepared a few targets over there." His father motioned to the targets near the edge of the platform. "I know it seems a little bit too tame, but archery is an art that takes a lot of practice to master."

He then handed both the kids a Swallow Bow. "Archery seems like a simple act of pulling the bowstring and lodging an arrow into the designed target. It's much more than that. A simple miscalculation in the tension of the string, and you'll either overshoot the target or hit right in front of it." Both of the kids listened to the sermon of Rukkic's father, taking note of every word that was deemed of importance, which was every word.

"It all comes down to your stance if you're planning on shooting from the ground. If it's in the air, then it's all up to you." Revali raised his wing to ask a question. "Yes, Revali?"

"In the air? Is that even possible?" Rukkic's father just laughed at Revali's question.

"Why yes, Revali, it is possible. It just takes a lot more effort to do so." Revali seemed content with the answer and just listened to their instructor. "As a matter of fact, why don't I just show you?"

Rukkic's father took a nearby Falcon Bow and flew toward the targets attached to the pillars and walls. Each one of the targets received an arrow directly at their center. Rukkic's father flew with such grave yet such deadly precision. To say the least, both of the kids were quite blown away by the display their instructor had put on.

Rukkic's father landed nearby the targets with a smirk, knowing he had just blown their little mind. "And with only 25 seconds used up. A new record if I say so myself."

25 seconds?! Revali was baffled by what he just heard. He counted that there were at least 16 targets with arrows all hit dead in their center.

"If you train hard enough, maybe you two can even beat my record. That is when both of you are old enough. But let's stick with the basics first." He grabbed two Swallows bows and quiver of arrows. "Why don't you try first, Rukkic?" He handed his son a bow and a couple of arrows. "Remember what we talked about yesterday. Stance is key."

Rukkic knocked his bowstring back and steadied his aim. In a split-second, the arrow flew and hit the outer ring near the lower left corner.

"Nice shot. I was kind of expecting a miss of some sort. You know, seeing as you're both still young." Rukkic seemed pretty content with it and readied another arrow.

This time, the orange Rito hit the inner ring of the target. "With a little bit of practice, you'll hit bull's eyes in no time." Rukkic's father then handed Revali the same amount of arrows and a bow.

'Alright, focus, Revali. Relax and breath in...' He knocked the bowstring back and steadied his aim. 'Concentrate...and release!'

The arrow flew in a straight line, hitting dead in the center. Rukkic had his beak wide open while his father just looked with a mix of shock and amazement.

"Are you sure it's your first time?" Rukkic's father laughed and closed his son's beak before any Cold Darners could fly in.

Revali readied another arrow and repeated the same mantra in his head. His second shot was exactly the same as the first. Again, Rukkic had his beak wide open and his father was full on laughing at this point. Revali just stood there, amazed at what he had done.

'Two bull's eyes in a row?!' he thought in pure astonishment. He never thought that he'd be able to pull off even a single one, but two?! The Goddess must have been pulling at his leg.

"Well now! I never thought I'd see the day! Never knew you had it in you, kid!" Rukkic's father elbowed Revali who blushed from the praise.

"I got lucky I guess?" Revali shrugged and turned to look at Rukkic's still dumbfounded face.

"HOW?!" was all that left Rukkic's beak. His father and Revali just started laughing the day away.

By the end of the day, REvali scored 15 more bull's eyes and 5 inner rings. While Rukkic was still off his mark, managing only 5 bull's eyes, 7 inner rings, 5 outer rings, and 3 misses. He was still grumpy with the fact that Revali scored way better than him. So he opted to say to his father that they should go hang out somewhere else.

His father just agreed, knowing that his son was bitter at the moment and would not want to deal with a small, angry Rito. They just went to the Marbler's Nest again to sit by the tree and relax. Revali took note of his companion's grouchy attitude and tried to calm him down. Rukkic was a bit hard to calm down since he was stubborn in admitting defeat.

"Come on, Rukkic, you'll do better next time. you just need some practice, that's all." Revali tried his best to comfort him but all he got was a huff from Rukkic. Revali felt quite a bit guilty that he was the reason why he was like this and looked visibly sad that Rukkic batted an eye toward him.

"All I hate for the fact is that you did a lot better than me. I'm not angry at you or anything if that's what you're thinking," Rukkic said with his back still facing Revali.

They just stayed like this for 10 minutes until Rukkic started to relax and slouched down next to Revali. to be honest, Revali was feeling mixed emotions about his earlier performance. On one hand, he achieved something only a professional could do. On the other, his friend was quite jealous because his results contrasted Revali's.

"I think I'll hit the hay for now, see you tomorrow." Rukkic just gave a quick wave goodbye and started to go back to the village.

Revali was worried. He might lose his friend after just a day and it wasn't technically his fault. 'The Goddess must have some motive for this to happen,' he pondered.

Rukkic's father happened to be passing by and noticed Revali all alone on the tree. He approached the young Rito and gave a cough to get his attention. Revali looked up, his thoughts getting interrupted. He saw Rukkic's father with a look of confusion.

"He's still angry about earlier? Don't worry, he's like that," Rukkic's father said with a reassuring smile. "Although you're already shooting like a pro, you still need to train. If you stop and think it's done, your muscles and abilities will deteriorate over time. So, same time tomorrow, alright?" He didn't wait for an answer and motioned Revali to come with him back to the village.

Revali saw that his father already slept, even though the moon was only beginning to rise. There was a note on the table and some food prepared. 'Revali, if you're reading this, it means I have already fallen asleep. I had a lot to do today and my body isn't what it used to be. I've cooked up some fish for you as dinner. Sorry that I couldn't eat dinner with you. -Kaneli'

Revali just ate the fish in silence and went to sleep after. He really hoped Rukkic would calm down tomorrow. He didn't want any barriers to their friendship...

* * *

 **You must all have known that our Rito prodigy would win against my OC. But the latter doesn't take defeat very well as you can see. But don't worry; he never stays mad for too long.**


	283. The four Rito brothers

**Whoa! Me updating sooner than usual? That's unusual. As always, BOTW is owned by Nintendo and the OCs are mine.**

* * *

Revali woke up a bit earlier this morning. It was probably the creeping feeling of regret still lingering in his mind. He did know that Rukkic was like that, his father assured him.

His thoughts were interrupted as the elder awoke from his own slumber and landed next to Revali. Kaneli noticed his son's troubled face and put a wing around his shoulders.

"What's the matter? Did something happen yesterday while I was out?" The elder's face was full of worry. He barely saw him this troubled since he adopted him.

"It's nothing, Father. Rukkic and I just got into a little squabble is all," Revali replied with his head low.

Kaneli started cooking up some raw meat and rock salt. "What were you two fighting about? You don't want to lose your friend already now do you?" He turned to look at Revali with a stern gaze.

"Well, actually, it was about my performance of yesterday. I did 20 or so bull's eyes while Rukkic only got 5 or 7. His father said that he just doesn't like to lose, he always goes for the gold or something." While the elder was happy to see that he had his parents' blood within him, the fact that his only friend might hold a grudge against Revali made Kaneli feel bad.

"I see." The elder then turned around and began looking for something in the back of their cottage. "It should be around here somewhere... Ha-ha!" The elder then faced Revali with a necklace in his wings. It resembled the symbols on the elders' clothing and had two rubies on the eyes.

"Give him this as an apology. It represents the symbol of our race. Embedded into it are two rubies that we found on Death Mountain which hold properties of fire that can help mend any wound between anyone." The elder had a smile on his beak. Although the mending part was just a wives tale, he just needed to make a little bit of a story of sorts to please the young one's mind. Rubies were also represented as the symbol of love, but the elder would teach that to Revali when the time came.

Revali eagerly took the necklace and held on it tight, but then a smell of burning meat reached his nostrils. "Father, do you smell something burning?"

The elder's smile quickly faded as he rushed toward the burning pot. Luckily, one slab of meat managed to survive and the elder opted to just cook more for himself and gave the cooked meat to Revali. After the meal, Revali thanked the elder and gave him a hug.

Just like yesterday, Revali went to Rukkic's and saw him and his father waiting patiently in front of their cottage. Rukkic seemed to have cooled down from yesterday as he beamed a smile in Revali's direction.

Everything went the same as yesterday with Revali getting nearly perfect shots and Rukkic still missing quite a few times. This became a daily routine for the three. As the years went by, Rukkic's father decided that they were more than ready for aerial combat.

The two of them performed exceptionally well, especially Revali who dedicated himself to perfecting his technique. All the while Rukkic became engrossed in the whole land of Hyrule and its history. Once he was old enough to fly, the orange Rito would spend most of his time flying across the island of Hyrule to meet new races or study fields and come up with his own analyses and theories. He still trained with Revali, though not as much as him.

* * *

THWAK!

Rukkic managed to plant a javelin into his target. During his years of training in archery, the orange Rito discovered that he was more agile with those launching weapons than with any type of bows in his tribe. While Revali became a master of the bow and arrows, Rukkic became an expert of the javelin launching and sword fighting as well. The cemetery tied to his hip was the proof.

Once they became adults, both Revali and Rukkic started wearing the traditional outfit of their tribe. However, while Revali's outfit was the usual one most of the other Rito wore, Rukkic was more unique: it was separated in two pieces with his top being small with only one strap over his left shoulder which left his stomach exposed and his trousers being brown as well. He just felt comfier like that.

"I can do it," Rukkic mumbled and brushed a wing through his head feathers which became long and a bit spiky with the years (think of them like Star Fox's Falco's) before pulling another javelin on the side of his head while aiming with a feather of his other one. After a few seconds, he launched his weapon which hit a bull's eye.

"Nice shot!" said another voice. The orange Rito turned around and toward another Rito sitting on a nearby rock. He looked like a snowy owl with grey feathers speckled with black spots and a white face and underbelly. He had a purple scarf wrapped tightly around his neck.

Rukkic smiled. "Thanks for noticing it, Aquila." The Rito's name was indeed Aquila and a close friend Rukkic and Revali made during their teenage years. They heard him playing harp during an afternoon as they relaxed in the grass and enjoying the summer breeze. They followed the sound and found Aquila sitting on a rock and playing music. They complimented him and invited him to learn archery with them. The Rito became really close friends over the years.

"You're not on Revali's aiming level yet, but you sure can make some impressive shots," Aquila said with a smile.

"Thanks for always giving me pieces of advice and the kick in the butt that I need, Aquila," Rukkic chuckled before resuming his training, shooting a few more javelins, each of them hitting a bull's eye without fail. When his bag of javelins ran out, he picked them all up. "Alright, I think that's enough for today."

"That was awesome alright." Both Rito turned around to see a third one joining them. He looked like a screech owl with night black feathers and yellow eyes. He was wearing the traditional Rito brown pants but no tops on; only a strap over his shoulder which held a black metal baseball bat over his back. This Rito was named Jameson and was the fourth friend in Revali's group. A female Rito of the tribe found him abandoned near the river and brought him back to the tribe. The elder accepted for her to keep the newborn as she developed a lot of affection for him. Revali, Rukkic, and Aquila quickly became his friends as he enjoyed spending time with them.

"You sure you don't wanna try archery, James?" Rukkic asked his younger friend.

"Nah, I'm good with just fighting with my good old bat," the black owl said with taping his weapon with his wing. "So tell me, Rukkic, have you made any new discoveries that changed your theories in recent times?"

"Well, in fact, I did. Last week, I traveled to the castle of Hyrule and one of my knight friends, Redire, told me an interesting story that apparently happened a very long time ago," Rukkic said with a smile, about to plunge into one of his endless theories. "We all the know the story of the Hero of Time and how he saved Hyrule from the entity known as Ganon countless times."

"You mean the Calamity?"

"Yeah. Well, Redire told me that there are three different versions of how this story originally ended: some believe that it ended with the Hero defeating Ganon; others affirm that the Hero did succeed but ended up getting turned into a child, and others affirm that the hero failed and that Ganon simply died of old age."

"And which side do you think is right?" Jameson asked with interest.

"All three of them seem believable. There's a lot of evidence. Here's an example; rock salt." This "evidence" caused Aquila and Jameson to look curiously at their orange friend. "Allow me to explain: every cook I've met across the land told me that rock salt comes from 'ancient sea' and that they are used to season meat. You never heard this tale about the kid hero dressed in green that traveled across seemingly endless oceans with this boat called Windwaker? If this theory ends up being true, that the side of the child hero would be the right one, but there's no way to know for sure."

Rukkic then smirked. "In fact, the same people believing in this theory think that us, Rito, are an evolved species descending from the Zora."

"What?!" Jameson exclaimed with a shocked look. "But how could that possible?! The Zora is an aquatic people while us, Rito, are aerial."

"Well, if we think about it, it's not entirely possible. For example, a theory says that-"

"You're not boring them with one of your theories again?" Rukkic recognized Revali's voice and turned to see the blue Rito coming with his wings crossed.

"Hey, you'll know that my theories are perfectly fascinating, bro," Rukkic said in a undigned tone.

"Yeah...for brainheads maybe." Revali broke out laughing alongside Jameson and Aquila. Rukkic briefly glared at them...before smiling and laughing as well.

Even though he wasn't the best at showing it, Revali was glad to have a jealous theorist, a music player and singer, and an innocent bat swinger as his brothers...

* * *

 **This chapter was to introduce our new friends, Aquila, the snowy owl Rito from my good friend, TheDragonSaver, and Jameson from my best owl buddy, Jameson The Phoenix Owl. I know you've been waiting for very long, but the time has come and you are both now part of the greatest story of my life! :)**


	284. Festival at Castle Town

Revali, Rukkic, Aquila, and Jameson were training at the Flight Range with Aquila working on his archery skills, Jameson practicing his hand-to-hand combat with his baseball bat against Rukkic and his cemetery, and Revali practicing his wind magic. The Rito warrior focused on the wind around him, letting it flow upwards. When it reached its peak, Revali took to the sky in his created updraft. However, the wind proved to be too strong, spinning him around and knocking him down to the ground in a heap.

Pushing himself up, Revali slammed a wing on the ground as he stood up. "Not enough," he spat out.

Jameson came to his brother's side. "Are you okay?" he asked in concern.

"I'm fine," Revali said, pushing his brother's wing away. This earned him a glare from Rukkic who crossed his wings. "I'm sorry, Jameson. I must stay in the eye of the whirlwind...must push myself harder..."

"Let me help you," Aquila said. He handed a stamina potion to Revali whom reluctantly but gratefully took it and drank it down. "It seems we have visitors," the owl Rito said.

Revali, Rukkic, and Jameson quickly turned around, looking at what their brother referred to. Standing in front of an entourage of guards was none other than Princess Zelda herself. "You know, your highness...it's rude to eavesdrop," Revali said, turning back toward the canyon.

"Revali, maybe we shouldn't antagonize the princess," Aquila said.

"It's fine," Zelda said. She walked closer to the four Rito. "My apologies if I interrupted anything. I went to the village and I was told I would find you here." She gestured to Revali while saying this.

"You have need of me," Revali said, turning back toward the princess. "To defeat Calamity Ganon."

Aquila looked in surprise at the two alongside Jameson. He had heard rumors that Ganon might return, but he had thought it had just been superstitious nonsense. Rukkic, on the other hand, was smiling in joy: his theory was proven correct!

Revali continued. "To slay the beast once and for all..." He smiled slightly. "It will be my great pleasure."

"Thank you, Revali," Zelda said. She brought a hand to her chest. "If we work together, I'm sure we'll be able to defeat-"

"However!" Revali interrupted. He turned back to the canyon and crouched down, summoning his wind once again. He took to the sky once again, rising in the updraft once again.

"He's going to fall again," Aquila said in concern, watching as Revali struggled to maintain his stable flight.

"Don't say that. He can do it," Jameson said, hoping for his brother to succeed.

Much to his brothers' relief, Revali gave another flap and completed his flight up the gale, reaching its peak and turning around to fall back on earth. Diving into the Flight Range, he took his bow into his feet and divebombed downward. As he got closer to the targets, he did an acrobatic flip and took his Great Eagle Bow in his wings, pulling back three bomb arrows and letting them fly.

Each arrow hit its mark, and as Revali landed on an outcropping, he activated his gale again and took off again, taking the rest of the targets in mere seconds.

Aquila smiled and jumped in a cheer. "He did it! He actually did it!"

"I knew he would!" Jameson happily added.

Rukkic just crossed his wings and scoffed with a smile. "Show-off."

Revali came out of the smoke from the bomb arrows, landing on the Flight Range's platform and making a bow. "I know I play the biggest part in helping that ahem," he said, taking a mocking tone. "The little knight with the darkness-sealing sword, correct?" He placed a wing on his hip. "Well, if he loses his confidence after seeing me in action...don't come crying to me."

Aquila sighed, rubbing the back of his head. "That's my brother alright. Always wanting to be the big hero." Rukkic nodded in agreement.

"It's that confidence that will make him a worthy champion," Zelda said. "I hope he can put his opinion aside, though, for the sake of Hyrule."

Rukkic noticed that the way Zelda said that hinted a shared feeling between her and his brother. "You won't find a better archer in all of Hyrule, Princess."

Revali landed next to the group as Zelda spoke. "There will be a proper knighting ceremony and festival at the end of the week. I hope to see all four of you there."

"You want to see us three, Princess?" Rukkic asked in surprise, gesturing to himself, Aquila, and Jameson.

Zelda smiled. "Of course. The village elder said that you three are excellent bards, and the festival is supposed to be a unification of all the races. I've heard that the Rito are known not only for their master of the sky but also of the song."

"My three brothers will be honored to accompany me to my ceremony," Revali said, putting his wings on his brothers' shoulders.

* * *

The day of the festival soon arrived and the four Rito brothers wasted no time in journeying to Castle Town for the big day. Accompanying them were other Rito, some of them with instruments to play for the festival, others with bows to show-off their archery skills. The four brothers were leading the group alongside Kaneli.

"And here we are: Castle Town," Kaneli said. "Come along, kids. The festival is just ahead."

"Father, we are not children anymore," Revali said with rolling his eyes.

"I wasn't talking to you, Revali," Kaneli said. "I was referring to the other children. Besides, I remember a time when you barely came up to my belt."

"And even then, you're still shorter than most Rito," Rukkic said, ruffling Revali on the head.

The future champion slapped his brother's wing away and glared at him. "My size doesn't matter! Only my skills!"

"Let's not start anything here," Aquila said. "You two can settle this in the archery contest." He turned to Kaneli. "Meanwhile, Jameson and I will go with you to entertain the kids."

The village elder chuckled. "You should join the others, Aquila and Jameson. You're still young and it won't be long before that vibrant youth of yours is gone."

"I agree with Aquila; we'd rather go with you," the black owl Rito said.

"Yeah, Mr. Aquila plays the best music!" one of the kids said.

"And Jameson tells the best stories," another kid said.

"Alright, alright, they can come with us," Kaneli conceded.

With that, Revali and Rukkic went with the others to set up the archery contest while Aquila, Jameson, and Kaneli led the children to Castle Town Square. Within the square was a great fountain along with various musicians playing for the people who danced to the song. Gorons banged drums, Zora strummed guitars, and the Hylians and Gerudo added their own flutes and horns to the song.

"Come on, Leader Kaneli, let's dance!" said one of the kids, pulling on his wing.

"Slow down, young one. I might not be old, but I'm not as energetic as you are," the elder said with a laugh as he and the children went dancing.

Aquila and Jameson, meanwhile, went up to the musicians and bowed respectfully. "Greetings. We are Aquila and Jameson of the Rito tribe. May we join your group in making music?"

"Of course, brothers!" the Goron jovially said.

"The more, the merrier!" the Zora said.

The Hylian and Gerudo nodded in agreement. Aquila pulled out his harp to join them while Jameson cleared his throat, ready to join them. The Goron tapped his drum three times to start the song and the others joined in with him as they all played for the dancing folk. As they played, Aquila and Jameson started to sing along the music:

 _Come with me, all you children_

 _Follow me to Castle Town_

 _Where we're holding a festival_

 _To praise the Goddess above_

 _There, we'll have such a good time_

 _Playing games and laughing 'round_

 _And when the moon rises above_

 _We'll all dance 'till dawn_

 _First, you boys find a girl and_

 _Take her by the hand then_

 _Three steps forward, one step back_

 _Then repeat 'till the end_

 _Next, you girls find a boy and_

 _Lead him 'round the fountain_

 _Three steps forward, one step back_

 _Then repeat 'till the end_

The song repeated two more times with each succession getting faster than the last until the dancers were exhausted from keeping up with the tempo. When Aquila, Jameson, and the musicians finished, everyone clapped at their performance. The Rito gave a bow to their crowd and walked back to the group who was still buzzing with energy.

"Geez, you guys don't slow down, do you?" Aquila said, grabbing one of the kids and pulling him on his shoulder.

"You, Revali, and Rukkic were the same at this age," Kaneli said with a laugh, picking up two of the kids in his wings.

"That was a great song, Mr. Jameson," a child said on Jameson's shoulder. "What was it about?"

"Well, it's really just a song for dancing during festivals like this," the black owl explained. "However, parts of it are based on one of the many tales of the hero, where he traveled through time to save another land from the moon falling onto it."

"Cool!" the kid shouted. "Could you tell me the story someday?"

"Well, you should ask Rukkic about it; he knows the story better than I do," Jameson said with rubbing the back of his head. "I should also warn you that it gets pretty scary."

"Ha, nothing scares me!" the kid boasted.

Aquila and Jameson laughed before setting the kids down, allowing the little Rito to go back to their friends. When they turned to thank the musicians once again, they came face to face instead with their brothers. "Oh, guys! I didn't know you were here," Aquila said.

"So? How did the archery contest go?" Jameson asked.

"I won 10 to 6," Revali replied with a proud look.

"Don't boast too much, bro; I will defeat you one day," Rukkic said, visibly mad from losing again.

Revali chuckled before looking at his two other brothers. "Anyways. While you were out gallivanting around, I was meeting with the king and managed to convince him to let you perform in the ceremony."

"Actually, that was me," said a soft voice. Coming up behind Revali and Rukkic was Princess Zelda who was wearing a cloak to hide herself from others at the festival.

"Princess," Aquila quietly said, giving a short bow alongside Jameson.

"I suggested to my father to let those that are close to the champions to perform with the royal symphony," Zelda said. She turned back toward the castle. "Come. The ceremony will start shortly."

* * *

"Welcome, warriors!" the king announced. "I'd like to thank you for joining me today and for your bravery in accepting this...fateful task."

Off to the side, Rukkic, Aquila, and Jameson watched as their brother and the other representatives stood before the king. The snowy owl Rito idly adjusted the strings on his harp, half-listening to the king's speech.

"I officially dub you Hyrule's Champions and bestow upon you this sacred garb," the king said.

The three Rito looked over to Revali and noticed his new scarf which was sky blue with a white etching of a bird on it. They smiled, knowing that their brother was brimming with pride at this moment.

"That blue is a symbol of the royal family, one that has been passed down for countless generations. Those garments you now wear were all crafted by my daughter, Zelda." He looked down at his daughter. "Zelda, I bless you with the task only a daughter of the royal family can fulfill. Lead our Champions, Princess. And together, protect our kingdom from the threat of Calamity Ganon."

"Geez, no pressure," Aquila mumbled to which Rukkic and Jameson nodded.

With the speech done, everybody clapped for their new Champions. Revali turned his head to see his three siblings clapping and Rukkic nodding at him with a smile, knowing this is what he wanted since he was a kid.

 _"It was at this very moment that the story of the Rito Champion, the Rito General, the Hero of Time, and the Phoenix Owl started..."_

* * *

 **This will be all for this arc, for now, guys. I know it's an abrupt end and that I barely took time to develop our new characters and BOTW world, but for the storyline that I have in mind to work, we're gonna need to start another one. And guess what, it's the one starting next chapter.**

 **Now, for those of you getting impatient, there's only two more arcs to do before we return to the Blue Thunder Crew. It shouldn't be too long now.**


	285. Another day for the flock

**Alright, it's time to return to our flock of Angry Birds! Don't worry; that's the last arc before we go back to the Blue Thunder Crew. Promised ;)**

* * *

"Ready! Aim! FIRE!"

The red cardinal watched as his friend was launched toward the pigs' fort. The two sides were separated by a cliff but thanks to the slingshot, the avians could attack the pigs as if they were on the same battlefield. The large black loon known as Bomb yelled as he flew at the fort and crashed into the stone walls, launching some of the green pigs in the air upon impact. As he rolled toward the soldiers running away from him, the feather on top of his head turned from black to yellow and flared up. His eyes turned red as energy glow around his body.

And then...BOOM!

A blast of energy exploded from the bird as most of the fort was destroyed in a fiery explosion. Bomb flew into the air due to the power of the explosion and he landed on the other side of the ravine with other bird.

"That...was...awesome!" Bomb whispered with a fist in the air.

"Don't worry, buddy. Just rest up a bit and we'll send you again in a couple of minutes," Red told his friends. "Chuck, you're up!"

"Finally!" his friend replied. The energetic canary ran up and positioned himself on the slingshot. As he aimed himself at the forth, he looked over at bomb who was getting carried away by the other birds. "Hey, Bomb! Guess what time it is!"

"Huh...3:43?"

"Nope, it's-" The speedster was interrupted as Terence, the other cardinal that was much bigger than Red, kicked him off the ground, sending him to fly in the air. "HEY! I DIDN'T EVEN GET TO FINISH!" he screamed as he soared through the air and toward the green fools running away from him. He tucked his legs under his wings and sped-up in midair, swopping downward fast like a rocket.

"IT'S CHUCK-" He was cut off from finishing his line as he crashed into one of the ledges holding the structure up, causing most of the fort to fall to the ground. The canary was flung into the air due to the power of the impact and landed on top of the structure, dazed and injured from the impact. "...time!"

"Okay, guys," Red said to the other members of the island. "The fort's almost done! We just need a couple more birds over there! Who's up?"

He was surprised to see many of them holding their wings up and volunteer. He still remembered how this all started and how nobody was prepared for this. Now, everyone in the flock was training in case the eggs would get stolen again which was pretty often. Leonard, the sinister pig who started it all, continued to send his minions after the eggs. They always managed to steal seven or eight eggs and guard them in their forts to prepare to transport them to their castle. Luckily, the flock always grouped together to sail toward their enemy's land and retrieve the eggs.

Those who weren't ready for the first time were now some of the most reliable birds in the army. Some even discovered new things about themselves. "Okay, Willow, you're up!" Red shouted.

The timid blue pigeon walked up to the slingshot, a shy smile on her face. Terence lifted her up and pulled the string back. I'm ready, Mr. Red," she said in her British accent.

"Alright then! Aim for the blocks of wood on the TNT boxes. And remember, don't freak out," the leader advised the younger bird.

"Of course, I won't freak out. I never-"

"FIRE!"

Terence released the string as Willow flew at the pigs. "AAAHHHH! I'M FREAKING OUT!" she yelled as she fell toward the wooden blocks. In mid-air, the artist turned on her side and started spinning toward the fort, wings out and feathers rotating clock-wise, like a buzz-saw.

She darted through the ledges and landed under the floor, slowing down to a halt. "Woo! I made it!" she beamed in joy.

"My turn!" Red turned to see his snowy owl friend with a black toque and seashell bracelet stepping up.

"Alright, Snow Kid, show them the strength of winter!" Red said as Terence pulled Snow back in the string.

Nodding, the ice bird was sent flying at full speed close to Willow's location. "WINTER IS COMING!" he shouted and used his wings to shoot an ice jet to freeze the wood boxes before crashing into them and shattering them to pieces.

The fort began to fall as the boxes filled with dynamites erupted, destroying what was left of the fort. The bricks and pigs began to fall to the ground and the other birds that were already launched from the slingshot rushed to escape.

"That way, guys! Run!" the usually calm Matilda shouted. In her hands were two of the eggs they rescued from the pigs. Each one of the birds was holding the stolen eggs as they rushed to the exit, jumping out of there before the entire building toppled over.

As the structure was falling down, Chuck began to wake up, still on top of the building. "Bomb, could you keep it down? It's five in the morning," he grunted, still dizzy from earlier. He shook his head, waking up, and seeing that the forth he was on was crumbling under his very talons. "What the...AAAHH!" he shouted in shock and ran off the structure and onto the ground, trying to escape the destruction. However, before he could escape, Chuck heard the screams of someone near him.

"Help! Please!" the person screamed.

He turned around to see Willow yelling for help as the fort came crashing down. A large piece of stone was about to fall on her as she covered herself underneath her hat, hiding in fear of death.

But when she opened her eyes again, she was surprised to see that she was still alive and trapped inside an ice shield, safe from harm. Beside her was Snow Kid who used his power to save her from death.

"Are you okay?" the snowy owl asked as he looked down at the younger bird. the pigeon hugged him, causing the ice fighter to look in surprise and blush.

"Thank you. Thank you so much," she whispered, still shaken from her ordeal. Snow was surprised by the gesture but then smiled, returning the hug.

"WILLOW!" The two turned to see Stella and the rest of her flock who had been launched running toward them. The pink galah ran at top speed and jumped on her friend, hugging her. "OH MY GOSH, OH MY GOSH, OH MY GOSH!" she shouted. "You're okay?"

"Don't worry, Stella; I'm fine. Snow Kid saved me."

"Yes, I saw it." Stella looked at Snow. "Thanks a lot, Snow."

"Anytime," the snowy owl said with a smile before going to Matilda. "Did you get them?"

"All accounted for, Snow! Good work today!" the chicken answered.

"I knew it! That was a nice butt shot by the way," Snow complimented her, making Matilda giggle.

"Thanks. Not as good as your 'winter attack' though."

From the other side of the cliff, Red saw the other succeed and the rest of the flock applauded. "Yeah! Wayt to go, guys!" Red cheered. "Get to the bridge! We'll meet you there!"

Out of nowhere, a crash was heard from in front of them. Some of the pigs were still conscious and, unfortunately, had motorbikes and guns that shot boxing gloves.

"GET THE EGGS!" one of the pigs - presumably their general - shouted. The birds cowered as they were outnumbered.

"Holy cow, they have motorcycles! When did they get motorcycles?! Did anyone see the motorcycles?! What do we do?!" Chuck shrieked as they drew near.

Matilda tried to stop some of the pigs with her butt shots, but there was too many. On the other side of the ravine, the birds panicked. "Flock! We need to do something!" Bomb shouted.

"Our friends are in trouble!" Natasha said in fear for her friends, but mostly for Snow Kid.

"Quiet! I need to think!" Red said, trying to concentrate.

As he tried to figure out what to do, a trio of hatchlings looked around and noticed the slingshot, an idea forming in their heads. "Come on, guys!" one of them, Jay, whispered to his brothers, Jake and Jim. They snuck from their concerned parents and ran to the slingshot. Red continued to panic as he heard the rubber strips of the slingshot stretching. He looked behind to see the three blue birds preparing to launch themselves. The rest of the flock noticed, including the parents of the chicks.

Their mother shrilled. "NO! NOT MY BABIES!"

"No, no, no, no!" Red tried to stop them but it was too late. They were flung from the slingshot and flew at the battlefield.

"Uh-oh," Bomb simply remarked.

"It's not 'Uh-oh', Bomb. It's 'WHAT THE FLOCK DO WE DO?!'", Red roared.

The trio flew through the air but instead of flying apart from each other, they were magnetized to each other, blue sparks keeping them together. They aimed for the bikers and...BIP! BAP! BOP! They split up in midair, each one of them crashing into the pigs, setting off a chain reaction. One of them landed on a biker, blinding his vision and causing him to fire randomly, hitting other bikers and crashing into his fellow pigs. They pretty much destroyed themselves. The blues jumped off the bikers and walked toward Matilda, Chuck, Snow Kid, and the other birds with innocent smiles on their faces.

"What...how...why...," Matilda stammered, trying to understand what just happened.

"You can shoot fireballs out of your butt and that's what surprises you?" Snow asked with a raised eyebrow.

Red stared, amazed by the blues' ability to take down the bikers. However, their parents were looking angrily at him. "Um... If it makes you feel any better...Terence let them do it," Red declared. Terence overheard this and punched the smaller cardinal over the head. "Yeah, I deserved that!"

Snow Kid chuckled at this. Another day like the others...

* * *

 **What an opening for this new arc, isn't it? Yeah, I felt like I didn't properly present the Angry Birds' world in the other arc and I wanted to make this one start more like a follow up to the movie.**

 **Now, there will be a lot of things happening in this arc. I sure hope I will use the characters correctly and not waste their potential.**

 **The Angry Birds Movie is owned by Rovio Animation and Sony Pictures (one of the very few movies made by them that I actually like).**


	286. Back to Bird Island

**Hey guys! The Owl is back!**

 **I wanna apologize for not updating this story for a while. I had to write for my UCW wrestling federation and I also started a new story called "Quest For Awesomeness" where I recycle story arcs and concepts that I had to scrap from "The Dynamic Adventure" for some reasons. You should go read it; I'm sure you'll like it.**

* * *

The citizens of Bird Island gathered at the beach to welcome back the valiant birds returning with the eggs. The craft carrying them drifted ashore and they got off to be greeted by their friends and family. Red's flock got off last as the family of bluebirds walked past them, the parents glaring at them on the way.

"Why are they still mad? Their kids took down so many pigs! This is every kid's dream!" Chuck said.

"Yeah, well most parents don't want to see their children getting shot from a slingshot," Red replied with rubbing his forehead.

"Mister Red!" The group turned around to see Judge Peckinpah walking toward them. The judge no longer used Cyrus as a way to look tall after the "little dinner" he had with Snow Kid. "Congrats on once again saving our eggs," he happily said. "I'm pretty surprised at how far you've come along."

"Yeah, no probs," Red replied with rubbing the back of his head.

"No prob?!" Chuck suddenly exclaimed. "Dude, that's like the seventh time we save the island. Take some pride."

"Well, that's the point. After seven times, it starts feeling like routine."

Peckinpah chuckled a bit. "Well, whatever the case, the town thanks you for your bravery. In celebration of the one-year anniversary of our war with the pigs, I and the rest of the island are throwing a grand party tomorrow in your honor."

"Really?! Wow, that sounds awesome!" Bomb exclaimed in joy.

"Huh...I don't know. I'm kinda busy. I've got to clean my house, meet friends, and-" Red lied, trying to find an excuse to not go to the party.

"We will all be happy to come!" Bomb interrupted his cardinal friend.

"We can totally make it! Not like we have anything else to do!" Chuck added with a nod.

"Excellent! I hope to see you three there," the judge said before walking off to help the other birds returning the eggs to their parents.

"See you there...," Red groaned, frustrated at his friends. "What the heck was that for?!" he shouted at them after the judge was gone.

"What? We've been busting our butts fighting the pigs. We deserve a break, you especially!" Chuck explained.

"Chuck's right," Bomb nodded. "Besides, I'm tired of always having doctor's appointments."

"Doctor's appointments?" Red asked with a curious look.

"We crash into buildings for a living. What'd ya expect?" Bomb asked.

"Look, it's just that...I'm not a big fan of parties. I have a bad history with them."

The canary and black bird exchanged curious looks. "Why?"

Red suddenly had a flashback of when he was a little kid. He remembered being invited to a "party in his honor" by his classmates. But when he showed up, he got splashed over by paint and rotten fishes. His classmates all mocked him. "EYEBROWS! EYEBROWS!" they chanted which caused Red to start crying.

"Red? Red, you okay buddy?" Bomb asked, bringing Red out of his flashback.

"Yeah, you blacked out for a minute," Chuck remarked with his wings crossed.

"Sorry, I just...thought of something. Anyways, the point is I don't wanna go to the party," the cardinal explained.

"C'mon, bro! How do you expect us to have a party in your honor without you?" Bomb asked him.

"You could always just dress up Billy like me and take him."

"No!" Chuck firmly said. "He's still traumatized from being captured by the pigs."

"That was a year ago, Chuck. Also, he's not a real bird."

"HE'S REAL TO ME!" the canary screamed.

"Calm down, Chuckster. No need to get angry," Bomb calmly coaxed.

"I know, it's just...ever since a certain someone destroyed him, he's never been the same. The stress, the anxiety, he's always afraid that the certain someone will return and hurt him," Chuck cried comedically.

Bomb frowned to see his best friend sad (even though it was visibly fake). Red rolled his eyes when Chuck's eyes suddenly widened and a smile formed on his face.

"If only there was a way for that certain someone to make it up for hurting my dear Billy. Then maybe I can forgive him," Chuck acted, trying to get Red to feel guilty.

"Yeah, fat chance, birdbrain," Red remarked. Chuck looked up, seeing that his plan wasn't working, but kept going on with it.

"Maybe I could also give this person fifty bucks."

"You don't even have fifty bucks."

Chuck finally stopped crying and gave Red a look of frustration. Suddenly, he dashed away and, fast as lightning, came back, holding Billy, the mechanical bird that he built for his old anger management class. Chuck held Billy next to Red so that its sign kept whacking the red cardinal over the head.

"OW! HEY! WHAT DO YOU - OW!" Red groaned in pain.

"Go to the party. Go to the party. I'm not gonna stop until you go to the party," Chuck rapidly urged.

"Ow! Okay, okay, I'll go!"

"Wonderful!" Chuck exclaimed. "Can't wait to see you there! See ya around, buddy!"

"Wow, Chuck, how did you get him to say yes?" Bomb asked with an amazed look.

"Little something called reverse psychology or something like that," the canary responded.

The two then walked back home, leaving Red to wonder what he had just gotten himself into. But it was just a party. Nothing could go wrong...right?

* * *

 **Will the party for Red and his friends be fun or something bad will happen?**

 **And...yes, you will have to follow both this story and "Quest For Awesomeness" simultaneously. Except if you don't want to, you're not forced to, my friends.**


	287. Red's doubts

_Red was in a room. He looked around for an exit but as he ran, he tripped on something. He looked down and realized that what he had tripped on was a stick of dynamite!_

 _The bird looked around him and realized that he was back at Leonard's castle on Piggy Island. The entire room was full of explosives. He surveyed the area in horror until he heard someone laughing behind him. He turned around to see the very last person he expected to see again._

 _Leonard, also known as King Mudbeard, looked down at him with an evil smile on his face. He was carrying a blazing torch in his hand._

 _He laughed as he swiped his torch around, nearly burning Red. The bird tripped over a box of TNT and fell down a hill of dynamite, rolling next to a boiling cauldron. He ran from the cauldron only to look up and see his friends in front of him._

 _"HELP, GUYS!" he shouted. His friends ran up to help him with concerned looks on their faces._

 _Suddenly, he was pushed by his friends into the cauldron, their look of concern turning into glee and malice. As Red fell into the cauldron, he could see and hear his friends laughing._

 _"You thought that you could ever be our friend? A screw-up like you?!" Chuck asked with a burst of mocking laughter._

 _"I've never heard something so stupid!" Bomb chortled._

 _"We're all sick of having to deal with a moron like you! We'll finish what the pigs started!" Matilda screeched._

 _"I want you out of our lives once and for all, Eyebrows!" Snow Kid snickered._

 _"It is time for Mister Red to DIE!" Judge Peckinpah cackled as he lifted up a giant gavel and dropped it onto Red. Mid-air, the gavel changed into a bucket of paint._

 _"NOOOOO!" Red screamed as the paint was about to splash on him._

* * *

KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!

"Red, you up yet?" Red woke up to see he was still in his room. His bed was covered in sweat as he cringed in fear of what he had just witnessed. But it was just a dream... Just a dream. "Red, you in there?"

Red recognized Chuck's voice and got out of his bed, walking over to his door. He opened it to see Chuck and Bomb wearing bowties. A sombrero was on top of Chuck's head which was not really surprising once you got to know the canary.

"Hey, buddy! You ready?" Bomb asked with a grin.

"Hum, ready for what?" Red inquired the two, still a little frightened by the nightmare he just had.

"Why, for the party of course!" Chuck replied.

"The party doesn't start until tonight. It's noon," Red pointed out.

"Sweet! Just enough for the pedicures! We do wanna look our best for later," Bomb said and slicked the feather on his head backward.

"Oh, huh, I don't think I have time for, huh...pedicures. You see, I got a thing to do...with my...," Red stuttered, trying to escape from going with them. After a few seconds of awkward looks between each other, Red abruptly shut the door.

Chuck and Bomb exchanged awkward looks, wondering what was wrong with Red. "What just happened?" Chuck awkwardly asked.

"You think he's trying to get out of heading into the party?" Bomb asked back.

"Please. Unless he wants another whacking from Billy, he's coming," Chuck said, waving his wing.

"I hope he does. It would be nice to have a party in his honor, considering everything he has done for us."

"I know, right? I just want the guy to get a break from being beaten and hit all the time."

"Didn't you beat and hit him to get him to go to the party?"

"Hey, our past doesn't define us."

"That was last night."

"...Pedicures, right! We were gonna get pedicures! C'mon, let's go!" the speedster blurted out before running away in a flash.

"Hey, wait up, bro!"

* * *

Hours later, everyone gathered at the party which was held in the usual town meeting place. On the stage was an orchestra of birds playing a well-recognized song while the many citizens of the island danced and chatted with each other.

At one table, two teens known as Hal and Bubbles were discussing what to do for their next play. "What if it's about us fighting with food or something?" the short oriole suggested.

"Nah, we did that last year. What if it's about us opening a fanmail?" the big-beaked toucanet recommended.

"No, no one's gonna watch that. I know! We find a talking guinea pig in our trash can!"

"What's a guinea pig?" Hal curiously asked.

"...Fanmail it is," Bubbles replied.

In front of them, Stella the adventurous pink bird was chatting with her friends, Poppy the silly cockatiel, Dahlia the genius owl, Willow the artistic pigeon, Luca the fun-loving blue hatchling, and Gale the vain starling. "It's weird that we're honoring the guy that we were so afraid of a year ago," Gale pointed out.

"Hey, the bird saved us all and for that, we should give him our utmost respect," Dahlia argued.

Stella decided to join in the conversation. "He's actually a cool guy. He might not be the most social bird around but he's not as mean as he used to be."

"Still, you have to admit that you never expected that that weirdo would ever be accepted," Gale insisted.

"Hey! Mr. Red is not a weirdo!" Willow chirped. "He's a good bird and an amazing leader."

"I guess. He did save us," the starling admitted.

"I mean, if we can hang out with someone like Dalhia, then I'm pretty sure we can accept Red," Poppy joked.

"HEY! How am I quote-unquote 'weirdo'?! I'm completely normal!" the owl argued.

Poppy laughed. "Normal birds don't bring their nerd stuff from their lab to parties."

"But I'm so close to finding out the missing link between us and our ancestors!"

"Whatever, buddy. I was just pulling your talons. Jeez, no wonder your boyfriend dumped you."

"IT WAS MUTUAL!" Gale and Stella laughed as Poppy and Dalhia bickered.

"I didn't even know that Dalhia had a girlfriend," Luca mumbled which made Stella laugh even more

"It's great to be back home with you guys," Stella sighed.

"It's great to see YOU back, Stella," Gale replied as the two friends watched Dalhia giving up on the argument and asked Willow to get her another drink.

At another table, Snow Kid chuckled as he watched the scene with Stella's flock. "I always liked Stella's group. They're so lively," the snowy owl commented.

"I've seen how you missed Mrs. Willow last day during our battle with the pigs," remarked Miko, the bluebird specialized in martial arts and noodles. "That was heroic, Mr. Snow."

The snowy owl sighed and rolled his eyes. "Miko, come on, how many times will I have to ask you? Stop calling me 'mister'; it's making me feel old."

"I can't help it; my parents told me that respect is golden," the bluebird replied and took a sip of a noodle soup he brought to the party.

"I must admit that fighting the pigs is fun. It brings life into our daily routine," Lovia the grey bird said with adjusting a lollipop in her mouth and had her feet resting on the table. Her baseball bat was resting beside her against the table.

"By the way, were you going to be done with your new engined boat soon, Lovia?" Snow asked his friend.

"Yeah; I just need to do some adjustments. Dalhia is gonna help me with it."

"That's really sweet," said Natasha, the lady pheasant. She was enjoying an exotic cocktail. "I hope to be the first one to try it." she then looked at Snow. "Wanna dance once I'm done drinking, Snow?"

"Sure, my little beauty," Snow answered his girlfriend with a smile.

"Oh! Oh! I wanna dance too!" exclaimed Ocia the short-eared owl, jumping all around the table. "It's so much fun! You just move your body all around as if there was no tomorrow!"

"We get it, we get it, Ocia. You love dancing," Rakonto the long-tailed tit said with a chuckle. His bow and bag of arrows were resting on the table beside him.

"Guys, today's a special night," Natasha suddenly announced.

"Why?" Rakonto asked.

"It's been officially three months since we formed our flock! This calls for a little celebration, don't you think?" the lady pheasant asked with rising her wing to show the bracelet made of seashells she made for everyone. All the others nodded and did the same, showing the bracelets that represented their friendship.

"Let's have fun then," Snow said with pulling out a box of chocolate milk bottles he made at his creamery and gave one to all of his friends.

At another table, the odd couple of Matilda and Terence were talking together. Well, actually, it was only Matilda talking but they were both enjoying the party. "I've never seen the island this united in years. It's nice to relax and calm down after a year of beating, destroying, and blowing up pigs," the chicken said with a smile on her face as she rested on the large bird's arm. He grunted in agreement as they both watched the show.

"There they are!" Chuck and Bomb ran up to Matilda and Terence to sit down with them. "Oh boy, oh boy! I can't believe it has already been a year since we beat up the pigs!" Bomb exclaimed.

"And now, our little Red is being praised by the entire island!" Chuck added and sniffed. "They grow up so fast!"

"Only a month of anger management class and here we are now!" Matilda said. "I think I'm gonna cry!"

Judge Peckinpah walked onto the center of the stage as the band stopped playing. He picked a microphone and started his speech for the crowd: "Dear citizens of Bird Island, a year ago, an odd creature came to this island. He and his friends treated us as friends and gave us many gifts and many inventions. But in reality, that creature deceived us. He tried to take away our eggs, our children, our future. He tried to consume the beings that would grow up to become outstanding citizens themselves. He thought that we were foolish, too naive to stop him. But he thought wrong. He thought that he could get away with his plans, but he was wrong about that as well. In fact, there was only one thing that he was right about: that the relationship between the birds and the pigs would begin with us lighting up the night. And that we did. We lit up their dreadful and dangerous night with our pride and our bravery. We traveled throughout the world in order to get back our loved ones. We've turned their invention of danger into our weapon of hope. For we are birds and we shall never surrender!"

The audience cheered with pride and joy, jumping out of their seats and clapping, commending themselves for their bravery.

"And on this night, we declare that we honor the one that started us on our path to bravery!"

Backstage, Red was trying to keep it together. He was still a little shaken by the nightmare he had last night. "Come on, Red. you can do this. It won't end up like...last time."

He stopped as he looked through the curtains to see a group of birds carrying buckets of fish. They passed by him as he began to sweat, remembering the party from his childhood.

"Hum, so they have fish. Big deal. It's just some coincidence-" He saw another group of birds carrying buckets of paint. He worried that his worst fear was coming true. Out of nowhere, someone tapped him on the back and he turned around to see it was just Cyrus.

"ACHOO! Mr. Red, you're up," the sneezing bird beckoned. Red gulped and walked up to the stage.

"Tonight, we give our thanks to the bird who had the courage to keep on fighting! The one with the strength to persevere in dark times! The one who inspired us all! The one and only...RED!" the judge yelled. The audience once again cheered as Red walked onstage, clearly shaking.

At the back, his friends were applauding for him. "WHOO! I'M HIS BEST FRIEND!" Chuck bragged.

"WAY TO GO, RED!" Matilda cheered. Even Terence smiled which meant that it was very special.

"COME ON, BOY!" Red saw Snow Kid cheering with rising his chocolate milk bottle.

"Red," Peckinpah began. "We wish to say sorry for all the foolishness that we have troubled you with, in the past and we all hope that you can forgive us for our mistake."

"Uh, no worry, no harm was done," Red stammered.

"We all figured that for our Mister Red to be given the highest honor!" Peckinpah continued.

Red looked and saw his friends' faces. They reminded him much of how they looked in his nightmare. "No, they're my friends, they're my friends," he thought to himself.

"We must finish what we started!" the judge cried out.

"They're my friends, they're my friends," Red repeated. He saw the birds with the fish preparing to walk onstage. His eyes widened and he began to panic.

"Tonight, it is time..."

Red froze, remembering how it all ended in his nightmare.

"...for Mister Red..."

"They're my friends...right?"

"...TO DIE!"

"NO!" Red shouted as he pushed down the owl and ran to the birds holding the fish. He took some of the fish in his hand and began using them as weapons on the judge, whacking them across the old bird's face. "NOT AGAIN! NOT AGAIN!" he kept crying that phrase until he grew tired and threw down the now-battered fish.

He panted as he looked around, seeing the many scared looks of innocent birds. His friends gasped, shocked by what they just saw.

"Mister Red..." Red looked down to see the judge getting up, picking pieces of fish from his feathers. "...what on earth was that about?"

* * *

 **Wow, how will everyone react with Red's actions? Stay stunned to find out.**

 **This chapter was mostly to bring you back to the characters in this storyline (you probably forgot about most of them) while also showing how things changed since we last saw them. I also wanted to bring the focus a bit more on Red as he's gonna play a role as important as Snow Kid.**

 **And for those of you who didn't notice, the scene with Hal and Bubbles was referencing to the Smosh videos as the characters are played by Ian Hecox and Anthony Padilla. I had to slip a reference :)**

 **Except that, stay cool, guys. The Angry Birds Movie is owned by Rovio Animation and Sony Pictures.**


	288. The flood

"WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU?!" Red screamed at the judge. "WHY WOULD YOU TRY TO KILL ME?!"

"What are you talking about?!" Peckinpah asked in anger and confusion.

"Oh, come on! The fish? The paint? 'Time to die, Mister Red!' This can't just be some coincidence!"

The entire audience looked at him as if he was crazy, waiting to see what would happen. "What do you mean 'die'?" the judge questioned.

"Oh, you think I'm deaf now!" Red sarcastically said. "You said that it was time for me to die! Don't deny it!"

"Dine," the judge corrected.

"What?"

"Dine. You didn't let me finish. I was going to tell you that as a reward for your bravery, our fisher-birds would allow you to dine on the rare blue-scaled flounder, an ancient tradition on the island," the judge explained.

"What? Well, how about the paint? How do you explain that?!"

"The paint was to be used for Miss Willow's art presentation. She planned on painting a portrait of you live for the audience," the old bird explained.

"Well...that sounds actually very lovely!" Red angrily yelled.

"Mister Red, I don't know what this is about but I'm shocked by your behavior! And after everything you went through in anger management class!"

All the eyes turned toward Matilda who was getting nervous and giggled. "Hum, is it too late to give him a certificate for passing my class?"

"Look...I thought that you...after everything that...back when I was a kid...," Red stammered.

"I may not know what happened in your past but after all we've done to congratulate your accomplishments, you still have not forgiven us?!" Peckinpah accused.

"I...I..." Red didn't know what to say. He saw the birds in the audience staring at him as if he was insane. Some of the hatchlings even began to tear up a little. The family of bluebirds whispered to each other, covering their children's eyes. The blue triplets looked as shocked as everyone else. They idolized Red and couldn't believe he would do this.

And his friends...they looked so heartbroken. They knew about his troubles as a hatchling but they never thought that he wouldn't trust them enough to just throw a simple party. Chuck and Bomb looked worried for their good friend while Matilda awkwardly looked down at her table. Even Terence was taken aback by Red's actions. And Snow Kid was looking at him with wide eyes, still digesting what just happened.

"I...," Red stuttered. "Guys, I'm so sorry-"

He was suddenly interrupted as the odd noises of the police bird Bill Beakins could be heard through the crowd. The officer ran onto the stage, yelling some police-related noises to the crowd. Everybody was confused as to why he came.

"Mister Beakins, what's the matter?" the judge asked.

The cop now worked as the island's border guard who warned the birds of any trouble that could come to the nation. He responded to Peckinpah's question with the sounds of police sirens and car horns.

"Oh my gosh...," the judge exclaimed, terrified by the cop's news. He turned to the crowd and relayed the officer's message. "Attention, everyone! According to Officier Beakins, there is a powerful hurricane coming toward the island! Everyone, return to your home and follow the safety guidelines!"

Everybody started getting out of their seats, worried for their safety. "A hurricane?!" Snow Kid exclaimed.

"Get Luca! We're going!" Stella instructed her team.

Before anybody could leave, the officer continued his message and Peckinpah widened his eyes. "There has been a change of plans...IT'S A TSUNAMI!"

Now the crowd was outright panicking. They haven't had a tsunami in years. The last time it happened, half of their home got destroyed. The judge tried to calm everyone down.

"Everyone, listen! The tsunami is coming from the south shore! It's not safe to remain on the island! Get anything of value and get to the boats!" the judge ordered.

"RUN EVERYONE!" Snow Kid shouted.

Everyone rushed to their homes in order to retrieve everything they needed. Stella's friends jumped out of their seats, Snow's group quickly dashed away from the place, Hal and Bubbles were nearly crushed by all the commotion but continued to run, although it was hard with Bubbles' stubby legs and Hal's large beak. The orchestra jumped off stage with Peckinpah and Cyrus to run for safety. Chuck sped up, grabbing Red's arm, and joining with the rest of the flock.

"LET'S GET OUT OF HERE BEFORE WE DIE!" the canary panicked.

"I... Right! to the beach!" Red snapped out of his daze. The group rushed to get to their homes and retrieve their items.

Parents rushed to get their eggs and children before heading toward the boats. Matilda grabbed her favorite flower and her stress ball (which was ripped to shreds), Terence grabbed some supplies and first-aid kits, Bomb ran to get his collection of poetry and some water bottles, Mime Bird carried an imaginary box of items with him, and Red went to help the birds evacuating the orphanage with the hatchlings and eggs.

Chuck dashed to his treehouse in the forest in order to get his beauty kit, sombrero, fake mustache, Beakin's wallet (yeah, he still had that), and whatever else he could find, packing them in a suitcase that looked like it was ready to burst. Before he could even get outside, the suitcase exploded, items flying everywhere.

"Great! Now I'm gonna have to pull all of thaaaaa?!" From the top of his tree, he saw an enormous tidal ave coming toward the island. It looked big enough to wreck most of the island. The storm also began to grow stronger as the wind picked up and it began to pour. "...I'm out!" he squeaked before darting to the beach.

At the shore, the birds were getting their many boats and rafts ready. After the many failed invasions by the pigs, the birds were able to use the materials from their wrecked ships to build more boats. It was a job Lovia happily took part in and even directed with her love for vehicles.

Everyone was rushing to reach the mighty vessels. Once full, the boats closed their entrances and began to set sail for safer waters. Some of the birds simply ditched their items to make more room for others to join. As each boat was closing their ramps and leaving, others were running to get on. The family of bluebirds ran to enter one of the departing boats. Their children were trying to catch up but their tiny legs were preventing them from running as fast as their parents.

"There!" the mother pointed out as she spotted a boat that was still there. "Come on!"

The family grabbed their hatchlings and jumped onto the boat before the entrance closed. "Okay, we're safe now, everyone," the father calmly told his children.

"But what about Mister Red?" Jim asked.

The two parents looked at one another, wondering what to tell their children. Everyone around them looked just as confused. How do you react to your national hero going crazy? They didn't know much about his childhood but they did know it wasn't much pleasant. But did that excuse his actions at the party?

Their boat began to leave the shore, chugging away at top speed. The only boats that were left were on the other side of the beach, next to the hills. Stella and her friends darted toward the nearest craft which was empty. They all managed to reach it...except for Gale.

"GALE! HURRY! WE HAVE TO GO!" Stella shouted.

Gale was far behind, carrying a large bag of jewelry, makeup, and more. "I'm almost...there," she panted.

"For the love of... Be right back!" Poppy said before running to her purple friend and lifting her up, leaving her bag behind.

"NO! I NEED THOSE!" Gale complained.

"Yeah, well you also need your life!" Poppy retorted as she threw her friend onto the craft.

"SET SAIL!" ordered Stella as Dalhia and Willow lifted their sails and set a course to reach the other boats.

Meanwhile, Red finally finished packing all the eggs onto one of the boats and watched it sail away. He then looked back to see his friends rushing to the shore. Chuck appeared out of nowhere in panic. "Guys! We need to move out and quickly!"

"GUYS!" They turned to see Snow Kid's flock on a boat with the owl waving at them. "OVER HERE!"

"Quick! Before the wave hits!" Chuck rushed.

"What wave?" Red curiously asked.

Suddenly, the beach shook and the group looked up to see the tidal wave finally crashing onto the island. It destroyed half of the coast, engulfing mountains, but it was certain to not stop there.

"Oh...that wave. Yeah, we should probably go!" Red panicked and joined his group to run and join Snow Kid's flock. The two groups quickly started to sail away from the island in hopes of getting to safety.

However, the wave had already gained a lot of the field and was going to crush them! "CRAP!" Snow Kid shouted. the last thing everyone saw before getting engulfed in the water was their snowy owl friend jumping forward with ice energy charged in his hands.


	289. Lost at sea

"Snow? Snow? SNOW!"

Snow Kid coughed water out by his beak as he regained consciousness. He felt like his lungs were about to explode and he could easily tell his eyes were red. After blinking many times, he could discern the worried look of Natasha's face.

"Snow, you're okay?" she asked in concern.

"Y-Yeah, I think," the snowy owl weakly replied. He looked around him to see Miko, Lovia, Rakonto, Ocia, Red, the Blues, Chuck, Bomb, Matilda, Terence, Bubbles, and Hal. They were all safe and sound.

"Thank god!" the lady pheasant exclaimed as she grabbed her boyfriend and hugged him. "You got me scared!"

The others joined in the hug as well. "We're all glad you're safe, Mr. Snow!" Miko happily said.

"I'm glad you're all safe too," Snow said before they broke from the hug. He then looked around to see that they were in the middle of a vast ocean with no sight of land around. They were all standing on an ice platform that was floating over the water with some remainings of their boat and the items they had brought with them before the tsunami hit the island.

"Wait, is the island...," Snow muttered with a look of shock.

The others looked down in silence with tears in their eyes. "Bird Island is gone...," Natasha quietly said.

Snow widened his eyes in horror. "No! That's impossible!"

"Snow, the wave destroyed everything. There's nothing left," Lovia sadly said

"Crap, crap, crap...!" the ice bird silently swore, taking his head into his hands in panic. "What about all the others? Are they safe?"

"I don't know; we got separated after the wave hit," Rakonto explained. "We haven't seen anyone since."

Snow Kid started panicking and ran to the edge of the ice platform. "HELLO! IS ANYONE THERE?! STELLA! WILLOW! ANYONE!"

"Snow, they won't be able to hear you," Bubbles tried to calm his ice friend down.

"We have to try!" Snow argued. "HELLO!"

"Snow's right; we've gotta do something," Red said. "We have our boat of ice now and we have supplies along with stuff that we can use as paddles. Let's keep searching for the others!" he instructed.

Snow smiled and patted the red cardinal on the shoulder. "We're lucky to have your leadership with us at this moment, pal. Let's get going."

The feathered friends used whatever they could find to use as paddles and started making their way north. They just kept paddling over and over again under the sun.

"How long have we been on this ocean?" Ocia asked, resting on her back with one hand in the water. "It feels like an eternity!"

"Judging by the position of the sun, I'd say...ten minutes," Rakonto replied.

"A-Are we gonna die?" Jay of the Blues asked in fear.

"Of course not, little buddy," Snow replied with patting his shoulder. "We're gonna regroup with the others and find your friends. Just stay calm until then, okay?"

"Guys! Look!" Hal suddenly called.

The feathered group turned their head to see a large island ahead of them. It had many forests and a giant volcano with steam boiling from the crater. This island looked a bit strange, but it was better than staying in the middle of the sea and starving to death or drown.

"Alright, let's make our way over to this island, everyone!" Red ordered.

As soon as their ice platform touched land, Chuck and Ocia jumped down and started kissing the sand. "Oh, land! Oh, land! I never want to leave you again!" the canary exclaimed...before spitting sand out of his beak.

"Where are we exactly?" Matilda asked with walking down onto the sand, the blue triplets in her arms.

"I've never seen this island before," Lovia remarked, her metal bat resting on her shoulder. "And yet, I made a lot of traveling around our island - well, FORMER island - with the boats that I built."

"We'll worry about that later," Snow Kid said. "In the meantime, I suggest we build a campsite because we don't know for how long we'll be stuck here. Terence, if you could bring our supplies on the beach, it would help a lot." The giant red bird nodded before leaving. "Red, I'd like you to come with me and go scoot what's into this island just to make sure it's safe."

The red bird nodded and followed his snowy owl friend as they stepped into the forest, leaving their friends on the beach. As they walked through the large trees and onto twigs, Red couldn't help but feel like the ice bird wanted to bring him along for more than just scooting ahead.

He was right as Snow Kid stopped walking after they entered an open area and turned toward Red. "Red, we must talk."

"About what?"

"About what happened during the party last night."

Red rolled his eyes. "Dude, we're lost on an island and we don't know where the others are? Can we forget about this until we're all reunited and safe?"

Before Snow Kid could reply, the two friends quickly jumped out of the way as a fireball came out of nowhere and left a burning trail in its way before crashing into a rock, luckily not setting the forest on fire. "What the fleck?!" Red exclaimed and the two friends turned toward the source of this fireball.

Their attacker was a strange bird that looked like a raven with midnight black feathers and had white ski goggles covering his eyes. However, the scariest part was that he was holding a fireball in one hand and smirking at the duo, indicating that he wasn't a friendly guy.

"Red! Back off!" Snow ordered as he rose his wings and shot a jet of ice toward the intruder. This last one replied by shooting a jet of fire which collided against Snow's attack and created a lot of steam. Of course, since fire naturally defeats ice, Snow lost and got knocked to the ground with not burned feathers by some chance. The blackbird jumped onto Snow, smirking down at him.

"Hey! Let him go! Who are you?!" Red asked, ready to attack this strange firebird.

However, he paid no attention to Red and simply removed his goggles, revealing a pair of jade green eyes and chuckled. "You haven't changed that much in term of ice power, Snow."

The white bird gasped and then jumped to hug the black bird who returned the gesture. "Wait, what?" Red asked, completely confused as to why Snow was acting friendly toward the bird who tried to murder them moments ago.

After breaking from the hug, Snow turned toward Red and pulled a hand on the black bird's shoulder. "Red, this is Rey Fenix...my brother!"


	290. Tale of the three siblings

"Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait! So you're telling me that this guy is your brother?!" Chuck exclaimed in utter shock.

After Red and Snow's shot scooting trip, they returned to the beach and properly introduced the blackbird who was supposedly Snow's brother to the group. Right now, everyone was standing together around the black and white birds.

"Yup," Snow confirmed with a wing around the raven. "Rey is my brother. Rey, these are my friends." He introduced them all one-by-one, starting with his flock and ending with Hal and Bubbles.

"Nice to meet ya all," the raven said with waving his hand with a smile.

"Huh, I think we missed something," Rakonto said, scratching the side of his head. "Snow never told us he has a brother."

"Because you never asked me, silly," Snow said with a chuckle.

"...Good point."

"So, how did you do that thing with the fire, Rey?" Red asked the raven. "Is that your special power?"

"Yeah; I have control over fire magic," Rey explained with snapping his feathered fingers which made a flame appear in his hand. Everybody looked at it with amazement, Chuck practically gaping at it (despite having already seen this kind of power before).

"Fire magic? What's that?" Matilda asked.

"It is the same kind of magic used by Snow only mine is with fire," Rey explained. The others just stared at him with blank eyes. "What, Snow didn't tell you the nature of his ice powers?"

All the eyes turned toward the ice bird who sighed. "To understand, you must first know where Rey and I come from. You see, when we were only eggs, Rey and I along with the third egg which held our sister-"

"Because you even have a sister?!" Chuck suddenly exclaimed. "Seriously, is there anything else you've kept hidden from us, Snow?"

The owl rolled his eyes then resumed as if nothing happened. "When we only eggs, my two siblings and I were abandoned and found by three mystical creatures. Believe it or not, but they were a mermaid, a phoenix...and a yeti."

The birds blinked in pure confusion. "A Mermaid? Like those half-fish half-anthro creatures?" Bomb asked.

"Yes," Snow nodded.

"A Phoenix like those birds made of fire?" Matilda asked.

"Yes."

"And a Yeti like these furry and giant-footed creatures living in the snowy mountains?" Red asked.

"Yes," Snow nodded again. "I don't know the full story, but these three creatures found us just as we hatched from our eggs and they decided to take us under their care. Our sister, Sifa, got taken by the Mermaid who brought under to the sea and learned to live underwater. The Phoenix took Rey and brought him to a volcano where he taught him Fire Magic. As for me, I got taken by the Yeti who brought me to his home in some snowy mountains - I don't remember where. There, he taught me to master Ice Magic."

To emphasize his point, Snow charged some ice energy into his hand for everyone to see. "If Snow has a Mermaid-like sister, I already wanna date her!" Bubbles said which earned him a glare from Snow.

"But where are your adoptive parents then?" Red asked. "And where's your sister?"

"Sifa is somewhere in the sea as we speak," Snow replied. He suddenly took an angry glare. "As for our parents...they just dropped us on three different islands one day and disappeared without leaving any trace. I don't know what hit their head to do this, but I never forgave them for this. And when I see them again, I can guarantee you that they will hear a few words from me."

Everybody stared at Snow and Rey. "...So...that's why we never saw any other birds looking like you on Bird Island," Red said.

"Yeah." Rey then smiled and wrapped one arm around Snow's shoulders. "But now, we're back together. And I'm glad that my little brother had funny friends with him as well as a very hot girlfriend."

That statement caused Natasha to blush and Snow to give an ice-charged punch to his brother's face. "Don't call Natasha like that!"

"Sorry, couldn't help it!" Rey said with laughing as he melted the ice off from his cheek and stood up.

"But Rey, can you tell us where we are?" Hal asked. "We've been separated from our friends after the tsunami and haven't seen them since."

"Of course. Welcome to Magic Island, my friends," the blackbird announced with a smile. "I haven't seen your friends, sorry. But I think the best thing for you to do would be to come to my flock's home and rest there before going to check for your friends."

This statement caused Snow to look at him in surprise. "Wait, you have a flock now?"

"Yup; just like yours," Rey nodded with a smile. "We're a big family. You guys should come to our home; we'll welcome you with open wings."

"What do you say, guys?" Snow asked the others.

"Sounds better than staying on this beach and waiting for some predators to come and eat us," Red said. "Let's go, everyone."

* * *

"I swear, we're going in circles!" Dalhia groaned.

"Nonsense! I know exactly where we're going!" Gale responded.

"Huh, buddy, we passed by this three times now," Stella pointed out.

"All trees look the same! What's your point?" Gale replied.

"Just admit it, man! We're lost!" Poppy cried.

"We are not lost!"

"She's right," Stella agreed. "We're not lost... We just don't know where we are."

"STELLA!" Gale yelled angrily at her friend.

"Sorry, but they do have a point."

"Well, why don't you lead the way then?"

"Guys! Shh!" Willow suddenly said. "I think I've heard something!"

Everybody listened carefully as they could indeed hear the sound of snapping twigs and bushes moving heading their ways. they instantly thought it was a predator coming to eat them and got ready to fight. Well, Stella and Poppy did while the others just hid behind them. However, what came out of the bushes wasn't a predator.

The intruder was a male grey bird like them. He had yellow eyes and was wearing mechanic goggles on his forehead along with a medical plaster on his right hand. He had a bag tied on his back which contained all sorts of staffs. He was holding one in his hands and pointed it toward the girls like a shotgun.

"Who are you?" he asked with a suspicious look.

"We don't want trouble. We just passed by!" Stella quickly explained.

"I don't remember ever seeing you around here. Where are you from?"

"We're from Bird Island," Luca responded while hiding behind Stella's leg. "It got destroyed by a tsunami."

The mysterious grey bird looked at Luca in surprise. "You have a kid with you?" He then looked back at the girls. "You said your island got destroyed?"

"Yes, by a tsunami," Stella nodded. "We got separated from our friends and we're lost. Can you help us?"

The grey bird just stared at them before pulling his wooden staff down. "You seem good to me. I can lead you to somewhere safe where you can rest for a bit." He turned around to leave. "Follow me."

"Wait, what's your name?" Stella asked.

The grey bird turned toward them. "My name is Mist Gun. Let's go."

* * *

 **Okay, Snow has a brother AND a sister, and he got raised up by a Yeti while his brother got raised by a Phoenix and his sister by a Mermaid. Is that too much to swallow at once? XD**

 **Who's this Mist Gun guy and what will he do with Stella's flock? Stay stunned to find out.**


	291. Rey's fleet

**It's time for you Owl Lovers to discover a new place in the world of our dear Angry Birds :)**

* * *

Rey was leading Red and Snow's groups (along with Hal and Bubbles) deeper into the island and through the large forest. They have been walking for quite a while now and were starting to get tired.

"Rey, are we arriving soon?" Chuck asked while panting. "My feet are hurting and being a speedster, I can tell you it doesn't happen frequently."

"I'm thirsty!" Bomb whined.

"I'm hungry!" Bubbles added.

"I have to pee!" Ocia mumbled with holding her crotch.

"Don't worry, guys," Rey said without turning to look at them. "We should arrive soon." He then pushed bushes out of the way. "Actually, we arrive right now!"

The group got beside him and looked ahead to gasp in shock. Before them was a large city that was way bigger than the village they had back on Bird Island. There were buildings everywhere and they were visibly better made than the houses on Bird Island.

 **(If I was to make a good description, I'd say it looks a little like Venice)**

"Welcome to Woody Vice!" Rey announced as they started walking in the streets. "One of the principal towns on Magic Island. And if I may say the coolest one."

"Wow!" Chuck exclaimed as they walked into the streets, meeting many birds on their way. "This place is sooooo awesome!" He started running to every market around with his ultra-speed.

"There is a romantic ambiance in here," Matilda sighed with resting against Terence's arm. The huge red bird smiled and blushed a little bit.

"You've been living here ever since we got separated, Rey?" Snow asked his brother.

"Yeah. Let's go to my flock's mansion; I'm sure you'll like all of them." Soon, the group arrived before a large mansion that had an orange flag with a white phoenix drawn on it. "Welcome to the Phoenix Mansion, my friends. This is where my flock resides," Rey announced.

"This place looks nice," Hal said with a smile on his large beak.

"Your flock is in there?" Natasha asked.

"Yup." Rey suddenly kicked the wooden doors open. It led them into a large room which had many tables and a bar at the end. Many colorful and differently-shaped birds were all around, either chatting, drinking, or playing games.

"Hey! Rey Fenix is back!" one of the birds beamed.

BAM!

Rey suddenly dashed at the bird in question and kicked him across the face which knocked him against the room's wall. This caused Red and Snow's flocks (and Hal and Bubbles) to widen their eyes in shock. "You still owe me fifty bucks from that poker game, dude!" he exclaimed.

"HEY! I REMIND YOU THAT YOU CHEATED IN THAT GAME!" the bird angrily replied.

"You want to fight?! Come on!"' Rey shouted and engaged in a fist fight with the bird. In a split second, all the birds present joined and started brawling all around.

"...What just happened?" Miko asked for everyone.

"I don't know," Snow admitted, looking in awe just like his friends.

"You really didn't change, Rey!" The birds turned to see a female bird sitting at the bar. She had light brown feathers with black irises and was wearing a cowboy hat and silver bracelets on her wrists. "Hi, name's Harley. I hold the title for this flock's heaviest drinker. And I don't date any of those guys because they have no class." She suddenly grabbed a huge barrel of alcohol and drank it with her beak.

"H-How can she drink so much?!" Natasha asked with a dumbfounded look.

"I don't know...but I already like her," Lovia said with a smirk.

"It's nothing new that you boys are already whining like spoiled babies!" The group turned their head again. This time, they were met by a pretty tall and muscled bird who had dark white feathers and black markings around his eyes.

"This guy is named Marcus!" Rey called while punching the bird in the face. "He believes that everything you need to solve problems is two strong fists!"

Marcus suddenly turned toward Terence and walked up to his face. "You! You look strong! Are you a real man?!" Before Terence couldn't answer, Marcus smashed him across the face which shocked Matilda. Terence angrily grunted and engaged in a fight with Marcus.

"...I think it's the first time I see someone having the guts to engage a fight with Terence," Rakonto mumbled.

"Wow, there's not a single sane person in this room," Natasha commented, looking at all the birds fighting.

"Excuse me. Are you new here?" The group turned and this time, they were approached by a female bird who had silver grey feathers and eyes, a white underbelly, and yellow beak and legs. "Hello, name's Silver. I'm the crazy looper of this flock."

"Nice to meet you, Silver," Red said.

"Wow, she's quite pretty, don't you think, Hal?" bubbles asked. However, he didn't get an answer. "Hal?" He turned to see his toucan friend was looking in awe at Silver as if mesmerized.

"...I think my heart just got hit by lightning...," he mumbled.

Suddenly, Marcus was sent crashing into Silver. The little lady simply pushed the muscled guy out of the way and glared at Terence. "Oh, you want to throw him at me! You're dead!"

"So much for having a calm drink," Hayley annoyingly said with finishing her beer barrel. "I suggest you all calm down before I get pissed off!"

"BRING IT ON!" Rey screamed, creating fire on his fists.

"STOP WHIMPERING LIKE CHILDREN!" a loud voice suddenly echoed. the fights stopped and everyone turned to see a giant shadow figure glaring down at them through white eyes.

"He's huge! Who the hell's that?!" Snow Kid asked in shock.

"Sorry, we didn't notice you, Master," Silver simply answered.

"Master?"

While everyone stopped laughing, Rey was laughing at everyone. "What a bunch of little babies! Looks like I'm the winner of this fight-" He didn't get to finish as the giant shadow figure stomped him with his big black foot.

"Well, who are these new birds?" the master asked in a loud voice.

"Huh, my name's Snow Kid, sir. I'm Rey's brother," Snow nervously explained the figure.

The figure smirked and suddenly shrimp down until it became barely taller than Bubbles. It was a small, old bird with orange and light blue feathers, yellow eyes, and a cute little mustache on his beak. "Nice to meet you all.

"H-How did he get so small?!" Chuck asked.

"This is PCO, the master of our flock," Silver answered.

The little orange and blue bird known as PCO jumped on the bridge of the higher level of the room and seriously glanced down at everyone. He cleared his throats and started talking. "You've gone invalid again, you bunch of clowns!" He then showed a huge pack of paper in his hand. "Just look at how much paperwork the Magic Council sent me this morning! This is my biggest pile of complaints yet!"

"Magic Council?" Snow mumbled.

"Are you off your minds?! All you kids are good for is getting the higher-ups mad at me!" PCO continued which caused everyone to look down. "However..." The little bird suddenly rose the papers in his wing and burned them down with magic. "I say to hell with the Magic Council!"

"WHAT?!" Snow and his friends exclaimed in shock at the master's action. He tossed the burning paper down to Rey who caught it and hate the fire.

"R-Rey can eat fire?!" Natasha asked in shock.

"Yeah. Just like I can eat ice," Snow pointed out.

"Now, listen up!" PCO continued. "Any power that surpasses reason still comes from reason. Magic isn't some kind of miraculous power; it is a talent that only works when the flow of energy in each of us and the flow of energy in the whole world are in perfect synchronization. To perform magic, one must have a strong mind and the ability to focus. It should take over your being and pour out of your soul. If all we worry about is following rules, then our magic will never progress. Don't let those idiots on the Council scare you! Follow the path you believe in! Cause that's what makes our fleet the number one!"

After the master's emotional speech, everybody hit their fist in the air and cheered so loudly that the building was shaking with strength. It was so great that even Snow and his friends couldn't help but do the same. With his fist in the air, Rey turned his head to look at Snow with a smile.

Both Red and Snow were thinking the same thing: this place was way cooler than the village in which they grew up as kids.

* * *

 **Phew! I introduced a lot of new characters in barely two chapters, didn't I?**

 **Silver belongs to Rovio as she comes from the "Angry Birds 2" video game. Rey Fenix, Mist Gun, PCO, Marcus, and Hayley are OCs that belong to me.**


	292. The flock's hidden powers

After the brawl and the whole speech made by Master PCO, Rey and his friends led Red and Snow's groups to rooms in their mansion where they were allowed to stay until reuniting with their friends from Bird Island. After getting settled, Rey's flock led his brother and his friends into the backyard of the mansion for a 'proper training'.

"What are we doing here, Rey?" Snow asked his brother.

"This backyard is our flock's training field," Rey responded with pointing at the very large green open area which had a few trees...and many holes were blown into the ground. "Before going to search for your friends, I wanted to see what kind of magical powers your friends have."

"You want to see our powers?" Natasha asked.

"Yup. Why don't you start, milady?" Rey asked in a flirty way which earned him another slap on the back of the head from his brother.

The lady pheasant stretched her long tail feathers to catch some rocks and toss them away. "Well, that's pretty much all I kind do."

"You can't do anything else?" Silver asked to which Natasha shook her head. She then rubbed her chin. "I might be able to help you with that. Wanna try and learn Celestial Magic?"

"What is Celestial Magic?" Natasha curiously asked.

"I'll explain you everything on the way to the market. Come on." Silver took Natasha's hand and led her out of the backyard and back into town.

"Now time to find out the powers of the other flock's leader," Rey said with looking at Red. "Come on, show me!"

Red nervously rubbed the back of his head. "Huh...I don't really...have any powers..." This earned him a surprised and confused look from Rey. "Actually, I'm the only one in my flock who don't have any power. Except for Terence but he has the size and strength to compensate it."

Rey blinked his eyes in confusion at him. "What are you talking about, Red? I can feel your magic right now."

"You feel magic in me?!"

"Yes. Actually, it's pretty similar to mine. I think your magic comes from anger."

"It's impossible; Red's angry all the time and he never created magic," Chuck deadpanned.

"I can help you with that," Rey said with a wing around Red's shoulders. "I want you to close your eyes and think about something that makes you really angry."

It wasn't a very hard demand as there was a lot of memories that made Red angry. How the kids mocked him as a kid for having large eyebrows, how the green birds family unfairly caused him to get anger management class simply for doing his job, how Judge Peckinpah condemned him simply for revealing he was standing on Cyrus, how nobody believed him with the pigs, and the list goes on. Red's heart started pounding as he felt anger rising into him.

"Great! Now, try to focus this anger into your hand and unleash your magic!" Rey instructed.

Doing just that, Red could indeed feel something building his right hand and it was getting really hot. He soon opened his eyes and was surprised to see his hand glowing with red fire. "W-What's going on?!"

"This is your magic," Rey happily said. "It's called Rage Fire Magic. As the name implies, it's a magic that relies on one's anger. Try to shoot with it!"

Rising his wing, Red somehow managed to shoot a red fireball which set a tree on red fire. Everybody looked in awe at their friend. The cardinal looked at his hand in total shock as the red fire slowly faded away. "I could do this all this time and I didn't even know it? Certainly would have been useful against the pigs."

"This is soooo cool!" Chuck beamed and hugged his friend. "Do it again! Do it again!"

"Whoa, whoa, calm down. I don't wanna burn this whole place down," Red responded.

"So, your power is speed?" Rey asked after seeing Chuck run so fast many times.

"Yes, sir. I'm the Chuckster, King of Speed, and inventor of the catchphrase 'IT'S CHUCK TIME'!" the canary replied.

"...That sounds ridiculous," Marcus remarked, causing Chuck to glare and his friends to chuckle.

The next ones to showcase their powers were Bomb and Matilda. Needless to say that Rey and his friends were finding it rather strange to see a bomb-shaped bird that could automatically blow up and a chicken that could shoot missiles from her butt. After them was Miko who showed some martial art moves as well as creating an aura ball with his hands.

"So you possess aura magic?" Hayley asked with sudden interest.

"Yeah, I always felt it inside of me, but I was only able to produce small balls of aura," Miko explained. "I never really learned how to make it work."

Rey put a hand on Miko's shoulder. "We have someone who could help you with that. Go at the infirmary and ask for Doctor Benjamin; he's gonna help you with that."

Miko nodded and walked back into the mansion to go to the infirmary. Before long, everyone showcased their powers and skills to Rey's flock.

"Well, I gotta say you guys have pretty interesting powers," Rey admitted. He then put a hand on Snow's shoulder. "I'm really glad my brother was looked after by such great friends while I was gone." Snow smiled at him.

"Hey, Rey!" Everybody turned to see a group of birds coming. There was Mist Gun accompanied by none other than Stella's flock.

"Stella!" Snow exclaimed.

"Guys!" The three flocks (along with Hal and Bubbles) rushed at each other to exchange hugs, glad that they were all okay. "Oh my gosh, you guys are fine!"

"You girls too. And Luca," Snow said with a chuckle as the little blue hatchling nodded.

"What happened to you? Where are the others?" Red proceeded to ask.

"We don't know; we got separated from them too," Poppy answered. "We have no idea where they are."

"We got saved by this guy. His name's Mist Gun," Dalhia said with pointing at the grey bird who just smiled.

"You like to save ladies, don't you, M.G.?" Rey asked with nudging the strange grey bird.

"You know him, Mist Gun?" Willow asked.

"Yes; it's Rey Fenix, a member of the same flock I'm part of," Mist Gun explained.

"And that's not all; he's also my big brother," Snow announced.

As expected, Stella and her friends were stunned to learn that. As Snow started explaining the whole story to their flock, Gale was looking at Rey with a dreaming look. She started feeling warm in her heart as she looked at the handsome black bird and blushed a little bit.

"So Yetis, Phoenixes, and Mermaids really do exist?" Dalhia asked with a surprised look. "Oh my gosh! I knew it! My researches can restart right now!"

"Well, it's nice to meet you, Rey. We're really glad to meet you," Stella said with holding her hand toward Rey for a shake.

However, before Rey could shake it, Gale suddenly pushed Stella out of the way and gave a seductive smile. "Nice to meet you, handsome Phoenix. My name is Gale. If you're interested - which I'm sure you are - we can go on a date whenever you have the time for it."

"Hum...thanks?" Rey unsurely replied.

Snow Kid widened his eyes at the scene. "Oh no! Gale doesn't have a crush on my brother?!"

* * *

 **Poor Snow. You imagine if Gale ends up with Rey? It would mean that he will have to spend a lot of time with her...and he hates her! XD**


	293. The pigs arrive!

Two days have passed since Snow, Red, Stella, and their respective flock arrived on Magical Island and got reunited with Snow's long-lost brother, Rey Fenix. They made a lot of research around the vast island but couldn't find the other villagers from Bird Island anywhere. This made them very worried that they might still be lost at sea. During this time, our feathered friends also took time to train with their new magical powers in order to become better. Red was having a bit of a hard time controlling his Rage Fire but his time in anger management class made it easier than it would have normally been.

Right now, Snow was sitting on a balcony on the very upper level of the Phoenix Flock's mansion, admiring the sea in the distance. There was a bit of mist hiding the view but it was still beautiful nonetheless.

"This view is beautiful." Snow turned his head to see his beautiful girlfriend joining him. "I understand why Fenix told me it was one of his most favorite spots."

Snow chuckled and kissed Natasha's cheek. "He's still hiding from Gale, isn't he?"

"Yeah. I didn't know she could be such a pain in the butt," Natasha admitted.

"I just hope that Rey won't take her as his girlfriend anytime soon. Otherwise, I'll get stuck with her as well." Snow then noticed a worried look on the lady pheasant's face. "What's bothering you, Nat?"

"I was just...thinking about the others from Bird Island. Do you think it's possible that they...?"

"Hey, hey, hey," Snow immediately said and wrapped his arms around her for a hug. "I don't want to hear that. If my brother and sister managed to survive out there on their own, I'm sure our friends must have too. We'll find them sooner or later, you'll see."

Despite her boyfriend's reassuring words, Natasha couldn't help but sniff a bit into his chest, thinking about all her friends being dead. The snowy owl gently stroke her head feathers for a while until she felt a bit better. He then looked down at a set of keys held by a belt tied around her waist. They were all golden and had different shapes.

"What are those keys?" he asked.

Natasha wiped her tears away and stood up to show her keys. "I forgot to tell you sooner. Those are the keys of Celestial Magic Silver bought for me two days ago at a special market."

"Celestial Magic? How does it work?"

"Well, I don't remember all of Silver's explanations, but it's something about making a deal with the celestial constellations so that they can take shape and come to your help. I'll show you a demonstration later if you want." She then looked over Snow's shoulder and gave a stunned look.

"What's wrong, Nat?" Snow also turned toward where she was gazing...and gasped as he saw what was coming toward them.

Through the fog, an entire armada of ships sailed toward the island, all of them being as large as the boat that arrived on Bird Island when the pigs came for the first time. Green flags flew overhead as laughter could be heard coming from the ships.

"Oh my gosh...!" Natasha mumbled.

Snow also gave a look of horror. "We need to go get the others! NOW!"

* * *

A few moments later, all three flocks were gathered on the balcony and looked at the armada of ships coming toward their island. "Where did they come from?!" Bomb asked in panic.

Red used a pair of binoculars to give a closer look at the ships. He saw that the ships were filled to the brim with pigs, each laughing their head off as they were preparing to land on the island. What caught Red's attention was that one of the boats was coming toward them.

"Is that...?!" Lovia asked.

"No way!" Miko muttered.

"Mighty Eagle?!" everyone exclaimed at unison.

On one of the ships, the great bald eagle was tied down to the deck of the ship, trying to get out of the ropes tying him down. He tried to attack the pigs mocking him and poking him with their weapons but he couldn't. Looking around the ship that he was on, Red noticed one of the pigs coming up from the inside of the ship was covered in scratch marks and...feathers? The sounds of crying and anger could be heard from within the ship.

"Pigs have feathers now?" Rakonto asked with a confused look.

"No, I think the others are in there. the other birds," Red replied. This made all the other gasp. Their friends were safe but held hostage by the pigs!

"W-What are we gonna do?" Willow nervously asked face to this situation.

"We'll fight them." Everybody turned to see Snow Kid glaring with a serious look. "It's not hard; we go greet them, kick their bacon butt, and save our friends!"

"Are you crazy?!" Chuck said. "There must be at least a thousand...or two thousand pigs on these boats! How could we possibly take them down by ourselves?!"

"It's simple." Snow rose his fist and charged it with ice magic. "What we don't have in number, we have it in strength. If we all work together and managed to free our friends, we should be able to overpower the pigs. And with Mighty Eagle and Master PCO backing us up, those pigs will become bacon bits in no time!"

Rey smirked and wrapped on arm around Snow's shoulders. "Did I ever told you how much I love your plans, bro?"

* * *

The headship of the armada landed at the beach while the others stayed behind. One of the minion pigs hopped down from the headship, brandishing a sword at the others. "Attention everyone - even though there's nobody to listen to us - bow down before the King of the Pigs, KING LEONARD MUDBEARD!"

A hull of the ship opened up and green smoke spewed out. Out of that smoke came the nemesis of our feathered friends. For the most part, Leonard looked the same as he did when the birds fought him last time. The obese beared pig was wearing a red fur coat and his golden, ruby-encrusted crown as he walked down onto the beach, a sly grin covering his face as he looked menacingly all around.

"King Mudbeard is in the place, baby!" he announced. "This island looks perfect for a new base of operations. We could also build a new prison for our little prisoners."

"I don't think so, Leonard!"

Everyone stood still. "That voice..." Everybody looked forward and saw who made that noise.

On the other side of the beach were standing Red, Stella, and Snow's respective flock along with all the members of the Phoenix Flock led by Master PCO and Rey Fenix himself.

"Time for some action!" Snow declared with charging ice magic into his fist.

* * *

 **It's time to kick the pigs' bacon butt and free the rest of the flock! I can tell you that the next chapter will be action-packed as we'll get to see the new powers of our feathered friends.**


	294. Birds vs pigs at the beach

"Y-You?!" Leonard exclaimed, shocked to see his old enemy standing there. "W-What are you doing here?!"

"I've come to buy some carrots," Red sarcastically replied. "I'm here to save my friends, moron!"

"I suggest you release them all and leave this island at the moment before I decide to get angry," Snow warned the pig.

Leonard let out a burst of fake laughter. "Yeah, in your dream, snowflake!"

This made him frown. "My name is Snow Kid!"

"Listen to me, whoever you are!" Master PCO suddenly ordered. "I don't exactly know you as our paths never crossed before. However, you are holding captive the friends of Rey Fenix's brother! To me, this is more than enough to engage in a fight. And since you are visibly not planning on letting them go, we have no choice. The Phoenix Flock is going into battle!"

All the birds cheered loudly at this. "LET'S GO, EVERYONE!" Red shouted and charged with the others following behind.

"Pigs! Fire!" Leonard ordered the ships and the pigs onboard started shooting cannonballs at the birds. Luckily, Snow and Rey managed to destroy them in mid-air with jets of ice and fire. Seeing the birds coming, the other boats came to the beach and the pig army rushed to their king's side. Soon, both side clashed with each other and the battle of birds vs pigs started.

Red jumped and charged his fist with Rage Fire before delivering a right swing to a pig's jaw, sending him flying away. "Wow, this magic is actually pretty cool." He charged both of his fists with his newfound magic and started punching all the pigs he met down with them.

Bomb got surrounded by pigs who thought though they had him trapped with no way of escaping. However, the bomb-shaped bird closed his eyes and focused to make his head feather sparkle and create an explosion which knocked all the pigs around. "YES! I CAN AUTOMATICALLY EXPLODE!" he beamed.

"You already learned how to do that in the first movie," Chuck sarcastically replied. The canary used his superspeed to make the world move in slow-motion around him. He simply walked around, kicking the pigs in the butt or putting them in embarrassing situations until his power drain out and everything returned to normal. "It's Chuck Time!"

Meanwhile, Terence was teaming up with Marcus to form an unstoppable duo, the two of them easily swiping the pigs with their raw strength. "YOU BUNCH OF WEAKLINGS! MAN UP AND COME FIGHT US HARDER THAN THAT!" Marcus angrily screamed which made Terence roll his eyes.

"Terence, launch me!" Matilda instructed as she jumped into her boyfriend's strong hands. Nodding, he threw her toward the boats, knowing she wanted to cause some damage. "HAHAHAHA!" the chicken laughed maniacally as the explosions from her missiles propelled her through the air. She blew up all the ships in her path while flying through the air and only stopped when she crashed into the mast of one of the ships, causing it to break and fall down, destroying everything below it. Matilda fell from the sky and crashed into the ocean.

Meanwhile, Miko was on a craze, fighting his way through the pigs and beating them with his martial arts techniques. He roundhouse kicked a pig away before elbowing one across the face, hitting his palm into the chest of another one, and then jumped in the air. "Time to put what Doctor Benjamin taught me in action. AURA SPHERE!" Focusing his magic, Miko created a ball of light blue energy in his hands and shot it toward a large group of pigs which knocked them away.

Meanwhile, Snow Kid and Rey Fenix were getting ready to face a big battalion of pigs heading their way. "Ready to make them feel the power of fire and ice, bro?" Rey asked, charging his fists with fire.

"You bet I am!" Snow replied with a smirk and adjusted his black toque.

Putting his hands on the ground, Snow created a wall of ice on the ground which destabilized the pigs and caused them to trip and fall in funny ways. Rey took his chance to charged his fists with fire and charged to smash them down with burning marks left on them. He then switched his attention to three boats coming closer toward them.

"Hey, Snow. Care to immobilize these boats for me?" Rey asked.

"With pleasure. WINTER BLAST!" Rising his hands, Snow shot a big ice beam which froze the water under the three boats, preventing them from moving. Smirking, Rey jumped toward the boat and held his hands in circles before his beak.

"PHOENIX FIRE ROAR!" The blackbird shot a huge beam of fire from his beak and aimed it at the boats, breaking through all three of them in one shot, letting the pigs fall into the ocean.

"Oh my! Handsome AND strong!" Gale said, waving her hands to make some air in her face.

Meanwhile, Natasha was getting surrounded by many pigs and she took a sad and scared look. "My, boys. Aren't you ashamed of picking on a lonely girl?" She then smirked. "Just kidding! Bring on everything you've got!"

The pigs charged at the lady pheasant who used her numerous tail feathers to whip them away or just to grab them and toss them into their own comrades. Eventually, seeing as there was too many, she decided to reach for her key set and took one of the golden keys.

"Come to me, Taurus!" she exclaimed while holding the key forward and twisting it as if she was unlocking a door. A golden light started shining and after a few seconds, Taurus appeared before Natasha.

Taurus is an extremely tall, heavily muscular and athletic humanoid whose physical features are highly reminiscent of a bull, as his name implies. His body is covered in a black and white pattern similar to that of Holstein Friesian cattle, and the upper part of it, from the waist up, seems more massive than the lower one. His head is bovine in shape, with small, elongated ears jutting outwards from the sides of his head, and a pair of horns, testifying him as a bull, sitting on top of it. He has dark eyes, and his flat nose bears a large golden ring in it, similar to those worn by real bulls. His muscular chest bears six teats: two on his pectorals and four on his upper abdominal area. The tail sprouting from his back, ending in a dark tuft, is quite small if compared to the large mass of his body. He has a large axe tied to his back.

"W-What's that?!" one of the minion pigs exclaimed in shock.

"I am the Golden Bull, Taurus!" he proudly declared before turning to Natasha. "What can I do for you, young Nat?"

"Could you please beat those mean pigs who want to hurt me, my dear Taurus?" Natasha asked in a sweet voice. "It will be done!" The bull grabbed his axe and started smashing the pigs away just like Terence and Marcus were doing on the other side of the beach.

Meanwhile, another group of pigs began advancing toward Stella and her friends. Stella used her Pink Flash technique and took out a whole row of pigs before bouncing off onto the trees and taking out another row.

Poppy smirked and jumped up onto the middle of many seashells before using her Tornado Dive Attack sending all the seashells flying. This led to the pigs receiving them in the face (one even received one in the parts. Ouch!) and the cockatiel defeated the pigs.

Willow then performed her Buzzsaw spin into the sand, shooting sand into the eyes of the pigs around her. He then charged and knocked many pigs with her Buzzsaw technique before coming to a stop and bowing to the pigs like an artist who finished a performance.

Dalhia used her Science Fu and took out several pigs, teleporting all around to surprised them one by one. Luca was surrounded by minion pigs but the hatchling wasn't about to go down that easily. He used his Shockwave Sound which knocked them back and left them with a huge headache.

Lovia used her metal bat to send her explosive baseball balls at ships while Rakonto shot explosive arrows, causing damage to the ships which made them drown. Barely a few moments after the fight started, almost all of the pig army was taken down and started retreating into the last few good ships remaining.

"RETREAT! RETREAT!" King Leonard shouted as he pushed his minions out of the way and rushed into one of the boats with the others following.

Snow wanted to follow them and continue the fight, but Rey grabbed his shoulder. "Don't waste your energy, Snow. We won the fight." The snowy owl nodded and calmed down.

"Come on, let's go, everyone," Snow said. "Let's go free our friends from the boats."

* * *

 **I know this wasn't my best battle, but at this point, it was pretty one-sided don't you think? I mean you got pigs with a few good weapons against birds with magical powers. The only point of this battle was to showcase our friends and new characters' powers.**


	295. Welcome to our new home

After the huge battle at the beach, Red, Stella, Snow, and Rey's flocks all saved their friends from Bird Island. Releasing them from the boat they were held captive on, the friends and families were reunited once again. The bluebird parents were really happy to find their three kids safe and sound once again and hugged them really tight, not wanting to let go of them anytime soon. They all thanked Red for taking care of them.

This led Red to explain to everyone why he acted like that at the party with how he got treated as a child. He sincerely apologized to everyone for that. Expecting to receive insults or slaps, he was instead hugged by all of his friends who told him he should've talked about it with them. Heck, even Snow Kid hugged him which he rarely did outside of his girlfriend.

Once all was said and done, Master PCO invited everyone to stay at Woody Vice to rest. unfortunately, there was not enough place at the flock's mansion for all of them meaning some birds had to find other places to stay. Once those details were taken care of and night came, everyone decided to hold a little party at the Phoenix Flock's mansion to celebrate.

Red, Chuck, Bomb, Matilda, Terence, Bubbles, and Hal sat together at one table, laughing about their adventure. "And then I was like zooming all around at incredible speed!" Chuck beamed while jumping in the air. "It was crazy, scary, and unnerving all at the same time! It was...crazaryerving!"

"That's not even a word," Red pointed out.

"It is now! WOOO!" Chuck picked up a sombrero out of nowhere and dashed to the middle of the room, dancing to the music that was played for the occasion. Bomb giggled and decided to go join his friend, shaking their tail feathers to the song together.

Snow watched this and chuckled. As always, he loved the enthusiasm in Red's group so much. "So what's this aura thing you did back there, Miko?" Rakonto asked his blue bird friend.

"It's something Doctor Benjamin taught me, Mister Rakonto," Miko replied. "It's about an ancient magical art practiced by wizards and-"

"Okay, okay, you'll lecture us another time," Lovia interrupted. "Tonight, it's time to party!"

"Yeah! Like crazy!" Ocia cheered as she joined the others, dancing around in a silly manner as the others cheered for her.

"You got the moves, Ocia!" Snow called and chuckled. Suddenly, Natasha grabbed his hand and dragged him away. "N-Natasha? What are you doing?"

"Bringing you to dance on the floor, silly," the lady pheasant replied with a grin. This made Snow widen his eyes. He did dance once but it was with Natasha. He couldn't dance to this kind of music!

Luckily for him, Judge Peckinpah arrived on the stage, making the song end and everyone cheered at his presence. "Ladies and gentle-birds! Hatchlings of all species! We have done it! We have once again triumphed against our enemies, the pigs! With all of our determination, we have worked with our new friends - the Phoenix Flock - to fight our common enemy! And it was all thanks to the brave and powerful leadership of a great bird...RED!"

Red blushed as the birds clapped and yelled for him, his friends running up to him and laughing with him. Peckinpah beckoned for the cardinal to come on the stage. Chuck edged him on as the red bird reluctantly walked over to the mayor, awkwardly waving at the others.

"Now, come on, Mister Red! Don't be shy!" The judge patted him on the back. "The stage is yours!"

"Huh, how about not?" Red whimpered. The crowd clapped as the red bird stood there, trying to grasp for words.

"Hello, everyone. We, hum...we did it!" Applause followed. "Yup, we did it again! We all did good! But our success is mainly thanks to the help from our new friends of the Phoenix Flock!" The Bird Island avians cheered for their new friends who all smiled at them.

Red then got down and went to join his friends to dance on the floor. While they were doing this, Snow watched happily. Rey then came to wrap an arm around his shoulders and offered him a cup of milk which he accepted.

"Snow, bro, I just wanted to tell you how happy I am that you came back into my life. I missed you so much," the raven said with drinking a cup of milk too.

Snow smiled back. "I missed you too, Rey." He looked down in sadness. "I just wish Sifa and our parents were here with us."

"Don't worry, Snow. I'm sure we'll see them again someday. But for now, let's have fun!"

Snow and Rey smiled at each other before slamming their milk cup together.

* * *

 **And that concludes the Angry Birds Snow part 2 arc, my friends. I sure hope that you liked it. Did you enjoy it as much as the first part?**

 **Before you tell me, yes, this was a bit rushed. But for my defense, I have a good reason for doing it. And you know why?**

 **Cause for the next chapter, WE'RE GOING BACK TO THE BLUE THUNDER CREW! I'm sure you guys missed them a lot because I sure did.**

 **I wanna take time to thank all of you who followed me so far into this story. I truly appreciate it, my Owl Lovers :)**


	296. Glacier

**Man, you have no idea how happy I am to go back to the Blue Thunder Crew after so long! Without any further due, let's get this new and awesome arc started!**

* * *

Blu yawned as he slowly awoke from a good night of sleep. Getting rocked in his almanac by the rhythm of the waves was pretty pleasant once you get used to it. Sitting up in his bed, the macaw stretched his plastic body before landing around the room to see the other almanacs were empty, indicating the others were already up.

"I'm the last one to wake up again? Man."

Getting out of his almanac, Blu walked to the room's door and opened it to come outside onto the deck of his ship. The day was beautiful and sunny with a cool sea breeze flying through his feathers. Blu quickly noticed his crewmates doing their usual activities on the Saldanha.

Lazaro and Apollo were standing around the cooking machine Mr. Ping gave the puffin back at the Valley of Peace, preparing the breakfast for everyone. "Wow, your heat dial is very useful, Apollo," Lazaro said. "The food is cooking twice faster."

"Yup, he, he, he," the barn owl chuckled with rubbing his beak. "Those little wonders Stuart and Margalo gave us back in Skyland are working perfectly. Now, every day will start with a great breakfast for the crew."

Blu chuckled at this. He noticed Hernandez was at the bar, making sure to navigate the boat correctly and not send it into any obstacles. Even though they were in the middle of a clear sea. Dominic was practicing his swordsman skills while Vladimir was doing push-ups not too far from him.

"Morning, my lovebird." Blu smiled as his wonderful girlfriend landed beside him and kissed his cheek.

"Morning, Jewel," Blu said and returned the kiss.

"Is it the smell of the breakfast that woke you up? Cause that's what it did to me," the cerulean macaw explained.

"No, but I really do like this smell. It's already making saliva rise in my beak." He then turned his head and noticed Alex inspecting their medical supplies. He seemed to have a worried look. "Hey, is something wrong, Al?"

The owl kid turned toward Blu. "We have a little problem, Blu. Our supplies of medicinal herbs are getting pretty low. If we don't get any new ones soon, I won't be able to prepare medics and ointments to help in case of injuries."

"Oh, that's a problem indeed," Blu said with a nod. He then looked up toward the ship's watchtower. "Hey, Arlene is there any island nearby?!"

The scarlet macaw had spent the night on the watchtower to guard the ship and make sure there wasn't any danger around. She gave a good look around before giving her answer. "Yes; there is one island right ahead of us."

"Great, we can make a quick stop there to find medicinal herbs for you, Alex," Blu decided. "Everyone, get ready! We're gonna coast this island!"

"But can we eat breakfast first, Blu?" Apollo asked with a pleading look. "Lazaro and I worked really hard on it."

Blu gave a nod. "Sure. I don't like wasting food either."

And so, the Blue Thunder Crew gathered around a table to enjoy the breakfast prepared by Apollo and Lazaro which consisted of perfectly cooked fishes, some remainings of lobsters that Margalo and Stuart left the crew prior to leaving Skyland, a well-seasoned salad, and some milk and beer (only for Dominic and Vladimir). Once they were done eating, the crew coasted the Saldanha over the island Arlene spotted and threw the boat anchor down.

The crew started walking into the island's forest, exploring the path ahead of them. "Alex, were you able to find any medicinal herbs?" Apollo asked his little owl friend as they walked.

"Yup, I've been able to collect most of them," the kid replied with a smile. "But there may be even rarer ones on this island." The kid's smile then dropped a bit. "More importantly, something's been bugging me for a while."

While the others looked curiously at the kid, Dominic just gave him a comprehensive look. "You noticed it too, Alex?"

Alex nodded and looked down at a linear trace on the ground that was going ahead. "I wonder what is this weird groove running down the path..."

The others looked down at it as well. "Come to think of it, yeah, I wonder what it is," Hernandez admitted. "It looks as if a bicycle as passed by."

Eventually, the crew arrived out of the forest and into an open area which had nothing noticeable except a large stone in the middle. Alex looked at this stone and noticed a few mushrooms laying at its feet and smiled.

"Whoa! Chagas! Those are rare medicinal mushrooms! I didn't expect to find some here!" the kid said and ran toward the little plants. However, just as he reached his wing to grab them, he saw a shadow over him and turned his head to see a figure standing right next beside him.

It was a male snowy owl just like him except he was taller and...manlier with a strong-looking shape. He was wearing a blue-garbed ninja-like uniform with a zip along with light blue metal plate on his wings and legs. However, his most noticeable features were the dark blue lightning-shaped scar over his left eye and the blue mask covered the bottom half of his face which included his beak. Strangely, his eyes were closed and he was snoring, indicating he was sleeping against the stone.

"Hmmm?" He blinked his eyes a few times before looking down at Alex who was staring at him. "A talking snowball?"

Alex glared angrily at him. "I'm a snowy just like you!"

"What's wrong, Alex?" Blu asked as the others joined their friend. He then gave a curious glance at the white bird. "Who's that guy?"

The mysterious masked bird also glanced at the intruders. "What's with you guys?"

"We could as you the same thing," Dominic remarked with crossing his wings.

"W-Who's that ninja guy?" Apollo asked.

Arlene joined the group and, strangely, upon seeing the masked bird, she widened her eyes in horror. She slowly backed up and trembled in fear which the others didn't fail to notice. "Arlene?" Blu said.

"You know him?" Jewel asked her. The crew then looked at the masked bird with suspicious looks. He must have been strong if he could get Arlene this shaken up. They all took out their weapons or got their powers ready.

"He's...," Arlene said in a trembling voice. "He's a NF member. Naval Headquarters Admiral...Glacier."

This caused all the BTC members to widen their eyes in shock. "Admiral?!"

* * *

 **What a way to kick-off this new arc isn't it? Our feathered friends encountered a NF Admiral - one of the strongest guys in the world government. What is he doing on this island? And what Arlene knows about him?**

 **Also, Glacier's design is inspired by Sub-Zero from Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance. I know it's not his best design but it has its charm.**


	297. The strongest man in the Naval Forces?

"A-Admiral?!" Lazaro exclaimed, staring at the snowy owl named Glacier in shock. "He's that high up?!"

Arlene nodded while panting and covered of sweat. "There are only three officers in the Naval Forces who hold the position of Admiral. There's Akuma, Glacier, and Goldberg. The only one above them is Fleet Admiral Sengoku, who reigns as the top official in the Naval Forces. That bird is one of the three men called the World Government's ultimate powerhouses."

After hearing the scarlet macaw's explanations, all the avians turned toward the Admiral, ready to fight. "W-Why is someone like that here?! Why don't you go deal with big-time pirates that are classed S-rank?!" Apollo asked, trembling in fear.

Glacier simply glanced at all the birds before his look landed on Jewel. "My, my...," he said.

"W-What?" the spix macaw asked with a shaking voice.

She soon realized he was staring at her chest (they were in anthro forms in this world). "My, what a lady with super bazookas! Are you free tonight?"

"HEY! SHE'S MY GIRLFRIEND!" Blu angrily shouted as he was flirting with Jewel.

"Hold on a second, young guy, geez," Glacier said with rising his wings in defense. "Did you hear what I said? I said I just took a stroll, didn't I? Don't get so worked up." He then rubbed his chin through his mask. "You guys are really weird, you know that?"

"We are weird?" Blu and Alex asked at the same time.

"What the heck's with that guy?" Apollo asked Arlene, pointing at Glacier. "You sure you're not mistaking him with someone else, Arlene? There's no way someone like him could be an Admiral!"

"Hey, hey!" Glacier said with rising one wing in defense. "Don't judge others by their appearance." Blu blinked curiously at the snowy owl. "My motto as a Naval is "total slovenly justice"."

"That totally matches your appearance!" Apollo and Lazaro shouted at unison.

"Let's end this conversation there. You'll excuse me, but I feel tired to stay up so long," Glacier said with laying down on his side.

"Tired of standing up?" Apollo asked with a dumbfounded look.

"Whatever, you have my words that I'm not here to capture or hurt you. All I'm here for is to understand what happened to Arlene after the whole Sequin Kingdom accident. And as I thought, she's indeed with you."

"He doesn't look motivated," Lazaro remarked.

"However, I'm gonna have to report the presence of a new member in your crew to the headquarters," Glacier explained. "If we add another head in your group, your total bounty will reach an incredible level." He started making maths in his head. "...I don't know how much in total, but that's gonna make a lot."

"Not strong on additions?" Dominic sarcastically asked.

Alex then tapped Blu's shoulder. "Guys, I'd like to keep searching for the medicinal herbs we came for."

"You came for medicinal herbs?" Glacier suddenly asked. "I know a few ones around here. You can find them in that direction," he said with pointing behind the group.

"Really?" Alex left behind the trees where Glacier pointed. A few moments later, he came back with his backpack filled to the brim with plants and herbs. "Guys! Guys! I found more than what I was hoping for! Some of these plants are extremely rare! It's awesome!" the kid beamed.

"Cool!" Blu happily said. "Thanks a lot, Admiral Glacier." However, as the macaw turned around, he saw the masked snowy owl glancing at him. "What's wrong?"

"If I came here, it was to see Arlene...and also take a good look at you too...Tyler "Blu" Gunderson, brother of Water "Aqua" Law, a commandant of the Urax Fleet," the Admiral said. "Maybe I'd be better to kill you both right now."

"Huh?" Apollo, Alex, and Vladimir exclaimed at the same time.

"The World Government isn't taking you seriously for now, but with the parkour each of you respectively took, you can only form a solid team. You're not very numerous but you're all expert in your respective discipline. Now that you're united, you could cause us a lot of trouble. The first acts that caused you to become outlaws, the numerous criminal acts you already committed, the speed of your progress." Glacier shook his head. "I faced a lot of criminals during my career, but I gotta admit that you guys are really worrying me."

"Why are you telling us that now?! You promised you wouldn't hurt us because you just wanted to make a little walk!" Apollo exclaimed in panic.

"If I consider your group to be dangerous, it's mainly because of one person," the Admiral continued. "I'm talking about "Cherry Bomb" Arlene," he said with eyeing the scarlet macaw who just looked down.

"W-What do you have against Arlene?!" Blu asked.

"When someone becomes an outlaw, his or her bounty depends on many criteria - the strength of the outlaw, of course, but also the potential danger he or she represents for the World Government. This is why Arlene's head was worth 79,000,000 golden pieces when she was still a kid. You were smart for surviving all of that; fooling people and manipulating them before running away. You were so smart that you survived many criminals and now you chose this group of pirates in hopes of hiding away."

"Enough!" Lazaro suddenly exclaimed. "I'm tired of hearing you talking bullshit about our friend! What do you have against her?!"

"You have no reason to get mad as you have my words that I have nothing against her," Glacier calmly responded. "The best proof is that I allowed her to escape once. It was a long time ago. You will soon understand the meaning of my words. And that day, I think you will regret choosing to carry such a burden. There's another proof: haven't you realized that all the organizations she was part of disappeared one after the other and every time, she was the only survivor? Mind explaining why "Cherry Bomb" Arlene?"

The scarlet macaw was at this point looking down and trembling nervously. "Shut up!" Blu angrily screamed. "This is in the past! Arlene is our friend now!"

"Blu's right?" Apollo declared with pointing at the Admiral. "We all did things we're not proud of in our past but we moved on and everything's cool now!"

Glacier just scoffed. "I see that you managed to get integrated into another group once more."

That was the bottom for Arlene who rose her wings in a challenging manner. "What are you trying to say?! If you wanna catch me, go ahead and try!" She suddenly summoned vines over Glacier's body and immobilized him with them.

"Arlene?!" her friends exclaimed.

"Okay, I admit, I might have said a little too much, but I expected you to be smarter than this," Glacier casually said, not bothered by the vines. "You shouldn't have reacted that way."

Arlene snapped her wings which caused the vines to twist Glacier's body, snapping it in half. However, Glacier's body suddenly broke into many ice shards which fell onto the ground. "I-Ice?!" Jewel exclaimed.

Soon, the shards reformed and Glacier's body appeared again, ice steam emanating from his body. "He has the power of a Magical Fruit?" Dominic exclaimed.

"And it's a Logia Type apparently!" Hernandez added.

The Admiral glared at Arlene. "That's not nice of you to do that." Rising one wing, he suddenly created some kind of sword made of ice with it. "Ice Sword! I didn't plan to kill you, but after that...!"

He swung his ice sword at the scarlet macaw, only for Dominic to jump in and swiftly block it with his own saber. Lazaro followed suit by charging and kicking Glacier's Ice Sword which knocked it away. Blu also charged in, going to help his friends.

"TAKE THAT!" He threw his plastic wing backward and punched it right into Glacier's abdomen.

The snowy owl just scoffed as he suddenly grabbed Lazaro's leg and Dominic's shoulder in his wings. To the trio's horror, ice started forming on the part of their body that was in contact with Glacier - Blu's wing, Dominic's shoulder, and Lazaro's leg.

The trio screamed as it was painful. "He froze them!" Alex exclaimed.

"All three of them in one shot!" Jewel added in horror.

The three friends collapsed while holding their frozen limb in pain. "This is not good; if their limbs get too cold, I'll be forced to cut them off!" Alex panicked. "Guys! Go help them!"

He didn't have to ask twice as Hernandez summoned his black wing armor and Vladimir turned his wing into stone. The two powerhouses charged and swung their fist at the Admiral. However, this last one simply dodged and caught their shoulders, freezing them off and making them collapse in pain.

Glacier looked at Hernandez. "It's been a while since I've seen someone with armor like you. It's all the most interesting."

"W-What?" Hernandez asked in pain.

"Apollo! Go help them!" Alex begged but the barn owl was trembling in fear and was visibly too afraid to act,

"Arlene! Run away!" Jewel shouted at her friend.

"You made very good friends but you didn't change that much after all," Glacier told the scarlet macaw. He then jumped toward her and wrapped his wings around her. The macaw struggled as her whole body was turned to ice.

"ARLENE!" all the others shouted in horror.

* * *

 **Admiral Glacier is strong, isn't he? He managed to take down Blu, Dominic, Lazaro, Hernandez, and Vladimir without breaking a sweat. And now, Arlene is completely frozen and could potentially die. You just witnessed the strength of a NF Admiral, my friends.**


	298. Plastic vs ice: Blu vs Glacier

Blu and his friends stared in shock as Arlene was completely frozen by Admiral Glacier. Blu angrily glared at the snowy owl. "YOU BASTARD!"

"Stop screaming, would ya?" Glacier calmly asked. "You just have to un-froze her; she's still alive. But you gotta be careful cause she's extra-fragile. If the ice breaks, she'll die instantly. For example..." He rose his fist, ready to punch the frozen scarlet macaw.

"NO!" Blu charged and managed to grab Arlene and pull them out of harm's way without breaking her, dodging Glacier's fist. "Man, that was close!"

Glacier groaned and tried to stomp on them instead, but Blu managed to throw Arlene at Apollo who caught her in his wings. "I GOT HER!"

"Apollo! Alex!" Blu called. "Bring Arlene back to the ship and save her! Quick!"

"Yes, Captain!" the two owls responded at unison and ran away.

Glacier scoffed and started walking in the same direction as the two owls. "Don't you kids understand that the world will be better once this girl is gone?"

However, Jewel got in the way and swung her Wind Waker at Glacier who caught it in his wing. "Sorry to change your point of view, but Arlene's not worst than of. All pirates in this world are like this," she declared with a smirk.

"Yes, I agree with you, young rebel," Glacier said with a smile and pulled Jewel's metallic staff away. "Now get lost."

"You bastard!" Lazaro angrily said and was about to attack Glacier once more with Dominic in spite of his frozen leg.

"STOP! DON'T APPROACH HIM!" Everybody froze and turned around to see Blu glaring seriously. "Don't interfere in this! I'm gonna fight him one-on-one!"

Glacier turned toward him and turned half of his body into ice. "I must admit that I'm not against the idea. But since I have no ship with me to lock you in, I'll have to kill you."

* * *

Meanwhile, back on the Saldanha, Alex and Apollo brought the frozen Arlene into the bathroom and turned the shower on the highest level of heat they could while also filling the bathtub for her.

"Alex, how is Arlene going under this ice?" Apollo asked.

"She's somewhere between life and death!"

"We need to get her out of there quick then! Or we'll lose her forever!"

"But if we put too much hot water on her body, it will break apart!" Alex said. "We must find a way to heat her up from the inside!"

"You sure it will work that way?" Apollo asked.

"I don't know but there's no other way!" Alex replied.

"How can you not know?!"

"For all the time I've been a doctor, I've never seen a bird getting frozen like this!" Alex replied. "Glacier pretend that she's still alive. But it's possible that he lied to us."

"Stop saying that!" Apollo panicked. "Her life's in your wings! If you can't save her who will?! I remind you that you're the doctor of this crew!"

"I KNOW! SHUT UP AND STOP PRESSURING ME!" the kid shouted, finally breaking.

"ALEX!"

The two owls jumped and headed out of the bathroom. They got on the deck and saw everyone except Blu had come back. "Guys? What are you doing here? Where's Blu?"

"We'll explain you later. But for now, we have to go back there as fast as possible. You must take care of our frozen limbs, Alex," Dominic said.

"Okay, we must un-froze the limbs slowly and precisely. However, we can't do that now; Arlene is occupying the bathroom," Alex explained.

"She woke up? Is she okay?" Jewel asked in concern.

"Not yet. It's too soon."

Suddenly, Dominic, Lazaro, Hernandez, and Vladimir decided to speed up their healing process by jumping in the water.

"Good idea," Alex noticed. "Rub gently your limbs. Once it will be completely un-frozen come to join Apollo and me on the ship." He then turned toward Jewel. "Jewel, come and help us with Arlene in the bathroom!"

"Okay."

A few moments later, Apollo walked out of the bathroom and found Dominic, Lazaro, Hernandez, and Vladimir back on the ship, checking after their un-frozen limbs.

"What are you guys doing here? Where's Blu and what have you done with Glacier?"

Hernandez looked down. "Blu wants to fight him one-on-one."

"One-on-one? Don't tell me you left him alone with this monster!" the barn owl exclaimed.

"We followed the captain's orders," Lazaro said.

"The captain's orders?! Don't mock me; it's easy to hide behind this excuse! You could've tried to change his mind at the very least!"

Lazaro suddenly grabbed Apollo by the collar and pulled him into his face. "Shut up! You don't have a clue of what a duel is! You wanted us to stay back and cheer for him maybe?!"

"It's not time to fight!" Dominic suddenly shouted at his two crewmates. "This is a serious time; the future of our crew is at stakes! Whether Blu has a plan or acted by stupidity, we will have to deal with the outcome no matter what it is..."

* * *

Back at the beach, Blu panted in exhaustion and pain. His duel with Admiral Glacier was not going well at all. The area was covered in ice from the fight and Blu had some ice on his left shoulder and hip. At least, they were not completely frozen, unlike his right wing.

"You know you're a strange bird, kid?" Glacier calmly asked.

Spitting in disgust, Blu pushed a battle cry as he charged at the enemy once more. He ducked underneath Glacier's freezing wing and delivered a strong kick underneath his chin to send him in the air. Luckily, the body contact was short enough so that Blu's body didn't sustain anymore freezing.

The macaw then swallowed a lot of air into his lungs to turn into a balloon and then twisted his round body like a sling. "SLING ATTACK!" Pushing himself up at full speed, Blu span on himself as he delivered a powerful smash to Glacier which made him explode into many ice shards.

However, the victory was short-lived as the snowy owl's body reappeared from the shards beside Blu. "It's over..." Before he could even react, Blu felt the Admiral wrap his wings around him and the ice covering his body until he blacked out.

Glacier sat down and looked at the frozen figure of Blu. "...I'm an idiot and I fell for it like an amateur. Since I accepted to fight you in a duel, my victory is ending there," the Admiral talked alone. "That was your plan from the start, wasn't it? Now, if I was to attack your comrades, it would be unloyal and I'll be the ultimate loser. Ain't I right, captain Blu?"

Glacier smiled behind his mask. "Or am I wrong and you really thought you had a chance against me?" The snowy owl stood up and dusted himself off. "Let me tell you one last thing. It's about your new friend, Arlene. Soon, she'll become a burden for all of you. The fatality following this girl will be too heavy to carry. She'll bring you madness, that's all you'll get from taking this girl in your crew."

"I could break you into pieces and kill you if I felt like it. But I'm grateful to you and your crew." He turned around and started leaving. "You stopped Risky Boots and saved the Sequin Kingdom; the Naval Forces are grateful to you for that. See ya one of these days."

Just as the Admiral left, Dominic, Vladimir, Lazaro, and Hernandez arrived to find their captain frozen in ice. "BLU!" they all exclaimed.

* * *

Meanwhile, Glacier picked up his bicycle which he left at the beach on the other side of the island and opened a map. "If they followed their compass all the way here, their next destination should be...Water 7? They're heading toward the Aquatic Metropole? But that's terrible! This means they will get dangerously close to the headquarters."

Shrugging, the Admiral got on his bicycle and started riding on the water, creating a very slim ice trail that allowed him to advance on it.

* * *

Sometime later, on the Saldanha, Alex walked out of the bathroom with a tired look as all the others were watching anxiously at him. "So?" Apollo asked.

"I did what I could..." Alex then looked at them with tears in his eyes. "...And they will live! Their heart started beating again!"

"YEAH!" everybody beamed. "That's awesome!" Lazaro was about to enter and check on them, only to stopped by Alex.

"You'll jump on them later; for now, they need to rest."

"Yeah, good idea, Doctor. I'll make them a little food," Lazaro said and turned to go to the kitchen.

"I'm not charmed at all to be called a doctor," Alex said with hiding a blush with his wings.

"Think we should leave today, Yusef?" Vladimir asked.

"Nah; I think we should wait until Arlene and our captain feels better before continuing our journey in the New World," Dominic said before looking at Apollo falling on his back. "What's wrong, Apollo? Releasing the pressure?"

"This ice monster won't let us go like this; he'll keep pursuing us and will jump on us while our back will be turned," the barn owl whined. "And I haven't done anything; I just ran away like a chicken when I had the chance."

"You should go rest; you're talking nonsense," Dominic said with rolling his eyes.

* * *

This night, the Blue Thunder Crew slept peacefully and rested well after their encounter with Admiral Glacier. The day after, they sailed to the sea again and drove their boat for three calm days. Right now, Jewel was laying on a chair and enjoying the warm weather with a cup of mango juice made by Lazaro.

"All this reminds me of Rio...," she mumbled with her eyes closed.

"Yeah," Blu said, cuddling next to his girlfriend. "It's strange. Rio, our friends and our problems with the smugglers...all that feels so far away to me."

"Yeah," Jewel sadly nodded, resting her head on Blu's chest. "It almost feels as if we have always been on these seas and always been pirates." She then looked up at him with a smile. "However, one thing will never change: that's us being together."

Blu smiled and kissed Jewel on the cheek. "Blu, are you feeling alright?" Dominic came to ask. "You almost froze to death, three days ago."

"Yes, I'm doing great now, Dom," Blu replied. "How's your shoulder."

"Great. Thanks for asking," Dominic replied with a smile. He then saw Arlene walking out of the ship. Her feathers were a bit wet. "Arlene."

Alex walked over to her. "Arlene. You're alright? Are you feeling good?"

Arlene smiled at the kid. "Yes, I'm feeling better. Just a little tired. Thanks for saving me, Doctor."

Alex grinned and hid a blush with his wings. "If you think this makes me happy, that's not the case at all!"

"Yeah, we can see that," Blu, Apollo, and Dominic sarcastically remarked at unison.

"Do you want a warm little meal, Arlene?" Lazaro asked the scarlet macaw.

"Not hanks, Lazaro. Just a little coffee will be more than enough," she kindly replied.

"Right away," the puffin said and headed for the kitchen to prepare her drink.

Meanwhile, Vladimir was doing some workout on the front of the ship. However, he soon noticed something moving in the water ahead of them. "What's that? A swimmer?" However, as he gave a closer look, he saw that it was some kind of green-yellow frog with a round belly, black hair, and a loincloth. "What the...?!"

"Guys!" he called the others. "There's a big frog with a loincloth swimming close to the ship!"

"A frog with a loincloth?!" Blu asked with a curious look. The team looked above the desk and indeed spotted the strange frog.

"What the heck?!" Apollo exclaimed. "What's that frog?!"

"Let's catch him!" Lazaro said, licking his beak. "I'm gonna make good frog legs for dinner!"

Apollo used his binoculars to look at the frog. "I see him!" Looking farther ahead, he saw that it was swimming toward a lighthouse. "Hey, a lighthouse! What's this doing in the middle of nowhere? People are living around here?"

"You saw something, Apollo?" Blu asked. "An island?"

"Nope; a lighthouse. I don't know what it is, but I didn't saw it on Jewel's map."

Suddenly the frog jumped in the air before splashing in the water again. BANG! The Saldanha hit an invisible object out of nowhere which caused it to stop dead in its tracks and send the avians onboard flying forward.

"I think we hit something!" Apollo said with standing up.

"Everyone's okay?" Blu asked.

"Yeah, I think," Jewel replied as Blu helped her back up. Suddenly, a ringing noise was heard near them. "What's that?"

Dominic frowned with a suspicious look. "It sounds like bells announcing the arrival of a train."

TCHOO-TCHOO!

The avians widened their eyes in shock. Looking overboard, they saw a real train driving on the sea coming their way at full speed.

"MOVE THE SHIP! QUICK!"

* * *

 **What's that train and what is it doing in the middle of the sea? What's that frog? What is this Water 7 Glacier talked about and how does he knows about Hernandez's armor? A lot of questions for an arc that barely started, isn't it?**


	299. Water 7, the aquatic metropole

"WHAT THE HELL IS THAT?!" Lazaro exclaimed in horror.

"TURN THE SHIP AROUND! QUICK!" Jewel screamed.

The avians grabbed the ship's big paddles and quickly pulled the Saldanha backward to avoid an incoming steam train in extremis. They panted in relief as they looked at the huge locomotive riding while letting out TCHOO-TCHOOs.

"What's that?!" Apollo asked.

"A ship?" Alex asked.

"No; a ship this shape wouldn't be able to drive on water like this!" Jewel replied.

Suddenly, they noticed the big frog with a loincloth and black hair standing in the way of the oncoming locomotive. "Hey! What are you doing here?! Run away!" Blu called.

However, the frog didn't listen and got hit by the train which sent him flying backward. As the frog landed in the water, the big train finally passed by and drove away from the Saldanha.

"What the heck was that?!" Dominic asked for everyone.

"Pirates?" The birds turned around to see two figures walking out of the lighthouse. One of them was a young female fox with orange fur, white lower face and underbelly, and light blue eyes. She was wearing a brown tank top and baggy pants which were leaving her tummy exposed, black fingerless gloves, and light blue boots. The other was a small male pink chameleon with light green eyes, horns, and tail. He was not wearing any clothes.

"Grandma! There are pirates visiting us!" the young fox called again.

"What? You can't be serious, Silva!" Suddenly, out of the lighthouse came an older female fox that looked a bit like the one named Silva but was wearing a white blouse, purple pants, and a captain's hat. Her face was blushing a bit, indicating that she was drunk. This was confirmed as she fell face first onto the floor, falling asleep.

"...What?!" the whole Blue Thunder Crew exclaimed at unison.

A few moments later, the avians got down from the Saldanha to properly meet those new characters. "My name's Silva," the young fox introduced herself. "This is Dex, my chameleon friend."

"Hello," the little chameleon said.

"And this is Coco, my grandmother."

"I hope you folks aren't here to steal from our lighthouse," the elder said with a giggle as she drank from a bottle of wine.

"I'm Tyler "Blu" Gunderson," Blu introduced himself. "I'm the captain of the Blue Thunder Crew and future strongest bird in the world."

"Really?" Silva asked in surprise while Coco just laughed as she found this funny.

"Say, Silva, that was a steam locomotive we just saw, right?" Jewel asked. "How can it drive on water like this?"

"You have never seen anything like this before, have you?" Silva asked with a smile. "It wasn't a ship but the Puffington, the Sea Train. It's a special locomotive driving on tracks submerged underwater."

"Tracks?" Apollo asked in confusion.

"Absolutely. They are located right beneath the surface of the water and the train makes the same traject in these tracks, bringing people, ships, and even mail from one island to another," Silva explained.

"Yeah, we can see these tracks underwater," Blu said with giving a good look in the water.

"So that's what we hit our ship into," Vladimir remarked.

"Yes. You should have watched out for the limit ropes and warning light; it's extremely dangerous," Silva continued.

"You should make them bigger; they're easy to miss," Apollo remarked with crossing his wings.

"You should also tell that big frog to not get in front of this train; it's dangerous," Blu added.

"The big frog?" Silva asked. "You mean Yokozuna? Don't worry; it will take more than this to take him down. He likes to cause us trouble here, at Swift Station. He likes to try and stop the train to see who's strongest. He's always trying to beat it."

"He wants to beat the train?" Blu asked with a dumbfounded look. "That's one of the craziest things I've ever heard."

"Tell me, young avians, where are you planning to go?" Coco asked with drinking more wine.

"We're just gonna follow the direction of my compass," Jewel replied with showing her navigation tool. "It's point toward East."

"Really? In that case, your compass must be pointing toward Water 7," Coco said. "The train you just saw was justly coming from Blue Station, the station of Water 7. It's also called the Aquatic Metropole."

"Water 7?" Jewel asked with a curious look.

"Yes, and that city is also known for his naval construction sites. They also have the best workers and they are the ones furnishing the World Government with ships. Incredible, isn't it?"

"This means we can find great workers over there?" Blu asked.

"Of course, that's not what will be lacking. And as I said, some of them are amongst the best in the world," Coco nodded before drinking more wine.

Blu slammed his fist into his wing. "It's decided! We're going to Water 7 to find and recruit a new worker into our crew!"

"Great," Coco said with a smile. "But before you go, take this." She handed Jewel a paper. "It's a summary map of the island along with a reference letter. Once you arrive, give it to a penguin named Iceberg and ask him to fix your ship. Water 7 is a huge metropole so be careful not to get lost."

"Alright, thanks, Ms. Coco!" Jewel said with pulling the paper into her pocket.

"You know, we too will soon have to go back to Water 7," Silva said.

"Yeah, and if we meet again, I'll take you to a little bar I know very well," Coco said with another chuckle.

"That'd be cool," Vladimir said with a smile as everyone got back on the Saldanha.

"You'll need around one week in Water 7 for your compass to recharge and point to your next destination. So enjoy your time there," Coco said.

"Alright," Blu said with a nod. It's time to go! Thanks, Coco, and Silva for your help!"

"Goodbye, and be careful!" Silva called as the Blue Thunder Crew sailed away once more.

* * *

"The wind is with us; we should get to Water 7 pretty quickly," Jewel remarked with looking at the sail.

"That'd be cool," Alex said with a smile.

"I wonder what our worker will look like," Lazaro said.

"I hope he will be tall and muscled so that he can help us in our fights!" Apollo exclaimed.

"You already have two powerhouses, Apollo," Hernandez sarcastically referred to himself and Vladimir.

"It doesn't matter what he looks like as long as he can get the job done," Dominic nonchalantly said. "The question is: will he be ready to live amongst pirates?"

"I'm so happy that we will have a new friend in the crew!" Alex beamed.

"We were lucky to have that Lighthouse," Jewel said with taking the paper out of her pocket. "Coco gave us this map; we'll go to the place it indicates and find this person named Iceberg." However, when Jewel opened the map, it revealed a crappy looking drawing of some train tracks heading toward a huge fountain of some sort. "...WHAT THE DUCK IS THAT?!"

"A cute drawing," Alex innocently said with taking the paper.

"I KNEW THAT!" Jewel angrily shouted. "Anyways, let's split our money into equal parts for everyone. That way, we'll be able to use it correctly once in Water 7."

* * *

A few hours after splitting their gold coins into a part for everyone, Apollo started hugging the ship's mat. "What are you doing, Apollo?" Blu asked the barn owl.

"It's those metal plates; they remind me of all the battles we had with this ship," Apollo replied, pointing to the many metal plates covering the damaged ship. "When I think that we will properly get it fixed soon, it makes me feel so nostalgic!"

"I understand, but let's be realistic," Vladimir said. "The Saldanha has been put through rough trials since we left Sequin. We got very serious damages including a damaged deck," he said with poking at a wooden board that was peeking out from the floor, "water leaks in the cave, and bruises to the sides. If we don't get it fixed really soon, we're going to catastrophe."

"Good thing that we've got a lot of money now," Blu said. "We'll be able to fix the Saldanha and make it perfect again! Maybe we could also buy a few upgrades for it. Like new cannons."

While they were talking, Dominic walked to the front of the ship and saw something ahead. "Hey! We're arriving!"

All the others quickly joined their golden eagle friend to the front of the ship and saw that an island was indeed coming into view. The city resembles a giant fountain in a volcano shape because of the tiered system of building houses. It is by a large wall with numbers going from 1 to 7 written in black over closed gates.

"Wow! This fountain is huge!" Blu exclaimed in awe.

"Incredible! An industrial metropole!" Apollo added in amazement.

"I understand better why this locomotive exists," Lazaro said.

"Have you seen all that water?" Alex asked. "I wonder where it's all coming from!"

"That's very interesting," Arlene said with rubbing her chin. "It looks like the water is coming from this fountain and flows toward the sea thanks to some canals."

"Look," Dominic said with pointing at the numbers on the gates. "What are these numbers for?"

"No idea. These look like barrages," Lazaro remarked.

"I think the station is right ahead," Jewel said, pointing to a station at the front of the island. "Look, it's written "Blue Station" on the welcome panel. We just need to find the docks."

"Hey! You there!" The crew looked down to see a fisherman calling them from a little boat. "Pirates aren't allowed to enter by the main entrance! You need to go by the back entrance on the other side!"

"Okay, thanks!" Blu replied and turned the bar to make the Saldanha go around the city.

They started driving into the streets of Water 7. There were water-ways and canals that were used for transportation almost like roads, often surrounded by sidewalks on the canals.

"Wow, you've seen this? It's a city built on water," Jewel said, looking around in awe.

"Wow, that's really awesome!" Blu beamed. "This city is truly one of a kind!"

"Yeah, but the city is still submerged underwater. It's pretty dangerous," Alex remarked with looking around.

"Not exactly; the city itself is built on an island that is very deep into the ocean. You can tell from the foundations of the buildings," Arlene explained.

"Oh, yes, I can see that."

"So this is why it's called an aquatic metropole," Lazaro remarked.

"Huh, excuse me!" a villager called. "You need to turn around; pirates aren't allowed in this zone! You came to rob the city?"

"No, we just came to get our ship fixed, sir!" Blu replied.

"In that case, there's a cape located that way, a bit farther from here! You can dock there!" the villager informed them.

"Okay, thanks!" Blu said with switching the ship's bar again.

"I don't feel really welcome here," Apollo said with looking down.

"What were you expecting? We're pirates; they won't open the red carpet for us," Dominic nonchalantly said.

* * *

After a little more driving, the crew reached the cape on the outskirts of the city the villager told them about. "This place seems nice. How about we dock here?" Apollo suggested.

"This place seems desertic," Hernandez remarked. "There's nothing around here."

"Perfect; hoist the sails!" Blu ordered.

Dominic obeyed and started dragging on the rope to hoist the Saldanha's sails. However, as he did so, the mat suddenly snapped in half, much to the golden eagle's horror as he grabbed the upper part in his wings before it could fall.

The others also noticed it and screamed in panic. "What have you done, Dominic?!" Apollo exclaimed.

"Nothing; I only dragged on the rope! I swear!" Dominic explained as he pushed the mat up in place.

"Looks like the Saldanha's in a much worse condition than we thought," Vladimir remarked.

"Speaking of which, I wonder why the people of this city aren't afraid of pirates," Jewel remarked with rubbing her chin.

"Probably because pirates are also potential clients for their naval field," Alex suggested.

"Or maybe it's because they have a powerful defense force to protect them from outside invaders such as pirates," Arlene suggested. "With such a huge city, I wouldn't be surprised."

"But that's horrible! What will happen to us?!" Apollo panicked.

"Nothing since we're clients for them," Lazaro answered.

"Blu, Apollo, I'd like you to come with me," Jewel said.

"Why, Jew?" Blu asked his girlfriend.

"We must take this note given to us by Coco and search for this named Iceberg," she explained. "We'll ask him to take a look at our ship and fix it. We also need to find somewhere where we can trade our treasures for official money."

"Alright," Blu said with a smile. He, Jewel, and Apollo took their bag filled with golden treasures and headed toward the aquatic metropole.

"Dominic, I'm counting on you to fix the Saldanha!" Apollo called.

"Yeah, yeah, I'll do it," the golden eagle said with rolling his eyes.

However, Apollo gave him an extremely serious glare. "I'm not kidding; the mat is better to be fixed before we return!"

Everybody was taken aback by Apollo's sudden change of ton. "I said okay, no need to get mad!" Dominic replied back.

Alex looked down. "I wish I could've gotten in town with them too."

"Don't worry; we'll go later, the two of us," Arlene told the kid.

"Really?!" Alex asked, looking at her with a smile. "Think we'll find libraries?"

"Yes, I'm sure about it," Arlene said with a giggle.

* * *

 **Our friends have arrived at Water 7 which is revealed to be a huge aquatic metropole. Will they find workers to fix the Saldanha and one that will accept to join the crew? Stay stunned to find out.**

 **Silva, Coco, and Dex are my OCs.**


	300. Adventures in the aquatic metropole

**Before this chapter starts, I'd like to wish a happy birthday to my friend, RiodanJaneiro97! I wish you a happy day, buddy!**

* * *

After getting off the Saldanha, Blu, Jewel, and Apollo entered Water 7 with their gold. They found a guide shop where a guide not only gave them a map of the place but even two large seahorses with settles on their back for them to navigate through the city faster than on foot. He also recommended them to pass by the market place before going to exchange their gold for official money.

After a few minutes, the avian trio reached the market place which had many shops and restaurants on both sides of the streets. "Riding on those seahorses is so much fun!" Blu beamed with patting his seahorse who smiled.

"Thanks a lot for bringing us here," Jewel said with patting the seahorse she was sharing with Apollo. He happily nuzzled against her cheek.

"Wow, this place is really animated!" Apollo exclaimed as he looked at all the people walking around, chatting or shopping. "Look, everything seems to be on sale around here," he added and pointed at many signs in front of shops indicating sales.

"Cool! That way, we can buy more for less," Blu said.

Apollo then noticed a group of animals walking by with costumes and masks that looked right out of an Italian carnival. "Masks? What are these costumes?"

"They are very beautiful!" Jewel exclaimed.

"They must be going to a party or something," Apollo supposed.

They arrived at a place of the market with many restaurants and cooks selling food. Since there were many sales, Blu and Apollo bought a little of everything and happily chewed on the snacks they bought.

"Man, these are delicious!" Blu happily said with a special bread in his beak.

"The seller told me even high-ranking soldiers in the Naval Forces like to sneak out here to try their food. I understand why!" Apollo said while chewing on a piece of soft meat. "Too bad Lazaro didn't come with us; he would've thrived on all this food!"

Jewel couldn't help but notice many people were dressed for carnival and wearing masks. She also noticed some animals running in a direction. "Quick! To the Dock 1! Pirates are causing trouble there!" one of them exclaimed.

* * *

Meanwhile, far from there, on a dock where many workers were cutting wood, checking plans, and doing all kinds of stuff to build ships. "I don't understand your point," the captain said.

"In that case, I'm gonna make myself more clear: I thought about it a lot, and you guys have done a great job fixing our boat. But even then, I still think the price you're demanding is too high," the pirate captain declared.

"Can't you see I'm busy?" the dock captain nonchalantly said.

"This is why I finally decided to not give you a single golden coin." The pirate captain and his men broke out in laughter. "Thanks for the free fixation!"

Suddenly, two figures arrived on the dock and looked at the pirates. One of them was an adult emperor penguin wearing a black businessman dress with a female canary with yellow feathers wearing glasses and a note board under her wing.

"Who are these people, Kalifah?" the penguin asked.

"They are clients of the Dock 1, Mr. Iceberg," the canary named Kalifah said with adjusting her glass. "They refuse to pay us for fixing their ship. They are harassing us."

"Harassing us, he?" Mr. Iceberg then smiled. "In that case...let our workers convince them."

A few moments later, all the pirates were laying down, beaten up and covered of bruises. "Pirates like you don't make the rules on this dock and with the workers!" the captain firmly declared.

* * *

Back to the avian trio, Jewel checked on the map to see where their next destination was. "Let's see...we should quickly reach the construction site by taking the aquatic elevator."

"Aquatic elevator?" Blu asked with a curious look.

"It's that tower over there," Jewel said with pointing at a large water tower ahead of them.

The trio made their way into said toward and a door closed behind them. This caused the water level to start rising up and them with it. "They close the gate and this makes the water level rise? Pretty smart. Wish we had something like that in Minnesota," Blu said.

"Yeah, those guys can do pretty much anything with water," Jewel said with a nod.

* * *

Meanwhile, back on the Saldanha, Lazaro walked over to Dominic who was taking a nap on the ship's desk. "Hey, Dom, have you seen Arlene? I can't find her anywhere."

"She left with Alex. They went to make some groceries in town," the golden eagle replied with a calm tone.

"What?! And they left me behind?! What the heck?!" the puffin angrily exclaimed. "Dom, do you mind if you and Vladimir stay and take care of the ship while Hernandez and I go make some groceries?"

"Sure, no problems. good luck," Dom simply replied and closed his eyes to continue his nap.

"How can he fall asleep so fast?" Lazaro wondered as he and Hernandez left the ship.

* * *

Back in Water 7, the water elevator's door opened, allowing Blu, Jewel, and Apollo to exit on the upper level. "We finally arrived!" Blu beamed. "We're at the center of Water 7, the greatest work field in the world!"

"Is it me or is there more land than water on this level?" Apollo asked.

"This fountain looked so small when we arrive, but now that I see it closely, it's pretty huge!" Jewel said in admiration.

Apollo nodded before noticing a big crowd on land. "Why so many people? Are they watching the working field?"

"Let's go see!" Blu exclaimed and they got off their seahorse friends to get on land. "Excuse me, what's going on here?" Blu asked one of the villagers.

"Some pirates tried to cause trouble on Dock 1," a villager responded. "But as expected, the workers gave them a good correction. Those morons can't cause big trouble around here."

"If I understand, those workers fought with pirates?"

"You're not from around here, are you? You see all these people around? They came to watch the fight. And these guys from G-1 are our idols. These workers are great models for us! They are strong, hard-working, and the pride of Water 7!"

"Wow! I can't wait to meet them!" Blu said in excitation.

"Can we go exchange our gold for money first?" Apollo asked. "I'm getting tired of carrying this bag!"

* * *

Meanwhile, Arlene and Alex were walking together in another street of Water 7. "This is a little market street," the scarlet macaw said.

"I was expecting a desert place but it's pretty animated," Alex remarked, walking next to his friend.

"Wow! What a beautiful lady!" a man exclaimed and pretty much all the guys around were amazed by Arlene's beauty.

"He's so adorable! A true little fluffy ball!" a girl said, gazing at Alex alongside all the other girls in the street.

"The people around here are liking us I think," Alex remarked. He then covered a blush with his wings. "Not that I'm charmed or anything."

Arlene giggled before noticing a lot of people wearing carnival masks. Ever since they came here, the duo came across a lot of masked people. Was there a party going on or something?

"You think the people of Water 7 are gonna make a party?" Alex asked.

"Yes, it's most likely," Arlene said with a nod. She then looked ahead and smiled. "Hey, Doctor, there's a library just ahead of us."

"Really?!" Alex exclaimed and saw the library she was referring to. "Cool!" he beamed and ran toward the entrance. "Come on, Arlene!"

The scarlet macaw giggled and walked to join her owl friend. As she did so, a masked person walked past her. "I'm part of the K.E.S.," he mumbled. Arlene froze instantly and widened her eyes.

Some minutes after, Alex walked out of the library after borrowing a few books. "Hey, Arlene! I found awesome books about medicine that will help me making new recipients!" However, he then realized his scarlet macaw friend was absent. "Arlene? Arlene, where are you?!"

* * *

Meanwhile, back on the Saldanha, Dominic and Vladimir were taking a nap side by side on the desk while waiting for the others to return. The golden eagle suddenly rose his saber out of reflex to counter another one that almost cut him off. He opened his eyes to see many figures standing over him.

"Who the hell are you?"

* * *

 **Will Blu and his friends find a worker? How did the workers at Dock 1 defeat the group of pirates? Who was that guy who mentioned "K.E.S." to Arlene and why did she leave Alex alone? Who are those figures attacking Dominic and Vladimir? Stay stunned to find out!**


	301. The Gaming Family and Mr Iceberg

"Who the hell are you?!" Dominic asked the figures standing over him.

He stood up and pointed Eau De Mort at the intruders. They were a bunch of barn owls carrying swords and wearing outfits themed after video games such as cosplays or stuff like that.

"You, you're Yusef "Dominic" Saklove, ain't you?" one of them asked with a smirk. "We are the most feared bounty hunters on this island: the Gaming Family! You're an S-class ranked pirate! We'll capture you first and then get your friends to become rich! We're blessed!"

He charged and swung his saber at Dominic who effortlessly blocked him and smirked. "Blessed! Sorry, but all those who cross my path are cursed!" He kicked him away before taking Snow Run out into his other wing. "Two Swords Technique: RHINO SLASH!" Swinging his sabers, Dominic knocked the invaders off the Saldanha, sending them to crash into the sea.

"What a bunch of losers," Vladimir mumbled with a chuckle.

* * *

Blu, Jewel, and Apollo walked out of the Water 7 bank with a big mallet in their wings each. They just came back from trading their gold for official liquid money.

"Can you guys believe they gave us 3 million liquid money?!" Blu asked in amazement.

"This is awesome! That's more than enough to fix the Saldanha!" Apollo beamed, rejoicing himself at the idea that the ship was saved.

"And maybe we could keep some money to build a new room just for ourselves?" Jewel mumbled to Blu, winking at him. This caused the young spix macaw to blush a lot as he understood what she meant.

"Hey, enough with the innuendos!" Apollo said with a face-wing. "For now, let's just go back to the work field and see how much they charge for fixing our ship."

The avian trio got back on their seahorses and drove down the town and back the Dock 1. "We're back at the entrance of the shipyard," Blu said, getting off the seahorse.

"The crowd from earlier is gone; we can now get a better look at the place," Apollo said with a nod.

"Let's search for this mister...Iceberg I think?" Jewel said. "Coco said he would help us with fixing the Saldanha. Let's go."

Blu was about to enter into the shipyard when a figure suddenly appeared before him and stopped him with one wing. "Not so fast, kid, you can't get in. You're not from the team, am I right?"

This person was a male woodpecker with white and black feathers and a redhead. He wore a white cap, a high-collared orange shirt with blue sleeves, jeans, and white sneakers.

"I'm sorry, but non-personnel people aren't allowed on the construction site. Let's go discuss outside," the woodpecker said with walking out of the entrance and with the three avians.

"We're here to meet Mister Iceberg," Jewel explained to the woodpecker.

"Mister Iceberg, huh?" Jewel handed him the paper Coco gave them and he read it. "I see you have a recommendation paper from old Coco of Swift Station."

"So, you know who this Mr. Iceberg is?" Jewel asked.

"Of course, who don't know who he is? He's the mayor of Water 7."

"Wow, he's that important?!" Blu asked in surprise.

"It doesn't stop there. Along with being the mayor of Water 7, he's also the president of the G1 Company and the director of every aquatic train of Water 7."

"In other words, he has all the powers," Apollo said.

"Nobody in Water 7 can ignore who he is or the empire he has built."

"Is it possible to meet him?" Jewel asked.

"I don't know where he is right now. He's difficult to approach. As you already know, he's a very busy man," the woodpecker explained.

"But still, isn't there any way to contact him?" Jewel insisted.

"Yes, but I can't guarantee he will receive you. Are you in a hurry?" the woodpecker asked.

"No; we have a full week ahead of us."

The woodpecker chuckled. "You wanna see him to get your ship fixed I suppose?" He suddenly started doing stretches and warm-ups. "Can I know where you coasted it?"

"We parked it at the rocky cape."

"Excellent. I'm gonna go give it a look and make an estimation. That way, things will be easier for Mr. Iceberg. You can ask him how much you'll own him for the fixations."

"I hope you're not planning on going there via seahorse," Apollo said.

The woodpecker chuckled. "If I do that, it'll take hours and it will be too long for you. No, I'll get there in ten minutes."

"Ten minutes? But that's impossible!" Jewel said.

"Not for me!" The woodpecker suddenly started running in a dash, leaving clouds of dust behind him. He was as fast as a car! He then jumped as high as Super Mario to land on rooftops and jumped super long distances - it almost looked as if he could fly despite being in anthro form.

"This is awesome!" Blu beamed, impressed by the strength of the woodpecker. "How can he do this?!"

"He's always traveling through the city like this," a voice said from behind. "The people call him The Wind Mountain. He works for the G1 Company. He's the second-in-command of Dock 1. His name is Kaku."

* * *

"This is awesome!" Lazaro and Hernandez were making their way in town. However, being aquatic birds, they swam naturally in the city's water canals instead of riding on big seahorses like the others. "A city built on water. That's so cool!"

"As much as I enjoy traveling on a boat, I gotta admit I missed swimming around too," Hernandez said, a smile on his huge beak.

"And you've seen all the food they are selling around here?" Lazaro said with looking at all the food markets on the street. "It would be awesome if we could find a puffin and pelican girls and get a date tonight," the puffin chuckled to himself.

The duo stopped at one market where Lazaro bought some cabbages. "Tell me, miss, what product would you recommend me for this season?" the puffin asked.

"It's the season of aqua apples and aqua pears," she responded with handing Lazaro some wet-looking apples and pears. "They are delicious. If you wanna mix them with the season fishes too, you just have to go see the fish shop of my husband; you just have to turn right six times and left twelve times. You cannot miss it."

"Huh...okay," Lazaro said, exchanging a nervous look with Hernandez.

"Didn't we already pass this way?" Hernandez asked as he and Lazaro swam through the streets.

"I don't know; this city is huge. I miss the time we just could swim out in the open," the puffin angrily sighed.

Suddenly, Hernandez turned his head and noticed two figures walking by. There was one wearing a carnival dress and...Arlene?! "Hey! It's Arlene!"

Lazaro turned and they saw her and the masked person walked past a corner of the street. "Hey, Arlene! Wait!" They swam after her...only to find out there was nobody behind the street corner.

"T-They disappeared? But it's a dead end and there's no door," Hernandez remarked. "Impossible, where did they go?"

Suddenly, they saw a figure flying above their head. "What was that?"

* * *

Kaku kept flying across the sky above Water 7 as he jumped from one roof to another until he finally landed at the rocky cape. He noticed the Saldanha not too far.

"This must be their ship." He jumped onto the deck and noticed Dominic taking his nap in a corner. He was sleeping and Kaku decided not to bother him and instead inspected the ship for damage. "There's a lot of work to do, I can tell from the first look. The wood is badly damaged." He then arrived before the mat and poked at it. "They will need a new mat too."

Dominic suddenly shot his eyes open as he realized the woodpecker's presence. "Hey! You! Don't move! Who are you?"

Kaku turned toward him" Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you up, but I visibly failed."

* * *

Blu, Jewel, and Apollo looked curiously at the penguin and canary who joined them. "Don't underestimate the workers of the G1 Company; you need great strength and endurance to build great ships in short time spans," the penguin said before turning to the canary. "anyways, I listen to you, Kalifah."

"I gathered the information you desired," the canary named Kalifah said with looking at papers on her board. "Tyler "Blu" Gunderson, Yusef "Dominic" Saklov, "Cherry Bomb" Arlene, all fugitives. All of them are s-ranked criminals and are worth at least 239 million pieces. They have formed together in the Human World under the name of the Blue Thunder Crew and currently count nine members."

"We're that popular?" Apollo asked in awe.

"Very well," the penguin said. "You're all welcome. Allow me to introduce myself; I'm the great boss of this city, Iceberg. My trainee over there is Kalifah."

"Here's your planning, sir," the canary said with reading another paper. "You have a date with the responsible of the glass shop at Hotel Shiza in twenty minutes. You must then make a speech on the main place. You have a minute of rest before going on another date with the mayor of the neighborhood land and will get a special interview. Finally, you will have to sign many papers requiring your opinion."

"...I don't want to!" the penguin complained.

"Alright, I cancel everything and report it to the next month," Kalifah said with taking a pencil in her wing and writing on the paper.

"It's as simple as that?!" Apollo asked in surprise.

"I have power over everything; I don't see why I wouldn't use it," the penguin shrugged.

"Yeah, but you're not doing your mayor job and you're abusing your position."

"That's pretty selfish," Blu said with a nod. "Are you sure it's the guy Coco told us about, Jewel?"

"Yeah, I'm sure, no doubt about that," she responded with a nod.

"WHAT DID YOU JUST SAID?!"

Kalifah suddenly dashed and delivered a devastating spinning kick across the face of all three birds, knocking them back and making them land on the ground.

"W-What the hell?!" Blu exclaimed as he held a wing over his cheek that was burning in pain.

"What a kick!" Jewel added, also feeling pain in her cheek.

"She's as strong as 1-2-3 Coin...," Apollo mumbled with rubbing his nose.

"I forbid you from talking like this about the greatest crafting boss the world has ever known!" the canary firmly said with adjusting her glasses. However, she then shook her head. "I am sorry, I shouldn't have reacted like this. But understand that Mr. Iceberg is admired by everyone here. You must show respect toward him."

"Don't make Kalifah mad; when she gets angry, nothing can stop her," Iceberg said with rubbing the back of his head.

"Anyways, you're Mr. Iceberg, right?" Jewel said with taking out Coco's paper. "Take this recommendation paper; we were told to give it to you."

The penguin took it and read it. "...Yes, it's from the old Coco. She's asking me to take care of their ship." He then ripped the paper to pieces.

"W-Why are you doing that?!" Jewel asked in surprise.

"Coco left a kissing mark at the end of the note. That's out of place; she and I are only drinking friends," Iceberg explained. "Anyways, Kaku is currently checking the work we'll have to do on your ship. Don't worry; the process is in work." He then stretched and let out a yawn. "Since I have nothing on my flippers right now, I can make you visit the construction site if you want."

"Really?! That would be cool!" Blu exclaimed.

"If you may follow us," Kalifah said with waving her wing in one direction.

Apollo was about to follow his friends and the canary when he realized something. "Oh yeah, I was gonna forget the mallets. We dropped them after the canary's kick." However, he then realized that he and Jewel's mallets were gone while Blu still had his. "Hey! Where are our mallets?!"

The barn owl looked all around in panic, searching for the mallets when he spotted two barn owls dressed like gamers leaving on a seahorse with their mallets.

"HEY! COME BACK! IT'S OUR MONEY!"

* * *

 **Not much happened in this chapter; Dominic fought these strange guys from the Gaming Family, Kaku is inspecting the Saldanha for damage, Blu, Jewel, and Apollo have exchanged gold for 300 million golden coins and lost 1/3 of it from two thieves also from Gaming Family. Not too much.**


	302. The G1 Company and Dock 1

"COME BACK HERE! IT'S OUR MONEY!" Apollo rushed to the edge of the river and noticed the two thieves leaving on a seahorse with their two mallets were dressed like gamers.

"Where are they going?!" Blu asked as he and Jewel rushed at Apollo's side.

"I wish we could fly right now!" Jewel angrily said.

"Stop, Paul!"

Looking up, the avians noticed three bears running after some guy. A male husky dog with a cigar in his mouth. His denim jacket has a flame detail, many of his cigars strapped to it (in a similar fashion to Colonel Toxic), and a big "1" printed on its back, most likely referring to Dock 1. He is wearing a pair of orange goggles. He is quite muscular, and his attire is completed by a yellow T-shirt, with white concentric circles in the middle of it, a belt around his waist with a little bag attached to it, and a pair of loose trousers tucked inside his boots. He has a frowning face.

"Stop running away!" one of the bears shouted at the husky named Paul.

"I'm not running! I just want you to accord me another time limit!" he responded.

"Well, well, what trouble did Paul put himself into this time?" Iceberg asked with shaking his head.

"Those two million golden pieces are ours! Give it back!" Apollo angrily shouted at the thieves.

"You've gotta pay us!" one of the bears screamed at Paul.

"Leave me alone! I already told you I have no money left, you hotheads!" Paul then looked down and noticed the two thieves passing under the bridge with their seahorse. "A seahorse! Exactly what I needed!"

The husky jumped down and the two thieves looked up to see him coming. "Oh my gosh! We're doomed! It's a G1 employee!"

Paul suddenly rose his paws and made two ropes come out from his wrists. He sent them around the thieves' necks and tossed them away into the water before landing on the seahorse. "Sorry guys, but I'm gonna need this seahorse!"

"H-How did he do this?!" Jewel asked in surprise. "He made ropes come out of his wrists!"

"I think he must have eaten a Magical Fruit," Blu deduced.

"Come back here, you thief!" one of the bears angrily shouted at Paul from the bridge.

However, the husky simply chuckled. "If you wanna jog again, just call me!"

Blu and Apollo turned toward Mr. Iceberg and Kalifah. "Say, Mr. Iceberg, this husky is one of your men, right?"

"Yes; his name is Paul," the penguin said with a nod.

"Hey, thanks, mister! The money they stole belongs to us!" Apollo screamed at Paul.

"Huh? Money?" Paul looked down at the mallets which he failed to notice before. "There's money in these mallets?" Then a smirk formed on his face. "It's my lucky day!"

"You can bring us our money back!" Apollo widened his eyes upon seeing that the husky was not returning and intended to leave with their mallets. "He's not coming back!"

"What a jerk!" Blu angrily said and got ready to stretch his plastic wing to catch him. "I'm gonna make him regret that!"

However, before he could act, someone grabbed his wing from behind. Turning around he saw that the person who caught him was a tall and slim, yet muscular seagull with arched eyebrows and a close-shaved goatee. He had shoulder length wavy hair. He had a tattoo of a crossed-out square on each upper wing, as well as five cannonball scars on his back in the shape of the World Government symbol. He wore a large black top hat with a sepia band, brown trousers with caramel suspenders over a white tank-top and shoes with black toe-caps.

"Don't bother; I'll catch him," he calmly said.

Blu blinked his eyes. Who was that guy?

* * *

Meanwhile, back on the Saldanha, Dominic was groaning as Kaku was making a lot of noise down in the ship's cave as he was making his inspection. "Do you have to make so much noise?!" he angrily asked with looking down from the top door.

Kaku was making a hole in the floor with Vladimir beside him. "I'm sorry. I will put everything back into place once I'm done. It's part of my work." He then looked down into the hole and let out a gasp.

"What's wrong?" Vladimir asked.

* * *

"Ouch! Enough! Please, I won't go anywhere! Let go of my ear!" Paul was whining in pain as the mysterious seagull jumped on his seahorse and forced him to turn back toward the others, holding his ear between two feathers.

The husky managed to break free and held his ear in pain. "Two million, that's a lot of money! I can't let this pass!"

"You can't fulfill a debt with other people's money, you moron," the seagull calmly said.

"I didn't know it belonged to someone; I just found it!" Paul defended himself.

"Don't make your case worst by lying."

"Here they return," Mr. Iceberg said. "I'm sorry for the inconvenience, but it was better for us to deal with our man ourselves. I wouldn't have wanted you to attack him."

"and since the Gaming Family is leaving empty-handed and that you have your money back, I don't see why you would be mad at us," Kalifah said with adjusting her glasses.

"Huh, yes, of course," Jewel said with a nod. "Say, you know who were those strangely dressed guys?"

"Yes; they were part of the Gaming Family. They excel into the naval destruction, but are also bounty hunters that like to cause trouble," Kalifah explained.

"Whenever pirates land at our coast, they like to attack them, destroy their ship, and sell the pieces away. That's how the Gaming Family works," Mr. Iceberg explained.

"How disgusting! Breaking a ship is like breaking its crew!" Apollo angrily said.

"If you lose against the Gaming Family, we won't ever hear about you again."

"Don't worry; those guys seemed weak and we faced way much stronger than that," Blu positively affirmed.

"Those you just saw were merely knives on the plate. But the one leading them is formidable. You'd be wrong to underestimate him, believe me," Mr. Iceberg explained.

Just then, the seahorse arrived and the seagull dragged Paul by the ear in front of the penguin. "I bring you Paul, Mr. Iceberg," he said.

"Let go of my ear, you idiot!" the husky whined.

"Thank you, Fabian," the penguin said.

The seagull then turned toward Blu and his friends. "I'm sorry for all the trouble this moron caused you." He then tossed Paul along with the two mallets before the trio. "Now, Paul, apologize to our friends."

The husky sighed and walked up to the birds with the two mallets. "So those mallets belong to you? You can thank me." He gave them back to Blu.

"Yeah, thanks, sir," Blu politely said.

Paul looked around and placed his paws on Blu's shoulders. "Share 10% of it with me and we won't talk about it again."

BANG!

The husky winced in pain as the seagull slammed the back of his head with his wing. "What an impertinent! Please excuse him. He has no manners but that's only because he has a lot of game debts and wants to do anything for money."

"That's it! I have enough!" Paul suddenly exclaimed, kicking up and making two ropes coming out of his wrists. He launched one of them to get wrapped around the seagull's wing. He then performed a backflip, lifting the seagull up, and sending him to crash onto the stone floor.

"WHAT?!" Blu and his friends exclaimed in shock.

Paul smirked. however, once the dust cleared, it revealed the seagull hanging upside down, having someone managed to stop the impact by planting only one wing into the floor. "W-What the heck?! Am I dreaming or did he really stopped the impact with only one wing?!" Apollo asked. "What this wing is supposed to be made of?! The workers on this island are all stranger than I thought!"

The seagull just stood back up and dusted himself up as if nothing happened. "Don't worry, it happens regularly here."

"You want more, Fabian?!" Paul angrily asked and walked toward him.

"Paul, that's enough," Mr. Iceberg calmly said.

"Once again, sorry for this trouble," the seagull said. "My name is Fabian Estrada and I work for the G1 Company."

"WHAT THE HECK?!" Paul suddenly exclaimed and pointed a finger toward Jewel. "HAVE YOU SEEN THAT GIRL?!"

"What? What's wrong?" Jewel asked, confused by his sudden outburst.

"What a shame!" Paul pointed at her top that was leaving her blue stomach exposed. "Aren't you ashamed of wearing such a small top?! We can see your tummy! What are you think; there are people working here!"

"Calm down, Paul!" Kalifah said with getting in front of the husky.

"You're not better; we can see all of your legs, Kalifah!" the husky accusingly shouted at the canary.

"It's because I am a canary, you moron!" she angrily replied.

"What does this guy has against girls' body?" Jewel asked, puffing her chest out in indignation. "Doesn't he know that animals are originally naked?"

"Are you two done putting on a show?" Mr. Iceberg calmly asked. "Open the door so that we can enter Dock 1."

Obeying, Paul and Fabian went to a huge stone door which was painted by a black "1" and used their combined strength to push it open.

"This is where the crafters of G1 Company works. The best ones to execute even the most delicate of my projects. Come in," Mr. Iceberg invited.

Blu and his friends followed them and gasped as they entered a huge construction site where tens of workers of different sizes and species were working on ships or just moving pieces of tools such as wooden boards and pieces of steel. It was very industrial and advanced in terms of building technology.

"Wow! It's huge!" Blu beamed. "It's awesome to have the chance to see a ship getting built up!"

"Yup," Apollo said with nodding in agreement. He approached one of the projects with his two mallets in wings. "They're building a monumental project but for who? And that's a lot of crafters!"

"Follow me, this way," Mr. Iceberg said with walking forward, all the others following him. they walked through a path with a lot of work going on all around them.

"Hey, it's Mr. Iceberg!" a worker called.

"Our boss is visiting us!"

"Boss, you wanna see the work of Ship 42?"

The penguin smiled at the worker. "I will come, don't worry."

"Wow, you're very popular around here," Blu remarked, seeing the hugely positive reception Mr. Iceberg was receiving.

"His savoir-faire earned him the admiration of his employers," Kalifah explained. "It's easy to understand why; this island was once known for being resided by the most advanced companies in the world in terms of naval construction. Mr. Iceberg developed some of the most revolutionary building techniques that led to many workers going to work for him. Five years ago, he managed to buy all the rival companies in one goal: unifying them to form the G1 Company. His passion and love for naval construction earned him the respect of his fellow workers and this is why they don't fear pirates nor authority. This is what constitutes the particularity of our island."

Blu was smiling in amazement and then approached Mr. Iceberg. "Excuse me, Mr. Iceberg, I was wondering if you would be interested in joining my crew as a worker?"

Everybody stopped walking and looked in surprise at the macaw for his question. "If I understand, there's no worker in the ranks of your crew, right?" Iceberg asked.

"Yes. We came here to get our ship fixed but also to recruit a worker for our crew," Blu explained.

"Well, there are many crafters who would be fit for the spot on this island. But I strongly doubt any of them would be interested in becoming a pirate." Mr. Iceberg then smiled. "That being said, if one of my men accepts to follow you, I won't have any objection."

"Really? That's cool. Thanks, Mr. Iceberg."

The penguin smiled. "Say, my young friend, I've heard that there was a girl named Arlene in your ranks?"

"Yes. Why? You know her?" Blu curiously asked.

"No, no; it's just that I've heard her name somewhere," the penguin explained. "Hey kids, why don't you go walk around a bit to admire our work and see if you can find a worker willing to join your crew?"

"Sure, good idea." Blu and his friends spread all around to check on the working going on.

* * *

Meanwhile, far from there in the city, Alex used his Reindeer Candy to become a reindeer and sniffed the ground in search for Arlene. "Come on, Arlene, where are you?" He asked himself as he kept following the scarlet macaw's scent.

Soon, he arrived into a street where he noticed two familiar avians. "Lazaro! Hernandez!"

The aquatic avians turned and looked in surprise. "Little Al?" the pelican asked.

* * *

At the same time, Kaku left the Saldanha and jumped from one rooftop to the other until he landed gracefully in the middle of Dock 1. "Kaku," Paul said. "Where have you gone?"

"It's the guy from earlier," Jewel noticed. "You gave a look on the Saldanha?"

"Yes, I come back from seeing it," the woodpecker said with a nod before turning to Mr. Iceberg. "Oh, Mr. Iceberg. Sorry, I didn't see you."

"What's the state of their ship? Can it be fixed?" the penguin asked Kaku.

The woodpecker rubbed the back of his head. "Well..."

* * *

Meanwhile, on the Saldanha, Dominic was looking down with a pretty sad look while Vladimir had his eyes wide open, completely stunned.

"No...it can't be...," Vladimir mumbled.

"I'm afraid it is, Vladimir," Dominic sadly responded.

* * *

Blu joined with Jewel and all the workers. "Hey Jew, have you seen Apollo? I kinda lost sight of him."

"Well, last time I saw him, he was going that way," she replied with pointing in a direction.

"Hey! Young people!" they turned to see a blackbird coming toward them with two mallets in his wing. "Aren't these mallets yours?" he asked with pulling them down before them.

"Hey, it's those we gave to Apollo!" Blu realized and looked at the black bird. "Thanks for getting it back to us."

"Where did Apollo go?" Jewel asked with looking all around. "Why would he drop our mallets of money just like that?"

"I don't know. Have a nice day," the bird said and walked away.

Blu then turned toward Paul and Kaku. "Say, how much will the repairs cost? We have more than enough to pay you."

Kaku then went to sit down on a wooden board, looking pretty unsure.

"While you're at it, could you also upgrade the Saldanha? You could add some extra-protections and canons for defense. It would also be cool if we could add some decorations and make it happier-"

"Stop!" the woodpecker cut him off dryly. "From what I've seen, you made a pretty epic journey with this ship."

"You can say that; we went on many adventures with it," Blu said with a nod. "We climbed mountains, we went in the sky, heck, we even went across violent storms and battles with it. This is why we need to get it fixed now."

"Great." Kaku then gave them a serious look. "Unfortunately, your ship is in too bad shape."

"What? You mean the repairs will take longer than we thought?" Jewel asked.

"Actually...I'm gonna be honest with you." Kaku marked a pause before talking again. "Your ship cannot be fixed. As good as we are, there's nothing we can do."

There was a long silence. Blu and Jewel stared blankly at the woodpecker. "I...what?!" Blu managed to mumble.

"You're saying that their ship is lost, Kaku?" Paul managed to ask the woodpecker.

"Yes," he nodded his head with a sad look. "Their ship has suffered heavy damage."

"But...that's impossible! So far, we managed to navigate on the sea with no problem!" Jewel suddenly exclaimed.

"Maybe, but I've gotta tell you...supposing that we fix your ship, your chances of reaching your next destination are...pretty bad," Kaku said.

Blu and Jewel widened their eyes...

* * *

Dominic and Vladimir looked sadly at the Saldanha's macaw head. "So it is true...you can no longer navigate, Saldanha," Dominic mumbled.

"Oh my gosh...no!" Vladimir said, not believing this.

The Saldanha was lost.

* * *

 **The Saldanha cannot be fixed! Oh my gosh! The ship on which Blu and his friends navigated since the end of the Sequin Kingdom arc! What do you guys think?**


	303. Where is Apollo?

**Before starting this chapter, I'd like to wish a happy birthday to my oldest friend, Skyler The Elf Owl! I'm so glad to have the chance to be your friend, fluffy owl :)**

* * *

"What should we do?" Lazaro asked as he swam into the street's river alongside Hernandez while Alex was walking on the floor.

"I'm sorry, guys. I should've been more carefully but I was distracted by reading all those medicinal books," Alex said with his head low.

"No need to be sorry, Little Al," Hernandez said. "It wasn't your fault. When we saw Arlene walking with this masked guy, we thought it was you in your muscle form but it wasn't."

"But who could it have been then? And how did they disappear so quickly?" Lazaro asked.

"Yeah, I lost track of her smell too," Alex said.

"I hope I'm wrong, but I've got a bad feeling about this," Hernandez admitted. "Remember what Admiral Glacier said? His words are stuck in my head. He talked about an event linked to Arlene's past and he also said that one day, we'll regret taking her with us."

"Yeah, I remember," Alex said with a nod. "You think this could have something to do with Arlene's disappearance, Hernandez?"

"Honestly, I'm not sure, Little Al. But the best thing we can do right now is returning to the Saldanha. If she's okay, she'll get back there eventually."

"Okay!" Alex said with nodding.

* * *

"You can't fix the Saldanha?! What does this mean?! I thought you guys were the best for this kind of work! So what's wrong?!" Blu asked in a shocked and confused tone. "We have enough money to pay you!"

"That's not the problem," Kaku said. "You can have all the money in the world; it won't change anything. Your ship is just unrepairable. Just seeing its current state, I wonder how you managed to get here in one piece. That's practically a miracle."

"And what is that supposed to mean?!" Jewel asked. "What is wrong with the Saldanha?!"

"Have you ever heard of what a keel is, young girl?" Paul asked.

"Huh...no, what is it?" Jewel asked with a curious look.

"The keel is the lower part of the ship, young lady," Paul continued. "It's the most important part of a ship. It's a wooden board that goes from the rudder all the way up to the beak. When we build a ship, we always start by the keel. After that, we make the hull, the rudder, the quarterdeck, the mat, everything else. In other words, the keel is like the spine of the ship. Since all the ship is built around this one element, its whole life is depending on it. If the keel somehow gets damaged, it would be impossible to change it. And it would be pointless to change what's around it. You might as well build a new ship. In other words, your ship is nothing but a shipwreck."

"Don't talk about our ship like that!" Jewel suddenly exclaimed with an angry look."

"Don't take it like that, young lady; it's just the truth," Paul said with rising his paws in defense.

"In that case, if the Saldanha's destroyed, you just have to build us another one!" Blu suddenly said. "Yeah, make us a whole new Saldanha!"

"That's not possible either," Fabian suddenly said. "We can build one that will look like it, but technically speaking, it's impossible to reproduce the very same one. What I mean by this is that you'll never find two identical ships in the world."

"What?! What are you talking about?!" Jewel asked.

"To give you an idea, have you ever seen two trees that are exactly identical?"

Jewel thought about it...and realized he was right. She lived most of her life in a jungle and a forest but she had to admit she never saw two trees that were exactly the same.

"See? A ship is indeed made of wood, I recognize it, but it's the wood's quality and size that makes the quality of the ship. This is why two ships cannot be 100% identical even if they are built from the same blueprint. So, supposing that we rebuild your Saldanha, and in spite of our efforts and the biggest will in the world, he would be different from the original. And it would be you, the crew onboard, that would recognize it first."

Jewel frowned and tightened her wing in a fist. "So what you're saying is that the Saldanha will never be able to navigate on the sea, right?!"

"Yes," Kaku said with a nod. "You have two choices now: you can either wait for your ship to drown with you or you can get rid of it by yourselves."

Blu looked down. He thought about when he and his friends saw the Saldanha for the first time after saving the Sequin Kingdom. How Chuva worked really hard with the other crafters of the country to make this ship as a gift for saving the people. No. He couldn't just drop it away like this. This ship was part of their crew as well.

"Be realist," Mr. Iceberg said. "Your ship made its time. Accept it and tell yourself it's the occasion to change it. From what I've heard, you're not missing money; we can work on making you a new boat."

"I don't care. I won't change our boat!" Blu said in a low yet firm tone.

"Blu!" Jewel said with looking sadly at her boyfriend.

"I said I don't want and that's my final point." Blu then glared at everyone. "The Saldanha is our ship! We can't just drop it like this! I'm sure that if we fix it, he will work perfectly again! He's not done! The fact that he brought us all the way here is proof! So don't tell me just like this that he's dead! I don't believe you! You don't know how strong this ship is! YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT!"

"As long as he doesn't drown, you'll think he's fine," Mr. Iceberg calmly said. "This is ridiculous. Would you look at this? And you pretend to be the captain of a crew?"

This statement caused Blu to glare angrily at the penguin and curl his wing into a fist. Mr. Iceber sighed.

"Okay, guess we'll just stop there. Think about it and come back to see us if you want a new ship. For 3 million pieces, we can make you a ship with the finest technological advancement."

Kalifah then stepped forward and held a paper to the two macaws. "Here, have a look. It's a catalog of our new models and older ones. The prices are written behind."

"Iceberg." The penguin turned to see one of his men coming. This man is a muscular black wolf with black hair and a mustache who wears sunglasses. His upper body is covered with intricate tattoos, green on his chest, and red on his arms. He wears pants that have lighter colored stripes around his waist and on the top of the legs, and standard shoes. "Clients are waiting for you at the door."

"Strange, there is no date planned at this hour," Kalifah remarked with checking her planning papers.

"Judging by their looks, I'd say they are agents of the World Government," the wolf said. "Should I send them back?"

"Huh, yes. Just tell them I'm absent," Iceberg replied.

"Just a second, Iceberg, it won't take long." Turning around, the wolf saw three white dogs dressed in black like businessmen coming their way.

"Hide! Quick!" Those guys are World Government agents!" Paul said to Blu and Jewel who grabbed their mallets and rushed to go hide behind wooden logs.

"My dear Cordy," Iceberg said to the wolf in the middle. "I'm really sorry but I'm not present today."

"Of course you are," Cordy sarcastically said with rolling his eyes. "Come on, with the long way in the train I made to see you, you can receive me just for a moment, can't you?" He then gave a surprised look and sniffed the air with his nose. "Say, pal, it smells like pirates around here. But anyway, I'm only interested in talking to you right now."

"And I already told you no, so get away," Iceberg said with his flippers crossed.

"Come on, I come with an interesting proposition that would be benefiting for you and your enterprise. It's worth listening to it, don't you think? Come on, let's go discuss this in private."

The three wolves walked away and Iceberg followed them with Kalifah behind him. "What a bunch of parasites!" Paul angrily sighed. "Can't they leave him alone for a bit? Seriously, what do they want with him?!"

"It doesn't concern us anyway. It must be business stuff," Fabian calmly said.

Jewel sighed in relief from her hiding spot as the World Government agents left. She then noticed Blu looking at the two mallets the guy gave them earlier with a suspicious look. "Is there a problem, Blu?"

"I don't know. Something's not right with these two mallets. They are lighter than they originally were," Blu said.

Jewel rose a curious eyebrow. "Light? But there have a million pieces each in them." They then opened the mallets...and widened their eyes.

"AAAAAAAHHH!"

Paul jumped and rushed to the macaws' hiding spot in a hurry. "Hey! Why are you macaws screaming like this?!" He then looked in surprise. The two mallets the blackbird gave Blu and Jewel earlier were empty.

"WHERE ARE OUR TWO MILLION?!" Blu shouted in panic.

"Hey, why are you making some much noise?" Fabian asked as he joined them. "Your money disappeared? Paul, what have you done?"

"Hey! It wasn't me!" the husky immediately defended himself.

"Say, Paul, you met guys from the Gaming Family earlier?" the muscled wolf asked.

"Yeah, why?"

"I saw them passing by earlier. They were carrying some owl wearing a cap and a backpack with them."

This immediately caught the attention of Blu and Jewel. "An owl with a cap and a backpack? That's Apollo!" Blu exclaimed.

"You say he was with the guys of the Gaming Family?!" Jewel asked.

"Yes, they were carrying him with them. He looked in pretty bad shape," the wolf said.

"Crap! They kidnapped him!" Blu mumbled before suddenly running off.

"Blu! Wait! You don't even know where they are!" Jewel called but her boyfriend was already gone, launching his plastic wings to fly in the air like Spider-Man. "Crap? He's so hot-headed when it comes to his crew," Jewel mumbled with rubbing her forehead. She then turned to Paul. "Do you know where we can find this Gaming Family?"

"Yes; they have their own working place located on the north-east coast of Water 7 and close to where you parked your ship. It's easy to find; you can't miss it. they call it the "Gaming House"."

* * *

"Blu! Blu!" Jewel called as she drove through the Water 7 streets on the seahorse. "Where did he go?" She then sighed. "Anyways, I'm gonna bring our last mallet to the Saldanha before anything else. I'm better not going after thieves for two million with one million in my wings. Let's go!"

The seahorse carried her through the streets of Water 7. However, at one point, Jewel noticed a large gathering in one street. "Huh? What's going on there? Stop!" She got off the horse and made her way through the crowd to see someone laying on the ground. She gasped.

"APOLLO!" The barn owl was beaten up, covered of bruises, and had blood over his usually white and brown feathers. Jewel leaned over him. "Are you okay? Apollo! Are you okay? Please, tell me something!" the spix macaw panicked.

The barn owl coughed a bit and Jewel gently took him in her wings. "Apollo, it's the Gaming Family that did this to you, right? "

Apollo coughed and whimpered with a weak voice. "I...I...yes. I-I couldn't defend myself...I was no match...They took everything...They stole all the money..."

Apollo started sobbing. "A-Apollo..."

He looked at her with tears in his eyes. "I'm...I'm ashamed of myself! W-What will the others think about me?! Just as...we were finally gonna...get the Saldanha fixed... I fucked everything up! I'm so sorry!" The barn owl kept sobbing and crying. "I'm just a loser!"

Jewel felt saddened to see her friend like this. "Don't worry, Apollo. It's not bad. forget about the money; we'll get it back!" Jewel nervously thought: "He's badly beaten up. It would be too dangerous to move him in that state." She carefully placed Apollo against a wall. "Apollo, wait for me here, okay? I'll go back to the ship to get help. I'll bring Alex and he'll take care of your wounds. Don't worry about the money; these cowards' house isn't far from here. With Dominic, Lazaro, and the others, we're gonna go kick their butt and everything will be solved."

She barely saw that the barn owl was looking down with a frown. "I'll be back soon! Stay here and don't panic, okay?!" she said and started running away. While driving back on her seahorse, Jewel couldn't help but frown.

"I couldn't tell him that the Saldanha is down. Not yet..."

* * *

"What?! Are you serious?!" Lazaro exclaimed in shock.

He, Hernandez, and Alex returned on the Saldanha where Dominic and Vladimir announced them the news. "Couldn't be more serious," Dominic replied with looking down. "That's what the woodpecker who came told us."

"...The ship is done...," Hernandez mumbled in shock.

"H-He can't be fixed?! Even if we have the money for it?!" Alex asked with a trembling voice. "B-But what are we gonna do with the Saldanha?!"

"I don't know; it's Blu who's gonna make this decision," Dominic said. "I bet he must be discussing this with the workers of the construction site. They're gonna take a decision about this."

"I don't believe it!" Lazaro angrily said, stepping toward his golden eagle friend with a firm look. "Those guys must talk bullcrap! Look at our ship; it doesn't look that bad! Otherwise, it wouldn't have been able to go from Sequin all the way here!"

"That's the point; I think we went too far," Dominic said, sitting against the ship's edge. "If the trials we go through makes us strong, it's the opposite for the ship. He takes damage and it leaves him with bad marks."

Lazaro was about to reply back...but then realized that what Dominic said was true. "I-I can't believe it! And think about Apollo! What is he gonna do upon hearing that? You know how much importance he accords to this ship!"

"I love this ship too! I don't wanna lose it!" Alex sadly said.

"Me too, Al," Dominic said with wrapping a wing around the owl kid. "But sometimes, things happen and we can't do anything about it."

"Arlene disappearing, the Saldanha being pulled out, what a crappy day," Vladimir sadly said with looking away.

"GUYS!" Everybody jumped and saw Jewel running toward the ship.

"Jewel!" Alex said. "But...where are Blu and Apollo?"

Jewel jumped onto the ship and looked at everyone with a serious look. "Guys, we need help! This is an emergency!"

* * *

Meanwhile, a bit farther off the coast, the members of the Gaming Family were cheering in joy into their headquarters. From the outside, it looked like a well-decorated house with "GAMING HOUSE" written in neons on the front. the inside looked like a gamer's dream house with many TVs, consoles, and even retro arcade machines all around.

"T-Two million pieces?!" exclaimed their boss. It was a strange character wearing a purple magician cape around his body and a sunny mask covering his face.

"Nice catch, right, Boss?" one of the Gaming Family members asked.

"Congratulations, guys! You're pros!" the boss said with looking at all the golden coins in the mallets. "With all this, we'll be able to get everything we wanted for so long." He then tossed many coins toward his men. "You know what? Take 5 million of these and go have some fun!"

"YEAH! THANKS, BOSS!" the gamers beamed.

BOOM!

Everybody turned around in surprise as the entrance door and wall of their house exploded open. Once the dust cleared, it revealed a panting and visibly pissed off own glaring at them. The slingshot in his wing indicated he used this tool to make the explosion.

"Hey! It's that owl guy we stole the money from!" one of the gamers said.

Apollo angrily glared at them and shouted: "GIVE ME THE MONEY BACK!"

* * *

 **Things are getting pretty intense. Will Apollo manage to get the money back from the Gaming Family despite his injuries. And even if he does, how will he react upon learning that the Saldanha cannot be fixed?**

 **Once again, happy birthday to you, Sky :)**


	304. The Blue Thunder Crew vs Gaming House

The leader of the Gaming Family and his men laughed as they all looked at the badly beaten Apollo struggling to stand up from their floor. "Why so serious?" their masked leader asked. "It's like you're in love with your ship. I don't know what will happen to your old piece of wood as for the money, it is ours now."

Apollo glared angrily at this masked leader who was holding one of his two mallets. "Unfortunately for you, we live in a society where stealing from a pirate isn't a crime. And besides, I'm sure you and your crew stole this money from someone else before. Just give up, it will be better for you."

Apollo just kept glaring at the leader in anger and pain. "Or you can always beg the Naval Forces to give you a hand. You and your gang will get arrest anyways." He chuckled more. "Poor Gunderson. It must be ashaming to have in his crew a loser who cannot defend his own money."

"SHUT UP!"

Apollo jumped in anger toward the leader who instantly kicked him under the chin, sending him rolling a few feet away. Apollo coughed some blood and curled into a ball as his ribs were terribly hurting.

"I leave him to you guys. Do as you want with him." The leader turned around and walked toward the back exit with two pink macaws. "I'm gonna take benefit of this money to make a little shopping. This is gonna be fun-"

"EXPLOSIVE BILL!"

The leader turned around to see Apollo sat up and shot a bill toward him. However, he managed to raise his right wing which was covered by a glove looking like a Nintendo Power Glove and made some kind of glowing light blue shield appear to block the bill that exploded upon hitting it.

"What?!" Apollo exclaimed in shock at how easily the leader blocked his explosive bill.

"Listen, kid, my name is Gaming Joe! I recommend that you don't piss me off! That's if you wanna leave this city in one piece!" the leader named Gaming Joe said with making his shield disappear and pulling his Power Glove away.

The Gaming Family men grabbed Apollo's wings and held him back. "Let me go, you cowards!" he angrily shouted with struggling in their grip.

One of the men grabbed his slingshot and looked at it with a burst of mocking laughter. "He thought he would cause damage with such a ridiculous toy!"

Apollo glared angrily as he tossed his slingshot aside. "See ya soon, little owl," Gaming Joe said with walking away. "And thanks again for the two million pieces."

"No! Come back, you bastard! Give me back my money! Come back! I WANT MY MONEY!" Apollo angrily shouted with struggling in vain to free his wings.

One of the Gaming Family men punched Apollo in the stomach, causing him to spit more blood and curl his stomach in pain. The poor barn owl could only weakly look up as the Gaming Family men gathered around him with smirks and as Gaming Joe walked out of the house with his two pink macaw friends and his mallets of money.

Screams of pain and agony could be heard from inside the house as the helpless barn owl got beaten down even more by the Gaming Family...

* * *

"Stop here!" Lazaro ordered as he stopped swimming and took a look at his map. "The spot Jewel told us about should be somewhere around here."

The puffin got on the street's ground with Hernandez, Dominic, Hernandez, Alex, and Vladimir. "Apollo?! Where are you?" Alex called.

"Looks like he's gone," Hernandez said in concern.

Alex suddenly gasped. "Guys! Look!" Everybody looked to where he pointed and saw many red marks on the ground which seemed to lead away. Alex rubbed one mark and got a red liquid on his wing. "Look, it's blood!"

Dominic took a sip of it with his feathers and tasted it. "It's Apollo's."

"What an idiot! He was supposed to wait for us!" Lazaro angrily said.

"You think he has...?" Vladimir asked.

"Oh no, Apollo," Alex sadly said.

"WATCH OUT!"

The team moved out of the way in time as a blue blur landed on the floor right between them. Once the dust cleared, it revealed their beloved captain rubbing his head in pain.

"BLU?!" they all exclaimed and watched after their captain. "What are you doing here? What happened?" Lazaro asked him.

"I-I was looking for Apollo. But I couldn't find him anywhere." He then looked seriously at his friends. "Guys, it's urgent, we need to find Apollo!"

"Yes, Jewel told us everything that happened," Dominic said. "Let's go; we were justly about to go search for their headquarters. Those bastards beat up Apollo and ran away with our cash."

"Apollo must have been destroyed by guilt and decided to go declare war against the Gaming Family by himself," Vladimir deduced.

Blu gave a serious glare and stood up. "Let's go!"

* * *

After following Jewel's instructions, Blu's group made their off to the coast where the Gaming Family's headquarter was located. They found their barn owl friend laying down on the ground not too far from the house. He was covered with bruises and blood - his feathers were all crimson red. His chest was barely rising and falling as he breathed.

"I-Is he dead?!" Blu asked in fear as Alex checked after him.

"No. He's unconscious but still alive," the owl kid replied. "Don't worry; he should survive."

Blu glared at the house ahead and clutched his wing into a fist. "We'll be back soon, Apollo." Lazaro made sure his ponytail was correctly tied; Hernandez cracked his fists; Dominic put both of his wings on the handle of the swords at his waist; Alex adjusted his bowtie, and Vladimir cracked his neck. All of this for the inevitable battle ahead.

The six birds then advanced toward the Gaming House, determined to avenge their friend and take their money back.

* * *

Inside the Gaming House, all the gamers were having fun, eating food, drinking beer, and playing their video games. They could afford such luxury with all the money they had now. "Ha! You lost! You have to go buy us food!" one gamer said after winning a game of poker.

The one who lost rolled his eyes and walked over to the entrance door, opening it to exit. However, he barely had time to push the door open that a blue fist flew and hit him in the face, sending him flying back into the house and crashing through a wooden table. This alerted all the others who stopped having fun.

"W-What the hell?!"

All the eyes turned at the entrance where six figures stood. "Who are those guys?! They have a death wish?!"

Soon, they realized something. "Hey! I recognize those guys! It's this captain...Tyler "Blu" Gunderson!" one of them exclaimed and pointed at the visibly pissed off blue macaw and his five friends.

"I WILL SQUASH THEM!" a big bird wearing a metal armor exclaimed and charged at them.

Blu launched his wings backward. "POWER SLAM!" He planted his wings right into the giant bird's torso, destroying his metal armor, and sending him flying backward.

All the others screamed in panic. "H-He destroyed his armor?!"

"Impossible! It is supposed to be able to resist even a cannonball!"

Seeing the pissed off Blue Thunder Crew, one of them rose his wings in defense. "W-Wait! L-Let's talk about this!" However, this was a trick and more gamers grabbed guns to shoot at them.

Dominic unsheathed his three sabers and charged forward. "Three Swords Style: Kasuma, Raven Slash!" Swinging his sabers, Dominic managed to cut the bullets into pieces.

"T-They are too strong! Let's get out of here!" one of the gamers shouted and they all headed toward the back exit. However, Lazaro and Hernandez jumped before them.

"You start this fight and you don't even have the guts to finish it?" Lazaro asked. "Pathetic!" Charging forward, he span on himself to deliver spinning kicks that knocked all the gamers down.

A big one was about to slash the puffin from behind with a sword, only to receive an uppercut under the chin from Hernandez's armored wing, sending him crashing through the roof. Alex and Vladimir blocked the last exit.

"Balloon Candy!" Alex exclaimed as he ate his candy and turned into a balloon before charging into the gamers and knocking them down like bowling quills.

Vladimir turned half of his body to stone and grabbed a big one out of the ground which he tossed into the remaining gamers, knocking them all down as well.

* * *

A few moments later, the Gaming house was completely destroyed and the gamers were all defeated. Blu went to sit down at the edge of the coast as Alex was checking on Apollo.

"Will he be okay?" Dominic asked the doctor.

"Yes," Alex nodded as he finished covering the barn owl's body with bandages. "He's hurt but he's gonna survive."

"Guys." All the avians turned toward Blu who quietly spoke with his head down. "I've taken...a decision..."

"What is it, Blu?" Hernandez asked.

"...I've decided...to quit on the Sladanha...we're gonna take a new ship..."


	305. The Saldanha's cry! Apollo's decision!

**Before we kick off this chapter, I have an important statement to announce to you all. See, recently, a lot of readers including some of my closest friends, have criticized this story for being too much like One Piece. You probably already guessed it by now, but I took heavy influence from this manga/anime because I JUST LOVE IT TOO MUCH!**

 **But I cannot deny that I got so much attached to it that I forgot that I was supposed to tell my own story. This is why I'm gonna try to make it a bit less similar in terms of story to One Piece and more like something out of my head. Even if it means that this story will be less good. 'Cause let's be honest, I'll never make any story as good as Eiichiro Oda's masterpiece.**

* * *

Apollo groaned as he started regaining consciousness. His body was still numb from the pain of the beating he took at the hands of the Gaming House in a desperate attempt to get his two million back. Maybe he should've waited for his friends before launching an attack after all.

After blinking his eyes a few times, the barn owl groaned and regained his view to see a familiar fluffy ball looking over him. "A-Alex?"

"Apollo!" Alex beamed upon seeing his owl friend waking up. "You're alright?"

"Y-Yeah...I think..." Apollo stood up to see his body was covered with bandages. Upon further examination, he realized that he was in the Saldanha - into the dining room to be more precise - lying into a bed on the floor. Blu, Dominic, Jewel, Lazaro, Hernandez, and Vladimir were present as well. "G-Guys?"

Blu silently stepped toward Apollo, staring at him seriously without saying anything. The sun started setting at the horizon, letting orange sunrays going through the room's windows which made it bath into an orange light.

"Oh, Blu." Apollo giggled innocently and started rubbing the back of his head. "Look, sorry for going to fight the Gaming House by myself. It was stupid and I should have waited for you before launching an attack. But if it makes you feel better, I learned my lesson. I mean, you can see all the damage I've taken from-"

"Apollo," Blu simply cut him off. The barn owl saw an unusually serious look on his face. "I have something important to tell you."

The barn owl was a bit surprised that his captain was so serious. Something told him it wasn't about the fact that he faced the Gaming House by himself. "Y-Yes?"

"...We went to talk with the workers of Water 7. We discussed with the best ones of the G1 Company of Mr. Iceberg," Blu mumbled with looking down.

"Oh no. Don't tell me their price is too elevated and that we can't afford it because I lost the two million!" Apollo exclaimed. "It's okay, there's still time for us to find their leader before he uses all our money and-"

"That's not it!" Blu cut him off once again. "They inspected our ship and they gave us the results." The macaw gave him a serious look. "The Saldanha cannot be fixed. The damage is too bad. This is why I decided that we are going to take a new ship."

A dead silence fell into the room. No one said anything or moved a single feather. "W-What did you just said?" Apollo finally managed to ask after a full minute.

Blu suddenly tightened his wings into fists. "Don't make me repeat myself. I told you; the Saldanha can't be repaired anymore. No matter what we do, we...we can't fix it. It's just like that."

Upon hearing this, Apollo collapsed on his knees, frowning from the news. "You mean this ship - this ship that we're riding on right now - is broken?!" he asked in a loud tone with slapping his bandaged wings on the wooden floor.

"Right, it's only a matter of time before it sinks," Blu simply said.

Apollo only stared at Blu...before frowning angrily and looking away. "What are you talking about, Blu? You're nuts!"

"No, I'm serious. The shipwrights took a look at the Saldanha themselves. They said it won't even hold on to the next island."

Apollo scoffed and angrily looked at the ground. "So that's it? A bunch of strangers tells you to scrap your ship and you don't even ask any questions?!" he mumbled in a low yet serious tone.

"That's enough!" Blu seriously said.

"I understand these guys know what they're talking about but it's just wrong!" Apollo suddenly looked at Blu with the most serious look he ever had. "DON'T GIVE UP ON THE SALDANHA! WHAT ABOUT ALL THE ADVENTURES WE'VE GONE ON TOGETHER?! WHAT ABOUT ALL THE BATTLES WE FOUGHT?! THE SALDANHA IS OUR FRIEND! HE'S ONE OF US! ARE YOU GONNA ABANDON HIM FOR ANOTHER SHIP WITHOUT A SECOND THOUGHT?!"

Everybody was surprised as this was the first time Apollo was yelling like this against one of his own friends. He even kept glaring angrily at Blu. "After everything we've been through, is that how little the Saldanha means to you, Blu?!"

Both the spix macaw and barn owl glared angrily at each other until Apollo started coughing in pain. "I know you're upset, Apollo. But you need to calm down," Alex said with approaching his friend. However, this last one pushed him back.

"I'm sorry, but no." Apollo coughed again. "I can't calm down until we settle this."

"Apollo, please," Jewel said, not liking to see the enraged Apollo suffering like this.

"What?! So you know better than the shipwrights?!" Blu spat out, irritated by Apollo glaring at him. "If we had someone like them in our crew to check the ship, we wouldn't have been in this position in the first place!"

"Just forget about them! We don't need these guys telling us what to do!" the barn owl stubbornly declared. "I'll just repair the Saldanha myself like I always did before!" He started checking on the damaged floor. "We managed to survive this way so far so there's no reason we can't keep going on. I'll get started right now. Come on, guys, help me up."

"That's not gonna work, Apollo!" Hernandez exclaimed.

"That's right; we don't have enough boards, do we? I better go buy some at the shipyard," Apollo continued to deny the reality. "We've got a lot of work to do!"

Blu started having enough of his behavior. "YOU'RE NOT A SHIPWRIGHT, APOLLO! YOU HEAR ME?!"

"Stop it, Blu!" Jewel interfered.

"Damn right I'm not! But so what?! I don't see why you're so hung up on everything some stupid shipwrights said!" Apollo shouted. "If they knew everything the Saldanha had gone through, they wouldn't give up so easily on it! They just want your money! I WON'T LET THEM TAKE THE SALDANHA AWAY FROM ME! THIS IS STUPID! YOU GUYS ARE GETTING FUCKED BY A BUNCH OF SALESMEN TRYING TO SELL YOU A HUGE BOAT! BLU, I KNOW SOME SALESMAN WOULD DO THAT TO SOME STRANGERS! BUT WHAT KIND OF CAPTAIN DOESN'T BELIEVE IN THE STRENGTH OF THE SALDANHA AND THE STRENGTH OF HIS OWN CREW?! HOW CAN YOU ACT LIKE YOU KNOW EVERYTHING AND IGNORE YOUR FRIEND?!"

Apollo suddenly grabbed Blu by the collar and pulled him in the face. "I CAN'T BELIEVE THAT'S THE KIND OF CAPTAIN YOU TURNED OUT TO BE! I THOUGHT YOU WERE BETTER THAN THAT!"

Blu just glared back at his crewmate. "You're not being fair, Apollo!" Jewel exclaimed. "Blu's just trying to-"

"You stay out of this!" Blu suddenly shouted at his girlfriend. "THIS IS MY CALL, APOLLO! I STAND BY! THERE'S NOTHING YOU CAN DO! WE'RE GETTING A NEW SHIP WETHER YOU LIKE IT OR NOT! THIS IS THE END OF THE ROAD FOR THE SALDANHA!"

"I DON'T CARE WHAT YOU SAY!"Apollo shouted even louder than before. "I KNOW YOU'RE ALWAYS TRYING TO THINK ABOUT THE FUTURE, BUT NOT EVERYONE IN THIS CREW IS LIKE THAT! I SEE THE SALDANHA AS ONE OF OUR FRIENDS, GOT IT?! I WON'T ABANDON HIM WHEN HE'S HURT!"

"DON'T BE STUPID! EVEN IF HE'S OUR FRIEND, THAT DOESN'T MEAN HE'S A PERSON!" Blu snapped and broke out of Apollo's grip.

"HE IS TO ME AND HE STILL HAS THE STRENGTH TO LIVE! BUT YOU DON'T SEE IT BECAUSE ALL YOU CARE ABOUT IS GETTING A NEW SHIP!"

Blu and Apollo started yelling at each other simultaneously. "That's enough, both of you!" Lazaro shouted while approaching the two avians.

Eventually, Blu had enough and decided to knock Apollo to the ground, get on top of him, and grab him by the neck. "DON'T ACT LIKE YOU'RE THE ONLY ONE WHO'S TORN UP BY THIS! WE ALL FEEL THE SAME WAY!"

"IF THAT WAS THE CASE, YOU WOULDN'T BE LOOKING FOR A NEW SHIP!" Apollo shot back up.

"ALRIGHT FINE! IF YOU DON'T LIKE THE WAY YOUR CAPTAIN DOES THINGS, THEN WHY DON'T YOU GO AHEAD AND GET THE FUCK OUT OF-"

SLAM!

Lazaro suddenly jumped into the action and delivered a violent kick across Blu's face, sending him crashing against the room's wall. Everybody gasped in shock at this. Blu rubbed his hurting head and looked up at Lazaro who was glaring seriously at him.

"You moron!" the puffin said. "What were you about to say?! Get ahead of yourself! Don't say something you'll regret later!"

Blu sat down and rubbed his head. "I'm sorry. It just slipped out."

"No. It's okay, Blu," Apollo mumbled. "That's what you want, isn't it?"

"What?!"

Apollo struggled to stand up. "Any tovarishch who can't pull their weight gets discarded and left behind. If you're gonna do that to the Saldanha...then do it to me too!" Everybody looked in shock and confusion as the barn owl stood on his legs again. "You don't need weak tovarishch, right? Blu. You're the one that will become the strongest bird in the world and discover the Treasure Planet, right? Well, as for me...I don't need to go that far."

Apollo suddenly turned around and walked toward the door. "Wait! Where are you going, Apollo?!" Vladimir asked.

Apollo slammed the door open before stopping. "I'll go wherever I want. I'm..." He turned around toward them. "...leaving the crew!"

"WHAT?!" everyone except Dominic exclaimed in shock.

"APOLLO!" Alex screamed and grabbed his friend's leg. However, he simply kicked him back and got off the ship, walking away. "APOLLO! WAIT! You can't do this!" the kid shouted in a begging tone.

"Hey! Turn around!" Jewel called.

Blu arrived on the deck and Apollo then stopped walking. "Blu!" he said without turning around. "I can't be in your crew anymore! I've been a burden to the very end. Because you're the captain, this ship belongs to you." He then finally decided to turn around. "That's why I want to fight you. Tyler "Blu" Gunderson...I'M CHALLENGING YOU TO A DUEL!"

Everybody got even more shocked. Blu just kept glaring at his now former crewmate while trembling and sweating. Apollo rose a wing and pointed a feather at his former captain. "I'll be back here at midnight! Whoever wins the duel gets to keep the Saldanha! I'm going to beat you and take him with me! That will be the end of our relationship!"

Blu glared back at him. "...Fine!"

* * *

 **Guys, you have no idea how hard it was for me to write this scene. The tension in this chapter was so strong that even Hawkeye's sword couldn't possibly cut it.**

 **These characters are like my own children and the Blue Thunder Crew is like a family to me. Which is why it was hard for me to make Apollo leave the crew. But the Saldanha isn't repairable and Apollo was not going to give up on such a cherished gift given to them by Chuva so easily - especially a gift he worked on for so long.**

 **But not only is Blu the captain of this crew but he's also the most levelheaded. When desperate times call for desperate measures, someone needs to be the bigger man and face the facts.**


	306. Blu vs Apollo

**Hey, guys! I'm back (even if I wasn't gone anywhere, XD)!**

 **Now I'm sorry for not updating this story for a few days after leaving you on a big cliffhanger and shocking scene. It's just that I wanted to complete the first arc of my other story "Quest For Awesomeness" before continuing here. But I won't lie; it's also because a small part of myself was afraid of writing this chapter. You're about to find out why...**

* * *

Midnight in Water 7.

The black sky was turned into a shade of dark blue by the full moon that was covered by the occasional cloud. Waves were splashing against the coast of the industrial island where a terrible duel was about to take place.

It's like this crew was getting scattered.

Blu crossed his wings with a firm gave as he stood up on the coast's rocky ground. Behind him was the shipwreck that became the Saldanha. The Blue Thunder Crew leader felt the salty sea wind blowing through his dark blue feathers as he turned his head toward his crewmates who were all standing on the ship to watch the duel.

"You guys, don't leave the ship," he softly yet firmly ordered.

Dominic, Jewel, Alex, Lazaro, Hernandez, and Vladimir - all of them were standing on the edge of the ship, waiting to see the clash between their captain and former crewmate happening.

Soon, stepping noises were heard and the bandage-covered figure of Apollo came into view. The barn owl still had the defiant and firm glare he had during and after his argument with Blu.

"He's here," Jewel nervously mumbled.

"Apollo!" Alex exclaimed, knowing what was about to happen between him and his captain.

Blu and Apollo glared at each other with only many feet of distance and the ocean's breeze between them. "Did you come ready to fight?" Blu asked. "No matter what happens, have no regrets. You asked for this."

Apollo scoffed. "Of course. Don't hold back your punches. Because I won't." The barn owl then pointed a feather at his former captain. "I have prepared a tactic to defeat you."

Back on the ship, Alex trembled and looked at his friends. "Can't we stop this? Apollo is in bad shape."

"If you can't look, then go to your room," Dominic simply replied, his wings crossed and not even bothering to look down at the snowy owl.

"Blu," Apollo said and looked at the spix macaw. "You and I have been together for a long time, haven't we? I know your fighting style and the techniques you use. Don't be surprised." He then narrowed his eyes seriously. "I have at least a thousand subordinates with me! If you value your life, give up here and now!"

"A-A thousand?!" Alex exclaimed in surprise.

"Go to your room," Dominic repeated once again.

"Stop taking me for an idiot, Apollo!" Blu shouted. "I know you don't have any subordinates with you!"

"He's lying again!" Alex exclaimed in surprise.

"Go to your room," Dominic told the kid for the third time.

"I DON'T WANT TO!"

Having enough of just chatting, Blu charged forward and launched his wing backward, running toward Apollo. "TAKE THAT, APOLLO!"

However, the barn owl suddenly placed his bandaged wing over his beak and coughed out blood. This sight caused Blu to stop dead in his tracks as his friend collapsed on his knees and coughed more blood.

"Apollo!" Jewel exclaimed in shock.

"He's coughing out blood?!" Hernandez asked with a look of horror.

However, Apollo then glared up at Blu and revealed that he was holding a ketchup bottle in his wing. This was all a trick. "What is this, Blu? Taking pity on your enemy?" Suddenly, the barn owl took out his flare gun and shot a flare that blindfolded Blu. Then, as the spix macaw was holding his eyes in pain, he shouted rotten eggs on him with h his slingshot, their sticky liquid covering Blu's feathers.

"It stinks! They're rotten!" Blu exclaimed, waving the eggs off his feathers in disgust. "Darn it! Fight me seriously, Apollo!"

Apollo just panted while glaring at Blu. "I'm dead serious, Blu!" He then charged another bill into his slingshot. "This is my fighting style! Tabasco Bill!" He shot a bill that exploded and covered Blu in tabasco sauce, making him hold his eyes in pain.

"OUCH! IT BURNS!" Blu shouted as the tabasco sauce not only tainted his feathers but also his eyes.

Realizing that he had the advantage, Apollo continued his combo by shooting another bill that exploded and released small spikes all around Blu. "Let's see how you like my Spike Bill, Blu!" He charged and hit Blu across the face with his mallet, making blood come out of his nose, and making him crash into the spikes scattered over the ground.

"OUCH! OH, CHEESE AND SPRINKLES!" Blu squirmed in pain as the little spikes pierced his plastic body. Eventually, he managed to stop struggling and stood up between the spikes.

"Listen, Blu!" Apollo shouted with rising his slingshot. "I'm going to defeat you and I'm going to take the Saldanha! No matter what I have to do!"

Blu groaned in pain as he stood back up. "Cheese and sprinkles! It stinks, it's spicy, and it hurts!"

"I'm not going to let you take a break!" Apollo declared as he took a strange tool out of his backpack. It looked like a chain of ninja stars which he charged into his slingshot. "Shuriken Meteorites!"

Apollo started shooting many chains which broke in the air, sending the shurikens flying at Blu. The spix macaw was forced to run in order to avoid them, though he lost a few feathers in the process. Eventually, Apollo ran out of shurikens and Blu stopped running, both opponents glaring at each other while panting in exhaustion.

"Is that all you got, Apollo?" Blu asked before noticing smoke forming around him. "Huh? Smoke?" It was then that he saw a dial Apollo got from Skyland laying in a corner and releasing smoke.

"A Breath Dial," Apollo said. "Because of the eggs, you didn't notice the smell. That area is filled with gas."

Lazaro widened his eyes. "G-Gas?!"

"I'm sorry. Take this!" Apollo said and shot a bill. "Explosive Bill!" The bill flew into the gas and then...

BOOM!

The gas created a huge explosion that forced the others on the Saldanha to cover themselves as the strength of the explosion shook the ship and the ground too. "What an explosion!" Dominic exclaimed while holding onto the ship.

"Blu! Apollo!" Jewel screamed after recovering.

The explosion caused Blu to be knocked on his back and to start bleeding from the side of the head. And yet, the only thing in his mind was the moment Apollo joined his party to adventure in the New World.

 _"W-Why should I come too?!"_

 _"Because I know that you too have ambitions but you lack the guts to follow them so I'm giving you the kick in the butt you need!"_

Apollo groaned in pain and sat against a stone, glaring at Blu and thinking about all the great times they had together as well. He looked above his former captain's shoulder and saw that a wave splashed over the macaw-shaped head of the Saldanha. Somehow, this made it look like the ship was looking at them and crying at it.

Tears started forming in Jewel's eyes. "I-I can't watch this!"

"Blu! Apollo! I'm begging you! Stop this!" Alex begged as tears came out of his eyes and rolled down on his cheeks.

Apollo kept glaring at Blu who was still laying on his back. "Blu! I know something like this won't kill the future strongest bird in the world! Get back up!" He charged more explosive bills and started shooting at the spix macaw who suddenly kicked up and started running around to dodge them.

"ENOUGH!" After dodging many explosions, Blu launched his fist at Apollo and punched him across the face, knocking him down. "POWER SLAM!" he added with throwing his plastic wings backward and going for his strongest attack.

However, Apollo suddenly took out another dial and managed to block Blu's attack with it. "You forgot I have an Impact Dial with me!" he declared and then planted the dial into Blu's face. "IMPACT!" Pressing the button, he released the strong impact of Blu's own attack in his face, causing him to spit blood and getting knock a few feet away.

However, Apollo also felt the backfire as the shock spread into his wing all the way up to his shoulder, causing him to drop his dial and clutch his wing in pain. "How is that, huh?!" he angrily asked.

However, to his shock and horror, Blu landed on his feet and immediately got back on the assault as he launched his wings backward. "POWER SLAM!" This time, Apollo had no more tricks up his sleeve. He had no choice but to receive the attack directly into his torso. Sounds of breaking bones were heard as the barn owl spat a lot of blood before collapsing down and clutching in pain.

"...It's over," Dominic mumbled as all of his friends were either crying and looking in sadness and horror.

Blu collapsed on his knees and panted as he glared at Apollo. "You idiot. There was no way you could win against me." Seeing as Apollo didn't respond, Blu simply got back up and turned toward the Saldanha. "The Saldanha is yours. You can do what you want with it. I'm not letting anything hold us back!" After walking a little more, he added; "So long, Apollo... It was fun...while it lasted..."

Meanwhile, on the ship, Alex couldn't take it anymore, grabbing his backpack filled with medical supplies, and ran toward the edge of the ship and toward Apollo. "Alex! Leave him alone!" Lazaro ordered and grabbed the kid by the wing before he could leave.

Alex turned to look at him with his tear-filled eyes. "What are you talking about?! He was already hurt before the fight! Who knows what will happen to him now!" He slapped Lazaro's flipper away and tried to get off the ship again.

Lazaro glared angrily and wrapped his flippers around Alex's waist, still holding him back. "He isn't part of our crew anymore!"

"SO WHAT?! I'M A DOCTOR! IT'S MY DUTY TO HELP HIM!" Alex ate a Muscle Candy and took his muscled form before swinging his wing at Lazaro. The puffin ducked and kicked him across the face which knocked him down.

He then planted his foot against Alex's chest, pinning him down and forcing him to look in his eyes. "It's bad enough that he lost the duel; if you pity him in a time like this, you'll only end up hurting him more than any of those injuries!"

Hernandez came to put his wing on Alex too. "Little Al, I'm sure you have good intentions, but all we can do now is giving him dignity in defeat. He knew that when he challenged Blu to a duel, this is how it might end."

When Blu arrived at the Saldanha once again, they saw him hanging his head down and sobbing a lot as a flow of tears came out from both of his eyes. "It's too much...," he mumbled before sobbing again.

Jewel couldn't take it anymore and hugged her boyfriend as she cried just as much as him. He returned the hug by wrapping his wings around her. He truly needed this at this moment.

Dominic lowered his head in sadness. "This is what it means to be captain. You can't down yourself. In times like these, if you lose your confidence... then who can we have faith in?"

Alex just cried a little more before running up to Apollo but he simply left many medical supplies next to his unconscious figure before running back to the ship, wiping his tears away.

"...Let's pack our things and go," Dominic softly told everyone. "You know what all of this means. We'll sleep in the ship, but after tonight...we will never return to the ship again..."

Vladimir, Hernandez, and Lazaro just closed their eyes and tried hard to hold back their tears as they could only hear the sounds of Blu, Jewel, Alex, and even Apollo crying. They did not only lose their ship...but they also lost a crewmate and a friend...

* * *

 **I'm sorry guys, but I don't feel like making a big AN...my heart is too broken...**


	307. Grudge fight: Blu vs Gaming Joe

The Blue Thunder Crew passed probably the most restless night of their lives which also happened to be their last one on the Saldanha. The lost of their crewmate was still fresh in their mind and very painful for their heart. It was probably going to be for a very long time.

Blu yawned and rubbed his eyes as the sun rose at the horizon and pierced through the window of the cabin. The other almanacs were empty save for his own one which was occupied by Jewel. Blu had a wing wrapped around his beloved girlfriend who spent most of the night crying into his soft chest. Losing his friend was already too hard, so seeing his soulmate crying like this was making it even worse for Blu.

The crew's captain decided to carefully sneak out of his almanac and let Jewel rest a little longer. Kissing her on the cheek and wiping tears off his soaked chest, he made his way outside the cabin. Once on the deck, he noticed all the others were also awake but were not doing their usual morning activities. Dominic and Vladimir were just sitting silently in a corner instead of training or taking a nap; Lazaro was not cocking and instead just laid on Hernandez' lap with both of them looking depressed, and Alex was nowhere to be seen.

"Hey, where's Alex?" Blu asked Dominic as he approached him.

"There," the macaw's trusted friend replied with pointing his feather to a stone a bit farther on the coast. Alex was indeed sitting on it. "He has been sitting there all by himself since dawn. That was two hours ago."

"Maybe you should go talk to him, captain," Vladimir said.

Blu nodded and walked off the ship, heading toward Alex. The captain could not imagine how much his duel with Apollo has affected the young doctor. Their former crafter was his closest friend after all. Getting onto the stone, he saw the little snowy owl sitting down and staring away at the endless ocean. Marks on his cheek feathers indicated that he cried a lot.

"Hey, Al, you're okay?" Blu softly asked with sitting down next to his friend.

Alex just looked down in sadness. "...No."

Blu sighed. "Honestly, me neither." He then pulled a wing on Alex's shoulder. "But Alex, you understand why I did that, don't you?"

"Yes, I understand...but it's still hard to accept it," Alex softly said. "Apollo was my best friend and I miss him..."

"Me too, Alex. Me too," Blu gently said and wrapped a wing around the kid to pull him into a soft hug.

"GUNDERSON!"

Both avians froze and turned their head toward the source of the scream. To their surprise, they got interrupted by three birds that came out of nowhere. There were two female pink macaws and one masked and caped bird that kept his identity hidden.

"Who are you?" Blu asked. "Look, I don't know what you want, but now's not the time!"

Alex also stood up. "Yeah! We just lost one of our friends, so leave us alone-"

CHOMP!

In a split-second, Alex found himself trapped in a sandwich hug from the two pink macaws. "OH MY GOSH! HE'S SO ADORABLE! A TRUE LITTLE FLUFFY BALL!" they exclaimed at unison while nuzzling the kid.

Alex just blushed and gave a sweet smile. "That doesn't make me happy at all!"

"So you guys are the Blue Thunder Crew, huh?" the masked bird said as the rest of the crew on the Saldanha noticed the commotion and looked at them. "The guys who destroyed my house."

A smirk formed behind the mask which the bird suddenly removed and also tossed his cape away to reveal his identity. He was a slightly chubby-looking barn owl with light brown feathers, a white face and underbelly, and yellow eyes. His dress consisted of a black t-shirt with "8-bit power" written in white on the front, a puffer red vest (similar to the one worn by Mart Mcfly), blue jeans with many pockets, a black belt to which were tied some kind of sword along with a bottle of white liquid, a green backpack on his back, orange see-through goggles on his eyes, and a Nintendo Power Glove modified to fit on his right wing.

"My name is Gaming Joe and I'm the leader of the Gaming Family!" he announced. He then pointed an accusing finger at Blu. "I came to claim revenge for you destroying my headquarters and hurting my guys!"

"Hey! For your info, it's you and your guys that started it: you stole OUR money and attacked OUR friend!" Blu declared, feeling a sting in his heart at the memory of Apollo. "If anything, WE should be mad at you! You caused us a lot of trouble!"

"I don't care!" Gaming Joe declared. "I'm gonna beat you all right here, right now, and collect your bounties!"

Blu scoffed in anger, jumping down from the rock and raising his fists. "So stealing our two million golden pieces was not enough, you big greedy jerk?" Blu also wanted to beat this guy up because he blamed him for causing Apollo to leave the crew. "TAKE THAT!"

Blu launched his fist backward before sending it toward the barn owl. This last one took what looked like a video game cartridge out of his pocket and inserted it into his Power Glove. He then pressed a button and summoned a glowing blue shield to block Blu's fist, causing the macaw to feel slight pain.

"A-A shield?!" Lazaro exclaimed in surprise.

"Surprised, huh?" Gaming Joe asked with a smirk. "And trust me, I still got many tricks up my sleeve!" The barn owl quickly took out the current cartridge and switched it for another one before shooting what looked like a pixel fireball at Blu. This last one managed to dodge it though he still felt the heat of the attack as it passed near his face.

"W-What's this glove?" Blu asked with panting. "This looks like nothing more than a failed Nintendo tool!"

"I know, right?" Gaming Joe asked, smirking and showing his Power Glove. "Believe it or not, but video games from the Human World actually managed to make their way into the New World. They might not be as popular as in your world, but my friends and I are in absolute love with them. So much that I spent most of my life creating tools and weapons based on video game accessories or from things I've seen into games. This Power Glove has been modified and allows me to materialize certain objects from different games, but I need the right cartridges for it to work."

He then rose his glove and started shooting more fireballs, forcing Blu to evade. After avoiding around twenty fireballs, Blu jumped up and launched his plastic wing at Gaming Joe, punching him right into the face and knocking him on his back.

"BOSS!" the two pink macaws exclaimed in shock.

"Well done for him!" Jewel angrily said. "I still don't forgive him for stealing our money and hurting Apollo!"

Gaming Joe stood up and grabbed his bottle of white liquid which he unbottled and started drinking. "What's this?" Blu asked.

"It's milk," Joe replied after finishing his sip. "I always keep milk on myself everywhere I go; it's good for my health and for my bones too." He continued drinking.

Blu just blinked his eyes curiously before getting in fighting mode again. He spun his wing while launching it backward. "DRILL PUNCH!"

As the spinning fist came toward him, Joe wiped some milk off his beak before ducking the attack and using his Power Glove to summon what looked like a glowing light blue bomb. He smirked at Blu and dropped it beside him before jumping away.

BOOM!

Blu got knocked back by the explosion and landed with a loud thud. Gaming Joe chuckled with a smirk. "Really? And you're supposed to be an S-rank pirate captain? The World Government's bounty system must really have troubles!"

Right after saying that, Blu kicked up and charged again. "POWER SLAM!" Before Gaming Joe could do anything, Blu planted his two wings right into the owl's stomach, causing him to spit saliva and get knocked many feet away, clutching his stomach in pain.

"You think Blu is gonna win this one?" Hernandez asked.

"I have no doubt about it," Dominic simply replied with his wings crossed.

"Had enough!" Blu asked with his fists raised and panting.

Gaming Joe glared at him as he got back up and adjusted his orange goggles. "Are you kidding? I'm barely getting warmed up!" He suddenly grabbed his belt that was tied to his sword. He pressed a button on the handle and the blade suddenly took fire. "Time to heat things up a little bit!"

However, before they could continue the fight, a voice interrupted: "B-BOSS!"

Joe turned around and saw one of his men stumbling his way. He was covered with bruises and looked like he took a rough beat down. "W-What happened to you?!" Joe asked.

"I-It's horrible...they attacked us... Boss...they captured your brother..." He then looked up at Gaming Joe. "THEY CAPTURED MR. ICEBERG!"

* * *

 **For those of you who don't know, Gaming Joe is an OC of mine who appeared in my original Super Rio franchise. He passed mostly unseen because I didn't used him correctly and was part of the P Squad which, ironically, Apollo was also part of.**


	308. An unlikely alliance in Water 7

Gaming Joe was looking in surprise at his beaten friend who just told him a big announcement. "W-What are you saying?!"

"Y-Your brother has been captured...," the Gaming House man weakly said. "T-They got Mr. Icerberg..."

This piece of information caught the attention of everyone. "Mr. Iceberg? He's your brother?" Blu asked.

"As a matter of fact, he is, Gunderson!" Joe replied.

"Wait, there, we're talking about the owner of the G1 Company that builds ships, right?" Blu asked. "How could he be your brother? You're an owl and he's a penguin!"

"Shut up! That's none of your business, Gunderson!" Joe replied before running to catch his friend in his wings. "Man. MAN! Who kidnapped my brother?! And why?!"

The Gaming House member coughed a bit before managing to reply. "It...was...the...foremen of...the G1 Company..."

"WHAT?!" everybody exclaimed in surprise. "B-But they work for my brother! And they are loyal to him! Why would they attack him like this?!" Joe asked.

"I-I don't know, Boss," the man replied with coughing. "All I remember is that they said they were going to bring him to the Crac Des Chevaliers and force him to give "secret plans" or something! Also, there was a new face with them. A girl. She was a scarlet macaw with a very sinister look..."

Blu and the others gasped as they immediately knew who he was talking about. "Arlene?!"

"T-They are going to bring him to the Crac Des Chevaliers fortress?!" Joe asked a look of pure horror on his face. "But this fortress is reserved only for criminals that have committed huge crimes against the World Government and are to be executed! Why would the foremen of the G1 Company want to get there and with my brother?!"

"I-I seriously don't know, Boss. We just saw them walking away with Mr. Iceberg tied and unconscious. We tried to help him but...they totally demolished us. They are heading to Blue Station right as we speak, Boss. They are going to leave..."

Gaming Joe sweated with a look of pure horror on his face. He cursed underneath his breath before gently pulling his friend who fell unconscious on the ground and turned toward the Blue Thunder Crew.

"Gunderson...I'm a bit ashamed of asking this from you, but...do you think we can pull our duel on standby for now? I must really leave and go save my brother. I know you must think I'm ridiculous for having the audacity of asking you this after stealing money from you and beating your friend down...but could you look after my friend, please? In exchange, I promise you to return your money and finish our duel without running away."

The Gaming House leader's demand was pretty surprising, to say the least. Blu and his friends all exchanged looks while Jewel simply glared at him. "Absolutely not! How can you ask this of us after attacking our friend, stealing our money, and even threatening Blu-"

"I will do it." Everybody turned toward Alex who had a serious look on his face. "Enemy or not, I can't just let someone injured die like this. So I'll check on your friend." The kid glared at Joe as he approached his injured friend. "But don't go think it means I forgive you for what you did!"

Gaming Joe let out a big sigh with a wing on his chest. "Seriously, from the bottom of my heart, thank you, kid."

"We're going with you!" Blu suddenly said before the barn owl could leave.

"What?!" the other exclaimed in surprise. "Are you serious, Blu?!" Jewel asked with an indignified tone. "Accepting to help this guy's friend was already too much but you even wanna help him in his quest after what he has done?!"

"That's not it, Jewel," Blu simply replied and turned his head toward his girlfriend. "I have three good reasons for going with this guy. First, because I wanna find Arlene and ask her why she disappeared. Second, I want to save Mr. Iceberg because if something was to happen to him, who would make us a new ship? And third, I want to be sure this guy (points at Gaming Joe) will stick to his word and give us our money back and finish our duel. That's all."

"That's just enough then," Dominic said with jumping off the ship. "Let's go. We must get to Blue Station if we wanna catch them in time."

"I sure hope there will be NF soldiers; I'm in the mood for brawling since last night!" Lazaro declared with fire in his eyes.

Gaming Joe was a bit surprised that the birds he absolutely wanted to kill moments ago were willing to follow him so easily. "Okay, let's go!"

* * *

Meanwhile, at Blue Station, four figures were walking together toward the next water train about to leave. These figures were none other than Fabian Estrada, Kaku, Kalifah of the G1 Company...and Arlene behind. The seagull was carrying an unconscious and bound Mr. Iceberg on his shoulder. This caught the attention of many civilians around.

"Move out! This is the business of the World Government!" Kaku firmly said with pushing away anyone in their way.

Once they reached the ship, some NF soldiers were waiting for them and did their military greeting. "The Killer Elite Squad. We were waiting for you."

"Yeah, whatever, can we just go?" Fabian asked. "I'd like to reach Crac Des Chevaliers before getting all wet by the incoming storm."

"Sure. If you may come in," the soldier said with opening the train's door.

"FABIAN!"

Everybody froze at the sudden call. Turning around, they saw none other than Paul arriving at the station. He was panting and looked at them with his eyes wide open in surprise.

"Paul...," Kaku mumbled.

"M-Mr. Iceberg?!" the husky exclaimed, shocked to see his boss unconscious on his friend's back. He then glared at him. "W-What does this all means?! Fabian! Kaku! Kalifah! Explain to me!"

The four birds simply glanced at him without saying anything. "This is none of your business, Paul," Fabian calmly mumbled. "We are members of the Killer Elite Squad and what we're doing with Mr. Iceberg is purely World Government affaire."

"T-The World Government?!" Paul exclaimed in shock. He then glared at them and made ropes come out of his wrists. "I don't understand at all, but there's no way I'm letting you capture Mr. Iceberg!"

The husky launched a rope at Fabian who easily caught it in one wing. He then dragged Paul toward him and punched him so violently in the stomach that it made him spit some blood and clutch down in pain.

"Even after all these years...you're still weak," Fabian mumbled. "How pathetic of you, Paul. Let's go!"

As he and the others got inside the train, Arlene kneeled beside the hurt Paul and mumbled: "Tell Tyler "Blu" Gunderson and his crew to not come after me" before following the others into the train that departed for Crac Des Chevaliers...


	309. Next destination: Crac Des Chevaliers

At last, Blu and his friends arrived at Blue Station in hopes of catching Arlene and the members of the G1 Company in time. "ARLENE!" Blu called, causing the civilians around to stare curiously at him.

"Where are they?" Lazaro mumbled with looking all around before staring at a civilian. "Hey, have you seen guys from the G1 Company passing over here?"

"Yes; they passed by a few minutes ago," he replied. "I don't know exactly why but they were carrying Mr. Iceberg with them. They took a train with soldiers of the Naval Forces and left Water 7 recently."

"Crap! We missed them!" Dominic swore with punching a wall. He then noticed a husky sitting against the station's wall with people looking at him. "Hey, who's that?"

Jewel gasped as she recognized him. "It's this guy who almost stole our money! Paul!"

The group rushed at him and Blu kneeled before the dog. He was visibly injured. "Hey, you're ok?"

Paul coughed a bit before looking up at them. "Oh, it's you kids? Big coincidence."

"What happened here? Why are you beaten up like this? And why did you and your friends captured Mr. Iceberg?" Blu asked.

"That's a strange story. I went to Mr. Iceberg's desk to update him on the progress we made today, but what I found was a destroyed room with a hole in the wall and blood on the floor. I immediately used my MAgic Fruit power to make my way across the city and search for my boss. That's when I ended up here and found Fabian, Kalifah, Kaku, and a scarlet macaw girl holding him prisoner and getting into a train with NF soldiers."

Alex gasped at what he said. "That girl, it was Arlene!"

"B-But what was she doing with these G1 guys and Naval Forces soldiers?" Jewel asked in shock and confusion.

"No idea," Paul replied. "All that I know is that Fabian still hits hard as he knocked me out with only one punch."

"Those bastards!" Gaming Joe angrily said. He then turned toward the two pink macaw girls. "Girls, go find our guys and tell them that I'm leaving Water 7 and that I'm going to Crac Des Chevaliers to save my brother. I should be back soon...hopefully."

"Yes, Boss!" the two girls replied and left.

Paul looked at the barn owl in surprise. "Wait, did you just said Crac Des Chevaliers?! One of the World Government's biggest fortresses?!"

"Yes; this is where they took my brother," Gaming Joe explained. "So this is where I'm going right now!"

"We're also going there," Blu said. "The scarlet macaw you met is named Arlene and she's our friend. We don't know why she ran away from us and joined these guys but we are gonna find out! And to do that, we must go to Crac Des Chevaliers too!"

"Ya really wanna get there?" Paul asked with blinking his eyes. "You know we're talking about Crac Des Chevaliers, right? This fortress is one of the three main headquarters of the World Government alongside the 9 Circles of Hell and Whitewall. Because of this, it is defended by many government agents - I'm talking around 10,000 ones - which are both Naval Forces soldiers and World Government agents. It is led by high authority figures which are said to be as strong as they are smart. To this day, no outlaw has been able to escape from this fortress. You really think it's worth the risk?"

"Of course!" Blu declared almost immediately with a look of determination. "Arlene is our friend! She helped us so much in Skyland that we probably wouldn't have survived our confrontation with Raijin and his men without her! What kind of friends would we be if we simply give up on her like this?!"

"Yeah, and I've gotta save my brother!" Gaming Joe declared. "I don't care how strong those guys are; I will make them pay for hurting my friends! No one can mess with the Gaming Family and get out unharmed!"

"We'll also need Mr. Iceberg to get a new ship if we wanna continue our journey," Dominic calmly said. "So going to this fortress seems like the most logical thing to do right now."

Paul blinked at the avians before smirking and managing to stand up. "You guys are crazy. Accepting to get into one of the three main headquarters of the World Government just like this." He looked seriously at them. "In that case, I'm coming too. My friends own me an explanation and I have to save my boss!"

"Are you sure? You seem hurt," Alex pointed out.

"I'm fine. It should heal very soon." The husky then looked down. "The only problem is that the train these guys took was the only available one for the day. This means we're trapped here until tomorrow."

"Does this means we have to go shopping to kill time until the next train?" Vladimir asked which earned him chuckles from his friends.

TCHOU-TCHOU!

The group jumped and turned their head to see a familiar locomotive passing near the station on the water. It stopped right before it and the window at the head lowered to reveal a familiar lady fox.

"MRS. COCO!" Blu and his friends exclaimed at unison.

"Hello kids, how you doing?" the fox asked with a bottle of wine in her paw. "You like the city so far?"

"Mrs. Coco, we need your help!" Blu exclaimed. He and his friends told her everything.

"So these guys captured Iceberg?" she asked to which they nodded. "In that case, there's no time to waste! Everyone on board! Our next destination: Crac Des Chevaliers!"

"Thanks a lot!" Blu said with a smile. "Hold on, Arlene! We're coming!"

* * *

 **And this concludes the Water 7 arc, my friends. I have good news for you: since I'm not really in the mood to go back to another storyline, the next arc will immediately follow up on this one. It will be the Crac Des Chevaliers arc!**

 **Something important you must know is that I made a deal with Loco Vampire: this arc must not be at all like the Enies Lobby arc from One Piece, or he will delete a drawing I asked him to make five months ago.**

 **You all know that I like to plan my stories in advance but for the next arc, I'll be forced to 100% improvise the story of Crac Des Chevaliers. Cause I really want this drawing. So I apologize if you don't like the next arc. Wish me good luck.**


	310. Opening themes

**Hey guys! Unfortunately, this isn't the start of the next arc - I'm still working on it. Instead, I decided that I was gonna add something I wanted to put in this story for a long time.**

 **Opening themes!**

 **Back when I was writing my New Legend Reboot saga, my friend TheDragonSaver used to make openings for his seasons of "Phoenix Of Ying, Dragon Of Yang"...and I FREAKIN LOVED THEM!**

 **This is why I decided to do the same for TDA. We're now gonna see the openings of all the arcs I made so far.**

* * *

Opening 1: The Rio arc

 **(We Are! - One Piece's first opening theme)**

 _We see Blu running with enthusiasm on a hill in Rio de Janeiro and jump from there. We quickly see Dominic, Jewel, Apollo, Polie, Adam, Alicia, and Star in turn_

 **Arritake no yume o kakiatsume**

 _As Blu falls, he grabs a nearby tree branch by stretching his plastic wing and flips in the air while screaming._

 **Sagashi mono sagashini yuku no sa**

 _We see the title "The Dynamic Adventure" appearing in the sky._

 **One Piece!**

 _The scene cuts to our heroes flying above Rio on a paraglider._

 **Irashinban nate jyutai no moto**

 **Netsu ni ukasare kaji o turu no sa**

 _The friends are smiling at each other with Blu looking ahead._

 **Hokori kabutteta takara no chizu mo**

 _The heroes keep flying further above Rio de Janeiro._

 **Tashikameta no nara densetsu jyanai**

 _We then see them fighting marmosets with Dominic pushing many away with his saber, Adam knocking one down with his wooden shield, Alicia protecting Star by shooting fire at some of them, Apollo throwing a rotten egg in one's face followed by a ball from Polie, and finally Jewel knocking him down with her wooden staff before doing the victory pose for the camera._

 **Kojin teki na arashiwa dareka no BIORHYTHM tokatte**

 _Blu jumps in the air and slams his plastic wings into Nigel's torso._

 **Omoi sugose ba li**

 _Blu lands down back at his friends' sides and smiles at them._

 **Arritake no yume o kakiatsume**

 _We then see all of them taking a pose at a turn with Adam smiling at the camera, Polie showing his thumb, Star smiling innocently, Alicia showing fire in her wing, Apollo looking unsurely at the camera, Jewel winking cheekily, Dominic looking at the camera over his shoulder with a smirk, and Blu throwing a fist in the air with enthusiasm._

 **Sagashi mono sagashini yuku no sa**

 **We then see Blu looking at Linda who smiles at him.**

 **Pocket no coin, soreto YOU WANNA BE MY FRIEND?**

 _We see Blu, Jewel, and Dominic smiling at the camera together._

 **We are**

 _Then, all the others looking at the adventures before them with excitation as they stand on the paraglider._

 **We are on the cruise**

 _We see the title screen appear again with the last seen being them walking away toward their adventures._

 **WE ARE!**

* * *

Opening 2: The Amazon arc

 **(Believe - One Piece's 2nd opening theme)**

 _As the solo starts, we see all the main characters appear in succession until the title of the story logo appears and the song starts._

 **Mirai dake shinjiteru dareka ga waratte mo kamawanai**

 _We see the ship at the start of the arc traveling across the Amazon river._

 **Hashitteru jounetsu ga anata o KIRAmeraseru**

 _Blu and his friends watch the beautiful sunset reflecting on the sea with smiles on their faces from the top of the boat._

 **Mabushi sugi, demo mitsumeteitai**

 _They then arrive on a waterfall and put horrified looks on their faces_

 **Dokka 'bigaku' kanjiteru I'm really really stuck on you**

 _All the heroes try to get away from the waterfall with different looks and reactions, Blu laughing in last._

 **Dare ni mo nitenai yume no senaka wo**

 _We see Dominic showcasing moves with his sword with his name appearing beside him. Following is Vladimir who turns half of his body into stone before throwing a rock away and his name also appearing beside him._

 **Oikakete oikaketeku**

 _Lazaro spins and gives kick followed by Hernandez who summons his wing armor and punches a blast away._

 **Dramatic te ni irerumade**

 _Apollo shoots a bill with his slingshot and gives a thumb up before Alex eats a Balloon Candy and bounces everywhere, smiling at the camera._

 **BELIEVE IN WONDERLAND!**

 _It ends with Jewel swinging her wooden staff around and Blu send a Fist Storm followed by a single fist toward the camera._

 **Dare ni mo mienai yume no KATACHI wo tsukamaete tsukamaeteku**

 _Blu and his friends all run on the edge of an Amazonian lake when Alex gets tired but Lazaro pushes him in the air from behind and makes him land on his beak as he keeps running forward with Alex on his beak._

 **Watashi wa tsuite yuku kara atsui KIMOCHI**

 _Eduardo is on a tree and watches his daughter from afar, smiling._

 **TSUJITSUMA awase betsuni iranai arifureta nichijou yori mo**

 _We see Blu walking with all his past fights and obstacles passing behind him, ending with his reunion with his brother._

 **PARADISE mezashite hashire**

 _We see Blu and his friends posing on the Brazil nut groove, all smiling at the camera._

 **BELIEVE IN WONDERLAND!**

 _It ends with the story logo._

* * *

Opening 3: The Four Ninja Birds arc

 **(TMNT 2003 opening theme song)**

 **Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles**

 _We see an overlook of New York with Lilly, Kowalski, Skyler, and Sparky standing on it before jumping to avoid a_ _light._

 **Turtles, count it off!**

 **1, 2, 3, 4! (turtles)**

 _We see all four of the ninja birds appearing in synch with the song._

 **Mutant chain reaction (turtles)**

 _Lilly fights Foot ninjas and easily kick them away._

 **Livin' underground (turtles)**

 _Sky drives her hovercraft in the sewers and gives the thumb up to the camera._

 **Ninjutsu action (turtles)**

 _Kowalski performs backflips on a roof and gives a kick at the camera._

 **It's a shell of a town!**

 _Sparky laughs as he stands on the roof of the riding Feather Plane. The back soon opens and Kowalski comes out with the Viper Driver._

 **Turtles count it off!**

 _The four siblings jump together with Sparky giving a kick at the camera._

 **1, live by the code of the martial arts**

 _Master Yoshi is giving a lesson to his four students._

 **2, never fight unless someone else starts**

 _The Red Dragon led by Dragon Face comes and punches at the camera._

 **3, always stick together no matter what**

 _Tiny is falling from a roof but his caught in mid-air by Sky who winks at her._

 **4, if all else fails, then it's time to kick some butt!**

 _The four siblings are surrounded by Foot ninjas and are getting ready to fight. During the bridge, all four ninjas jump at a turn in the air with flips, ending with Ryker swinging his hockey staff at the camera._

 **I love bein' (I love bein')**

 **I love bein' a turtle!**

 _The four siblings jump quickly from one roof to another across the city of New York._

 **Turtles, count it off!**

 **1, 2, 3, 4**

 _Lilly appears with one feather raised followed by Sky who raises two, Kowalski who raises three, and Sparky who raises four._

 **There's no one better (turtles)**

 **Watch out for Shredder! (turtles)**

 _As the four siblings jump down from the roof, Blood Talon is standing on top of his headquarters with lightning striking behind him._

 **They're like no others (turtles)**

 **Those teenage brothers!**

 _The four siblings are driving in the sewers together with their respective vehicle._

 **1, 2, 3, 4**

 **1, 2, 3, 4**

 _They land down at a turn on the ground before charging at the camera together._

 **Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles!**

 _It ends with the "Dynamic Adventure" logo appearing on the_ screen.

* * *

Opening 4: The Ga'Hoole arc

 **(The Day - My Hero Academia' first opening theme)**

 **Shizukesa ga shimikomu you de iki wo tometa gozen goji**

 **Hijoukaidan de tsume wo kamu asu wa docchi da ? THE DAY HAS COME**

 _Blu is standing in the middle of the thunderstorm in the Amazon. As his friends come to join him, they can only stare and see the red lightning falling down and hitting them._

 _Once it's passed, they open their eyes and see they are now in the Ga'Hoole world and the "Dynamic Adventure" logo appears before them. As the solo plays, we see all the main characters from Blu and his friends to the Ga'Hoole characters appear with their name beside them._

 **Keshite akenai yoru mo furitsuzukete yamanai ame mo**

 **Kono rokudemonai sekai ni wa arunda yo**

 _Blu and Jewel are at the Ga'Hoole tree, chatting with Soren and Gylfie around a little meal as Ezylryb is watching over them with a dried caterpillar._

 **Sukoshi mo hen de wa nai no madoromi ni ashi wo torareteru**  
 **Anata wo semete iru wake janai nda yo**

 _Alex and Apollo are looking at the ground when Digger suddenly jumps, causing them to step back and laugh in good heart at the surprise._

 **Hitori kuusou ni asobu**

 _Soren and Kludd as kids are standing back to back._

 **Soko de omoiegaita koto made hajiru no kai ?**

 _While still standing back, Soren and Kludd become adults. They stand for a moment before glaring and both swiftly turning around and colliding their fists for a punch which turns into Hawkeye's face glaring at the camera._

 _During the brief bridge, we see the Guardians' symbol on one side and the Pure Ones' on the other with a blue thunder in between them._

 **Karamiau meikyuu meikyuu soredemo yuku to iu no ?**

 **Chiisaki tabibito ga kanaderu hajimari no kane no ne**

 _We see scenes of battle between the Guardians and Pure Ones at the Beaks, ending with Ezylryb and Metal Beak charging at each other._

 **Yuku ate mo DON'T KNOW DON'T KNOW hontou wa kowai'n janai no ?**

 **Fumidasu sono ippo ippo ga kaete yukeru sa THE DAY HAS COME**

 _We then see all the heroes charging with their powers: Twilight sending a shockwave with his Diamond Dash battle claws; Digger shooting energy arrow with Swift Steel; Gylfie slashing with her Volar Rose's sand talons; Vladimir throwing a big stone; Hernandez punching with his wing armor; Lazaro jumping and performing a spin kick; Alex eating his Reindeer Candy and using his Rose Hooves; Apollo charging and shooting his flare gun; Jewel swinging her wooden staff; Dominic spinning with his sabers; Shard charging with his burning talons, and Blu charging forward with his Drill Punch._

 _Then, as the last notes are played; we see many characters in succession: Apollo raising his Warhammer with Bubo; Alex holding a candy between two feathers with Matrone; Lazaro taking a fighting stance with Strix Struma; Jewel standing back to back with Gylfie; Dominic resting a saber on his shoulder with Shard, and finally, Blu and Soren standing together on a tree branch of the Great Tree, watching the sunset at the horizon._

* * *

Opening 5: The Four Ninja Birds arc part 2

It's the same as the third opening.

* * *

Opening 6: The Sequin Kingdom and Valley Of Peace arc:

 **(We Are! - One Piece's first opening theme (Strawhats version) )**

 _We see Blu running with enthusiasm on a hill of an island and jump from there. We quickly see Dominic, Jewel, Apollo, Alex, Hernandez, Lazaro, and Vladimir in turn._

 **Arritake no yume o kakiatsume**

 _As Blu falls, he grabs the mat of the Saldanha by stretching his plastic wing and flips in the air while screaming._

 **Sagashi mono sagashini yuku no sa**

 _We see the title "The Dynamic Adventure" appearing in the sky._

 **One Piece!**

 _The scene cuts to our heroes standing on the Saldanha as they sail the sea with giant fishes jumping all around._

 **Irashinban nate jyutai no moto**

 **Netsu ni ukasare kaji o turu no sa**

 _The friends are smiling at each other with Blu looking ahead._

 **Hokori kabutteta takara no chizu mo**

 _The heroes keep sailing further across the seas of the New World_

 **Tashikameta no nara densetsu jyanai**

 _We then see them fighting pirates with Dominic pushing many away with his sabers, Hernandez and Vladimir punching many ones away with punches, Lazaro spinning on his flippers to kick many ones away, Apollo throwing a rotten egg in one's face followed by Alex charging in his face in his Balloon form, and finally Jewel knocking him down with her wooden staff before doing the victory pose for the camera._

 **Kojin teki na arashiwa dareka no BIORHYTHM tokatte**

 _Blu jumps in the air and slams his plastic wings into a big pirate's torso._

 **Omoi sugose ba li**

 _Blu lands down back at his friends' sides and smiles at them._

 **Arritake no yume o kakiatsume**

 _We then see all of them taking a pose at a turn with Vladimir doing the military greet, Hernandez showing his thumb, Lazaro taking a cool pose, Alex trying to hide a cute blush with his wings and a shy smile, Apollo looking unsurely at the camera, Jewel winking cheekily, Dominic looking at the camera over his shoulder with a smirk, and Blu throwing a fist in the air with enthusiasm._

 **Sagashi mono sagashini yuku no sa**

 **We then see Blu looking at Linda who smiles at him.**

 **Pocket no coin, soreto YOU WANNA BE MY FRIEND?**

 _We see Blu, Jewel, and Dominic smiling at the camera together._

 **We are**

 _Then, all the others looking at the adventures before them with excitation as they stand on the Saldanha._

 **We are on the cruise**

 _We see the title screen appear again with the last seen being them walking away toward their adventures._

 **WE ARE!**

* * *

 **Do you like the openings? I sure hope so. Which opening themes do you think would fit the other arcs? Lemme know in the reviews.**

 **Also, don't worry, I'll come up with a plan for the Crac Des Chevaliers arc soon.**


	311. Arrival to Crac Des Chevaliers

**Yo, Owl Lovers!**

 **After a lot of thinking, I finally managed to think about something for the Crac Des Chevaliers arc. I don't know if it's gonna be good enough to satisfy you, but I made a promise to Loco Vampire...and I really want my drawing. So without any further due, let's begin the Crac Des Chevaliers arc!**

* * *

"What?! But...what do you mean, Fabian?" asked Kovu in shock and confusion.

The red wolf wearing a black hoodie was standing inside the high-security prison in Crac Des Chevaliers. Behind him was a cell in which was locked up a visibly unaffected Arlene who was just sitting in a corner without saying anything.

"I already told you everything. How many times will I have to repeat myself for you to understand?" Fabian asked with a firm look. The seagull pointed a feather at the scarlet macaw behind the bars. " "Cherry Bomb" Arlene has been locked up in this high-security prison for causing a lot of trouble for the World Government. She will be executed in five days exactly. This is an undiscussable decision of our superiors."

While Kovu the red wolf looked perfectly surprised, Arlene didn't seem affected in the slightest. She just looked down without saying a single word and didn't even seemed to listen to the conversation. Fabian gave her a look.

"Arlene...this is the last time we will talk for a good while. The next time we see, it will be on the executing site." Those were the last words Fabian said before turning around and leaving the room.

Kovu just stood there without saying a word for a moment before turning around and looking at Arlene. "Hey! It's no time to feel depressed, Arlene! We never know; the authorities could change their mind for a yes or a no! You're a friend of Admiral Glacier, right? That could play in your favor!"

"...What are you talking about? I'm not depressed at all," Arlene softly replied without looking away from the floor.

"Liar! You're super sad! Admit it!" Kovu angrily exclaimed with slamming his paw against the cell bars.

"...You heard what Fabian said?" Arlene softly said. "This decision comes from the superiors of the Killer Elite Squad that you're part of. You know they don't change their mind easily. "Don't worry. I knew this was going to happen sooner or later. I was not going to escape forever."

Kovu just stared at the avian. "...Arlene."

However, she suddenly turned around and looked at him with a smug. "You seem to be very worried about me all of a sudden. Why's that? Usually, you care more about your ridiculous cheery-colored fur than that. Is there something you wanna tell me?"

Kovu's look of worry suddenly turned into one of shock. He glared angrily at Arlene. "What are you talking about?! Why would I care about you?! Go ahead and die, you idiot!"

The red wolf turned around and left the room, shutting the door with a huge SLAM! After he left, Arlene's smug smile faded away and was replaced by a sad expression. She looked at the small window of her cell.

"I hope you guys will be safe..."

* * *

Meanwhile, Fabian walked away from the fortress' prison and toward the main building to regroup with the other K.E.S. members. However, as he did so, he failed to notice two figures coming behind him.

"Fabian."

The seagull turned around to see Kaku standing there with a new one beside him. It was a pretty imposing and muscled blue shark with a white underbelly and a black wrestling attire. It had "K.E.S." written in white on the back. He grinned to reveal a set of sharp teeth.

"Kaku. Mambo. What do you want?" Fabian asked as he turned toward them.

"We just want to know how is Arlene doing. Is she sad about being killed?" Kaku asked.

Fabian narrowed his eyes. "I didn't detect any particular emotion in her. Why? Are you feeling sympathy for her?"

The woodpecker scoffed. "Don't even think about this. I was just curious is all."

"I have a proposition that could make you happy, Estrada," Mambo suddenly said, causing the seagull to look curiously at him. He then gave a devious smirk. "How about I go decapitate this girl for you and save us from all this stupid execution story?"

Fabian's expression didn't change and he simply scoffed. "You want to make me believe that you could decapitate "Cheery Bomb" Arlene with your limited skills?"

This question earned him a glare from the shark. "You wanna see my skills in action?"

"Want me to test them for you?" Fabian asked in a provocative tone.

However, Kaku came between the two of them. "Guys, guys, please calm down. We have no time to fight. We need to get the main building; the others are waiting for us there for the reunion."

"Whatever," Fabian scoffed and started walking toward the main building with the two others.

* * *

"Are we arriving soon?" Blu impatiently asked.

The Blue Thunder Crew members were still sitting inside the wagon of the sea locomotive owned by Mrs. Coco. They have been riding on the sea for two hours now. While Blu was complaining, Jewel was just toying with her Wind Waker, Dominic was taking a nap in a corner, Vladimir was doing push-ups to keep himself occupied, Hernandez silently watched Lazaro stuffing himself with fishes to deal with stress, and Alex was watching Gaming Joe playing a video game on his portable device.

"Wow! This is awesome! And you can play these games anywhere you want?" the kid asked in amazement.

"Perfectly, little guy," Joe replied with a smile. "All I need is a source of electricity to recharge it and I can play my games whenever I want, wherever I want."

"TOO COOL!"

"Befriending the enemy, Al?" Hernandez asked.

"Hey, I'm not your enemy for now!" Joe defended himself.

"But you will be as soon as this saving mission is done!" Lazaro declared, his beak filled with fish.

"I still can't believe Arlene left us just like this," Jewel sadly said with looking at the ground. "I really thought she became our friend."

Vladimir put his wing on her shoulder. "I'm sure she has a good reason for doing this. We'll ask her after saving her from the NF."

Suddenly, the door of the wagon opened and Paul walked in. He recovered from his beat down at the hands of Fabian enough to walk on his two legs. "Everyone!" he called.

This caused all the eyes to turn toward him (Dominic even awoke from his nap). "Follow me in this wagon; I will explain to you how to get into Crac Des Chevaliers." Paul turned toward her door and gave a serious look at every one. "Pay attention to all the details I'll say, or you'll all die even before making two steps into the fortress."

The Blue Thunder Crew and Gaming Joe followed Paul into the head wagon where Mrs. coco was sitting on the driving seat while drinking a bottle of wine and Siva and Dex waiting there as well. "Oh, hello there, kids. You're having a nice trip on my sea train?" Mrs. Coco asked with a giggle.

"Not now, Mrs. Coco," Paul said. "Look out of the train you all."

The avians obeyed and peaked their heads out of the train by the windows to get greeted by the strong sea wind. However, they didn't really care as what was ahead of them was much more interesting. It was a big island with docks where a few NF ships were parked. On this island was some sort of huge wall spreading at a large distance and reach incredible heights - it reminded Blu of the Great Wall of China.

"I-Is this Crac Des Chevaliers?" Blu asked.

"It's huge!" Jewel exclaimed.

"Yup, we're arriving at one of the three most important headquarters of the World Government - Crac Des Chevaliers!" Paul seriously said.

* * *

 **So this is how this new arc starts, my friends. Do you think the Blue Thunder Crew and Gaming Joe can save Arlene and Mr. Iceberg?**

 **And Loco, is this original enough for you so far or can I already wish my drawing farewell?**


	312. Passing the first wall

The Blue Thunder Crew looked in awe as the island that was Crac Des Chevaliers was spreading before them. However, that did not last as the locomotive suddenly turned left instead of advancing any further toward the island.

"Hey! Mrs. Coco, what are you doing?" Blu asked the lady fox. "Bring us to the island; we have no time to lose!"

"Shut up, Gunderson!" Paul dryly replied. "Have you seen that dock? There many Naval Forces soldiers waiting for us there and I strongly doubt their welcome party is going to be nice."

"So what? We never had any problem with these stupid soldiers before! We'll just beat our way through them like we always did!" Lazaro firmly declared with stomping his foot on the ground.

"This is not the problem," Paul simply said with rolling his eyes. "The soldiers themselves can be easily dealt with. But the thing is if we do that, then all the island will know about our presence. Remember what I said? The forces of Crac Des Chevaliers counts at least 10,000 men from the Naval Forces and agents of the World Government. Trust me, you don't wanna fight such an army head-on. And even if you were somehow able to defeat every single one of them, there's still the Killer Elite Squad to face. Those guys are top fighters of the WG - I can tell from getting beaten down in one hit by Fabian. Even if you could defeat the forces of Crac Des Chevaliers, you'd be left with no chance to defeat the K.E.S."

"So what are we gonna do then?" Alex asked.

Paul took a map out of his pocket and unrolled it on the floor for everyone to see. "This is a map of Crac Des Chevaliers that Mrs. Coco gave me. As you can see, there are two walls around the fortress. The first one is limiting the number of outsiders who can enter and the second is blocking the way to the main city of the fortress itself. Passing the first one is already a huge task, so passing the second would be almost impossible for most people."

"Basically, we're going on a suicide mission to rescue our friends?" Vladimir asked and then smiled. "Nothing new for us."

"So how are we gonna pass the first wall without getting spotted?" Dominic asked with his wings crossed. "Because honestly, stealth has never really been my strong point."

Paul gave everyone a smirk. "Believe it or not, but Mrs. Coco knows a very sneaky way to get inside."

"Yup!" the lady fox said after taking another big sip of her wine. "Silva, Dex and my self have passed by this island quite a few times by the past. I had the chance to notice a lot of things. There is a way for you to enter through the first wall while staying incognito."

"Really?" Jewel asked. "This is awesome! What is this way?"

"Every week, the guys from inside the first wall open up a sewer tube to release dirty water from their bathroom - Yes, I know, it's gross," she said upon seeing the looks of disgust on the avians' faces. "After they are done emptying their content, it takes them a full minute to close this tube back. During this time, it's possible to swim through it and enter into the first wall's perimeter."

"Cool, no problem!" Lazaro declared with a smile. However, all the others excluding Hernandez were not so happy to hear that.

"We're gonna have to...swim?" Blu asked.

"Yes. You kids know how to, right?"

"Well, Lazaro and Hernandez are aquatic birds which makes them up for the challenge. But for us, it's something else," Blu explained. "I had the chance to swim a few times in my anthro form, but I don't know if I can make it in one minute."

"I sure hope you can. Cause if you don't get to the other end of this tube in less than a minute, you'll get locked up in this tube and drown. Trust me, it's not a funny way to die," Mrs. Coco seriously said with drinking more of her wine.

Suddenly, the locomotive came to a stop and the lady fox walked to a window, pointing at the edge of the island - to a spot where a little steam of strangely-colored water was flowing out. "There it is. As soon as the water will return to normal, you'll have exactly one minute to jump in the water and swim to the other side. This is your only chance of getting to the other side of the wall without getting seen."

Blu and his friends all looked at each other. Risking of dying by drowning was pretty scary...but they had to save their friends. Mr. Iceberg was the only one who could get them a new ship to continue their adventure in the New World. And Arlene...she was their friend. They still didn't know why she left them like this or why she disappeared with the K.E.S., but they were not gonna give up on her after all the help she brought to the crew in Skyland.

"Get ready, everyone!" Blu announced with a determined look that made every non-Blue Thunder Crew member smile.

"I hope you still remember what we learned at the training camp, Yusef," Vladimir said with cracking his knuckles.

"You're heavier than me, idiot," he replied.

"Hold on tight, Little Al," Hernandez instructed the snowy owl kid who was holding onto his shoulder. "If you fall behind, I won't be able to do anything for you."

"O-Okay," Alex nervously said.

"It couldn't be in the air now, could it?" Jewel mumbled to herself.

"Maybe I should've lost a few pounds before coming here," Joe mumbled to himself with adjusting his sunglasses.

"Ready..." Paul narrowed his eyes at the dirty water. Then, after what felt like an eternity but was actually a few seconds, the water returned to normal. "NOW!"

The husky jumped in the water followed by the avians. Their bodies splashed below the water surface and they all made their way into the sewer tube. The inside was dark and they could see nothing but a faint light at the distance. Swimming in this tube was hard as the water was flowing against them which was slowing their progression.

And yet, they had to make it on the other side in less than a minute...

Blu was swimming with his plastic wings as fast as he could. It was not like running or flying; it was much harder! Jewel was facing the same problem but she still managed to keep the rhythm.

Lazaro and Hernandez were swimming ahead of everyone. Being aquatic birds, this was just a routine for them. Dominic and Vladimir were doing pretty good too. But Paul was ahead of the golden eagles as he shot ropes from his wrists and caught onto the end of the tube, dragging himself forward as Spiderman would do. Alex was doing his best to hold onto the pelican's shoulder with his little wings.

The lack of oxygen was causing the group's lungs to burn. Luckily, the light was getting brighter and brighter until they finally reached the end of the tube. They immediately swam upward and filled their body with air as soon as their heads came above the water surface.

"Man, I'm glad we made it," Blu mumbled before turning to his team. "Is everyone there?"

"Yes!" Luckily, all the team was present - even Paul and Gaming Joe.

Letting out a sigh of relief, Blu stepped out of the water and onto safe land. The others followed and then proceeded to inspect their surrounding. The first huge wall was behind them but there was the second one not too far ahead. They were currently on a green land which seemed empty of any NF activities.

"Man, swimming is worse than I initially thought," Dominic mumbled with tapping the side of his head to get water out of his other ear. After that, he noticed something strange; there was a trail of water behind them that was going in an alternate direction instead of joining them. "Did someone follow us without us seeing it?"

"Now how do we get past the second wall, Paul?" Gaming Joe asked with shaking the water off his feathers.

The husky stared at it for a while before responding. "...I have no idea."

"WHAT?!" they all exclaimed with dumbfounded expressions. "What do you mean you have no idea?!" Dominic asked.

"What I mean is that it's the first time I ever get this far into this fortress and I don't have a clue of what it's like in this zone," the husky replied. "From here on, we're walking in the dark."

"I may be able to help you."

Everybody turned toward this new voice and were presented to a rather odd character, to say the least. It was some sort of white owl - a male - wearing a white qipao with flame designs and sandals that fitted strangely on his talons. His eyes were covered by strange goggles and he had a yellow hat that was shaped to look like the sun on top of his head. Sticks of dynamite were tied around his waist by a belt, a pannier was resting on his hip with the strap going over his right shoulder, and a backpack was resting on his back.

"Who the heck are you?" Lazaro asked.

The strange owl smirked and pointed a feather at himself. "I am Tamaya, Master of Pyro Power!"

* * *

 **Who's this Tamaya guy? Will he help the Blue Thunder Crew get past the second wall?**

 **His Japanese name comes from 玉屋 (Tamaya) which are the two kanji written in his apron and form the name of one firework-making guild in Edo period Japan. The Japanese often use the name of the former guild as an exclamation when seeing fireworks. I made some researches online.**


	313. The second wall's guardian

"W-Who are you?" Jewel asked the strange owl.

"I already told you! I'm Tamaya the Master of Pyro Power!" the strange owl repeated himself. "You won't find anybody around here with the same firepower that I possess! I'm here to help you in your quest!"

Alex looked at Tamaya with stars in his eyes. "wow! He looks so cool!"

"Thank you, my young friend!"

"But...how did you find us? And how do you know we're on a quest here?" Blu asked with a curious look.

"Oh, hum...well, there was a young owl wearing a cap in Water 7 who met me and told me about you. He said you were going on a brave mission to save your two friends from those tyrannic monsters of the World Government. I already crossed fire with them multiple times in the past and I won't stand that they cause more damage than they already have done! This is why I jumped on your train at the last second and waited for the right time to introduce myself."

Everybody looked at him in surprise - except Dominic and Vladimir who just looked suspiciously. "A-Apollo is the one who sent you to help us?!" Alex asked in surprise.

"Apollo? I didn't know this was his name. but yes, he sent me to help you and this is exactly what I will do!" he declared with showing a confident thumb up.

Blu smiled a bit. "That's cool! So, Tamaya, do you have any idea on how we can get past the second wall and get inside?"

"Of course, follow me!" Tamaya responded with turning around and started walking.

Everybody exchanged gazes and agreed that they could trust him. They walked after the owl. Dominic stared at him for a while, thinking about something before following as well.

"So, Tamaya, is Apollo fine?" Alex asked in concern. "How did he look when you saw him?"

"Don't worry, kiddo; he was visibly hurt and covered of bandages but he was okay," Tamaya explained. "He actually told me a lot about you guys."

"Really?" Alex asked.

"Yes. He told me that you - Alex, right? Well, he told me that you were his best friends and that you were a very gifted doctor and awesome fighter as well."

The owl kid's cheeks turned into a bright red. "H-He truly said that?" Tears started coming to his eyes as he covered his cheeks with his wings. "That doesn't make me happy at all! Why should it make me happy at all?!"

While the kid was happy, the others didn't say anything. Apollo became a taboo subject amongst them. They were not feeling at ease to talk about him as Alex was. But they were grateful that he sent some backup to help them.

"So, how are we supposed to get past the wall, Tamaya?" Lazaro asked as he caught up with the owl.

"Oh, hum... Well...," Tamaya responded, rubbing the back of his head as if trying to find the answer. "It's pretty complicated. you see, we have to..." He then saw a huge door in the second wall which didn't seem to be guarded at all. "We have to get inside the city by this gate right there!"

The others just stared at him. "...That's not complicated at all," Hernandez remarked.

"It's even as simple as plugging a console," Joe added.

"Come on, my mates! LET'S CHAAAAARGE!" Tamaya exclaimed and ran toward the gate like a warrior about to invade a town.

However, Dominic was not really convinced. "It's too easy. Why would the Nava Forces leave a gate open like this for anyone to enter in?" He then realized something. "Tamaya! Wait!"

Suddenly, the gate closed before Tamaya could enter into the fortress, resulting in the masked owl to bump his face into it and fall on his rear. "Ouch! Hey! What's the joke?"

Suddenly, a huge figure standing on top of the wall jumped down and landed just before Tamaya, making the ground shake a bit. "It has been a long time that no one has tried to cross the second wall's gate without permission..."

This figure was an extremely large, muscular gorilla, who easily towered above most other primates. His hair was tied into a ponytail, which extended down his waist. He had long sideburns, which continued down onto his neck and long enough to be tied up in small pony-tail like tufts. He wore armor on his left shoulder and upper arm. The left side of his chest was left exposed by his uniform.

"It has been a long time...since I had fun, boy," he said while looking at Tamaya with a smirk.

Everybody looked in surprise at the giant primate. Tamaya was trembling and crawling back nervously as the giant gorilla took out what looked like a huge hatchet in his hand.

"Come at me, kids!"

"He... He's huge!" Lazaro exclaimed. "It's no ordinary primate! Who is he?"

"It's Kyodai Gorira," Paul silently said. "He's one of the greatest low-class heroes of the World Government and was chosen specifically for the guarding task. And we had the good luck of falling on the gate that this guy was happening to keep."

"The guardian?" Gaming Joe asked. "This means we'll have to beat him if we wanna enter into the fortress?"

"Yes. But it's not that simple," Paul said, sweating nervously. "He has been named the guardian of this gate 30 years ago...and ever since not a single person has managed to illegally past this gate."

Hernandez looked in surprise at the husky. "He's as strong as that?"

"Yes. I heard that he once managed to take down 30 pirates with only one swing of his hatchet. His strength is to be reckoned with..."

"What should we do then?" Alex asked.

"In this situation, we need to use our head," Paul said. "We need to back up and think of a plan-"

Suddenly, Lazaro and Hernandez charged forward. "HEY! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"

"Sorry, but we're not the best when it comes to thinking!" Lazaro said with a chuckle as he and his best friend charged forward.

Just as they were about to reach the guardian, this last one rose his hatchet and slammed it hard on the ground, creating a small earthquake and making the two avians stumble back.

"You're very rude, you know that?" Kyodai said with a chuckle. "Listen to me. In this fortress, there are rules. Rule number one, always clean your hands before eating. Rule number two, don't eat what falls on the ground. And rule number three...no one goes into this gate without my permission. Got it?"

The Blue Thunder Crew, Joe, and Paul all glared nervously at the giant gorilla. If he was as strong as this, then their only chance to defeat him was to attack altogether. Only then would they be able to-

"Step back. I'll take him on."

Everybody froze and slowly looked at Blu. The spix macaw slowly advanced toward the gorilla with a look of determination on his face. It was the kind of determination indicating he wasn't going to mess around.

"Blu?" Alex mumbled.

"What are you doing, Blu?!" Jewel asked in worry for her boyfriend. "You heard what Paul said; this guy is too strong! You can't take him-"

"Jewel," Blu calmly cut his girlfriend off without turning his head. "I got this. Don't worry; I will win."

Jewel was about to argue again but was stopped by Dominic who pulled his wing in front of her. "Is that really what you wanna do, Blu?"

"...Yes," he simply replied.

Dominic smirked. "Alright then."

Blu stopped once he arrived in front of Kyodai with the gorilla easily towering him. "You really wanna fight me alone, little one?" he asked with a chuckle. "You know, I faced a lot of pirates during my career as the guardian of this gate, but none of them had the guts to face me alone. To reward you, I'm gonna give you a quick and painless death!"

After saying that, the gorilla rose his huge hatchet and slamming it down onto the macaw. The impact created a huge amount of smoke that covered the result. While the others looked in horror, Kyodai was chuckling. That was too easy.

However, as the smoke faded, it revealed he had hit the ground but there was no sign of Blu. "Huh?! W-Where did he-"

"UP THERE!"

Everybody looked up to see Blu in the air after jumping really high. "What?! When did he jump up there?!" Paul asked with a surprised look.

"Power..." Blu launched his wings backward and glared at the gorilla. "...SLAM!" He slammed his wings at full strength right into Kyodai's face. This caused him to spit saliva and be knocked back, landing hard on his back.

As Blu landed perfectly on his two feet, everybody saw that Kyodai was out cold with his eyes all white. Blu's attack was so strong that he was probably not gonna come back before a while.

"W-What?!" Paul exclaimed with a look of absolute awe. "He defeated Kyodai Gorira...in one hit?"

"Yup," Dominic said with his eternal smirk. "There was no doubt; this guy was up against the future strongest bird in the world after all."


	314. Unexpected encounter with Fabian

"Wow!" Blu exclaimed with looking down at his two feathered hands. "I was not expecting to take him down so easily. I really became that strong?"

"Looks like it," Dominic said with walking at his captain's side and looking at the defeated figure of Kyodai Gorira. "Remark that after everything we went through since we left the Amazon rainforest, I'm not that surprised."

Paul was still staring at Blu in awe. "This bird...who is he? How could he defeat Kyodai Gorira so easily in one shot? He's no ordinary bird, that's for sure."

Blu then turned toward Tamaya who was still sitting on his rear. "So? Can we enter now, Tamaya?"

"Huh...what?" the owl asked and shook his head, recovering from the shock of what he saw. He quickly stood up. "Y-Yes! Of course! I was going to take care of this primate by myself but you were faster. Apollo was not exaggerating about you! Let's go!"

The friends were about to enter with Alex going in first. however, he then stopped as he noticed a figure ahead of them. "Huh, guys? Who's that?" he asked with pointing ahead.

They followed his gaze and Paul widened his eyes. It was a familiar seagull standing in their way. "F-Fabian?!" he exclaimed.

"It's that seagull guy we saw working for the G1 Company!" Blu exclaimed.

"Is he an enemy?" Dominic asked, pulling his hand on the handle of Snow Run.

"Yes; he's the one who carried Mr. Iceberg unconscious and punched me down at Blue Station," Paul nervously explained.

"This bastard's the one who hurt my brother?!" Gaming Joe angrily asked with taking out his flaming sword. "I'm gonna make myself a pleasure of roasting him up!"

Fabian briefly stared at the intruders before his gaze landed on Kyodai Gorira. "Kyodai...what a terrible guardian."

Paul started sweating nervously. "Fabian Estrada. The strongest member of the G1 Company who has never been seen defeated even before his career as a foreman started. I was not expecting somebody as strong as him coming in our way right off the bat. These avians might be strong but they surely don't stand a chance against someone like him. Even Kyodai Gorira would look like a clown before him. Nothing would be worst than facing this man right now!" the husky though.

Fabian then looked at the intruders again. "So you have aligned yourself with pirates to come here and save Mr. Iceberg, Paul? That's not really surprising. However, I'm pretty surprised that you would put yourself low enough to team up with the Gaming House for this. That's really pathetic."

The barn owl glared angrily at him. "Shut up! He's not teaming with me! I came here from my own chief to save my brother from you backstabbing cowards!"

Fabian just scoffed indifferently. "I'm not gonna let you pass. First, I will kill this incompetent gorilla and then I will close the gates for good."

Hearing this, Vladimir stepped forward with an undignified look. "Why would you kill your own guy?! He did his duty and simply lost! There's nothing dramatic there!"

"What are you talking about?" Fabian asked in return. "You don't seem to understand. When a guardian loses, he doesn't let anyone pass. For a guardian, the only possible defeat...is DEATH!"

Suddenly, Blu charged forward and launched his plastic fist at the seagull who caught it in one wing, pushing the macaw back with his other one. "What the sprinkles are you doing?!" Blu angrily asked. "This fight was between this gorilla and I! You had no business to interfere afterward! If you really want an opponent, it will be me!"

"Gunderson, no!" Paul suddenly called. "We must run away!"

"Gunderson?" Fabian thought as Blu turned around to argue with the husky. "Blue feathers, a body made of plastic..." He then decided to speak. "So you're Tyler "Blu" Gunderson?"

Blu turned back to the seagull with a surprised look. "You know of me?"

"I cannot let you pass anyway," Fabian said with rising a wing. "Goodbye. Finger Shot!"

Snapping his fingers for a fillip, an invisible shot hit Blu really hard who felt like a bullet hit him in the stomach, causing him to spit saliva and be sent flying backward and crash into Vladimir who wasn't able to stop him and fell down too.

"BLU! VLADIMIR!" everybody exclaimed at seeing their friends falling.

"Oh no! The gate is closing!" Paul exclaimed as the gate closed with Fabian giving them a last glance before the process was finished.

"Blu! Vladimir! Are you okay?!" Alex asked in concern as he and the others reached their friends.

"Yeah...I think," Blu said and coughed because of the shot he received in the stomach.

"How did he do that?" Vladimir asked with getting back up. "I only saw him snapping his feathers and Blu was sent flying at me."

Blu then looked at everyone. "Guys, I'm sorry. It's my fault if we failed to cross that gate."

"No, no, Gunderson, you couldn't do anything," Paul said. "Whether this gate would have closed before or after wouldn't have changed anything. We had no chance against Fabian Estrada. It's already a good thing that everyone's still alive."

Alex stared between his friends and the closed gates. "But how are we gonna enter beyond the second wall now?"

"For now, let's just find somewhere to hide; this place will probably get overrun with NF soldiers. Let's go!" Paul ordered.

* * *

A few moments later, the group managed to find a little base of NF soldiers where they took refuge after knocking out and tying all the present soldiers. Tamaya left to go scoot the surroundings while the others gathered inside the base's room at Paul's demand.

"Sit down; I'm gonna tell you what we must do now," the husky said as everyone sat with him around a map. "Now that this gate has been open once, this sector will be guarded way more than before."

"This means we can no longer enter that way as we planned to do," Dominic deduced.

"What about the other gates?" Hernandez asked.

"The closer one is around two days of walk away from here," Paul replied. "We'll never get there in time."

"But what can we do then?" Jewel asked as they were running short on options.

"No choice; we must break into this gate and fight our way through the city!" Lazaro declared with stomping his foot on the floor.

Before Paul could repeat that this was not an option, Tamaya suddenly broke into the room with a smile on his beak. "Guys! Guys! It's awesome! I found a way to get past the second wall without having to use the gates!"

* * *

The team followed Tamaya outside the base and along with the space between the two walls. The owl was still smiling as they walked ahead through the others still didn't understand his plans.

"There!" he suddenly announced as he came to a stop.

The others looked ahead of him and saw another NF base with even more soldiers. "...Okay. how is this gonna help us?" Blu asked in confusion.

"We're gonna enter..." Tamaya pointed his feather toward a huge cannon that was connected to the base. "...with this!"

* * *

 **What is Tamaya's plan? How are they gonna enter the second wall with it? Stay stunned to find out!**


	315. The cannonball

Arlene was still staring at the floor of her cell. She hadn't moved even one inch from her position since she was brought in there and she wasn't planning on moving until the right time. Her face still didn't display any trace of emotion.

KLAK!

Sighing, the scarlet macaw turned toward the opened door of her cell. "What is it, Kovu? Are you there to take me?"

"Yes," the red wolf nodded. There were four soldiers behind him. "I came to escort you to the Death Corridor."

Standing up, Arlene allowed the NF soldiers to tie a metal lace around her neck as her wings were already held back by Sea Stone chains. Kovu led the soldiers as they escorted Arlene out of the prison and into a tower inside the sector of inside the second wall. They untied her lace once they arrived into a larger cell with a window at a higher level of the tower.

"Look out the window," Kovu instructed and pointed out of the cell's window from where they could see what looked like an execution site. "This is where you will be executed this afternoon."

Arlene just nodded and looked down. "Thanks for escorting us, Mr. Kovu," one of the soldiers said before walking out of the room with the others. Once they were out, the red wolf leaned toward Arlene and whispered something.

"Our forces reported an event that happened a few hours ago at the west door. Apparently, the guardian got knocked out by a group of avians with its leader being...a spix macaw."

This information caused Arlene's eyes to widen and finally express emotion for the first time since getting captured. After that, Kovu walked out of the tower and rubbed the back of his head.

"I never saw her face so lively since an eternity," he thought. "This gang of pirates must really mean something for her. But it's Fabian that met them at the gate; they must be dead for sure. I was right not to tell that info to Arlene..."

"Hey!" Kovu turned around and saw his K.E.S. comrade Guatemala coming.

Guatemala is a male monkey. He has brown eyes with orange fur and a big burnt orange afro-style haircut with thick sideburns and a goatee. His outfit includes large frills on his collar and thighs. He wears sunglasses-shaped plate on his forehead. There is a blue star in the center of the plate in question. Long story short, he looked like a disco dancer.

"Guatemala?" Kovu asked.

"It has been a while, Kovu," the monkey said with a Brooklyn accent. "Can we talk for a moment?" Kovu nodded and followed him to another part of the city. "It has been an eternity since we last talked. You're not too bored by your job?"

"No," Kovu replied. "What did you wanted to talk about, Guatemala?"

"Kovu...I understand that you and Arlene were very close, right?" Kovu looked curiously at his monkey friend. "You knew her before joining the K.E.S., didn't you? I wanted to ask you. Honestly...do you think she deserves to get executed like this?"

The red wolf looked at the orange primate in surprise. "I-I'm not sure to understand your question..."

"Think about it; her only crimes are of messing around with pirate crews and criminal gangs while also stealing money a few times. Just for that, they are giving her an S-rank criminal rank and also a bounty on the same level as notorious outlaws such as Jason Donald or Connor The Phoenix. And what's more is that they want her to be locked here, at Crac Des Chevaliers while her powers are not that big. Don't you think this is a bit exaggerated?"

Kovu rubbed his chin. "That's true...I got a weird feeling about this..."

Suddenly, a message was heard from the city's radiophones: _"Alert! Alert! Every member of the Killer Elite Squad is demanded at the main building for an emergency reunion!"_

* * *

After cleaning the base, the Blue Thunder Crew, Gaming Joe, Tamaya, and Paul reunited before the huge canon which their owl friend planned to somehow use to get them on the other side of the second wall.

"And how are we supposed to get above the second wall with this canon? Without getting blown up I mean," Lazaro asked.

"It's very simple," Tamaya declared with taking a cannonball which he started charging inside the canon. "I will adjust the canon and aim it toward a safe spot inside the city. I took the time to check on Paul's map and spotted a pretty large lake inside the city. We will hold onto the cannonball, fly up with it thanks to this cannon, and then we will land safely in the lake and get into the city! It's as simple as that!"

The others exchanged unsure looks. "I don't know. This sounds pretty risky," Blu said.

"Come on, I'm Tamaya The Pyro Master! I can create fireworks that are 100% harmless! You can trust me on this one!" Tamaya confidentially declared.

The group decided to trust him and managed to get into the cannon together. They all took hold of the cannonball with their wings/paws. "Remember; don't let go of the cannonball or you will fall to your death," Paul informed.

"Hold on tight, little Al," Hernandez told the kid who nodded and held onto the pelican's shoulder just like in the water.

Tamaya lit up the fuse and then joined them by grabbing the cannonball. "You sure it will work?" Jewel asked nervously.

"Y-Yes, absolutely!"

"Then why are you silently mumbling prayers?" Vladimir asked, noticing the owl nervously whispering to himself.

After a moment, the lit finally reached its end and the cannon shot the ball with the avians and dog with it. They all screamed as they were sent flying at phenomenal speed across the air. While trying to keep his breakfast in his stomach, Blu noticed they flew above the second wall and toward the large city behind it.

"GUYS! WE MADE IT! WE CROSSED THE SECOND WALL!" he screamed loud enough for his comrades to hear him.

"OH NO!" Paul exclaimed as he noticed the cannonball growing red and burning. "IT'S GONNA EXPLODE! BRACE YOURSELVES!"

BOOM!

The cannonball exploded, causing the Blue Thunder Crew members, Tamaya, Gaming Joe, and Paul to be sent flying in different directions and to land in different spots across the city of Crac Des Chevaliers...

* * *

 **Our friends managed to cross the first wall but the cannonball exploded mid-air and they are now separated! Will they be able to survive Crac Des Chevaliers and save Arlene and Mr. Iceberg?**


	316. Into the fortress

Mambo the shark, member of the K.E.S. looked in the air as a cannonball exploded in the sky and many different animals were sent flying in opposite directions. He narrowed his red eyes.

"It exploded in the air..." He then smirked. "I wonder which one of them is the strongest?"

* * *

"WE'RE DOOOOOOMED!" Tamaya screamed while holding onto Alex as they were flying toward the ground at tremendous speed.

The snowy owl kid managed to keep his cool and grabbed a candy from his bag. "I'M GONNA TRY SOMETHING!" Pulling the candy in his beak, he munched on it. "GUM GUM SHIELD!" Blowing a bubble of pink gum, Alex spat it at the ground and the two owls landed on it. It felt like they landed on a sponge.

"Wow! It was awesome!" Tamaya beamed. "I can't believe we're alive!"

Alex smiled and helped the pyro master off the gum. "The Gum Gum Shield is a candy I created in Ga'Hoole. It can be used as a shield to block or send back an attack. But it can also be used to land safely on the ground."

"Very impressive!" Tamaya pointed a feather at the kid. "I can tell you that Tamaya the Pyro Master is honored to team up with the Candy Master!"

Alex blushed a bit at this. "C-Candy Master?" He suddenly covered his cheeks and grinned. "If you think giving me a title makes me happy, that's not the case at all!"

"Yes! We're lucky!"

The two owls froze as they heard a voice behind them. Suddenly, two figures jumped from a rooftop and landed in front of them. One of the newcomers was a male lion with golden fur and a huge reddish mane. He was wearing a black World Government suit with protections for his paws and a golden staff into his right one.

The other one was a rather flamboyant looking flamingo wearing an elegant red kimono with a scythe tied to the belt around his waist.

"We came all the way here to get some calm before going to battle and here we end, finding two intruders," the male lion said with a smile. "What luck! I'm very lucky today!" He then rose his golden staff and pointed it at the owls. "However...you guys aren't lucky at all."

Tamaya gulped nervously while Alex just blinked his eyes curiously.

* * *

"W-What the heck?!"

NF soldiers were gathered around a large crater left by one of the animals connected to the cannonball. "What could have created such a huge crater?!"

"And there's no corpse inside it! This means whatever caused it is still alive! Start searching the arena! Quick!"

As the NF soldiers ran away from the crater to go scoot the zone, a certain pelican sat on a rooftop and sighed. "Man...luckily my wing armor could take the shot," he said with looking at his black wing armor which was steaming a bit from stopping the fall. "What should I do now?"

* * *

Back to Alex and Tamaya, the lion made a strange dance before taking a pose with his golden staff. Afterward, an awkward silence settled as no one said anything.

"...WHAT THE HECK ARE YOU DOING?! I JUST DO MY "SHISHI DANCE" FOR YOU AND YOU DON'T EVEN REACT?! I NEVER SAW SUCH MORONS!" he angrily exclaimed.

Suddenly, Tamaya turned around and started running away as fast as he could. This earned him a curious look from the flamingo. "He's running away?"

"He must have been scared by my dance. Go and get him, Pinky," the lion commanded.

"With pleasure!" the flamingo named Pinky replied and started running after Tamaya.

The lion then looked at Alex who didn't move. "You don't run away like your friend? Why's that?"

Alex then smiled in admiration. "Your dance was...really incredible, Mr. Lion!"

This caused the K.E.S. member to look in surprise. "Y-You really think so?!" He then smiled. "It's the first time someone says that about my dance! You may call me Shiki Lion, young boy!"

* * *

"Gunderson? GUNDERSON!"

Blu groaned as he opened his eyes to see Gaming Joe standing over him. "G-Gaming Joe?"

"Are you okay, Gunderson? I managed to ease the fall with my Light Shield but you still took a bad hit," the barn owl explained.

"I-I think I'm fine," Blu replied and managed to stand up. "Where are we?" he asked.

"We're inside the second wall of Crac Des Chevaliers. One of the most secure places of the World Government in the world," Joe replied and then pointed to a tower in the distance. "You see this place? It's where they keep their prisoners to get executed. I bet this is where my brother and your friends are getting kept."

"Alright, let's go!" Blu said and started running alongside his nemesis.

Little did they know was that a certain shark was watching at them from a rooftop with a smirk on his face. "I wonder if one of those two is the strongest of the gang?"

* * *

Meanwhile, Lazaro swam out of the lake his team was supposed to land into. "Mierda!" he exclaimed with shaking the water off his feathers. "This stupid Tamaya couldn't have predicted that this cannonball would have exploded in mid-air?"

"Don't move!" The puffin turned his head to see many NF soldiers all around him with weapons. "You are under arrest for breaking into the Crac Des Chevaliers fortress without permission!"

The puffin didn't look frightened and even smirked. "You came just in time; I was in the mood for a brawl. YAH!" he shouted and jumped for the battle.

* * *

Dominic was running through the streets of Crac Des Chevaliers, searching for his friends. "Where did they go?" he mumbled to himself.

The golden eagle climbed up a construction site of the zone which was probably meant for a new house and looked around. "Searching for something?"

The golden eagle turned his head and was surprised to see Kaku of the G1 Company sitting on a chair and looking at him. "You're that guy who inspected our ship! What are you doing here?"

"Isn't it clear?" the woodpecker asked with glaring up at Dominic. "I'm here to stop you from reaching your goal..."

* * *

BOOM!

Many NF soldiers were knocked back by a powerful blast from Hernandez. The pelican easily knocked all the enemies he came across with his armored wing and they could do little against the powerhouse. He decided to head toward the center of the fortress in hopes of having a better idea of where to find his friends.

"Dude!" Hernandez turned around and saw Guatemala the orange monkey resting against a wall and looking at him. "That's not cool at all what you're doing to my friend,s y'know? You're one of those pirates who came to cause trouble, ain't ya?"

The pelican just blinked his eyes. "...What's that ridiculous haircut?"

"IT'S NOT RIDICULOUS! DISCO IS AN AWESOME THING, DUDE!"

* * *

"This is no good," Vladimir mumbled as he looked from the top of the tower he landed on. "From here, I can tell the others landed on the ground. Why am I the only one who had to land on a rooftop?"

The golden eagle started walking down the building, knocking down any NF soldiers he came across with his Magical Fruit powers of stone. He had to run down at least 30 floors and he wasn't even sure he did half of it. Luckily he followed a military training.

"Hello."

Stopping in his tracks, Vladimir turned his head to see some sort of potato with a face and two limbs dressed in a black tuxedo which had "K.E.S." written in white on the chest level.

"Who are you?" Vladimir asked.

The potato jumped down and got in the way of Vladimir. "My name is Supaddo and I'm a member of the Killer Elite Squad. This means I'm gonna have to kill you." He let out annoying laughter.

* * *

Lazaro grunted as he kicked another NF soldier away. The puffin has been on a roll, having defeated more soldiers than he could count. Right now, he was running his way toward the center of the fortress in hopes of retrieving his friends.

"Great! At this rate, I'm gonna-" Lazaro suddenly stopped in his tracks as he saw a figure ahead of him. "Huh? Who's that?"

The figure stepped forward in the street to reveal a red wolf glaring at him. "I know you're one of those pirates," Kovu declared.

* * *

"Where did I land?"

Jewel was walking in the middle of what looked like a hot spring place for people to came and take baths. Luckily there was nobody or this would have been awkward.

"I remember you." Jewel jumped and turned around to see Kalifah standing there. "I'm sorry but this is as far as you will go," the canary said with adjusting her glasses.

* * *

Blu and Gaming Joe were walking together toward the main building of Crac Des Chevaliers. They met many NF soldiers on the way but they easily dispatched of them.

"Tell me, Gunderson," Joe said while running. "What are you planning to do once we reach the main building?"

"We're gonna free my friend and your brother, it's as simple as that!" Blu responded.

"You do know that Crac Des Chevaliers have strong agents, right? What are we gonna do if we end up against Fabian Estrada for example? You remember how he knocked you out in one shot?"

"I don't know how things will go on, but we can't just give up without trying!" Blu replied.

"There you are!"

The duo froze as they heard this strong voice calling out to them. They looked up and saw a figure standing up on a very high rooftop. This figure was none other than Mambo the shark who gave a glare and a big smirk which revealed his sharp fangs.

"I sure hope you two are very strong..."

* * *

 **I'm sorry for rushing this arc but I honestly have no plan in mind for it. Anyways, the table is set for the battle between the Blue Thunder Crew and the Killer Elite Squad:**

 **Blu and Gaming Joe vs Mambo**

 **Dominic vs Kaku**

 **Jewel vs Kalifah**

 **Lazaro vs Kovu**

 **Hernandez vs Guatemala**

 **Tamaya vs Pinky**

 **Alex vs Shiki Lion**

 **Vladimir vs Supaddo**

 **...But where's Paul?**


	317. Adrenaline Rush

Blu and Gaming Joe were still staring at the giant shark that was standing in their way. This last one's gaze landed on Blu and he winced a bit. "You're Tyler "Blu" Gunderson, correct?"

"...! How do you know my name?"

"Simple; Fabian Estrada told me about you." The shark then smirked. "Listen to me; my name is Mambo and I'm here...to kill both of you!"

This statement caused Gaming Joe to raise his Power Glove. "Be careful, Gunderson; he's not messing around!"

"I know that!" Blu responded with also getting in his fighting stance.

Not wanting to waste any more time, Mambo charged and went for a spinning kick which Blu ducked and then launched his fist for a punch. The giant shark managed to dodge it and then disappeared at an incredible speed.

"He's fast!' Gaming Joe realized.

Blu looked around to see where his opponent had gone to. Only when he noticed a shadow on the ground did he realize he was above him. The spix macaw rolled out of the way just in time as Mambo's fist smashed the ground, leaving a little hole.

Not stopping there, he disappeared once again to reappear behind Blu and went for another punch. The avian somehow managed to avoid it at the last second, letting Mambo punch and destroy a wall.

Not ready to give up yet, the Blue Thunder Crew captain charged and launched his fist for a punch which the K.E.S. member met with a punch of his own. Plastic or not, Blu still felt a wave of pain in his fist. Groaning in anger, he started throwing both of his fists at the shark and started building up a Fist Storm which he easily blocked by raising his two arms.

"That's all you can do? I'm disappointed!" Mambo declared with a smirk before swinging his leg. "ENERGY SLASH!"

A blue energy slash similar to the one Dominic could make with his saber was shot but Blu ducked underneath it, letting it slash into another building, and rolled away from Mambo to catch his breath.

"This is no good! This guy is way too strong for him! He'll never win at this rate!" Joe nervously realized. "Gunderson, let me help you! You will never win against this guy; he's too strong for you!"

However, Blu simply rose his feathered hand toward the barn owl. "No, stay out of this, Joe. I wanna beat him by myself."

"Really?" Mambo asked with raising an eyebrow. "Our encounter was brief but you clearly saw that you are no match for me. Yet you still wanna face me alone? You truly are something else, Gunderson."

A little smirk then formed on Blu's beak. "You know...I'm actually glad I met you guys here."

"Huh?"

"Thanks to you, I'll be able to go forward without losing any of my crewmates."

Mambo shook his head. "What the heck are you talking about?"

"It's not about getting stronger. There are friends I want to be with, so with all my strength, I found a way to fight. A way to be able to protect my tovarishch when they need me." Blu grinned even more. "I found a way...to be really worthy of being their captain!"

 **(Overtaken from One Piece starts playing)**

The spix macaw closed his eyes and seemed to focus really hard. Suddenly, a strange phenomenon started happening; Blu's body was raising its heat and his feathers started turning red a little bit. Steam started coming out from some parts of his body and bumps could be seen in his chest rapidly, indicating his heart was beating really fast.

"What's that?!" Mamabo asked in confusion.

Blu slowly rose his head to give the most serious look he ever had to the shark. "Adrenaline Rush! In this form, you won't be able to catch me!"

"What are you talking about?! What is this?!"

"Each of my techniques is going to the next level." Smiling confidentially, Blu held his fist beside his head while using his other hand to aim at Mambo.

"What's that? He's aiming and getting ready to shoot?" The shark shook his head. "He's bluffing; he cannot power up so easily." He charged toward the spix macaw at his incredible speed.

"JET PUNCH!"

Blu launched his punch at such an incredible speed that he somehow managed to intercept Mambo, hitting him in the stomach which made him spit some blood and sending him to crash hard into a wall. Saying that Gaming Joe was shocked would be an understatement.

"H-How did he do that?! His speed increased just like this! What did he do to his body?!"

Mamabo coughed some blood before standing up...and seeing that Blu was no longer there. "Where'd he go?" Right after saying that, the shark received a violent punch to the side of his face and was knocked many feet away before coming to a stop on his legs.

However, he had no time to breathe as Blu appeared behind him and delivered a kick to the back of his head which slammed his head deep into the ground. "JET AXE KICK!" Blu delivered a powerful axe kick to the shark's back which almost snapped it in half and made him cough in pain.

"T-That guy is not only faster but also stronger than he was moments ago!" he thought. "I-I can't lose like this! I'm the elite of the K.E.S.!"

Jumping up, and went for a spin kick which Blu ducked and then launched his two fists really far backward. "JET POWER SLAM!" The two fists came back at incredible sped and hit Mamabo right in the stomach, sending him flying through five walls before coming to a stop.

The shark coughed a lot of blood and tried to stand up...only to collapse, unconscious. He was defeated.

Gaming Joe then realized something. "I get it! This new transformation! Actually, it's Gunderson that is speeding up the blood flow in all or selected body parts, in order to provide them with more oxygen and nutrients. This makes him much faster and more powerful. In order to do this, he's forcing his own heart to beat to a point where so much pressure should make an ordinary heart explode. However, Gunderson's heart is made of plastic; this means he can pump it up as much as he wants!"

Blu then ended his Adrenaline Rush mode, panting and wiping the sweat from his feathers with his arm. "Phew, that was useful but pretty much tiring. I'm gonna have to be careful when using that technique." He then looked at Joe. "Come on; let's go save my friend and your brother now before it's too late!"

* * *

 **I've done it. After more than 300 chapters, I finally gave Blu a power-up. Let me know what you think of the Adrenaline Rush!**

 **And for Loco Vampire...PLEASE, I know that this form is taken from Luffy's Gear 2, but you gotta understand; I HAD to give Blu this power-up or he won't be able to win his incoming fights. Please...don't be mad at me...**


	318. Rescuing Arlene

The time had come. The NF soldiers entered the tower prison and came to see Arlene. " "Cherry Bomb" Arlene, it is time," one of them said.

The scarlet macaw didn't say anything and just allowed the soldiers to take on on a stool with two NF soldiers holding axes to cut her head off. Many other officers which included colonels were present to assist the execution as well.

As she was made to lay down on her knees before the wooden boar, Arlene noticed Mr. Iceberg was tied to a wooden pole. He was badly shaped as he had bruises all over his body and had some blood on his feathers. This indicated he still refused to speak about the "secret plans" to the K.E.S. Fabian Estrada was standing next to him.

" "Cherry Bomb" Arlene!" a soldier spoke to the scarlet macaw. "For committing numerous crimes against the World Government, you are today condemned to execution! Anything to declare before we proceed?"

"Yes, a demand," Arlene weakly said. "Could you please not kill the pirates that broke into the fortress and just lock them away in prison?"

The soldier looked toward Fabian who nodded. "Very well, if this is your last wish, then the intruders will be imprisoned instead of executed."

"Thank you."

"Now, we shall proceed!"

Fabian looked toward Mr. Iceberg. "You could end up like her if you refuse to comply, you know. But if you just give us what we want, you'll be able to go with no problems at all."

"I...already said...no...," the penguin weakly replied.

The seagull scoffed. "You're really stubborn for an old penguin."

"Now then, let the execution begin!"

The two soldiers made Arlene hang her head forward as they rose their axes. "I lived a good life. I have no regrets or reasons to be sad," she thought and closed her eyes. "Goodbye, my friends...it was nice to be with you while it lasted..."

The guards rose their axes, ready to execute the scarlet macaw...when a figure appeared in the air and a shadow interrupted the guards.

"FIST STORM!"

In a split-second, the two guards were knocked far away by a rain of blue fists that knocked them back. The intruder then landed before Arlene who rose her eyes to look at him...and gasped.

"B...Blu?"

The spix macaw smiled and quickly untied the scarlet macaw's wrists. "Don'T worry Arlene; you're safe now. the others and I are-"

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE, YOU MORON?!" she angrily asked. "I TOLD YOU NOT TO COME AFTER ME?! YOU STUBBORN IDIOTS! WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT?!"

Blu was a bit taken aback by Arlene's reaction as he had anticipated a 'thank you' of some sort. "But Arlene, we couldn't just give up on you like that. You're our friends! you helped us so much in Skyland that we wouldn't be here right now if it wasn't for you! Why in hell would you want your life to end here anyways?"

As Arlene looked down, Gaming Joe suddenly arrived and gazed at his brother. "Iceberg! What have you done to him, you piece of mushroom crap?!" he asked with a glare toward Fabian.

"The same thing I'm going to do right now if you don't get away, Gaming Joe," Fabian calmly replied. He looked as if this interruption was nothing.

Arlene looked down. "Blu, if you really want to know why I wanna die...it's to protect you and your crew."

Blu shook his head. "I don't understand! Why does the World Government want you so much? What have you done that makes them want your head?"

Arlene sighed and looked up at him. "Have you ever heard about the Forgotten Century?"

Blu looked curiously at her. "Huh? The Forgotten Century?"

"Yes, it's a period of history that the World Government wants people to forget at any cost for some reason. This period became known under that name because there is nothing left to acknowledge anything that happened in it, aside from the poneglyphs which are written in a language that few know how to read. I happen to be of the few lucky ones who can read them."

"Poneglyphs?"

"Yes; they are very ancient stones containing lines about the Forgotten Century and what happened during that era. Those lines are written in a forbidden language that almost nobody can read. But you see since I'm an archeologist, my greatest dream is to discover everything that happened before our generation - find out our past. This is why the World Government sees me as a threat and gave me an S-rank criminal bounty."

Blu stared at his friend and then up at Fabian. "Is she telling the truth?"

"Yes," the seagull simply said. "And this is why I'm ready to chase her until the end of the New World if I have to just to kill her in the name of justice."

"Blu, please! You have to get out of here with your friends before it's too late! I don't want your dead on my conscious!" the scarlet macaw begged.

Blu simply starred at her...and then placed his feathered hand on her shoulder. "Arlene, listen to me. My friends and I are already outlaws; the World Government is trying to kill us every day. So going in this fortress is nothing new. Now, believe it or not, but we too have crazy dreams that are our main goals in life. If you join my crew, I can guarantee you that we will do everything to help you reach your dream. What do you say?"

"ENOUGH!" Fabian shouted before Arlene could answer. "I'm tired of sitting there listening to you scum chatting! Take them down!"

The three colonels obeyed, charging toward them. However, they got knocked back by -8 fireballs shot by Gaming Joe.

"Joe...can you take Arlene and your brother and get far away from here while I deal with him?" Blu softly asked while glaring at Joe. "This is gonna be a violent encounter."

"Okay. Good luck, Gunderson," Joe said with freeing his brother and pulling him on his shoulders as he grabbed Arlene's hand and started running away. "Come on girl; we need to get far away from here!"

"But wait! Fabian Estrada is too strong for Blu! We gotta help him!" Arlene protested.

"Don't worry; this guy is stronger than one could believe," Joe said with a smile.

Arlene was about to argue again...but it was true that Blu managed to defeat Raijin back in Skyland. Why would this be different after all?

"Winning time won't change anything at all; I can easily catch up with them even with a full hour of head-on," Fabian said with glancing at Blu.

This last one replied by taking his fighting stance. "I'm not winning time for anything...I'm simply gonna kick your feathered butt and join with them and my friends afterward!"


	319. Blue Thunder Crew vs Killer Elite Squad

**It's time for the battle between the Blue Thunder Crew and Killer Elite Squad to REALLY begin!**

* * *

As Dominic and Kaku stood aside from each other on the stool, the golden eagle pulled out Sabor and took his fighting stance. The woodpecker meanwhile took out a little pistol...before smirking and tossing it aside.

"You're not gonna try and shoot me with your pistol?"

"I have another way to take you down that would fit more with your fighting style," Kaku explained himself and took out two sabers from his belt which were short and had square-shaped wooden handles.

Dominic smiled. "I see. So you're a swordsman too?"

"Exactly!"

The woodpecker suddenly charged at the golden eagle and started swinging his two sabers which the golden eagle managed to block. "Only one question," he mumbled after block three more strikes from Kaku.

"Really? What is that?" this last one asked in return before blocking counter attacks from Dominic who soon rolled back and the two marked a pause.

"How would you feel to get killed by your own blade?" Dominic asked before delivering two punches in a row to Kaku's face and then kick him in the guts to knock him to the edge of the stool.

The woodpecker scoffed and kicked him before quickly charging at Dominic once again. This last one ducked a swing from him and then delivered a dropkick that made him fall down a small sand cliff and land at its feet. Dominic noticed a clothesline (don't ask me what it's doing there) which he grabbed and used as a cable to fly down at full speed toward his opponent.

However, by the time he arrived, Kaku was already gone. "Where did he go?"

Suddenly, the woodpecker appeared above him and swung one of his sabers. "ENERGY SLASH!"

Surprised to see this, Dominic quickly swung Sabor. "ENERGY SLASH!" The two attacks collided and created a small explosion that knocked Dominic back into a pile of bags. "Feels strange to see my own technique used against me."

After getting back up, Dominic started running on the very elevated stool...only to find out it had been set on fire. Not expecting this, the golden eagle looked up to see Kaku standing safe on a nearby rooftop and smirking at him, indicating he was the one who set the fire.

"If I fall from this high, I'm certain to die!" Dominic nervously thought as the flames surrounded him.

Remembering what he learned during his time in the military, the golden eagle ran through the stool, avoiding the flames and crumbling pieces, until he managed to jump and land on the same rooftop as Kaku.

"Did you miss me?" he asked with a teasing grin.

Kaku answered by angrily groaning and swinging his sabers at Dominic once again. The golden eagle took out Snow Run to help him block and fight back more easily. The two avians fought for several minutes across the crumbling stool until at one point Dominic managed to land a cut across the woodpecker's cheek.

"Is that the best I can get out of the K.E.S.?" Dominic asked with a grin.

"You know what they say about a duel; two men, one death!" Kaku declared before going on the offensive again.

Dominic delivered a kick across the woodpecker's face which made him fall to the lower level of the stool. He jumped down to said level so that the two avians could continue their duel. Despite having mostly the upper hand, Dominic still sustained some cuts during the fight.

* * *

TAP! TAP! TAP!

Tamaya panted as he kept running in the streets of Crac Des Chevaliers with K.E.S. member Pinky chasing after him. "For god's sake, how far are you planning to follow me?!"

"You got a very ridiculous way to run, you know that?" the flamingo asked with a chuckle.

Tamaya turned his head to look before him...and gasped. "Shit! A dead end!"

He quickly opened his bag to grab a round black bomb which he lit up and launched at the wall, the explosion blowing a hole into it. "Oh, what an interesting tool you got there," Pinky complimented from behind.

"This is no good at all! I cannot escape him! How will I-OH MY GOSH!" Tamaya quickly came to a halt as he arrived into a street that ended into what looked like a bottomless crater. "For the living crap, I almost fell into this! What's that?!"

"It's just a big hole that we use to sometime execute our prisoners," Pinky replied as he finally caught up with the owl and smirked. He then took out his scythe. "I should probably finish you off right now with my scythe."

"He, he, finish me off?" Tamaya asked as he grabbed a smaller bomb from his bag and lit up its fuse. "I think it's a little too soon to talk about that!" The masked owl tossed the bomb on the ground which created a smokescreen.

"A smokescreen?!" Pinky exclaimed as he started coughing and covering his eyes. "Shit, this is hard on the eyes and the nose! What is it?"

"Gotcha!" Tamaya exclaimed. "It's a specialty of mine; a smoke bomb filled with pepper spray! I call it the Tamaya Super Bomb-OH CRAP IT STINKS!" the owl suddenly exclaimed as his eyes cried because of the smoke and he coughed as well.

"Seriously? You get caught by your own bomb?" Tamaya responded by turning around and running away once again. "You're not seriously gonna run away again? Aren't you supposed to be a warrior of the sea?"

Eventually, Pinky managed to jump past Tamaya, landing before him, and slashed his scythe across his torso and face, leaving a small cut into his chest and mask too which got knocked away. the owl fell backward and landed on his butt.

"Hum? I must say you have a rather cute face."

Tamaya panted in pain before standing up. "There is something you should know about me."

"Hum? What is it?"

"Tamaya, that's not my true name. My true name...is Apollo."

* * *

Vladimir and Supaddo started their fight by charging forward and went for a shoulder tackle which didn't make made any of them fall. Supaddo went for a clothesline which didn't make the golden eagle fall. Vladimir replied with a clothesline of his own on the potato who didn't fall either. He instead grabbed the avian by the waist from behind to apply a German Suplex that didn't affect him. He caught Supaddo with a German Suplex of his own which didn't affect him either.

"You're very resilient," Supaddo remarked as he ignored the pain of the shots he took.

Vladimir nodded, trying to do the same. "I return you the compliment."

The two opponents then met in close combat, smashing their fists against the other's. However, Supaddo soon took this chance to hit a knee strike into his stomach which made him spit saliva and followed with a double axe handle smash top of his head and to the ground.

"This is no good," Vladimir nervously thought.

* * *

Jewel took out her Wind Waker staff as she got ready to face Kalifah in the hot spring. She started by running forward, swinging her Wind Waker at the golden duck who jumped up and foot stooled the staff, pushing her opponent onto the floor. She laughed, then dodged as Jewel tried a leg sweep.

The two girls engaged in close combat. Despite Jewel's staff being swift and fast, Kalifah easily dodged her attacks and counter-attacked with kicks. Eventually, Jewel jumped back and sent the upper part of her staff (which was cut in three tacts) toward Mei Ling like a boomerang.

The golden duck jumped up and created a pile of bubbles. "How are you doing that?!" Jewel asked in surprise.

"Didn't you know? I ate a Magical Fruit that gave me the power to create bubbles with my wings," Kalifah explained with making some soap in her wing for emphasis.

Jewel glanced up at the golden duck for a while...before taking off two tacts of her staff and started spinning them, creating red and light blue bubbles that flew up in the air. Kalifah readied herself as she thought it was some kind of attack. However, the bubbles just flew past her and into the air.

"What are those things? What are you doing?" the duck asked. "Whatever it is, I doubt it's good for me. Bubble Dash!" Driving on jets of bubbles, she charged at Jewel, ready to hit her with her wing

The spix macaw saw this and brought her staff back together, stopping blowing bubbles into the air. "Mirage Tempo!" Four clones of her suddenly appeared which confused Kalifah. Once she was in reach, she swung her wing through one of the macaws, making it pass through her and broke her body into water.

"It was a clone!" Kalifah thought and kept attacking, striking three more clones in a row, leaving only the real Jewel. "Found ya!"

"But too late!" Jewel replied with a smirk and sent another bubble in the air with her staff. This one was made of electricity and flew up to a big dark cloud Kalifah failed to notice before. "Thunderbolt Tempo!"

A huge thunderbolt flew out of the cloud and hit the golden duck hard, sending volts through her body and knocking her off her bubbles to crash down onto the floor below.

"You little brat!" the duck angrily groaned.

* * *

The puffin went on the offensive and forced Kovu to dodge his kicks while fighting back with his large saber. The close combat lasted many seconds before Kovu kicked Lazaro in the chest and went to strike him with his blade but the puffin surprisingly caught it in his legs.

"What?!" The red wolf was surprised that his weapon got stopped.

"Sorry, but looks like my legs are strong enough to catch your weapon," Lazaro said with a smile before spinning and kicking Kovu into the cheek which knocked him on his back.

Lazaro jumped, ready to slam him with his two feet, but he quickly rolled back and jumped in the air, letting him smash the ground instead. While in the air, the red wolf somehow stretched his saber's blade at a large distance which forced the puffin to dodge and roll away to avoid getting hurt.

"How can he stretch his saber like this?!" Lazaro thought while running around.

After dodging another swing, Lazaro jumped in the air and engaged an aerial fight with Kovu. Despite his sword, the red wolf was not as good as the puffin in mid-air fighting and decided to get away from him after a headbutt to Lazaro's beak.

With his opponent stunned, Kovu charged down at him, ready to strike him down with his sword. However, Lazaro quickly dodged the attack. He dropkicked Kovu which knocked him back a few feet away before marking a break for the two of them to catch their breath.

"It's your fault if Arlene is gonna get executed!" Kovu angrily screamed at the puffin.

"What the hell are you talking about?" Lazaro asked with a confused and angrily look.

"If you would have stayed away from her...none of that would have happened..."

* * *

"Come at me, dude!"

Rushing at full speed, Guatemala charged at Hernandez. The pelican rose his wing and tried to punch him, only for the orange primate to duck and kick him in the beak with agility.

"The bubble gum I just ate give me a boost in strength. It should help me there, but this guy is too fast for me!" Hernandez realized.

Summoning his wing armor again, he launched an attack at the primate who rolled out of the way, letting him destroy a wall instead. Not giving up, he shot a jet of energy again and this time, Guatemala simply kicked it away. Despite being shocked by this, Hernandez jumped with his fist raised, ready to squash the primate.

Unfortunately, Guatemala saw it coming and delivered a knee strike into the pelican's stomach, sending him flying backward and crash with a loud thud. "You're weak, dude!" Guatemala affirmed and rushed forward just as Hernandez got back up to give him a violent punch in the face that made him spit blood.

"You are the powerhouse of your crew, right? Know that I faced smaller guys that were stronger than you, dude," he added with giving a knee strike underneath Hernandez's beak which made him bleed more and fall on his back.

Grunting in pain, the pelican slowly stood up on his trembling leg and glared at the primate. "I'm not dude yet!"

The pelican took out his cube and pushed the yellow bubble gum out, putting it into his beak. Not wanting to give him time to prepare another attack, Guatemala charged. However, Hernandez smirked and lifted his right wing which suddenly grew up in size and became big enough for him to whip the monkey away with only one swing.

"What...the...heck?! How'd you do that?!" he asked in pain.

"This candy my friend made for me temporally allows me to grow up any part of my body and seriously whip some butt!" the pelican rose his leg and made it grow up before slamming it down, trying to squash the primate.

Guatemala rolled out of the way before getting whipped away by Hernandez's big hand. "Okay, enough playing!" the primate said and suddenly rose his arms, shooting a jet of flames right into Hernandez's torso, knocking him away.

He then walked over to Hernandez who tried to make his wing grow again, only to find out the candy's effects had faded away. The orange primate started giving him violent kicks in the stomach, making him groan in pain.

"I'm...too...weak..."

* * *

Alex who has eaten a Muscle Candy, yelled as he charged at Shiki Lion for a punch. However, the feline swiftly dodged and slammed the tip of his golden staff into his back, making him groan in pain.

Alex swore in his head and used his powerful legs to jump high into the air. Unfortunately, this was proven to be pretty much useless as the lion jumped after him with also strong legs.

He swung his hair like whips for smashes which Alex managed to dodge. He soon decided to launch all of them at once toward the snowy owl.

"Crap! Balloon Candy!"

Eating said candy, Alex turned into a balloon which deflected the hair whips and sent it flying away. Not about to let him land safely, Shiki Lion went for another golden staff charge which touched the fury ball, sending him crashing into a house that collapsed.

"Crap!" Alex thought as he started bleeding from the head. "The softness of the Balloon Candy was not enough to protect me from that hit..."

Shiki Lion then wrapped his hair whips around Alex's legs and wings, stretching him out and holding him before him. "Let me go!" Alex cried and struggled to break free.

"Are you...ticklish?" Shiki asked and used the tips of his whips to brush at Alex's feet, wingpits, and belly.

The kid started laughing. "NOHOHOHOHO! STOHOHOHOP THAHAHAHAT!"

* * *

 **Three chapters in one day? Man, I'm on fire!**

 **Also...yes, Tamaya is actually Apollo wearing a costume. Did you see that coming?**

 **The battle is not going well for our friends who are getting beaten (tickled in Alex's case). Think they can turn the tables and defeat the Killer Elite Squad?**


	320. We're the Blue Thunder Crew!

Blu and Fabian Estrada took their fighting stance as they got ready to start what should be a battle of the ages. Blu charged at Fabian and tried to kick him to the face, but he blocked him with both of his wings. However, Blu made a quick turn and punched him in the belly.

"That's all you got?" he asked, clearly not affected.

The spix macaw got mad and tried to kick him in the face but Fabian dodged and punched Blu straight in the face which left him a mark in the face. He then tried to kick him with his big foot but Blu dodged. They then both charged and punched at the same time, touching their fists and creating a big wind from the contact.

They glared at each other all the while before jumping back. "I gotta admit it; you have good ardor, Gunderson," the seagull said with a grin.

Blu didn't respond and swung his legs at him like whips but he dodged his fast attacks and jumped in the air. The spix macaw tried to whip him again, only for the seagull to dodge once more.

He charged to tried to kick him with both of his legs but Fabian dodged and punched him in the belly so hard that he was sent to crash on the rocky floor, leaving a small crater. Fabian landed and Blu immediately jumped out of the crater to give a deadly glare to his opponent.

"You know you're too slow; I can already tell that you're from the Human World."

"I didn't even give my 100%!"

Without thinking he charged at him again and they exchanged a few punches before Blu tried to kick him once more only for Fabian to dodge and kick him in the face again, sending him toward the wall of a nearby building.

However, Fabian used his speed and joined Blu to send another powerful kick in his belly, making him spit saliva, followed by a powerful punch which sent him crashing into the building's wall, creating a lot of smoke.

"I'm the strongest fighter of the Killer Elite Squad! You won't damage me a lot!" Fabian said.

Blu charged at him again with a few scars and slammed a punch with his wing against the seagull's kick, making another wind wave.

Suddenly, Fabian kicked him with his other foot straight under the chin followed by another kick in the back with his other foot, sending him to crash into the wall once more.

"Pff! I'm not impressed!" Fabian scoffed

Blu charged for another time and tried to smash Fabian with his Fist Storm but he dodged his attacks again with little to no difficulty.

"This is not going to work!" the seagull said as he grabbed his wings in his wings and threw him into the wall again. "I really don't understand why the World Government would give you such an elevated bounty; you were not that much of a challenge."

"JET PUNCH!"

Fabian merely had time to turn before Blu smashed him in the face with his plastic fist, sending him to crash into a big rock and destroying it. "W-What the hell?! Where did that come from?!" Fabian said with getting up with some scars.

He then saw that Blu's feathers turned a bit red and that steam started coming out of some points of his body. He looked a lot more different than a few seconds ago.

"What's with the new look?" Fabian asked curiously.

"It's my new transformation: Adrenaline Rush! It makes me faster and stronger! Now, I can kick your butt!" Blu declared with energy.

The seagull just scoffed. "Don't go think you'll win simply because you became a little bit faster!" He jumped toward her for a finishing blow. Suddenly, Blu appeared before him and kicked the avian, sending him to crash into another rock.

Fabian got mad and tried to smash Blu but he moved away, letting him smash the ground, and jumped above him. He then smashed him so hard in the back that he was sent crashing into the wall, leaving a bigger crater than all of the macaw's.

"YOU PUNK!"

Fabian jumped along with Blu and the two started exchanging blows while jumping all around the city. Eventually, Blu landed on the ground and tried to hit Fabian with his Jet Punch only to leave a scar on his right shoulder. He then jumped behind him as he was recovering and kicked him hard, sending him back first into another wall.

"Not bad, huh?" Blu asked with a grin

Both he and Fabian jumped in the air with a battle cry. Blu avoided his attack while Fabian received the smash in the face and got knocked to the ground. The young spix macaw then rested on one knee while catching his breath without removing eye contact from his enemy.

Fabian spat blood. "What's wrong? You're not attacking anymore?" He then realized something. "Oh, I got it; this technique of yours is draining a lot of energy out of you, huh? That's sad."

He charged at Blu and they started exchanging quick punches, their fists hitting the other's, creating a big wind of energy. Blu was no longer able to hold his Adrenaline Rush form as it would leave him too weak to continue...and God knew he had to win this fight at any cost.

Eventually, Fabian sent a knee strike to Blu's chin and followed with a powerful punch, sending him in the air while screaming. As he stopped mid-air, Fabian appeared above him and kicked him with his knee, sending him back first on the ground.

He then charged toward the ground and aimed at Blu chest only for him to move out of the way in time, letting the Killer Elite Squad member smash the rocky ground instead. He smirked and shot an energy slash at his opponent who groaned and fell down in pain.

"Cheese and sprinkles! It hurts!" Blu groaned.

Suddenly, Fabian appeared behind him and was about to kick him when Blu enrolled his two wings around his leg.

"Why do you try so hard to save this excuse of a criminal?" Fabian asked.

"BECAUSE SHE'S MY CREWMATE!" He then launched his wing backward for a Drill Punch. "TAKE THAT!" He said with aiming it at the seagull's chest. He touched his chest but Fabian didn't flinch. "WHAT?!"

Fabian chuckled. "When I fight at my fullest, my bones become time harder!" He then delivered a violent smash across Blu's face which knocked him through a wall and made him land on the ground.

Blu tried to stand up...but the pain was too much. The strength of Fabian's attacks combined with the tiredness of using his Adrenaline Rush caused him too much damage to his body. Fabian stood over him and scoffed before walking away.

"Alright, not that it has been taken care of, I will let you die here and go catch this darned Cheery Bomb."

"N-No...," Blu weakly mumbled. "Stay away from her..."

"I have no business left with you now that you're defeated. I'm ready to bet my comrades already took care of your precious friends; it's game over for you all."

"You're wrong!"

Fabian froze in his walk. He slowly turned around and widened his eyes upon seeing that Blu somehow managed to stand up despite the beating he took. "What?! How can you still stand up?!"

 **(You Say Run from My Hero Academia starts playing)**

"You don't...know anything...about us...," Blu said while panting and fighting to stand up.

* * *

Dominic and Kaku are still dueling on the half-burned stool with cuts all over their bodies. The golden eagle eventually put some distance between the two of them and pants.

"Alright, enough playing!" he declared with taking out Eau De Mort and placing it in his beak. "Time to go all out!"

Kaku gasped. "T-The legendary Three Swords Style?!"

* * *

Jewel collapsed after a bubble Dash from Kalifah who grinned and stood on her bubble cloud while Jewel laid down on her face. "Sorry sweetie, but this is over. It was pretty fun fighting you we were just not playing in the same category."

"Oh, you think?"

Khalifah looked at the spix macaw and was surprised to see her using her Wind Waker staff to slowly stand up.

"This is not over yet. My friends are all fighting to safe Arlene from getting executed! There's no way I'm gonna lose and be a burden to them all!" Jewel declared with glaring at the golden duck. "Don't underestimate me!"

* * *

Hernandez was still getting kicked down by Guatemala. He had no choice. Reach into his cube, he grabbed the Butterfly Candy and placed it into his beak.

BOOM!

The orange primate got knocked back by a sudden rush of energy coming out of the pelican's body. "What was that, duuuude?" He widened his eyes in surprise upon seeing Hernandez standing up with two light blue butterfly wings coming out of his back.

"BUTTERFLY CANDY!" he growled with turning and giving a deadly glare to Guatemala.

* * *

Kovu slashed his blade across Lazaro's chest, making him bleed and collapse on the ground. The fight has been pretty intense, but he ultimately won.

"This is what you get for causing the death of my friend. I'll never forgive you for that!" the red wolf declared and turned around to leave.

"What are you talking about? I'm barely getting warmed up!"

Kovu stopped in his tracks and turned around...to gasp upon seeing a strange phenomenon. "W-What's with your leg?!"

Indeed, Lazaro's leg was glowing with red energy for some reason. The puffin grinned sinisterly. "You should feel lucky. You'll be the first one to test my new technique; the Dynamite Kick!"

"D-Dynamite Kick?"

"Yeah; it's a technique that one fighter can only unlock by defeating 1000 opponents in a row by using only his legs! Looks like I ended up reaching that number without even realizing it!"

* * *

Vladimir coughed as he received many strikes in the torso from Suppado. The potato chuckled. "Are you ready to fall yet?"

Just as it seemed the golden eagle would fall on his back, he suddenly stood up once again, a glare in his face. "I'm a wall of stone; I will never fall against a ridiculous potato!"

* * *

Alex groaned as Shiki Lion held him by his limbs with his hair whips and slammed the tip of his staff into his stomach, making him spit saliva and clutch down in pain.

"You fought well, my young friend, but this is where our game ends. Because you respected my dance so much, I will make you the honor of not killing you and just lock you in prison," the lion said with taking a cool pose.

"S-Shut up...," Alex weakly said with standing up. He grabbed a candy from his bag - his Reindeer Candy - and held it between two feathers while glaring at his opponent with tears coming out of his eyes. "My friends are counting on me and I will never disappoint them, you hear me?!"

* * *

Blu panted as he slowly activated his Adrenaline Rush again. "We...will...never lose...because..."

Fabian blinked his eyes as Blu coughed a bit before suddenly shooting his head up and giving a determined glare.

"WE ARE THE BLUE THUNDER CREW!"

* * *

 **Man, I think that was one of the most epic scenes I ever wrote. the Blue Thunder Crew members expressing their determination and the music going with it is so intense. Will our friends defeat the Killer Elite Squad?**


	321. Jet Power Slam!

**It's time to end this fight!**

* * *

Dominic and Kaku clashed their swords a little more until the golden eagle managed to stab his two sabers into his torso, making him collapse, defeated.

"It's over," Dominic said and panted as he pulled his sabers away.

"I...can't believe...that I lost...," the woodpecker panted while clutching his bleeding abdomen in pain.

"Just one more thing before I leave; you should be ashamed of betraying your own leader like this," Dominic said before grinning. "And by the way...you had the honor of getting defeated by the future strongest swordsman in the world."

* * *

"MARIPOSA BOMBA!"

Hernandez slammed his energy-charged fist into Guatemala's torso after planting him on the ground and created a butterfly-shaped crater below him. the primate spat a lot of blood before falling unconscious.

"Looks like I won...dude!" Hernandez said while in pain.

* * *

Lazaro charged at a visibly surprised Kovu with his red energy-charged foot. The red wolf swung his saber at the puffin who just ducked and delivered his kick into the canine's torso.

"DYNAMITE KICK!"

An explosion of fire knocked Kovu many feet away and came to a stop on his stomach. "Wow, this attack is stronger than I thought!" Lazaro said with a smile as he looked at his foot that returned to normal.

Suddenly, Kovu weakly grabbed his foot. "P-Please...save...Arlene...," he begged before passing out.

The puffin blinked his eyes curiously, still not understanding why he cared so much about her.

* * *

Turning into his reindeer form, Alex charged his horns into Shiki's torso, making him spit saliva. He then charged his hooves with pink energy and slammed them into Shiki's chest.

"ROSE HOOVES!"

The attack left pink marks on the lion's chest as he collapsed unconscious.

"I did it!" Alex happily beamed.

* * *

Jewel winced in pain because her body was suffering from the beating Khalifah gave her. The golden duck failed to notice it and smirked. "Looks like your body is making you suffer a lot. I suppose you wanna give up now?"

As the golden duck charged for another Bubble Dash, Jewel ducked her attack and planted her T staff into her abdomen. "TORNADO TEMPO!"

In a bright flash from each end, two clockwork burst out and ensnared her opponent. The T then started to spin rapidly until it finally shot the captured golden duck with extreme centrifugal force. So much in fact that Jewel herself was sent flying back and rolled a lot onto the ground.

After the pain from the attack passed away, Jewel stood up once again and started limping toward the direction Khalifah flew into. She saw that she broke out of the hot spring and was now unconscious.

"Victory for the Amazonian Beauty!" the spix macaw said with a grin.

* * *

"You... You can't...," Blu weakly said as Fabian kept glancing at him. "You can't...beat me!"

"You think you scare me? You're nothing but a half-dead kid. You give yourself a though look, but I know that you're afraid right now. I'm the strongest member of the Killer Elite Squad and you're nothing but a pirate wannabe!"

Blu just groaned as he gave him a glare. "I'm gonna become the strongest bird in the world! Get that in your dumb head!"

Risky just scoffed and stopped walking. "Listen, kid, I don't understand your way of thinking and quite frankly, I don't give a damn! As soon as I'm done with you, I'm gonna go catch Cherry Bomb and kill her with my own wings!"

He ran toward the boy, ready to finish him off once and for all. To his surprise, Blu did not move at all and instead caught his fist with his hands, stopping it with his raw strength. Once he was completely stopped, Blu glared up at the seagull.

"I am...stronger than you!" Blu groaned, clearly getting to his extreme limits.

Pushing a huge cry of determination and throwing his plastic arm backward, Blu smashed Fabian in the chest (a cracking sound was heard, meaning he broke a few bones), making the seagull moan in pain as well as spitting even more blood. Not stopping there, he followed with a kick across his face and ultimately finished his combo by throwing his arm above him and slamming it down on Fabian's head, making it hit the floor hard. Adrenaline had complete control over him by this point.

"Time to finish this! For all my friends! For Arlene!" Blu launched his hands back as far as he could. "JET POWER SLAAAAAM!"

He slammed his fists right into Fabian's stomach, making him spit a lot of blood and sent him flying many miles away. The seagull broke through many walls before coming to a stop in the middle of a street of many soldiers to see.

"I-It's Fabian Estrada of the Killer Elite Squad!" one of them exclaimed.

"H-He got...defeated?!"

"Impossible!"

Meanwhile, Blu collapsed on his back after this ultimate attack. He could no longer move - not even a single finger. However...he found the strength to push the corners of his beak into a smile.

"I...did it!" he happily beamed before passing out.

* * *

 **You probably guessed it but I rushed the fights a bit. The reason is that I just wanna get this arc done with and hold my part of the deal I made with Loco Vampire.**

 **That and another reason. I'm starting to feel long-term fatigue - it's something an author feels when he's writing that story that has been going on for a very long time. This story has started one year ago and is over 330 chapters long. You can understand why I'm feeling this way a little bit.**


	322. Return to Water 7

Blu groaned as he regained consciousness. The first thing he became aware of was that a pair of turquoise eyes were looking down at him with a smiling black beak.

"Je...wel?" he weakly mumbled.

"Hello, my little blueberry," Jewel softly said with gently stroking his head feathers.

"W-Where are we?" he asked with looking at the room he was laying in.

"We're in a Naval Forces ship," Jewel answered.

"What?! How is that possible?" Blu asked before rubbing his forehead. "I knew it; I'm dead."

"No, but you sure tried." Blu turned his head to see all of his friends entering the room. They all had some bruises here and there with plasters on minor wounds. But they were alive and that's all that mattered to Blu.

"We're all glad that you survived your fight, Captain," Hernandez said with a smile.

"But what happened?" Blu asked. "All I remember is that I fought the hardest fight of my life with Fabian and then passed out. How did we end up on an NF ship?"

"You can thank me for that." They turned their heads to see Paul entering the room.

"P-Paul?" Blu said. "What happened to you? We got separated after taking the cannonball."

"I had to fight my way through the city," the husky explained with a smile. "I thought we might need a way out since we couldn't go back to Mrs. Coco's sea train. So I searched and found this ship. Mrs. coco should be waiting for us back to Water 7."

Blu sighed in relief and smiled. He then stood up from his bed and, with help from Dominic, stepped outside the room and onto the deck. As he expected, Gaming Joe, Mr. Iceberg, and Arlene were all standing there.

"Ha, Gunderson. I see you're awake now," Mr. Iceberg said with a relieved smile. He also had a few bandages on his body from the beating he took at Crac Des Chevaliers.

"Are you alright, Mr. Iceberg?" Blu asked.

"Yes, don't worry; I suffered worst before."

"Gunderson." Everybody looked at Joe who walked up to Blu with a super serious look...before wrapping his arms around him in a hug. "From the bottom of my heart, thank you so much for saving my brother!"

"Joe...you're welcome...but my ribs hurt!" Blu coughed.

"Oh, sorry," the barn owl said with releasing the macaw.

This last one then looked toward Arlene who was looking at the sea and not participating in the conversation. "Oh, Arlene, are you alright? The Killer Elite Squad didn't hurt you too much?"

"...All of you..." Everybody stared at the scarlet macaw who slowly turned around and gave them a smile with tears coming out on her cheeks. "...thank you! For everything!"

All the Blue Thunder Crew members smiled back. Jewel stepped forward and give her a little bump on the head. "Don't you ever scare us like that again, got it?"

"Yes, sorry," the scarlet macaw replied with rubbing her forehead. "Anything I can do to be forgiven?"

"Yes; join this crew officially this time," Jewel said with a smile.

Arlene was surprised. "Wait, you still want me in? Even after all the trouble I caused you?"

"Of course; you're our friend and we all get in trouble at one point or another." Jewel then leaned toward her. "And to be honest, I'm tired of being the only girl in this crew. I need to have a girl friend or the boys' immaturity will make me go insane."

Arlene giggled at this. "Alright then."

Blu then realized something. "Wait a minute. Where's Tamaya?"

"I'm here!" Everybody turned to see the masked pyro master coming onto the deck.

"There you are," Alex said. "Where have you been? I thought we had accidentally left you behind."

"Sorry; I got lost and jumped on the ship at the last second. I was too tired from fighting and had to rest before coming on the upper deck," he explained with rubbing the back of his head.

* * *

 _A few hours ago, Apollo panted as he finally defeated Pinky with an Explosive Bill. The flamingo was laying down with roasted feathers, barely conscious._

 _"It's over!" the barn owl declared before pulling his mask back on. "I have to go catch up with the others now!"_

 _"W-Wait...," Pinky weakly mumbled as he looked up at the victor. "I-I have something to ask you. Why are you wearing a mask and hiding your true identity? For the World Government, a pirate's a pirate."_

 _Apollo looked down. "Because...it's the only way I have to help my friends..."_

* * *

Upon returning to Water 7, Mr. Iceberg announced the news to his fellow workers from the G1 Company. All of them were shocked to learn that Fabian Estrada, Khalifah, and Kaku had betrayed them and actually worked for the World Government. However, they quickly had to put these feelings aside as their boss ordered them to start working on a new ship for the Blue Thunder Crew they owned their lives to with Paul leading the project. The G1 Company boss was very specific in saying that he wanted this ship to be the best they could conceive for their friends.

The Blue Thunder Crew, meanwhile, was celebrating its success and new crew member at Mr. Iceberg's personal home where he gladly invited them. The team was currently having fun on the home's terrace with Blu and Jewel sharing a dance together, Dominic having a drinking contest with Vladimir, Lazaro making a delicious meal for everyone, Hernandez chatting with Alex, and Arlene just sitting on a chair and reading a book, giving the occasional giggle at her new friends' antics.

"Ready to give up yet, Yusef?" Vladimir asked with a hiccup after finishing his fifth beer bottle.

"Are you kidding? I'm barely getting started!" Dominic replied with a smirk.

Suddenly, Alex came walking between the two, a beer bottle in his wing, and stumbling a bit. "What are you looking at? You wanna fight?" he asked with a French accent before slamming his bottle on a table and pointing it at the golden eagles. "Come on, bring it on, big chicken!" He then collapsed and fell asleep.

Dominic rubbed his eyes. "Someone, give me some orange juice; I'm hallucinating again!"

"Hey, where's Tamaya? I thought he might want to be celebrating with us. He did help a lot with Crac Des Chevaliers," Lazaro said while cooking some fish.

"I don't know; he said he had to go and do something very important before coming back," Blu responded while spinning Jewel to the song. Suddenly, a knock was heard at the door. "Oh, it must be him?"

The spix macaw walked over to the door and opened it up...only to widen his eyes and gasp as it revealed the last person he was expecting to see standing before him.

"...Apollo?"


	323. Our new ship

**Time to conclude this arc, my friends.**

* * *

All the avians on the terrace fell silent. Blu remained speechless as his former crewmate whom he had kicked out yesterday was standing before him. No one said anything until the barn owl looked down and spoke.

"...Hello, Blu..."

"A-Apollo?!" Alex exclaimed. "It's you1 I was so worried that-" However, before he could go see the barn owl, Dominic stopped him by placing his arm in front of the kid. "Huh? Dominic?"

The glare on the golden eagle's face clearly indicated that he did not forget what happened the day before. He was also silently telling the others not to say anything and to not interfere with what was about to happen. This was between their captain and former comrade.

"What are you doing here?" Blu asked with crossing his arms. "Haven't you decided to leave with the Saldanha and go wherever you wanted?"

Apollo frowned. His beak was moving but no word came out as if he was trying to talk but the words refused to leave his throat. Suddenly, he collapsed on his knees, his head hanging low and...sobbing?

"I-I'm sorry, Blu! I'm so, so, SO sorry!" he exclaimed with a trembling voice. Tears forme din his eyelids. "I-I'm sorry for my stubbornness! It prevented me from seeing that the Saldanha truly was destroyed and would never seal to the sea again! I-I was wrong on all the line!" By this point, tears fell down from the barn owl's eyes and started forming puddles below. "I wish I could take everything I said back...but I can't! So I beg you! Please, Blu, give me a second chance! Accord me a second chance to be a REAL member of this crew...to be a TRUE tovarisch for you and the others!"

Blu remained silent and kept looking at the sobbing barn owl. his words were sincere. He turned around to look at Dominic...who had a smile on his beak and nodded at his captain. This last one kneeled down before Apollo and offered him his feathered hand. Apollo looked up in surprise with his eyes filled with tears.

"Stand up...brother!" Blu said, tears also forming in his eyes.

Apollo stared at him before crying even more as he grabbed his captain's hand and stood up. The two friends hugged each other while crying. The others started doing the same as they were glad their brother at arms came back.

Alex quickly rushed to go hug Apollo's tummy and cried a lot He was visibly happy that he didn't lose his best friend. Lazaro jumped on his back and bumped Apollo's head. "DON'T YOU EVER SCARE ME LIKE THIS AGAIN, YOU HEAR ME?!" he angrily shouted through his sobs.

Dominic chuckled a bit. "You're pathetic, you know that?" Despite seeing this, he was visibly happy that Apollo was back in the crew as well.

After hugging each other and crying for a while, the friends broke apart from each other and Blu placed his hands on Apollo's shoulders.

"Apollo...I'm really sorry for the Saldanha. If you want, tomorrow, we'll give him a proper burial..."

* * *

The next day, after resting all night long, the Blue Thunder Crew members gathered on the island's coast where the beloved Saldanha was still parked. The ship was standing proudly on the stone ground with the parrot head holding its head toward the horizon of the sea for one last time.

Blu and his friends were all standing side by side without saying a single word as they were about to go through a very hard moment. After an eternity of silence, the captain looked at Apollo.

"Okay, do it, Apollo," he painfully said.

The barn owl nodded, taking a bill from his bag and charging it in his slingshot. He hesitated for a moment before shooting it at the Saldanha. The bill exploded and set fire to the ship - no, to their comrade. The more the flames were spreading on the wooden structure, the more tears started forming in the crew's eyes until they finally came out.

"SALDANHA!" Blu suddenly shouted. "THANK YOU FOR BRINGING US FROM SEQUIN ALL THE WAY HERE! YOU WERE THE BEST SHIP SOMEONE COULD ASK FOR! I'M SORRY FOR NOT TAKING GOOD CARE OF YOU AS I SHOULD HAVE!"

While their captain was shouting, Jewel placed her feathered hands on her beaks while crying. Alex was crying a lot and Vladimir wrapped his arms around the kid for a comforting hug. Hernandez just closed his eyes and cried silently while Dominic and Lazaro were tightening their fists and fighting hard to keep their tears inside; Dominic succeeded while Lazaro couldn't prevent his from flowing on his cheeks. But it was Apollo who was crying the most as he felt like he lost someone really dear to his heart.

As the flames destroyed the Saldanha, the Blue Thunder Crew knew they lost a precious comrade forever...

* * *

The avians took another day of rest before being called to the coast by Mr. Iceberg and the workers of the G1 Company to see their new ship. However, on their way, they were stopped by the guys of the Gaming Family.

"What do you want?" Blu asked with crossing his wings.

"W-We don't want to cause you any trouble," one of the men assured. "Our boss wanted us to show you your new bounty posters."

This earned them curious looks from the Blue Thunder Crew. "New bounties? What are you talking about?" Dominic asked.

"You don't know?" one of the two pink macaws asked. "After the events at Crac Des Chevaliers, the World Government decided to give you all new bounties. See it for yourselves," she said with handing them little wanted posters. "All of you have new bounties: Tyler "Blu" Gunderson, 300 million golden pieces. Yusef "Dominic" Saklov, 200 million golden pieces. "The Gem of the forest" Jewel, 16 million golden pieces. "Snowball" Alex, a coffee machine. "Cherry Bomb" Arlene, 80 million golden pieces. "La Furia" Lazaro, 79 million golden pieces. "Brazo Derecho del Diablo" Hernandez, 77 million golden pieces. "Mr. Kamen" Vladimir, 55 million golden pieces. "Sniper Owl" Apollo, 30 million golden pieces."

"Wow! My bounty is colossal!" Blu beamed with looking at his poster.

"Mine is not bad either," Dominic said with a chuckle.

"Hey! Why is my bounty lower than Arlene's?!" Lazaro asked in indignation.

While everyone was beaming, Alex sat in a corner with a sad look. "Why am I only worth a coffee machine?"

"And that's not all," the other pink macaw said with showing another poster. This one was of Gaming Joe. "They also made a bounty for Gaming Joe; he's searched for 74 million golden pieces."

"So your boss is searched too? Cool!" Blu said before turning to his friends. "Come on; let's go meet Mr. Iceberg and see our new ship!"

* * *

A few moments later, the Blue Thunder Crew arrived at the land's coast where Mr. Iceberg, Gaming Joe, Paul, the workers of the G1 Company, Mrs. Coco, Silva, and Dex were waiting for them. Beside them was standing the crew's new ship.

The new ship is a brig sloop, a type of ship that relies on the skills of its navigator. The ship has a lawn on its deck, complete with a swing and a slide, as well as an observation tower for a crow's nest. The huge masts give the ship extreme maneuverability. Like the Saldanha, the figurehead is in the shape of a spix macaw in honor of the former ship. The ship holds at least sixteen cannons and is twice larger than the Saldanha.

"Wow!" Blu exclaimed while looking at the new ship in awe just like his friends. "This ship is awesome!"

Mr. Iceberg chuckled. "My men worked really hard to make this ship and they equipped it with the finest technology you can carry on the sea. I'm sure it will be strong enough to last beyond the end of your journey and for generations to come."

Blu smiled and shook the penguin's flipper. "Thanks a lot for this ship, Mr. Iceberg; we truly appreciate it!"

Iceberg chuckled. "No; thank you for saving me and my friends from the Killer Elite Squad. Had you not been there, my company would have fallen and I would have been killed. See this as our way to thank you."

"We will," Blu said with bowing. "Come on guys; let's sail to our next destination right away!"

"Gunderson..."

Before the crew could get on their new ship, they heard a voice calling from behind and stopped. They turned their heads to see Gaming Joe stepping forward and stopping before Blu. "Gaming Joe? What do you want?"

The barn owl gave him a serious look. "There's something I wanna tell you. You said you planned on finding the Treasure Planet and becoming the strongest bird in the world, correct?" Blu nodded. "I also have a dream that is pretty large for one's life. You see, my dream is to create the greatest video game of all time. And I don't know why...but I feel like basing this game on your crew's adventure would be a wise choice. So...I know you must think I have a lot of audacity to ask this of you after the trouble I caused to your crew but...do you think you could take me as your shipwright?"

Everybody was taken aback by the barn owl's demand. The Gaming Family didn't think he would want to leave Water 7 one day. His brother even less. All he did was committing criminal activities around town and playing video games. but now...he wanted to go out on pirate adventures and make his own video game.

Blu smiled. "Sure, why not? We need a shipwright, that's true. Since you worked on this ship, your knowledge will be of great help. And for the trouble you caused us...don't worry; Apollo is back and that's all that matters. You're more than welcome in this crew!"

Joe smiled and exchanged a bump-fist with his new captain. He said his goodbyes to the Gaming Family while the others were packing up food and other supplies on the big ship. As he was about to get on the ship, Mr. Iceberg stopped him.

"What is it, bro?" the barn owl asked.

"I think you should take this," the penguin said with handing a rolled up blueprint and an instruction book to his brother.

Joe looked in surprise. "You...You really want me to take these?"

The penguin nodded. "Yes; you have matured a lot and I trust you to keep this safe in the memory of our father." Joe nodded and took the two items. Iceberg cried a bit and hugged his brother. "Have a safe trip, Joe. And accomplish your dream."

Joe cried and hugged his brother back. After many minutes, Joe joined the others on the new ship and they all waved goodbye to their friends as they sailed away from Water 7 and back on the sea.

"By the way, how are we gonna call this new ship?" Lazaro asked as he walked to the tip of the new ship.

The others rubbed their chins. "I don't know. We'll think about this on the way to our next destination," Blu suggested.

"Alright, how about we celebrate our new crewmates, ship, and beginning now?" Dominic asked with opening a beer barrel.

However, Jewel closed it back. "Hold on, Dom; I think you drank enough beer in the last days."

"I'LL DRINK AS MUCH BEER AS I WANT, YOU BIG COMPLAINER!"

* * *

 **Lol! I had to end this on a joke.**

 **So there you go, guys. That was the Crac Des Chevaliers arc. I know I rushed it up but I sure hope that you enjoyed it as much as you could. And Loco Vampire, I hope it was original enough to satisfy you and hold your end of our deal.**

 **So now, our feathered friends got two new comrades in the shape of Arlene and Gaming Joe, a new ship (that I have yet to name), and new bounties as well. Blu also got a new power-up in the form of his Adrenaline Rush.**

 **Now, I'm gonna take a little rest from this story as I mentioned previously that I suffer from long-term story fatigue. I'm gonna be working more on my other stories "Quest For Awesomeness" and "Heroverse" as well as my pro wrestling federation. I'm doing many projects at once.**

 **That being said, I already planned the next upcoming arcs of this story: The Four Rito Brothers arc part 2, The New Legend arc part 2 (title yet to be chosen as it is the sequel to the Ultimate Guide arc), Tao Dragon arc, China Invasion arc part 2, Four Ninja Birds arc part 5, Snow Kid arc part 3, and then, we'll go back to the Blue Thunder Crew with the Colossi Island arc.**

 **And just to let you know...I decided to cancel the Inazuma 11 arc. Sorry for the very few fans of this arc but I just lost interest into it. It was just not going anywhere. Maybe I'll adapt it into a spin-off story someday.**

 **So...stay cool and R.I.P. Saldanha.**


	324. Encounter of the two Emperors

**Hey guys. It's been a while since I updated this story, right? It's because I've been working on my other story "Quest for Awesomeness"...and also because I got a bit tired of writing for this one.**

 **But now I'm back! And we're gonna kick my return off with a chapter that shows how the world reacts to the Blue Thunder Crew's actions at Water 7 and Crac Des Chevaliers as well as a little bonus.**

* * *

"Guys! Guys!"

Soren, Gylfie, and Twilight stopped their training with Shard's chaw as their burrowing owl friend rushed at them with papers. "What's wrong, Digger?" Twilight asked his best friend.

The burrowing owl held the papers toward his friends. "Read this! Read this! It's about Blu and the others!"

The owls exchanged looks before taking the papers. They were bounty papers from the World Government that showed the faces of the Blue Thunder Crew members with bounties underneath them.

"It's Blu!" Shard exclaimed. "Wow, those guys of the New World really want their heads badly; I've never such elevated numbers before!"

"And you saw this? They have new friends," Gylfie pointed out. " "Cherry bomb" Arlene and Gaming Joe. They look pretty nice."

"Our friends sure have come a long way since their journey in our world and our fight against the Pure Ones," Twilight said with a smile.

"Huh..." Digger was scratching the side of his head. "Alex's bounty offers a "coffee machine". Does anyone know what coffee is?"

* * *

Munching noises were heard as Dracule "Hawkeye" Yun was feasting on his noon meal which consisted of garlic bread and some of the finest wine in this world. It was a pure delight in comparison to what the old Echidna gave him back in Ga'Hoole.

It was then that a news bird flew above him and dropped the newspaper right on his table, beside his meal. "Oh, the news." The strongest swordsman in the world cleaned his beak with a cleaning paper before taking the item and opening it. "Good; it has been a while since I learned about what's going on in the world right now."

After a few minutes of reading, the hawk's eyes widened in surprise. "The crew of the young Saklov? They broke into Crac Des Chevaliers and defeated the Killer Elite Squad to save their friend?"

A grin formed on his beak. "Those younglings will never cease to amaze me. I'm really looking forward to seeing you again, young Saklov." He then gazed at Blu's picture. "As for you, young Gunderson, keep it up like this, and you'll truly become King of Pirates and, by definition, the strongest bird in the world..."

* * *

"THREE-STAR PUNCH!"

Pedro's devastating attack knocked Von Kaiser to the ground and he fell unconscious. "Pedro is the winner by TKO!" the referee announced.

"Nice job, Pedro!" Nico beamed as he jumped inside the bird-sized ring to hug his best friend. "I'm sure you're ready to take on the Major Circus now!"

"I hope; I've been training my butt off for months now!" Pedro said with removing his boxing gloves.

Suddenly, Rafael ran into the place with paper news. "Guys! I've just received news from the New World and it's about Blu and the others!"

The friends quickly read the news. "What?! They assaulted a huge fortress?!" Pedro asked.

"Are you sure it's the same socially shy macaw made of plastic that came to Rio almost a year ago?" Nico asked.

Rafael just gave a smile. "I have no doubt."

* * *

 _"At the same time, in the middle of the New World's ocean, a very important event was about to happen. The clash between two of the Four Great Emperors: Urax The Destroyer and Gio S. Duke."_

On top of the Deathless Crew's ship's mat, a crewmember watched at the horizon through a pair of binoculars and spotted a famous red ship coming their way. "Huh?" He then gasped and quickly flew down. "Father! Hey, Father!"

"Yeah?" Urax calmly responded to his man.

"Gio S. Duke's ship is here! He wants to have a meeting!"

Urax stared down at him. "Fine, then. Let him. That little punk better have some booze for me if he knows what's good for him."

The crewmate nodded and flew off to Gio S. Duke's ship to announce him the news. "Great," the military macaw happily said as he adjusted his red jacket and black flame-designed biker gloves. "I'm glad this old man accepts to see me." He then turned toward his crew. "Wait for me here guys; I won't be long."

Without another word, Duke flew off to Urax's ship and stepped up on it. He saw Urax The Destroyer sitting on a chair in the middle of the ship's deck. A very large spix macaw with messy dark blue feathers wearing black armor and cape and had a metal lance at his side.

So this was Urax The Destroyer. One of the Four Great Emperors.

As Duke walked along the deck, members of the Deathless Crew suddenly started passing out and collapsing. "W-What's going on?! Why is everyone passing out?!" one of them asked.

"The power of his Haki is impressive," another one commented.

The military macaw soon stopped before the big spix macaw and looked at him. "You must excuse me. I just come out of a battle with an NF fleet and my Haki is a bit agitated," Duke nonchalantly said with a smile.

Urax scoffed. "So you're this Gio S. Duke I heard so much about?"

"Yup." Duke then showed a pretty big bottle containing a red liquid. "This is my best rhum in reserve. I decided to share it with you for the occasion."

Urax just stared at him...before smirking and chuckling. "You know the way to my heart. I prefer booze but rhum is pretty good too."

Moments later, the two macaws were sharing a cup of rhum while the rest of the Deathless Crew was watching them in silence. Duke turned his head as he spotted an albino macaw with pure white feathers wearing white bandages around his head which covered his face and left only his grey eyes and beak visible, black sleeves on his arms, and black pants with a black metal spear tied to his back.

Duke smiled. "Oh, you must be Connor The Phoenix, Commandant of the Deathless 1st Fleet. Wanna join my crew?"

Everybody gasped and widened their eyes as Duke just asked one of Urax's crewmates to join him right in front of him. Practically no one else in the world would have the guts to do that. However, the albino macaw known as Connor The Phoenix scoffed. "Shut up."

Duke chuckled before turning back to Urax. "You know, Urax, I've fought countless battles, and I've received countless scars as well." Duke then gave him a serious look. "But the only one that's aching right now...is the one right here," he said with pointing at a small scar on the left side of his head right above his earhole.

"I didn't get this car from an adventure or in my fight with Hawkeye. No. This one came from someone who was in your crew. John "Silverbeard" Silver."

Everybody on the deck safe for Urax gasped at the mention of this name as if Duke had said a curse word.

"And this didn't happen because I was being careless either," Duke continued. "You know exactly what I'm talking about. Don't deny it. He laid low and waited for his chance. He never became a fleet leader of your crew. He never tried to make a name for himself. All he did was hide himself in your giant shadow. And once he had enough power, he finally made his move. A man like that will never be satisfied. He'll use all of his will in order to reach the top. And that means he'll come after you as well!"

Everybody turned toward Urax who simply took a big sip out of his rhum cup and then panted. "Why don't you get to the point already? What do you want from me?"

Duke gave his most serious look. "I want you to stop Jason Donald."

At the mention of the name of his 2nd Fleet Commandant, Urax's eyes widened a bit and everybody looked at the captain of the Red-Feathered Pirates in shock.

"He's young and he's more than good enough to be the commandant of your 2nd Fleet. Don't get me wrong, I know how strong this young cheetah is." Duke then looked down. "Still, no matter how much you trust him, I think this is a big mistake. Now is simply not the time for those two to go head-to-head. I want you to keep your distance with Silverbeard. That's what I came here to ask of you."

Urax The Destroyer simply stared at the military macaw...before smirking and started chuckling which soon turned into a burst of full laughter.

"You snot-nosed brat!" he said with looking seriously again. "Do you know what you're asking? John murdered one of my crewmates - one of HIS crewmates. That's the one rule that can never be broken. Every pirate in the New World knows that. When a pirate joins my crew, no matter how stupid they are, they become like a son to me. So what am I to say to the soul of my murdered child?"

He then gave a serious glare at Duke. "You can't live in this world without a code of conduct! If John doesn't realize that on his own, then it's my responsibility to drill it into his thick head!" He then seriously slammed his foot on the floor. "You're a thousand year too young to boss me around, boy! Have I made myself perfectly clear?!"

The Destroyer tossed his empty cup at Duke who somehow managed to dodge it with incredible speed. The military macaw grabbed his own bottle and took one huge sip from it, the rhum flowing down his neck as he drank to the very last drop. He then pulled it down and seriously stood up with putting his feathered hand on the handle of the sword tied at his waist.

"Then this era will spiral into chaos and no one will be able to stop it!"

"Is that supposed to frighten me, boy?" Urax asked as he stood up from his chair and grabbed his lance. "I AM URAX THE DESTROYER!"

He swung his lance and clashed it with Duke's sword which created a powerful shockwave that not only almost made the other crew members fly away but also made the ocean shake violently, creating waves that reached long distances.

 _"It was on this day that two of the Four Great Emperors, Urax The Destroyer of the Deathless Crew and Gio S. Duke of the Red-Feathered Pirates clashed in a battle that sliced the heavens. And yet, even THAT was nothing compared to the events that were about to happen at this moment..."_

* * *

 **I really wonder who's speaking those mysterious lines at some moments of my story? *giggle***

 **Anyways. To all my fans, I wanna sincerely apologize from the bottom of my heart for ruining the last two arcs. I promise to you that from now on, I will keep writing with the same passion I had when I started this story back in February 2018. Because this is the story of my life and you guys who followed it up to that point deserve what's best!**

 **The next arc will be called the Dragon War arc. It will serve as a sequel to both the Four Rito Brothers and Warfang arcs. You'll see why.**

 **Urax The Destroyer, Connor The Phoenix, and the Deathless Crew belong to BluePhoenixLord and Gio S. Duke belongs to SuperDuke1000.**

 **See ya soon, Owl Lovers ;)**


	325. Freedom of a Rito

**Author's note:**

 **I'm back, guys...even if I didn't go anywhere. XD**

 **After learning about Link's origins in the previous chapter as well as the demise of his parents, we're gonna go back to present time and to our four Rito brothers.**

 **Enjoy ;)**

* * *

SWOOSH!

Rukkic smiled as he dashed through the air at incredible speed. The Hyrule ground was far below him and the ocean blue sky seemed to be closer than ever. The Rito could only close his eyes and smile as he felt the warm summer breeze flying through his orange feathers, bringing a pleasure that could not be obtained in any other way.

Feeling bold, Rukkic decided to flap his way higher in the sky before allowing himself to fall down on his back with his head resting over his wings. He simply closed his eyes and allowed the wind to blow against his back as he felt at tremendous speed toward the ground...only to flap his wings at the last second before he could crash down and darted up once again.

Once he decided that he had enough flying around, he decided to land down on a small hill which had vibrant green grass and a good smell of Hyrule Herb. The Rito laid down on his back, feeling the soft grass on his body, and rested his head on his wings as he did moments ago during his free fall.

"Awww," he sighed with his eyes closed. "Flying freely across the land after a good dinner and relaxing on the grass with the warm summer breeze flowing through my feathers...this is life..."

Time seemed to freeze for Rukkic as there was nothing but him and the breath of the wild. Unfortunately, this had to come to an end as a familiar voice brought him back to reality:

"Hey, Rukkic, how you doing?"

The orange Rito smiled. "I'm doing awesome, Aquila." He opened his eyes and sat up to look at his brother. "I did a two-hour-long flight from our village to-WHAT THE HECK?! WHAT IS THAT?!"

Aquila chuckled to himself. The owl Riot was dressed in a female Gerudo set which included a light blue veil covering his beak, a Gerudo top, and sleeves that were leaving his stomach exposed, and a Gerudo Sirwal that was fashionable and hung low on his hips. Long story short, Aquila was dressed like a woman.

"Can you tell me why the hell are you dressed like this?!" Rukkic asked loudly.

"I come back from a little trip to Gerudo Town. And you know that they don't allow boys inside, so I had to use a little costume." Aquila smiled teasingly and took a beauty pose. "Do I look pretty like this?"

"DON'T ASK ME THAT; IT SOUNDS WEIRD!" Rukkic angrily shouted with a flustered look.

Aquila chuckled to himself in amusement. "Anyways, I came here to tell you that Jameson is at the Great Plateau to train with Redire in the art of fighting."

Rukkic's flustered look turned into an interested one. "Really? Did he made a lot of progress since the last time I saw him in action?"

"You can go see for yourself; I have to bring what I bought from Gerudo Town back to our home." The owl Rito flapped his wings and took off. "See ya later, brother!"

"Aquila! Change your dress before getting to the village! You can't show yourself like this!" rukkic shouted but Aquila was already out of reach. "...Whatever, I'm gonna go see how Jameson is doing."

The orange Rito flapped his wings and left the hill in direction of the Great Plateau.

* * *

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!

As he approached the Great Plateau, Rukkic could hear the sound of metal clashing in the distance. It wasn't long before two figures on the ground came into view. The orange Rito smiled as he saw his brother training with their Hylian friend, Redire, in sword fighting.

Redire is a 24-year-old Hylan measuring 5'11 with short Untidy Auburn hair greying in some areas. He has grey eyes with a scar on the left one that he got from an ambush by the Yiga Clan. He also has a goatee on his face and an athletic build from his numerous scouting missions and hunts. His dress consists of a full Hylian set with the Tunic dyed Blue along with the soldier's armor set minus the helm.

"Come on, let's do it again. Take position, Jameson," Redire ordered with brandishing his knight sword.

Jameson ruffled his black feathers as he brandished his black baseball bat which had a red Rito design and took his fighting stance.

The Hylian and Rito stared at each in silence for many seconds. Finally, Redire decided to make the first move by charging forward and swinging his sword at Jameson. The black Rito blocked it with his baseball bat, the clash sending sparkles flying in the air. Rukkic was impressed by his brother's quickness.

Redire pressed on his attack with Jameson blocking and dodging all of them with swift, elegant moves that only Rito could perform. Even though they usually fought with bows and arrows. And as a matter a fact, Jameson was the very first creature in Hyrule to fight with this weapon. It was a unique one. They found it beside Jameson's nest the day the elder brought him to the Rito village.

Eventually, Jameson had enough of blocking and got on the offensive, giving quick and precise attacks which forced Redire to step back. It wasn't long before he managed to knock the sword out of Redire's hand and then pointed the tip of his bat in his face, signaling he had lost.

Rukkic couldn't help but clap his wings to let his presence known. "Congratulations, Jameson!" he said as he advanced toward them.

Jameson turned to look at him. "Rukkic?" He pulled his bat away. "You watched my sparring match with Redire?"

"Yeah. I must admit I'm impressed; you did a lot of progress, little brother." Rukkic then looked at Redire. "Thanks a lot for helping Jameson getting better, Redire."

The knight just smiled. "It was my pleasure, Rukkic. I always like to help my friends becoming stronger."

"And that's why you're an awesome knight," Rukkic said with a chuckle.

"Speaking of knight, have you guys seen Revali?" Jameson asked. "I haven't seen him in days."

Rukkic's happy look turned upside down. "Me neither. His new job as a Champion is keeping him very busy."

Jameson sighed and rubbed the back of his head with his wing. "I miss the time when everything was simple and we could have fun all the time - just you, him, I, and Aquila."

"Me too, little brother, me too," Rukkic said.

He looked at the distance toward Castle Town and started thinking of all the jobs his brother was probably doing...

* * *

Unknown to the people of Hyrule, a medium-sized fleet of ships holding mats with the symbol of a purple dragon was approaching the island's coast. At the head of the leading ship was standing a certain purple and golden dragon with a ruby and black dragoness at his side.

"At last, we arrive," the dragon said. "The land of Hyrule..."

* * *

 **Cliffhanger! Boom! XD**

 **So, we learned that Revali is spending less time than before with his brothers due to his duty as a Champion, that Jameson is becoming strong in the art of fighting, that Aquila sneaked into Gerudo Town, and that Rukkic is as carefree as always.**

 **Aquila is an OC belonging to TheDragonSaver. I hope you don't mind me showing him in a female Gerudo set, dude. XD**

 **Jameson belongs to my best Owl Buddy, Jameson The Phoenix Owl.**

 **Aquila belongs to KR-Orion. I know you think this story is a mess, but I still wanna thank you for allowing me to use your OC, dude.**

 **All the others except Rukkic belong to Nintendo and Activision.**


	326. Unexpected visitors in Hyrule

**Author's shout:**

 **Jameson The Phoenix Owl: Yup, you are making good progress with your baseball bat alright. You're even the only user in all of Hyrule.**

 **TheDragonSaver: Yeah...for science...XD**

* * *

After Jameson's training session with Jameson was over, Rukkic decided to go fly by the River of the Dead to catch some fish with his javelins. He brought his preys back by the Great Plateau Tower where Jameson and Redire established their camp for the Rito's training.

"Dinner's ready," Rukkic announced after he placed the cooked fish onto three different plates. "Good thing I thought about bringing eating tools along with some spices to add flavor."

"Thanks, Rukkic," Redire said as he took his plate.

"This looks delicious," Jameson said, his beak drooling at the sight of the delicious-looking fish in his plate.

The three friends ate in silence their delicious meal. Rukkic finished his first and decided to share his most recent theory with his two friends.

"Three leviathans?" Redire asked in confusion.

"Yup," Rukkic confirmed with a nod. "I met three paleontologists by the Serenne Stable near the Hyrule Field region. They talked about an overlooked mystery: the Leviathans."

"Leviathans?" Jameson asked with a confused look.

"They are mystical creatures believed to have ruled over the ancient seas of Hyrule, over a thousand years ago," Redire explained.

"Yeah," Rukkic confirmed. "Those three guys tried to understand why they went extinct, but couldn't find any remains which left them stuck with only theories. Being the curious Rito that I am, I decided to fly my way across the land to see for myself."

"And what are your conclusions?"

Rukkic cleared his throat as he went into one of his deeply detailed theories. "After traveling for a full day, I found three Leviathan skeletons. The first one is located in the Hebra Mountains. The Leviathan bones found here are clearly a whale of some sort. I think it could be levias, but it is lacking the bony plate on his skull. Though Hebra could be located under the area where Levias was located at in the old Skyward Sword story. If you look at the world map of this legend, it lines up almost perfectly with Hyrule's Map, if Gerudo Desert and the Skyward Sword Lanayru region is the same place."

"The second skeleton is located in the Gerudo Desert. The leviathan bones found here seems like a whale with tiny wings, the only whale with wings we have seen in the Hero's Legend is the Wind Fish in Link's Awakening story. I think it's pretty clear this is the same species. Though the Wind Fish seemed to guard the skies above an ocean, although if Gerudo Desert is the Lanayru region in Skyward Sword, then it actually was an ancient ocean that dried up long ago, possibly the same ocean the Rock Salt text is referring to. To further argue for the desert being an ocean, there are several more leviathan bones located in and around the West Gerudo Ruins."

"And finally, the last skeleton is found in Eldin. The Leviathan bones here don't look like a whale like at all. I've seen several Theories saying this is actually Levias from Skyward Sword, but I don't see it. This fossil has 4 legs with feet, but they don't resemble Levias' four fins at all. Although only one foot is visible above ground. It does have a bony plate on its skull, somewhat similar to Levias's plate, but it lacks the hole on top. I think this one is more likely to be a large Dodongo, much like the dead one we see in Ocarina of Time's legend's Dodongo's Cavern. Given the location, I think this is much more likely. Its also the only complete Leviathan skeleton we see that doesn't have a shrine associated with it. This, I think, is telling a lot. The two skeletons that resemble whales have a shrine with them BECAUSE they are sacred skeletons associated with Hyrule, while this one is not. If it was Levias, then the Sheikah would have built a shrine there in his honor, like the other two Leviathans."

Redire and Jameson blinked their eyes at their Rito friend. "So...any idea of how they went extinct?" Redire asked.

Rukkic rubbed his chin. "Hard to say. They could have been killed by many things: a violent volcanic eruption, a cataclysmic drought, or an extended ice age. Since the skeletons are found in three different locations, I think-"

"Still ranting on about one of your endless theories, Rukkic?.

All three friends froze and looked up to see a certain dark blue and white Rito coming down from the sky and landing gracefully among them. Revali rose his head and looked at them with a smile as he crossed his wings.

"Revali!" Jameson beamed and rushed to hug his big brother. "It has been so long!"

Revali smiled and returned the hug. "I missed you too, Jameson. I saw you in action earlier and you did tremendous progress. Thanks for your help, Redire."

The knight nodded. "If you would have brought your feathered butt earlier, I would've shared some of our dinner with you, Revali. But as always, you were too late," Rukkic said with placing his wings on his hips.

Revali gave a glance toward his brother, feeling a dent in his pride as he insulted his speed. "I'm afraid I have o time for dinner, Rukkic. I came here to tell you that you must all go to Castle Town and quick."

This earned him confused and somewhat concerned looks from his friends. "Why, Champion Revali. Did something wrong happen there?" Redire asked.

"No," Revali said with shaking his head and gave a serious look. "A fleet of ships recently arrived at the land's beach. We never saw their insignia, meaning they are outsiders."

"Outsiders?!" Jameson exclaimed in surprise. "Like people coming outside of the island?"

Revali nodded. "Yes. They left their ships and are currently heading toward Castle Town. King Rhoam wants the...Hero (he scoffed at this), princess, and the Champions to be present as well as any ally we can find; we don't know if those outsiders are friendly or not. This is why I came here to get you. We must go to Castle Town at the very moment.

With that, Revali took off followed closely by Jameson. Rukkic turned toward Redire who started packing up his things. "Go on; I'll catch up with you."

Nodding, Rukkic took off in the sky and flew after his brother in direction of Castle Town.

* * *

After many minutes of flying, the three Rito brothers arrived at Castle Town. They could see a huge battalion of Hylian knights and guards gathered at the entrance of the town from where the outsiders would probably arrive. Looking in the distance, Rukkic noticed dozens of figures coming toward Castle Town from somewhere else. They were probably the outsiders in question.

The trio landed at the head of the battalion. King Rhoam himself was standing there alongside his daughter, Princess Zelda, Link, and the Champions Mipha, Urbosa, and Daruk. They must really be afraid of those outsiders to gather so many important people. but then again, most of the biggest dangers Hyrule has ever know came from other seas. So it was understandable.

"Revali! I'm glad you're here," Princess Zelda said when seeing the Rito Champion landing. She then looked toward her two brothers. "Rukkic and Jameson, you came too."

"Yes, Princess," Rukkic said with bowing which Jameson also did. "If our island's security is at stake, we won't just sit back and do nothing."

"I hope we're not facing a new potential enemy," Princess Mipha softly said. "We already have a lot of trouble at hands with the Yiga Clan and the incoming Calamity."

"No worries, Princess," Urbosa said in her usual cool tone, one hand resting on her hip. "If these outsiders are trouble, we will deal with them right now."

Rukkic stole a glance at King Rhoam himself. He was standing at the head of the battalion and stared toward the incoming outsiders. Rukkic didn't like the king. He knew that he was the monarch and that he did everything to keep the people of Hyrule safe. But sometimes, he could just act like a big jerk and Rukkic didn't like that. Sure, Revali was a jerk sometimes too, but at his core, he was a good guy. Rukkic wasn't sure if he could tell the same about this king.

"Here they are!" Daruk suddenly said, bringing the orange Rito out of his thoughts.

Indeed, the large group of outsiders came within view's range for everyone to see. And saying that the Hylians, Ritos, Gerudos, Zoras, etc, were surprised by their appearances would have been an understatement.

At the head of the group was a small dragon with light purple scales and golden wings, horns, and underbelly. His eyes were also purple and there was a good aura emanating from him. He was probably the leader of the group.

Next to him was a dragoness. She looked the same age as him and she had black scales with a ruby red underbelly and wing membranes with what looked like short blades where the wing joints met. She had nine white horns; three on each side of her head and three down the middle of her neck. She had a true tail blade obviously meant for fighting. What stood out the most were the strange symbols that were on her forehead, under her eyes, on her shoulders, and on her lower back, close to the base of her tail. She had emerald green eyes.

There were also four other individuals behind them. Rukkic noticed all the castle soldiers and guards rose their weapons and were getting ready to attack should these creature act hostile.

The two dragons bowed politely and the purple dragon spoke, "King Rhoam."

The old monarch was surprised that this dragon knew his name. "You know me? Who are you?"

"My name is Spyro, Majesty. I'm the Dragon King," he introduced himself. He then pointed his head toward the dragoness next to him. "This is Cynder, my mate, and the Dragon Queen."

"It's an honor to meet you, Majesty," the dragoness named Cynder said with a smile.

All the Hylians present exchanged curious looks - except King Rhoam who kept staring at the two newcomers. "Dragons?" Revali suddenly spoke with his wings crossed. "But where are you from? Dragons have disappeared from Hyrule many generations ago."

"We are not from Hyrule," Spyro explained. "Cynder and I come from a place called Warfang where all dragons once lived together...before it was destroyed," he said with a sad expression.

Cynder decided to continue for him, "The Land of Dragons got destroyed by an evil organization called World Government that rules over many islands and countries across the sea. They never came here before, so we decided to come before they could discover you."

"My, what a horrible story," Mipha softly said, sad for the dragons who lost their home.

"And why did you decided to come here?" Urbosa decided to ask.

Spyro pointed at the people over them - the four individuals and their soldiers that mostly consisted of cheetas, bunnies, foxes, and other animals. "This is but a small portion of my fleet. We are known as the Dragon Legion. Here are my Lieutenants. First, Vexx."

Like all Valdani, Vexx is a small wolf-like creature with pointed ears and sharp lower canine teeth. He also has black facial hair growing on his cheeks. His eyes are glowing light blue and he has ruby gloves with sharp ends on his hands - the legendary Talons.

He smirked to reveal his sharp teeth and bowed. "Nice to meetcha."

"May I tell them your story, Vexx?"

"You may, Queen Cynder."

The dragoness nodded and looked at the Hylians. "Vexx lived a hard, but peaceful life at the village of Overwood with Vargas, his grandfather and only family. When the Shadowraith Dark Yabu invaded, he was shackled and turned a slave along with his grandfather and all the others who lived in the village, forced to toil in the mines in search of Wraithhearts. One day, at the brink of his patience, Vexx was brutally whipped on his back when trying to aid his grandfather after he had collapsed. The boy retaliated against the offense, lashing upon the Shadowminion, but before he could hit it with his pickaxe, Yabu himself stopped him with his shadowy powers. When the wraith was just about to kill Vexx, he let go of the boy when his grandfather attacked, and in his place, Yabu destroyed Vargas instead. Stricken by sorrow and vowing revenge, Vexx escaped after nightfall from the caves, and stole onto Yabu's Windship, looking for something that could help him kill the wraith. There, by coincidence, he found the Astani War Talons, legendary and powerful artifacts, embedded in a rock along with the skeleton of its previous owner. Marveled by the artifacts, Vexx approached, waking the weapons which bound themselves painfully to him until the day of his death. The process caused a massive gathering of energy, making an explosion that not only blew the ship to smithereens but also injured Vexx and knocked him out."

"While out cold, Vexx learned that his grandfather's spirit had been captured by Yabu's amulet and that the ShadoWraith was feeding on his pain and fear until Vargas no longer existed. He also learned how to harness the power of the War Talons before he regained consciousness with the purpose of exacting his revenge against his grandfather's killer."

"After a long and intense journey, Vexx managed to defeat Yabu and his minions, saving his land and killing the monsters once and for all. However, Vexx ended up lost and alone on the empty shades of the island without any purpose. That was until the day our fleet passed by and we managed to convince him to join our ranks as a Lieutenant. He was the first we recruited and he never disappointed us."

"I'm really proud of it," the man-beast said with pointing to the insignia of the Dragon Legion - which was a purple dragon - tattooed on his neck.

"Man, what a story," Jameson said.

"Sorry for everything that happened to you, little guy," Daruk said with compassion.

"It's okay; I now have a purpose in life," the Valdania said with a smirk.

"Here's our next Lieutenant, Kya," Cynder continued with putting her paw on a human's shoulder.

Kya is a young human woman, with blue hair, a ponytail with multiple poofy strands. She wears a simple red tank top that exposes her belly and nice flowing blue jeans. She has yellow-tan shoes and she has a red glove, only on her right hand.

She politely bowed to the King, Hero, Princess, and Hylians before allowing Cynder to tell her story. "Kya was an ordinary girl who lived in the Human World until her brother, Frank, found a secret room in their house. After talking about her dad abandoning her, Frank found an artifact that he put on a mantle. A portal instantly appeared, and Frank became possessed for a moment which led to the two getting instantly sucked in a portal."

"Kya found herself into an island of the New World with monsters called "Wolfen" who terrorized the local people. She managed to stop them and rescue her brother. We eventually found them and convinced Kya to join our legion as a Lieutenant while her brother returned home."

"And I will keep serving you until the World Government is taken down," Kya said with showing the Dragon Legion symbol tattooed on her right hip.

"That's good to know," Mipha said with a kind smile at the young human girl.

Spyro decided to present their next Lieutenant. "This is Ryos AKA the 25 Sabers Pirate."

Ryos is a tall, muscular young man with curly black hair. He wears black boots, black knee-length shorts, and a leather belt holding it in place. He is shirtless, exposing his muscled upper body. He wears a brown cowboy hat on his head and holds a straw in his mouth similar to a peasant. However, his most noticeable features were the two sabers tied to his hips along with the whole bag of sabers on his back.

"Ryos is a pirate of the New World with a 75 million golden pieces bounty on his head," Spyro explained. "We met him during a trip to a remote island occupied by the World Government. He helped us defeat the enemy and offered him to join our ranks which he accepted."

Urbosa couldn't help but stare at the young boy. He did look pretty good. "Nice to meet you down, Lieutenant."

"I assure you all the pleasure is mine, Champion," he replied in a rather charismatic way with a nice smile.

Cynder continued the presentations by wrapping one wing around a little dragon. "This is our royal messenger, Spike."

Spike is a very small dragon with purple scales except for the ones along his head, head, and tail which are green. His eyes and underbelly are also green and his belly is pretty round. Overall, he would make any girl fall for his cuteness.

"Spike, at your service," he said with bowing politely.

"We found Spike's egg in Warfang before it got destroyed and saved it. It hatched and Spike became part of the family," Cynder said with patting his little head. Even if they didn't say it out loud, Princess Zelda, Mipha, and Urbosa found this pretty cute.

"And our last Lieutenant, Crash Bandicoot," Spyro concluded.

Crash Bandicoot is an orange humanoid-bandicoot with a black nose, thick eyebrows, green eyes and reddish-brown hair on his head, styled into a typical Mohawk. He has a yellow-orange colored stomach and a peach muzzle. He wears a pair of maroon high-top shoes with white soles and laces and black fingerless gloves.

"Hi," he said with waving his hand at them.

"Crash is the first non-dragon friend I made back in Warfang. His playful attitude always makes me smile and he was present very often for me after I left the nest," Spyro explained with a smile and a paw over Crash's shoulder.

King Rhoam smiled as he thought those creatures sounded pretty friendly. "We too are very honored to meet you all. Now that the presentations are done, can we know why you came here in Hyrule?"

"Of course, Majesty," Spyro responded. "We came here to negotiate with you in hopes of forming an alliance that would be beneficial for all of us and would help my Dragon Legion in its quest for justice."

Everybody looked at King Rhoam who rubbed his chin. "That could actually be a good idea. Follow me to my castle so that we can discuss it."

* * *

 **The Dragon Legion has arrived and met with King Rhoam, Link, the Champions, and our favorite Rito brothers! Will they manage to make an alliance against the World Government? Stay stunned to find out!**

 **Legend Of Zelda: BOTW is owned by Nintendo.**

 **Spyro and Cynder, as well as Crash Bandicoot, are owned by Activision.**

 **Vexx is owned by the defunct Acclaim Entertainment.**

 **Kya is owned by Eden Games.**

 **Spike is owned by Hasbro.**

 **Redire and Jameson are OCs owned by Kr-Orion and Jameson The Phoenix Owl respectively. Rukkic and Ryos are my own.**


	327. The new Hylian alliance

**I wanna apologize for not updating anything in a while: I had to write the next episodes and PPV of my wrestling federation UCW. But now, I won't have to worry about it before August 21!**

 **Author's shouts:**

 **Jameson The Phoenix Owl: Glad you're happy to meet your PS1 heroes :)**

 **DextrousCloth31: Yup, Crash's here. And I played Vexx too as a kid on my PS2. If you want my opinion, it's a hidden gem that didn't deserve to be forgotten. Which is why Vexx is part of Spyro's Dragon Legion.**

* * *

High noon, the sun shined aglow over Castle Town. The town bustled with life as the festival in honor of the new alliance between the Hyrule people and the Dragon's Legion was underway. Indeed, after a few hours of negotiating, King Rhoam and King Spyro managed to reach an agreement: the Dragon Legion was going to help the people of Hyrule face the Calamity upon its return and in exchange, King Rhoam accepted to allow the Dragon Legion to reside on the land and also use its supplies.

Yet, the festival was not complete for it was missing its heroes and new allies.

"Spyro, wake up, it's time to go," Cynder softly mumbled to her lovely dragon. She couldn't blame him for being late; the Hylian beds were really comfortable.

"Five more minutes, Cynder...," the purple dragon mumbled while stubbornly holding to his soft pillow.

The dragon queen giggled. As much as she would like to let her mate sleep cutely on the bed - and even join him - she didn't want to be impolite and arrive late at the festival with the princess, her knight, the Champions, and their Lieutenants waiting for them. The dragoness climbed onto the bed, onto the purple dragon'S back, and then proceeded to tickle his sides with her claws.

"Hehehehehey!" Spyr laughed and tried to squirm free but Cynder's weight prevented him from turning. "Stohohohop!"

"Will you get up!" the dragoness teasingly asked while still tickling his sides with her claws.

"Okay! Okay! Just stop!"

Cynder reluctantly got off the purple dragon's back after tickling him for a few more seconds and then gave a kiss to his cheek. "Come on, Purple Boy; the others are waiting for us."

* * *

Spyro, Cynder, the Lieutenants, and royal messenger walked down the heap of stairs and toward the energetic village, excited to finally have some enjoyment. Vexx, Kya, Ryos, Crash, and Spike talked about how good it was to sleep into a castle's beds and how much better it was then their ships' ones. Finally, they reached the bottom of the steps, gawking in amazement at what they observed.

A booming crowd stood in front of the warriors as a blustering cheer rang out in celebration of their arrival. Confetti trickled from the heavens, and fireworks masked the afternoon blue skies with beautiful hues of red, purple, and orange. Posters, stuffed animals, masks, and costumes encompassed the streets' markets and shops. Game booths, multiple concessions, and other forms of entertainment pleased the town for the festival.

Kya scouted within the festival for a distraction. She spotted a shop selling boomerangs and slingshots which caused her grin to instantly widen in victory. "Hey guys, I'll go check this shop to see if they have any boomerangs that could replace my old one," she directed with pointing at the shop.

"Okay, we'll catch up later, Kya," Spyro said with a smile as the young human girl walked away from them and toward the shop.

Cynder then noticed Ryos walking away too. "Where are you going, Ryos?"

The 25 Sabers Pirate turned to look at her with his trademark grin. "I'm going to look for that Gerudo Champion girl. I'd like to have a chit-chat and possibly a little sword duel with her." He adjusted his cowboy hat and walked away with his smirk.

Spike couldn't help but chuckle at his friend's playboy attitude. A look of mischievousness immediately painted across Crash's face as the bandicoot thought about something. "Hey, Spike, I heard rumors that they have these women called belly dancers from Gerudo Town performing at a nearby bar; wanna go check it out?"

Spike looked up at Crash and his jaw dropped. Some water started rising in his mouth. "Seriously?! This must be awesome! Vess, are you coming with us?" the dragon teenager inquired as he shifted to look at his Valdania friend.

"Huh, no thanks. I'm kinda hungry, so I'll pass," the man-beast politely denied.

"Okay, your loss, big guy. Let's go, Crash."

The Bandicoot chuckled happily as he followed his dragon friend while Vexx walked away to get a left Spyro alone with his lovely Cynder. He turned his head to look at her. "So what do you wanna do now, Cynder?"

The black dragoness thought about it. A smile then formed on her lips as an idea came to her mind. "How about we go out of the crowd to go play our little game?"

* * *

GNAP! CROC! CHOMP! SLURP!

It didn't take long for Vexx to find a restaurant serving food where he could get a good snack. The owner insisted on serving him first since he was a member of their new allies. This was a good thing; the Valdania was hungry. All the celebrating people around looked in awe as the man-beast engulfed rock-hard food, sauteed peppers, Fairy Tonic, sauteed nuts, simmered fruits, warm milk, wheat bread, steamed fruits, mixes of mushrooms, and glazed veggies.

Suddenly, a big slap in the back caused him to almost fall down and spilled some of the warm milk he was drinking over his face and sideburns. "Big eater, aren't ya?"

Using the back of his metallic hand to clean the milk from his face, Vexx turned around to see a big Goron man with white hair and beard wearing a loincloth and blue cloth across his chest. "Hi."

"You're that beast fellow from the Dragon Legion, right? I would recognize you anywhere!" the Goron said with a loud voice and laughed strongly before grabbing Vexx's hand with his big one and squeezing it. "Name's Daruk, Goron Champion!"

"Huh...Vexx, Lieutenant of the Dragon Legion," he replied with rubbing his hand in pain from the squeeze. Even his mighty War Talons were not enough to protect him from this Goron's strength.

"Wanna have a little eating competition to see who can gobble the most food in one minute?" Daruk offered with a grin.

Vexx gave a grin of his own which revealed his sharp fangs. "I'd love to."

* * *

It was late in the afternoon and the sun beating down from above. Princess Mipha stood at the edge of an ancient waterfall made from a dense, off-white marble. The frame was worn and its color had faded since it was erected long before the end of the great sea. She maintained her gaze on a river basin over 100 feet below, where her little brother, Sidon, splashed playfully in the water. As the wind blew, she heard the soft churning of grass in the distance and closed her eyes to take in the silence.

"Princess Mipha," said a voice from behind.

Severed from her peace, Mipha turned around to see Kya standing there, the young human's ponytail dancing in the wind. Mipha met her at the festival and offered her to have a peaceful moment away from the crowd. Since she couldn't find any boomerang of her taste and already won at all the aiming games, she couldn't see a reason to refuse. Kya walked closer and met Mipha with a warm smile.

"Thanks for the invitation, Princess," she gently said. "Man, I collapsed for air after reaching the river basin."

Mipha laughed quietly and looked at Kya in the eyes. "Yes, it is quite the trek up this mountain. I apologize for the distance. I am only here to take care of my little brother, Sidon," she said.

Kya walked beside the princess and looked down the waterfall. "Cute little guy, isn't he?"

Mipha looked down to check on Sidon where he could be seen ceaselessly throwing water into the air, pretending to toss arms with a fierce opponent. Kya carefully peeked over the ledge of the waterfall and lost her balance. Her knees began to shake and she took a step back.

"Goodness, Princess, I don't think I realized how high up we were. I do admire your candor!" the Lieutenant said.

Mipha chuckled quietly and kneeled right at the edge of the cascade. She took a moment to calm her mind before continuing.

"I am aware that you would like to see my role as a Champion."

Kya nodded. "Who are the other Champions of your group by the way?"

"Goron vigilance, Daruk. Rito confidence, Revali. Gerudo spirit, Urbosa. And...Link, the Hylian with the sword that seals the darkness." The Zora Princess hesitated on the last line for some reason. "I haven't seen him in many years."

Kya looked at her with a slightly concerned look. She felt the urge to ask her why she placed emphasis on Link over everyone else. Before she could, Mipha stood to her feet and began to call for Sidon.

"Sidon!" she called. "Hurry and swim up here!"

Kya's concern became urgent. She walked closer to Mipha and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Huh, Princess, what do you mean 'get up here'? I don't know much about Zoras, but isn't it dangerous for a kid to climb up here alone?"

Mipha turned around and made eye contact with Kya. "You see, Lieutenant, one day, I must leave him, and he may not have another opportunity to learn how to survive without me. If ever I must leave him to face my fate as a warrior of the Zora Domain, he must be fully prepared to take the throne."

Mipha began to caress her Zora Sapphire necklace in comfort. Noticing this, Kya took a step back and stood silently. Without warning, Mipha jumped up high and dove 100 feet down the cascade. Kya let out a gasp and rushed over to the edge of the waterfall. Within a matter of seconds, Mipha had landed inside the water basin right next to Sidon. He was so enthused by her arrival that he swam toward the waterfall as Mipha emerged from below.

"I think it's time," she said. "It's okay to feel nervous. I was quite nervous my first time too. We'll go together so you can get a feel of it."

Sidon eagerly swam toward Mipha and braced himself for the ride. He gripped to Mipha's shoulders and without a second to spare, she bolted toward the waterfall and swam up-stream with overwhelming speed. As they scaled the fierce current, Sidon had almost lost grip and let out a distressed cry. He looked at his sister who gracefully rode the current on the waterfall without an ounce of fear in her eyes. He calmed himself and quickly regained control. They were nearing the foot of the waterfall where Kya stood waiting and in an attempt to keep her safe, she veered slightly to the left of the waterfall. With a quick look over her shoulder, she attempted to get Sidon's attention before they were out of space to work with.

"Ready?" she asked.

With seconds to spare, she reached behind her back and grabbed Sidon by the hand. She had her leg positioned against the wall with which she forced themselves from out of the current. Blindingly, they launched high above the stone platform where Kya stood motionless. After regaining control of her body, Mipha locked eyes with a spot on the ground and grabbed Sidon's wrist tightly. With precision, she bent her legs toward the ground and landed firmly. next to Kya. Her face was painted with shock as Mipha laid Sidon beside her carefully. He gleamed with excitement and could not contain his energy. Placing a hand on his shoulder, she caressed him gently to try and calm him down. Sidon bounced around playfully in place while Mipha hushed him gently.

"Sweet Sidon," she said gently, placing a hand on his head. "Your life is so precious to us all. Should fate ever part us, we count on you to protect our beloved home from harm. When I look into your eyes, I feel the same strength that has propelled our great kingdom through cold centuries of time." She gently ran her hand across his face. "No matter where you go, and no matter what happens to me, I will always be with you."

Sidon nodded and, still a bit hyped, threw himself into Mipha's arms.

"Oh, my sweet brother," she said. "You will have nothing to fear so long as you remember my words. Now, shall we try one more time?"

At that moment, Kya walked over to Mipha and kneeled beside her. "Princess, I'm sorry, but I think I'm going to walk back to the festival before I get sick. I think the altitude is getting to me..."

Mipha smiled as she stood to her feet. That's understandable, no need to explain. Please, allow me to accompany you."

With Sidon in her arms, they walked closely together as they made their way down the mountain.

* * *

 **We're gonna end the chapter here. As you can see, we see the people of Hyrule and the Dragon Legion slowly growing close together.**

 **This is gonna continue in the next chapter. I promise you it's gonna be funnier than that one tought.**

 **And yes...Spike and Crash Bandicoot can be naughty boys when they want. XD**

 **By the way...THIS IS THE 350th CHAPTER! This calls for celebrations! Let's open a bottle...of apple juice.**


	328. Games and fun in the green field

**Author's shouts:**

 **Jameson The Phoenix Owl: I'm sure you can't, Owl Buddy :)**

 **DJ Bat: Ouaip, une super équipe.**

 **Dextrouscloth31: Glad you're enjoying the romance between Spyro and Cynder. Because I'm planning on continuing it in this chapter.**

* * *

In the bathing rays of the sun, a dragoness as black as the night sky made her way across a field of vibrant green grass outside the festival. Swaying in a slow dance, the grass licked at her legs as if grasping for her attention. But this dragoness' attention was elsewhere - her emerald eyes pierced through brush and behind stones, into the canopies and shadows of trees, searching for something.

Or rather, someone.

"Spyro?" Cynder called aloud, daintily making her way past a Hylian statue.

He had just been there, standing at the far edge of the clearing, looking at her with those 'come, Cynder' eyes. Or maybe they were his 'I'm the Dragon King and you're my beautiful queen' eyes. She couldn't tell. One thing was certain though; she was going to find that purple lizard even if it was the last thing she did. Today was about having fun for the both of them as well as the Dragon Legion, and to hell, if she wasn't going to do it with her lovely purple boy.

"Spyro!" she called again, this time with projection. She came to a halt at the exact spot he had been standing, wings slightly flared with anticipation. "...I know you're up t something," she said. "You don't get that stupid grin on your face for no good reason."

There was no response. She looked around, ears pricked and working double time, but there was nothing outside of the sound of the wind blowing through the open field.

"Alright, if you're not going to come out, I'm returning to the festival," she pronounced promptly, turning around. "I know how much you love to play hard to geEET!"

Just then, a purple and gold blur tackled the black dragoness to the ground. Heart having leaped into her throat, Cynder let out an expectant sigh. She now felt over a hundred pounds standing on her chest and with a skeptical scowl already on her face, she opened her eyes. Staring down at her, looking gorgeous with the bright sun behind his horns was Spyro. Golden wings outstretched tail slowly swaying back and forth, the young male dragon chortled in having successfully captured his prey. Prey that, for once, wasn't an innocent sheep.

"Hey there, Cynder," he said slyly.

"I was mistaken," Cynder said with utter deadpan. "That was your 'getting ready to pounce' look, earlier."

Spyro grinned even broader and Cynder couldn't help but crack a smile too. What could she say - she had a weakness for purple eyes. Especially his.

"You know me better than me...," Spyro said, letting go of her legs and letting himself drop onto her torso, maintaining eye contact the entire time.

"Oof! You know...you should count yourself lucky," she said, adopting an evil sneer.

"Oh yeah?" Spyro said, feigning innocence and letting his front claws lay lazily just under Cynder's chin.

"No one but you could get away with the antics you do when it comes to me," she explained. "If you weren't so adorable, I'd have signed your hide and turned you into a nice decorative statue by now."

Spyro's head flopped to one side of Cynder's chest and he stuck out his tongue. "Something tells me our friends wouldn't approve of that course of action very much. Besides, who's going to put you in a good mood if I'm not around to stoke your fire?"

Cynder's tail slithered along the grass in Spyro's blind-spot, like a snake waiting for the right moment to strike.

"Oh, you stoke the fire alright," she said. "Sometimes a little more than I think you're prepared to deal with."

Before the purple dragon could reply, Cynder's silver-tipped tail wrapped itself around his back leg and tugged hard. Eyes wide in surprise, Spyro lost his balance and began to slide off his perch on Cynder's chest - and that brief moment was all she needed to turn his own weight against him.

In a flash, Spyro was pushed off and thrown onto his back with a softened thud against the grass. A second later, the black dragoness he had just been pinning now stood over him, a vengeful aura around her. Her shadow loomed over his upper body and face, blocking the sun from his eyes, but also making her dangerous smile all the clearer to see.

"Now you've gone and done it," she said matter-of-factly. "This day, I was thinking: "it'll be a nice, quiet day off. We'll lay in the grass together, relax, I'll let him cuddle with me, if he's lucky, and things will be great"."

Spyro laid there sheepishly, his front legs curled like a cat laying on his back, waiting with rabid anticipation. Soon enough, Cynder's gaze returned to lock into his, and the most terrifying smile Spyro had ever witnessed came across her face.

"...But now, I'm feeling a little playful too."

Spyro wasn't waiting around to find out what the sinister dragoness had in mind. In one swift movement, he dashed out from under her, scrambling to get to his feet, but it was for naught; Cynder was too quick. Within a few seconds, the black dragoness tackled him like a lunging tiger, rolling in the grass with him for two rotations and then coming to a firm stop. This time, he was firmly pinned. This time, he was rightfully screwed.

"Now then...," Cynder continued as if nothing had happened. Mimicking Spyro, she let herself drop onto his chest, back claws digging into the ground of either side of him. Effectively, all he could move now was his head, tail, and wings. "...if I recall...you're pretty ticklish," Cynder said, flexing her claws.

Spyro's insides were on fire.

"T-Ticklish?" he parroted. "You must be thinking of Spike, Cynder; Kya tickles him all the time-"

Cydner wasn't listening. Eyes lost in a trance of enjoying the moment, she dragged one claw along his golden underbelly, sending rigid waves of sensation through the poor young dragon's entire body. Spyro's back feet twitched and he let out a rather loud, high-pitched yelp.

"Oh yes. This has promise to it," Cynder chuckled. This time, three claws. She slid from his underbelly down to his left side, and his midsection did a jerk in the opposite direction. Back up his stomach, now down to the right side, and he jerked in the opposite direction. Futile, but adorable to watch nonetheless.

"Spyro, I never knew you were so good at hip thrusts," Cynder teased.

"Ahahaha! C-Come on, Cynder, now you're just being cruhuhuel!" Spyro retorted.

"Don't forget; you're in my clutches of your own accord, hero boy," Cynder chuckled. "You pounced first, so don't come to me with that wounded deer act. I think you're getting just what you deserve."

Spyro's wings, as well as his clawed toes, flexed and laxed over and over again, as his body attempted to contort away from Cynder's skimming claws. But for all these involuntary convulsions, the young purple dragon wasn't REALLY trying to get away and it was obvious.

"Ahahaha! Wow, name calling now?!" Spyro said between breaths, one eye shut and the other peering up at his gracious captor. "You're vicious todahahahahay! Even for youhuhuhuhu!"

"Keep that wit up. I can sit here all day, dragon boy, I'm enjoying this as much as you clearly are," Cynder stated with a knowing smile.

Cynder's lengthy tail slithered up from the grass, and with the sharp tip, she began to caress and drag along the purple dragon's lower belly, and then down to his clawed feet. She was invested now. Oh yes. She was going to get as much mileage out of this as possible.

"OOOH! OH GOD, NOHOHOHOHO! PLEASE, CYNDER, QUIT IHIHIHIHIT!" Spyro pleaded, small tears now claiming the corner of his eyes.

"What's that?" Cynder absently asked, looking upwards. "I could have sworn I heard something."

Both of Cynder's front claws began to rake down Spyro's sides, and the purple dragon lost whatever composure he had left. With tears in his eyes and making short gasps of breath between laughs, his body began to fight back harder. The contortions turned into half-rolls and attempts to wiggle out of Cynder's grasp. But the dragoness kept a firm hold.

"Oh! Spyro, I didn't see you there!" Cynder mocked. "You look like you're having a good time."

"C0Cynder! S-Stop! Ahahahaha! I-I give! I-I can't t-take it! Ahahahaha!"

"Hmmm, that's too bad. Well, seeing I _am_ a merciful dragoness, I suppose I could help you out," she said with a smirk. "But...what's in for me?"

"A-anything you wahahahant!" Spyro choked out, wings in a perpetual half-folds.

"Anything? That's a tough one. But...how about...you quit any future shenanigans you may have planned for the rest of our time here, go and grab us something to eat, and then we can enjoy this nice weather together."

"Sure! AHAHAHA! Sounds great!" Spyro agreed, having reached his limits.

After a few additional seconds of enjoying having him at her mercy, Cynder's claws and sharp tail ceased their attack and withdrew from the purple dragon's soft underside. all at once, Spyro's flailing came to an abrupt halt and he lay there against the grass, panting and attempting to recover from the onslaught.

Meanwhile, Cynder casually stood to her feet and stretched her limbs out, looking as calm and collected as ever. She sat and folded her wings, watching as Spyro slowly got to his feet and let out a loud exhale. He was completely worn out but his face told Cynder everything she needed to know. He hadn't expected any part of that and he had a blast with it.

"Well, I gotta admit...never been put into submission like this before," Spyro chuckled. "Usually, it's by facing an NF fleet a few times, or by Ignitus and his training methods. You're so devious."

Cynder had since walked over to an un-flattened section of fresh grass in the brunt of the sun and laid down in it. "You're a pain in the butt to hold on to once I really get into it though, so I won't make a habit of it, that's for sure," Cynder mused. "Unless maybe I get Vexx or Kya to help me pin you down next time."

Spyro jogged over to her, staking out his spot into the warm, sunlit grass next to her. "Do you still want something to eat or...?"

"Nah, maybe later," she replied, stretching out in the grass and taking a deep breath before exhaling. I was mostly just taking rainchecks for favors as I thought of them."

The warm summer air began to cool down as the heat of mid-day turned into early evening. A content smile crossed the black dragoness' face as she truly began to relax. Spyro slumped to the grass as well, digging his sharp claws into the cushioned ground. For a long moment, the two remained silent, taking in their beautiful surroundings, feeling the wind against their scales.

"But you know," Cynder began, voice mellow, "I could really use something warm to lay against, right about now." She locked eyes with Spyro, giving the 'remember, you owe me one' look. The male dragon rolled his eyes.

"Well, it JUST so happens that I could go for a nap, right about now, couldn't imagine why," he said, words dripping with sarcasm, but his tone as equally soft as Cynder's. "So I think I can manage that."

Re-positioning himself, Spyro laid down on his side, his muscles losing all tenseness and his eyelids becoming heavy. Cynder gripped the ground with one back claw and pushed herself upwards until her back rested against his warm underbelly. A strong, golden wing lowered itself over the two of them like a blanket, and without a sound, Cynder's tail found its way to Spyro's, and the two intertwined in the grass.

Spyro gave his lovely dragoness a kiss on the cheek. "I love you, Cynder."

"I love you too," she said with kissing him on the lips and giving a beautiful smile.

* * *

"I tell ya, those festivals really take it out of me."

It hadn't been five minutes since the festival held in honor of the new alliance between the people of Hyrule and the Dragon Legion ended and Daruk was already rubbing his stomach with his big hands. The eating contest he had with Vexx earlier ensured that he wouldn't be hungry before tomorrow...probably. Link, by now, was quite used to the Goron's company. As such, he knew that there were two things Daruk excelled at: melee combat and eating. Anything else, such as the ability to stand still for an extended period of time, was relegated to "hopeless". Regardless, Link smiled internally at the rock-eater's comment.

Rukkic, Jameson, and Aquila were standing not too far from them, having a little discussion. Aquila arrived this morning in utter confusion; his three brothers had to fill him in about what was happening and their new alliance with the Dragon Legion. Saying that the owl Rito was surprised to see a dragon, let alone three, would be an understatement. He wasted no time in studying Spyro, Cynder, and Spike's bodies, asking them questions about their skills, anatomy, powers, and what they usually ate. While Spike was mostly okay with answering all those questions, Spyro and Cynder weren't so enthusiast. But they like the Rito's curiosity nonetheless.

He also studied Vexx's War Talons, fascinated by the magic weapons, asked a few questions to Kya about the Human World, and studied a special gear belonging to Ryos that allowed him to shoot cables and reach any surface. It was the first time since he met his first Zora that Aquila filled an entire book in less than one day. Rukkic, Revali, and Jameson only chuckled in amusement at their brother's enthusiasm.

"Hmph." The sound of Revali's voice caught everyone's attention, strangely enough. Usually, when the Rito archer began a sentence with "hmph", the rest of the Champions would tune him out. This time, they listened; not because of Revali, but because of the object of his _hmphing_. "This is the Sheikah Slate, eh?"

"It is," Zelda replied certainly, her quiet voice following Revali's pompousness. "Apparently, there are more uses for it than we originally thought. Sadly, we've yet to decipher all of its secrets." Before the Hylian Princess had even finished speaking, Revali had grown bored of the Slate and unceremoniously dropped it in Mipha's hands.

While the Zora Princess looked over the artifact herself, Lady Urbosa eyed Zelda warily. The two had been close friends since the time of the young girl's birth, and as such, didn't miss the self-deprecating tone of her words. Zelda pushed herself too hard, in Urbosa's opinion, and blaming herself for the lack of knowledge wasn't going to help anyone. "Time to distract everyone," Urbosa though as she leaned over Mipha's shoulder to inspect the Sheikah Slate.

"The princess showed me something strange recently," said the Gerudo warrior, glancing down at the Zora in front of her. "Somehow, it can create true-to-life images." A look of child-like fascination swept across Mipha's face at hearing that.

"Oh, wow," she gasped quietly before moving her amber gaze upward to look at Link. "I would love to see it." However, Zelda's head remained tilted down in deep thought, likely still brooding over how little they knew about the Sheikah Slate. Mipha didn't want to impose, but an idea suddenly occurred to her and she just couldn't help herself.

"Um, Princess...," began Mipha uncertainly, although she became reassured as Zelda lifted her gaze to listen. "May I ask a special favor of you?" Mipha turned around as she spoke, glancing at the other Hylian behind her; Link who was still talking to Daruk.

The Hylian Champion seemed surprised that Mipha was looking at him and the Zora Princess forced her expression to remain neutral despite how adorable he looked.

Mipha did her best to tear her gaze away from Link without showing too much reluctance, although she thought she heard a satisfying sound coming from Urbosa. "If it isn't asking for too much," continued Mipha, still nervous and barely able to meet Zelda's gaze, "I was wondering if we could use the Sheikah slate to create a true-to-life image of us?"

Revali rolled his emerald eyes and leaned down to Mipha. "We can't afford to waste valuable resources on your little romantic fantasies, my dear," said the Rito in a quiet voice, a smirk drawing his beak open. Mipha's eyes widened as her face burned a bright red, frantically looking between Zelda, Revali, and Link. Rukkic nudged his brother in the wing with a "what the heck?!" look.

"I-I-I did not mean just _us_ ," Mipha sputtered out, humiliation still showing on her face. Actually, that WAS what she meant, but Revali made it sound so ridiculous, and his confidence made HER feel so ridiculous. "I, hum, I-I wanted an image of ALL of us. Not just me and... Yes, all of us."

Zelda's expression brightened a little; not exactly a true smile, but it was better than before. Although Mipha was acting strangely...a similar smile stretched on Urbosa's face and Daruk grinned likewise.

"Sounds like a great idea, Mipha!" announced the Goron Champion, pumping his fists. "Nothin' better to celebrate our union than by making a painting of it! Or, huh...however the Slate does its thing!"

Zelda smiled at Daruk's enthusiasm before looking at the other princess. "I'm certain that could be arranged. I'll need to check with Purah as she can probably adjust the settings to get all of us at once..."

* * *

"All right. This spot should work nicely!" Purah's smile was impossibly wide as she hefted the Sheikah Slate, focusing it on the Five Champions with Zelda wedged between them all and the three Rito brothers standing aside to watch the scene. "Keep your eyes on the Sheikah Slate, everyone!" The researcher's perky voice continued chirping commands at the six most important people in all of Hyrule like they were little lapdogs.

"Daruk, can you crouch down a bit?" she asked, peeking over the Slate for a moment. "You're as big as Death Mountain." The Champion grunted in confusion for a moment before obeying the Sheikah girl.

"What's with the glum face, Princess?" whined Purah, glancing at Zelda. "Gimme a big smile!" While Urbosa laid a reassuring hand on Zelda's back, Mipha was busy trying not to asphyxiate herself through tension. She was just SO close to Link, and she wanted to get closer, but also didn't want to seem too forward. What a dilemma she faced! Mipha wasn't even focused on the picture anymore; just her tantalizing proximity to Link. Still as stiff as a forest tree, the Zora Princess moved closer to Lin while everyone was paying attention to Zelda.

Well...almost everyone. Revali was staring off to the side at anything but his brothers and sisters at arms. Much to his dismay, however, Purahdid not miss his lack of enthusiasm. "Revali, move your tail closer to the group," Purah scolded. Revali rolled his eyes and let out an annoyed groan.

"Ugh, fine," huffed the Rito archer, reluctantly scooting closer to the group. He did all he could to avoid Rukkic's eyes because he could practically feel the smug smirk he was giving him. The orange Rito could be insufferable at times...

"Mipha, you look so tense," Purah said, sympathy lacing her words. "Deep breaths, okay?"

The Zora spearwoman let out a flustered "right!" and placed her hands on her chest, trying to force herself to stay calm and not succumb to her nervous breakdown. From across the group, Revali smirked at Mipha's discomfort. He found her so much amusing when she was being so pathetically obvious about her feelings toward the Hylian Champion. Even more amusing was the fact that the Hylian was an unfeeling creature that never emoted and would never reciprocate. Never.

Thankfully, Purah's insane sense of perfectionism was finally stated. "Stay just like that!" she chirped cheerfully, adjusting the Sheikah Slate once again. "Here we go! Smiiile..."

As Purah's finger descended on the button, she saw a devious grin split Daruk's face. "Click, snap!" Just as the words left her mouth, Daruk wrapped the entire group into a huge hug, nearly knocking Revali over. Link's normally vacant face changed to one of surprise, while Zelda leaned away from the collapsing Revali. Urbosa seemed unaffected, a confident smile still tugging at her blue lips. Mipha, poor girl, suffered nearly the same fate as Revali...but Daruk's impact sent her flying straight into her favorite Hylian's chest.

Rukkic, Aquila, and Jameson fell into a storm of laughter at the scene that just happened before them. It was so funny! "Oh my gosh! Their faces! That was priceless!" Jameson said between his fits of laughter.

"I'm gonna ask Purah if I can keep one copy of the image for my room!" Rukkic said, holding his sides that were hurting him so much he had laughed.

"What is going on here?"

The Rito brothers turned around to see none other than the Dragon King and Queen arriving. "Majesty? What are you doing here?" Aquila asked with a polite bow.

"Oh, my mate and I just came back from relaxing in the grass fields and walked by," Cynder replied, giving a sneaky grin to the purple dragon who rolled his eyes.

"Did we miss something important?" Spyro asked with looking above the Rito's shoulder, seeing Purah giggled, Urbosa comforting Zelda, Mipha pushing herself away from Link with her face all red, and Revali scolding a laughing Daruk.

"Oh, nothing; our friends just wanted to take a paint together and it turned wrong," Jameson said with a chuckle.

The dragons laughed a bit before taking serious looks. "Actually, we're glad to see you three because we have a proposition for you," Cynder said.

The Ritos looked curiously at them. "A proposition? What is it?" Rukkic asked.

"We had the chance to see you in action during the target game today," Spyro said. He then looked at Jameson. "Jameson, we saw you fighting against Redire this morning and Aquila, we heard a lot about your vast zone of knowledge."

Rukkic rose a curious eyebrow. "So...?"

Spyro smiled. "I would like to offer you three a post as Lieutenants in the Dragon Legion."

"What?!" the three Ritos exclaimed with widening their eyes.

Cynder smiled softly. "Your skills are very admirable and we could have uses for them in our quest to stop the World Government," she explained. "So, what do you say?"

Rukkic stared at the dragoness...then back at Revali who was still arguing with Daruk. As much as he was proud that he was the one to get the Champion title...Rukkic couldn't help but feel a bit jealous. He always felt like the world saw him as inferior to him because he couldn't shot as well as him. Maybe this spot as Lieutenant was a chance to really prove his worth.

He turned to her and smiled. "I'd be happy to accept your offer."

"Me too!" Jameson beamed. "Our brother and his friends can already take care of all the bad guys of this island; might as well use our skills for another case of bad guys!"

"As much as I'm flattered by this offer...I have to decline," Aquila responded.

This earned him a surprised look from his brothers. "What?! Why you refuse, Aquila?" Jameson asked.

"As much as I'd like to follow you two, I don't really want to leave our home and get involved into such a big conflict. I prefer to focus on science and leave the big battles to you and Revali too," Aquila explained with a smile. "But you know what, I'm really happy that you will have the chance to explore the world and forge your own path. I wish you good luck with that."

Rukkic and Jameson exchanged a glance...before smiling and looking at their brother. "I respect your decision, bro," Rukkic said with placing a wing on the owl Rito's shoulder. "You're gonna keep an eye on Revali's feathered butt while we're gone, right?"

Aquola nodded with a smile. "Excellent. Now, let's give you your official marks," Spyro said with stepping forward and placing his paw on Jameson's left wing, remaoving it seconds later to reveal a purple dragon mark on it.

Cynder did the same, placing her paw on Rukkic's stomach, putting the mark right in the middle of his round white spot.

"You two are now official Lieutenants of the Dragon Legion."

* * *

 **I hope you enjoyed this chapter (IT WAS SO LONG TO WRITE!). Make sure to drop a review on your way out.**

 **So yeah, Rukkic and Jameson are now Lieutenants of the Dragon Legion. I hope you're not too mad that Aquila refused, TheDragonSaver.**

 **I hope you enjoyed the little romantic scene between Spyro and Cynder (though it was more of a torture of our purple boy) along with the picture scene that was taken from the Champions' Ballad DLC from BOTW.**


	329. Goodbyes of the Rito brothers

**Author's shouts:**

 **Jameson The Phoenix Owl: And I'm sure Spyro can't wait to get your help.**

 **TheDragonSaver: Yeah; his knowledge will probably be of great help against the Calamity.**

* * *

The festivities lasted for two days before ending. It was now time for the Dragon Legion to sail for the seas again and continue their quest against the World Government. Some Hylian knights were helping their new allies packing crates of supplies onto their fleet ships, at the beach to the very edge of the island.

"Hey, careful with that!" Rukkic angrily shouted. He was glaring at two cheetahs from the Legion who were carrying a crate containing all the notebooks in which he wrote his theories. "I value the content of this crate more than my own life! So you better not destroy them, if you know what's good for you!"

The cheetahs nervously nodded and proceeded. Jameson then arrived beside Rukkic. "I still can't believe it, my dude; we're really gonna leave Hyrule and go see the outside world. I think we might be the very first Ritos in the history of Hyrule to do that."

"All the more reason to be excited," the orange Rito said with looking at his little brother with a smile. "A whole new world to explore, new challenges to overcome, and many mysteries that are just begging to be studied. When I come back here with all these new discoveries, I'll become famous! Maybe even more than Revali."

"I wouldn't count on that." They both turned around to see Revali and Aquila arriving. "You still have a good hundred years of catch up to do if you want to even stand a chance against my popularity."

Rukkic scoffed and gave his blue brother a grin. "Nah; I think only a few weeks should be enough."

"You never managed to do better than me at target practice even when we were kids. And now you got rusty because you spend all your time writing books about old stuff. You're better with a pencil than with a javelin," the blue Rito declared with a mocking chuckle.

"You seem to forget a detail." Rukkic pointed to the little jewel tied to his right ankle. "You remember the day you gave me this jewel as a sign of friendship? Remember when I promised that one day, I'll beat you at your own game? Well, even after those decades, I still hold onto that promise. I'm gonna beat you one day; just you wait."

Revali couldn't help but smile at his younger brother. He still had that fire in his eyes - though Revali was not expecting anything less from him. He then looked at his other brother. "You will make sure he doesn't do anything stupid while you're gone, Jameson?"

"You can count on me, my dude," Jameson said with a nod and a positive smile.

Rukkic felt a bit annoyed that Revali asked this to Jameson despite the black owl Rito being younger than him. In response, he turned toward Aquila. "And please, make sure his ego doesn't get him into too much trouble, Aquila."

"I'll try...but I can't make any promises." Revali shot a little glare at Aquila who just grinned and chuckled.

Spyro and Cynder then arrived. "Alright, everything is on the ship," the black dragoness said. "We packed the supplies given by King Hyrule along with Rukkic's analysis equipment, Jameson's training dummies, and your favorite food. We are ready to go now."

"We're gonna leave you time to say goodbye to your brothers, Rukkic and Jameson," Spyro said. "Come join us once you're ready to go."

"Sure. Thanks, Majesty," Rukkic politely said.

As the two dragons walked away and back onto their ship, Rukkic and Jameson gave sad looks with turning to their brothers. "Well...I guess this is goodbyes then."

The four brothers exchanged a big hug - even Revali who was visibly hiding sadness behind his stoic expression. The hug lasted a full minute before they broke off. Aquila placed a wing on Jameson's shoulder tattoo.

"Stay safe, Jameson. I'll pray the goddess for you every day," the owl Rito assured.

As for Revali, he placed his wing on Rukkic's belly tattoo. "If you really wanna be on my level one day, go travel the world, learn new tricks, become stronger...and when the day will arrive, come back and face me again."

Rukkic just stared at his brother...and then smiled. "Okay."

With that being said, Rukkic and Jameson took their scimetar, bag of javelins, and baseball bat respectively. They flew up onto the fleet's main ship where Spyro, Cynder, Spike, and the Lieutenants awaited them. While the two Ritos were sad about leaving their home, they were happy to have new friends. These last ones decided to throw a party to celebrate the arrival of two new Lieutenants.

* * *

"What do you want to show us, Majesty?" Jameson asked.

Night time arrived and the Dragon Legion's fleet was still sailing across the sea with the full moon shining in the sky above them. Cynder came to the cabin that Rukkic and Jameson shared to wake them up and said she wanted to show them something. They were walking in the middle of the ship's deck while talking.

"I have something to show you that I think you will find interesting," the midnight black dragoness replied, looking at them with a smile. "Here it is."

The trio arrived before a glowing emerald crystal. It was pretty beautiful for the two Ritos; they thought this kind of crystal could only be found in Death Mountain by the Gorons. It was exactly the same color as Cynder's eyes. So beautiful...

"What's this crystal?" Rukkic curiously asked with looking at the gem.

"It's a relic Spyro and I found in the catacombs of Warfang after the Naval Forces' attack." The dragoness looked down in sadness for a moment before resuming. "When we touched it, a voice inside the crystal told us the powers we possessed - fire, lightning, ice, and wind for Spyro, and wind, poison, fear, and shadow for me."

Jameson looked in surprise. "This means...?"

"Yes," Cynder nodded. "If you touch it, this crystal can tell you about powers lying dormant inside you. You should touch it and see if it can detect anything special within you."

The brothers exchanged a glance before Rukkic stepped forward and touched it with his wing. "Go ahead, Jameson; touch it," he said.

Obeying, the black owl Rito touched the crystal. It suddenly started glowing brightly and the figure of an elder dragon appeared before them. "Rukkic," he said, "You possess the Vision Haki which is rare amongst the Ritos of Hyrule. With proper training, you will master it in no time."

Rukkic gave a confused look. "Vision Haki? What's that?"

However, the mysterious dragon didn't answer. "Jameson, you possess a unique gift that was almost completely forgotten by this world. You've been gifted with the power of the Red Phoenix. Something that only the Red Phoenix herself can choose to give. You are a lucky one."

The dragon faded, leaving the two brothers confused. "Vision Haki? Red Phoenix?" Rukkic asked. "What the heck was that about?"

* * *

Meanwhile, back on Hyrule, the hooded and masked figure of a ninja-like character gazed at Castle Town from afar.

"Enjoy your time of peace, Hylians. For it shall not last. Soon, when the Calamity returns, you will all be doomed. The Yiga Clan will raise to its former glory once again."

* * *

 **Okay, this chapter was shorter than the last ones. I wasn't really in the mood to make another 4000 words-long chapter.**

 **So, Rukkic and Jameson are leaving Hyrule with the Dragon Legion now. What are this Vision Haki and Red Phoenix powers the crystal talked about? For those of you who don't know, it's the same crystal at the start of Dawn Of The Dragon that tells Spyro and Cynder about their elemental powers. And what is this Yiga Clan member planning to do?**

 **Stay stunned to find out ;)**


	330. Plot behind Hyrule

**Author's shouts:**

 **Jameson: Don't worry; they are leaving for the greater good.**

* * *

Nine months have passed since the Dragon Legion first arrived in Hyrule and formed an alliance with the people of Hyrule. Nine months since the people of Hyrule won an ally for when the Calamity will return, and nine months since King Spyro and Queen Cynder recruited two Lieutenants in the form of Rito brother Rukkic and Jameson.

On this night, somewhere, in the Gerudo Dessert where nobody wanted to venture to, a member of the Yiga Clan stepped in the sand with the moon shining above him. He was wearing the usual Yiga footsoldier dress which consisted of a black and red dress with a white mask covering his face. The Sheikah eye was marked in red onto this mask. His blonde hair was tied in a ponytail and three Yiga weapons were tied by a belt to his waist: a Windcleaver, a Vicious Sickle, and a Duplex Bow.

He arrived at the rendezvous spot located in a canyon where five figures cast in the shadows were present. "I'm here, he calmly said.

The closest figure jumped a bit and turned toward him. "Oh, you made me jump; I failed to notice you coming." He laughed. "The Yigas will always amaze me; so sneaky and smart. I'm glad you came, Kazayashi."

"Can we just skip the formality thing and get straight to business?" a strong voice asked. "I hate being in the desert; it's so hot and sandy!"

"Calm down, Bollea," the former man spoke before walking out of the shadows...revealing none other than John "Silverbeard" Silver. "We came here for a good business."

"And I heard that making a deal with the Yiga Clan is like selling your soul to the devil himself," said Weasley, the barn owl with an aiming glass on his right eye and a wooden rifle on his shoulder. "The question is: would it be a good idea?"

"It's always fun to try new thing, my friend," said Blanchard the white dove with a black hat and wooden cane.

"Would you like an apple?" asked Doc Q, the man who looked sick and laying on the back of Stronger, his horse. He held a bucket of apples toward Kazayashi.

"No thanks; I prefer apples," this last one replied before looking at the albino macaw that was Silverbeard. "So, what did you wanted to talk with me of, Silverbeard?"

The albino macaw laughed and rubbed the black skull tattooed on his belly. "Always so perspective. Actually, I came here to make you an offer - one that will be beneficial both for your clan and for my crew."

Kazayashi crossed his arms. "I listen."

"You see, there's a very ancient weapon created by the Hylian Goddess herself in the Shrine of Ressurection laying dormant in Hyrule's castle's treasure room since a very long time. This weapon is called the One Hit Obliterator." Silverbeard marked a pause to chew on a strawberry pie he had brought along. "It's gonna play a major part in my current plans."

Kazayashi crossed his arms. "Not that I want to put my nose in your business, but you do know that the One Hit Obliterator is dangerous for the user, right? Taking one hit while carrying it will lead you to instant death. And even if your crew was to get their hands on this powerful weapon, the King won't let you escape until they get your heads and bring you to justice."

Silverbeard laughed again. "This is the part where you come in, my young friend. I know that you possess a special mask allowing you to change and take the appearance of someone else. This skill could be very useful in getting into the castle and taking the weapon out."

"And what do I have to win in all this?"

Silverbeard gave a sinister grin. "If the plan succeeds, it will begin a civil war in Hyrule that will leave them with no chance to survive the Calamity. This would mark a certain victory for your clan and your vengeance will be complete."

Kazayashi remained silence before uncrossing his arms and responding. "Alright, that sounds good enough. What's your plan?"

Silverbeard smirked. "Good, good. For my plan, you're gonna have to use this." He took out a bow and a bag of arrows.

Kazayashi gave a curious look behind his mask. "...A Rito bow?"

* * *

Meanwhile, in Castle Town, the inside of the castle was pretty calm and silencious. Around a dozen guards were standing before the door leading to the treasure room. They were all standing firmly with their swords ready in case, the dark zone illuminated only by two small lanterns.

THWAK!

Suddenly, an arrow came flying out of nowhere and pierced a soldier's throat. This alerted the others who immediately got into their fighting stance and searched for the intruder. However, the arrows kept coming at them, killing the guards one by one. That was until one of them was remaining and kept searching for the archer.

"Where are you?! Show yourself!" he screamed.

"With pleasure."

The figure walked out of a dark corner and smirked. The last guard widened his eyes in shock. "Y-You?! W-Why?!"

The figure simply curled his wing like a fist and knocked the last guard out.

* * *

Aquila woke up and sat up in his hammock, stretching his wings out. For some reason, he felt nervous in his heart - like something terrible happened last night without him knowing. That was strange.

But, not thinking about it, he simply walked out of his hut and got down to the village's market to get breakfast. The owl Rito decided to eat at the landing platform. He was not really surprised to find his brother present there, practicing his archery skills and blowing away some Rito fangirls.

"Morning, Revali," Aquila said after swallowing a bite of salmon.

"Hey, Aquila," he simply replied without turning to look at his brother.

"Training early?"

"I spent so many years perfecting my aerial skills; I don't wanna lose them by laying around and sleeping," he replied with shooting an arrow and hitting a perfect bull's eye on a target.

"Nice shot!" Aquila said, finishing his breakfast. "Say, I was gonna fly around Hyrule a bit to see if anybody needed help anywhere. Wanna come with me?"

THWAK!

Revali scored one more bull's eye before turning to his brother. "Sure, why not."

* * *

Revali and Aquila spent the whole day flying around the various regions of Hyrule and checking for any potential danger. Everything went smoothly - safe for a traveler who got attacked by a group of Bokoblins near the Twin Sisters.

By the time they came back to the flight range, it was around two hours away from noon. Aquila took his chance to add some elements to his scientific notebooks on the way while Revali started to practice his speech for later, Aquila rolling his eyes at his brother's antics.

The minutes seemed to roll by pretty quickly and before they even knew it, noon arrived. Aquila had never seen Revali this happy (and more pompous) ever since he was given the role of the Champion for his people.

A small crowd had gathered near the top of the Rito village, mostly females, awaiting their Champion's return.

The elder was waiting on the village's entrance, looking out for any of the two. It didn't take any longer than 5 minutes of waiting when the pair arrived, Revali looking smug while Aquila was just checking what he had written for the day.

Kaneli just laughed and motioned them to follow him. Revali's heart started to beat faster with each step he took - this was going to be one of the greatest moments in his life. Apart from being a Champion, of course.

Cheers of gratification came from the crowd as they saw their champion walking up the stairs toward the landing - Revali's Landing.

"Settle down now, for this day and platform is to commemorate the person who made our people proud. It's also to show the fruit of his labor, may I present to you, our Champion, the one and only REVALI!"

Everyone began to cheer as Revali stood on the platform with a smile. "Why, thank you, elder, for your kind words. Now, as you all know..." Revali then went on and on about why he was so great and what hardships he went through to get where he was now. But mostly why he was great. At the end of his speech, the female Ritos began to storm him and persistently gave him their feathers. Aquila watched in amusement as his brother was swarmed.

The good mood was suddenly interrupted as a squad of knights from the Hyrule Castle arrived - and they didn't look happy.

"Oh, hello, my good sirs," Kaneli greeted them. "What can we do for you?"

"We're here for Aquila!" the captain of the squad firmly said, walking past the elder and toward the owl Rito.

This last one looked curiously at them and Revali also turned away from the females and toward the soldier. "What do you want with me?"

The captain pulled out a scroll. "Aquila of the Rito Tribe, by order of the King, you are hereby sentenced to incarceration in Hyrule Castle for stealing an ancient weapon from the treasure room."

"WHAT?!" everyone exclaimed in surprise, Revali being the most shocked.

Aquila didn't have time to react before the royal guards were on him, restraining him and taking him away with chains on his wings.

"Get your hands off my brother!" Revali shouted, darting toward the guards. However, before he could reach them, a wing grabbed his shoulder and made him stop. It was Kaneli.

"You can't attack them, Revali; assaulting royal guards will only get you in trouble as well," Kaneli said. "The only thing we can do is try to prove his innocence."

Revali could only frown and groan angrily as he watched his brother getting taken away by the royal guards toward Hyrule Castle...

* * *

 **Silverbeard and is crew is back. SURPRISE! We haven't seen them since the start of the Skyland arc.**

 **And Aquila is in trouble because of Kazayashi but how and why? Let's just hope that he will be okay. Wonder how Rukkic and Jameson will react upon learning what happened.**

 **Rukkic: I'LL KILL THEM ALL!**

 **...Okay.**


	331. We go to war

**Author's shouts:**

 **Jameson: Yeah, let's hope everything will go fine for him.**

* * *

"Awww, home sweet home," Rukkic happily sighed.

It has been nine months since the Dragon Legion departed from Hyrule with the two Rito brothers. Ever since, they have managed to free many lands and even countries from the World Government's control. Rukkic and Jameson trained and made a lot of progress while also becoming part of the family that was the Dragon Legion. They fit perfectly well with their fellow Lieutenants.

After so many conquests, the fleet decided to return to Hyrule to rest a bit and also because they knew Rukkic and Jameson were impatient to return home and to their brothers. The orange Rito was allowed to fly away from the fleet and toward the island in advance over everyone because they knew he was too excited to wait. Unfortunately, Jameson didn't come with him because he was busy leading a campaign against the Naval Forces on a nearby island and had to finish before he could come.

Rukkic entered into the island and into the territory he was familiar with. He couldn't help but smile at seeing that even after nine months, his good old home did not change. Everything was still peaceful. The orange Rito could not wait to see Revali and Aquila and share his discoveries and theories he made during his time away from Hyrule. He was excited to tell them about the Magical Fruits.

Before long, he arrived into his tribe's territory and smiled at seeing his home. Not much had changed and all the Ritos around were doing their daily activities - some of them were surprised to see the Champion's arriving and beamed. Rukkic simply waved and winked at some of them while searching for his two brothers. Of course, he ended up finding Revali at the Flight's Range.

However, to his surprise, the Rito Champion was not practicing or showing his skills to show-off; he was simply sitting on the edge, apparently lost in his thoughts. "Revali!" Rukkic called as he landed behind him.

The blue Rito recognized this voice and turned around to look at his brother in surprise. "Rukkic?" He said with standing up and looking at him. "What are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be with the dragons?"

"Well, we led many conquests and free many islands from the World Government in the last nine months," Rukkic explained. "The rest of the fleet should arrive soon too, but Jameson is still leading a campaign, so he might arrive a bit later." Rukkic then noticed that Revali looked so serious that he didn't even seem happy to see Rukkic at all. "Huh, is there a problem?"

Revali sighed sadly. "Rukkic, there is something you need to know."

"What is it?"

"...Something happened a few hours ago..." The Rito Champion filled his brother in about what happened to Aquila earlier.

"WHAT?!" Rukkic shouted at the top of his lungs. "What is this bullcrap?! Aquila would never steal away a treasure from the Royal Family! And what would they want him to do with something like the One Hit Obliterator?!"

"I know, I don't understand either," Revali said with crossing his wings. "I have no idea what makes them think that Aquila could be the thief. But the Royal Guards didn't want to hear any of it and simply took him away."

"And you let them do that?!" Rukkic asked with a sudden frown on his face. "Those Hylians...I'm gonna give them a piece of my mind!"

"Rukkic, wait-" However, before Revali could try to resonate his brother, this last one flapped his wings so strong that it created a gust of wind that nearly made Revali fall, shooting himself high in the sky and darting his way toward the Hyrule Castle at a speed Revali had never seen him use before.

"You imbecile! Come back here!" Revali quickly opened his wings and flew after his other brother before he would get himself in trouble...

* * *

It took Revali many minutes to reach Hyrule Castle. When he arrived, the first thing he saw was Rukkic apparently fighting with Redire and his men at the castle's entrance. The Champion rolled his eyes at his brother's spontaneous personality.

"I said let me pass, Redire!" Rukkic angrily said as he tried to make his way through his Hylian friend and his men.

"I already told you; I can't, Rukkic!" Redire firmly said and pushed the orange Rito back a bit. "The King has ordered Aquila to be locked away in the dungeon and no one is allowed to see him without his permission!"

"Oh, this old man can kiss my butt!" Rukkic angrily said which caused most of the guards to look at him in shock. "No one's gonna get in my way of seeing my brother! So get lost if you know what's good for you!"

Seeing the guards drawing their weapons out, Revali decided to jump in between them. "Please, excuse my brother's attitude, Captain Redire."

"Champion Revali?" Redire said with lowering his sword.

"What are you doing, Revali?!" Rukkic asked. "We need to get our brother out of here right now!"

"Enough!" Revali firmly said with glaring at his younger brother. "Fighting the Royal Guards will cause us nothing but trouble, Rukkic! All we can do is try to prove Aquila's innocence before his trial! We have plenty of time for that!"

"Actually, Master Revali," one of the Royal Guards said, "Aquila's trial is scheduled for tomorrow in the afternoon. Should he be declared guilty, the King will get him executed on the spot."

"WHAT?!" both Rukkic and Revali exclaimed in surprise. "But the time allowed before a trial is supposed to be one week!" Revali argued.

"Normally, it is," Redire sadly said. "However, with the events of the Calamity getting closer as well as our struggle with the Yiga Clan, the King decided not to waste time and speed up the process so that we can return to more important things at hands."

Rukkic's frown grew harder. There was no word that could describe the volcano about to erupt inside him. "You just signed your doom," he mumbled before taking off once again away from the castle and toward the land's coast.

As Redire left to go inform the King about the situation, Revali curled his wings like fists and frowned. He really wanted to side with Rukkic and go save Aquila from possible execution...but he couldn't. He risked losing his Champion title - not that he valued his hard-earned title more than his brother's life, but this could also cause a civil war between the King and the Rito tribe, putting all those he knew at risk.

What could he do?

* * *

"So...they really are gonna execute Aquila?!" Vexx asked with a shocked look on his face.

Rukkic returned to the Dragon Legion's fleet to inform his friends about the current situation. Right now, he was standing in the middle of the main ship's deck with Spyro, Cynder, the Lieutenants, and Spike.

"B-But this is horrible! Why would they do that?!" Kya said.

"They really believe he is the one who made the steal," Ryo calmly said despite not being happy the situation.

Rukkic looked toward the Dragon King and Queen. "Spyro, I know that Aquila is not a Lieutenant of this Legion, but...he's my brother nonetheless. So I'm asking this of you, please...help me save my brother," the orange Rito begged, tears rising in the corner of his eyes.

Everybody turned their head toward the purple dragon, waiting for his answer. Spyro remained silent for a moment before walking over to Rukkic...and placing a paw on his stomach - right where was tattooed his Dragon Legion mark.

"Rukkic, ever since the day Cynder gave you this mark, you have done nothing but help my legion in its quest to free the world," he said. "You and Jameson have helped me more times than I can count. What kind of king would I be if I would not help you when you need me? Aquila is part of my family just as much as you and Jameson are."

Rukkic smiled and wiped tears from the corner of his eyes. Spyro had no idea how grateful he felt toward him at this very moment. The Dragon King then turned toward his messenger. "Spike."

"Yes, Majesty?" the little purple and green dragon responded.

"Send a message to Jameson at this very moment; he must come back as fast as possible." Spyro then gave a serious look to everyone. "We're going to war..."

* * *

 **Oooooh! The Dragon Legion is about to enter in conflict with the people of Hyrule! This is going to be epic! Let's hope they can save Aquila before it's too late.**

 **On another note, I only have one week of school left before the debut of my summer vacations! I'm so excited!**


	332. Debut of the Dragon War

**Author's shouts:**

 **Jameson: Don't worry; we'll save Aquila together, little brother.**

 **TheDragonSaver: You remember the first chapter of this arc and how Link's parents got Link taken away from them for stupid reasons? I don't think there's a fair trial system.**

* * *

Revali sighed as he stood on top of Hyrule Castle's main wall alongside his fellow Champions. From there, he could see the hundreds of Royal Guards and soldiers along with a few Guardians built by the Sheikahs. There was no doubt left; they were going to war...

After Rukkic flew off to go warn the Dragon Legion, Redire went to tell King Rhoam about it. The Monarch decided to call up all his army along with the Champions to make a stand before the castle should the Dragon Legion decide to come and try to free Aquila. And knowing Rukkic, he was certainly going to convince his King to come and save his brother.

"I can't believe it," Daruk said in a loud voice, getting the attention of his fellow Champions. "How can the King want us to get into a war simply over a little crime?"

"It was no simple crime," Urbosa said, one hand on her hip. "From what I've heard, Revali's brother stole the legendary One Hit Obliterator from the treasure room which is why they arrested him. And since he refuses to talk, the King will have to make a choice between either banishing him from the land, lock him away in a dungeon forever, or execute-"

"QUIET!" Everybody jumped as Revali suddenly shouted. "My brother did not steal anything! I don't care what the King says! I will prove his innocence before tomorrow and he will be forced to release him!"

Nobody said anything for a while. Mipha looked down with a pretty sad expression. "If the Dragon Legion does decide to come...this means we will have to fight them right here..."

"I sure hope it won't come to it," Urbosa said. "Even if the King is not as close to them as we are, the Dragon Legion are our friends. I hope he will be reasonable."

"The King? Reasonable?" Daruk asked with a chuckle. "Sorry to disappoint ya, but this guy is very strict when it comes to his rule. He won't let go of this, I can tell ya."

Revali frowned angrily and then noticed Link looking ahead of them with a serious look. "What is it?" Link rose a finger to point forward and the Champions looked in that direction.

To their surprise, dozen of figures could be seen in the distance and coming toward the castle. There was no doubt that it was the Dragon Legion's fleet coming to free their Lieutenant's brother.

The Dragon King himself was walking ahead of the incoming army with his beautiful queen beside him. Behind the two of them were all the Lieutenants minus Jameson and behind these ones were all the soldiers of the Dragon Legion fleet. They walked with determined looks on their faces - except Rukkic who just looked outright pissed off.

As they arrived close to the castle, all the Royal Guards and soldiers rose their weapons, Redire coming at the head. "Spot, King Spyro," he ordered.

"We just want to enter and negotiate with the King," Spyro affirmed. "Let us pass; we want to get Aquila free."

However, Redire shook his head. "I'm sorry, King Spyro, but this won't be possible. King Rhoam was perfectly clear; Aquila will not be released unless his innocence is proved or before the One Hit Obliterator is returned. His trial will take place tomorrow and the sentences he is facing are either the dungeon or execution."

Rukkic growled angrily and stepped forward, before his king and queen. "Listen to me very well; if you don't give my brother back to us right now, we'll just kick your asses and get him out by force! So if you know what's good for you, GET LOST!"

All the Hylians turned their head toward King Rhoam who was standing on a balcony on an elevated part of the castle. He frowned. "There will be no negotiations! You can either leave or we will have no choice but to fight you!"

The guards and soldiers looked back at the Dragon Legion and took their fighting stances. "Looks like we will have to fight after all," Daruk sadly said with taking out his Boulder Breaker sword.

"I just hope there will not be too many victims," Mipha said with taking her Lightscale Trident in her hands.

"Let's hurt them if we have to, but don't kill any of them," Urbosa instructed with taking out the Scimitar of the Seven and the Daybreaker shield in her hands.

"Right," Revali said with reluctantly taking his Great Eagle Bow and getting ready to fight as Link took out the Master Sword.

Cynder gave a concerned look to her purple boy. "What should we do now, Spyro?"

The Dragon King looked at his queen. "We have no choice but to fight them if we want to save Aquila." He then looked at his army. "Listen to me, everyone, do not kill any of the enemies that get in your way; just incapacitate them and nothing more!"

"About time; I was getting bored!" Vexx declared with a smirk as he bared his fangs and opened his Way Talons.

"Roger; I won't kill any of them," Kya said with taking her Boomy out of her hair.

Crash just grinned and jumped on the back of his little, cute polar bear companion named Polar who barked.

"Guess it won't be as easy as on the tropical island we went to, a few days ago," Ryo said, taking out the sabers tied to either of his hips and twirling the little straw in his mouth.

"Alright, I won't kill...unless I'm forced to," Rukkic said with a sinister tone in his voice, picking a javelin out of his bag tied to his back.

Spyro then looked toward a male cheetah much taller than him who was wearing a purple hood and a bow along with some arrows. "Hunter, mind starting the hostilities with your squad?"

"It would be my pleasure, Majesty," the cheetah known as Hunter said and turned toward a whole squad of cheetahs also armed with bows and arrows. "Archer Squad, in position!"

The archers charged their bows and shot a rain of arrows toward the Hylian army. While most of the soldiers managed to block them with their shields or got protected by their armors, others were not so lucky and ended up getting wounded by the arrows.

That was the last call King Rhoam needed to understand the hostilities. "Soldiers! Attack!" he ordered out loud.

The soldiers charged toward the Dragon Legion. "Legion, charge!" Spyro ordered to his own army.

Both sides charged at each other and, in a matter of minute, collided, swords clashing, arrows colliding, bones breaking, and blood flying all around.

 _"It was the beginning...of the Dragon War..."_

* * *

 **For those of you unaware, Polar and Hunter are characters of Crash Bandicoot and Legend Of Spyro respectively. Polar serves as a pet to Crash, riding for him through course levels, and Hunter is a bowman who saved Spyro and Cynder into "Dawn of the Dragon".**

 **The Dragon War has begun! Which side will triumph?**


	333. Dragon War part 1

**Author's shouts:**

 **Jameson: Yeah, and we're going to win!**

* * *

The once peaceful land of Hyrule turned into a battlefield. The event that would later be known as the Dragon War was raging on - swords were clashing, arrows were piercing flesh and ground, sometimes colliding with metal, and blood was flying in the air.

Spyro was charging through the waves of Hylian soldiers with his horns and knocked them down one by one. Sometimes, he would cross path with a Royal Guard blocking him with a big shield. However, he easily dispatched them with a breath of fire followed by a good tail whip.

Eventually, the purple dragon got surrounded by many Royal Guards. "Get out of my way!" He charged his body with blazing fire. "FIRE FURY!" The Dragon King created an explosion of flames that knocked away all the guards around him and burned the ground to crisps while also creating some flames on his body. The powerful attack caused him to pant as it drained quite a lot of energy out of him.

"Whoa! So this is what the Dragon King is capable of?!" Daruk exclaimed in shock. "I never saw anyone create fire like this!"

Cynder was not too far behind, pushing screams of fear to knock the soldiers away, sometimes cutting at them with her shadow claws and bladed tail. Of course, just like Spyro asked, she made sure not to kill anyone. After Spyro used his Fire Fury attack and was a bit tired, the black dragoness jumped at his side and knocked any incoming enemy with deep breaths of wind.

Meanwhile, Vexx was facing a few royal guards who pointed their spears at him. The Valdani grinned which showed his sharp fangs and rose his War Talons. "Bring it on! Time to cut some limbs!"

The War Talons glowed with energy and Vexx used a jet of energy to push himself toward the guards. Once amongst them, he started swinging his claws and easily cut through their armors, leaving claw marks on their bodies and sending blood flying in the air. As many soldiers surrounded him, the man-beast jumped in the air and send a blast of energy down on them with his War Talons, knocking them away.

By the time he was done, many soldiers were laying down around him with bad cuts and were bleeding...but they were alive at the very least. "Making sure not to kill them...not easy when your weapons are designed specifically to kill," Vexx mumbled with rubbing the back of his head.

"INCOMING!"

Vexx looked up to see a huge figure coming down toward him. He managed to roll out of the way just in time as Daruk planted his Boulder Breaker into the ground. The Goron Champion looked toward the Valdani who growled and prepared his War Talons.

"It's nothing personal, but as the Goron Champion, I have to obey the King's order, Vexx," Daruk explained. "But...still friends, right?"

"If you want us to remain friends, Daruk, then move out of the way and let me go save my friend!" the Lieutenant aggressively said.

"Sorry, but I can't pal," Daruk responded with rising Boulder Breaker.

Vexx roared and charged at the Champion, slashing his War Talons against his sword.

"HIYA!"

Not too far from there, Kya was knocking away guards and soldiers with Capoeira moves she learned from her brother during her younger years. However, it was hard to take such heavily-armored men like these, so she also had to use her boomerang in her hair.

Eventually, the young girl came to a halt as a familiar figure came in her way. "P-Princess Mipha?"

The Zora Champion rose her Lightscale Trident, despite visibly not wanting to fight. "I'm sorry, Kya. The King ordered me to stop you, so I cannot back down."

Kya looked pretty sad too. "I'm sorry too, Princess. But I can't back down either. This means we'll have to fight."

Both female warriors charged and engaged in a battle of trident and boomerang.

Meanwhile, Ryo was easily cutting his way through the enemy forces with two of his 25 sabers in hands. Eventually, he got close enough to the first wall of the castle. "Seems like the right time to use my gear!"

He then used a small gear around his waist to shoot cables right into the wall and two gas tanks to his rear shot him upward at full speed.

 **(Author's note: to give you an idea, it's a bit like the ODM gear from Attack On Titan)**

However, before the Man Who Can Climb Anywhere could get past the wall, a sword was swung at him, forcing him to block it with his two sabers, and be pushed back on the wall's top. After retracting his cables, he looked up to see a Gerudo coming at him.

The human smirked. "We meet again, Champion, he?"

Urbosa pointed out the Scimitar of the Seven toward him. "Stand back, Lieutenant. I don't want to hurt you, but I will if I have to."

Ryo chuckled and toyed with the straw in his mouth. "How can you hope to overpower me in a sword duel if you can't even win against me in a drinking contest?"

"You did not win, you passed out first; it's just that your memory is confused," The Gerudo Champion said with a smirk."

"Tss, I don't think so."

The two swordsmen stared at each for a while before charging, Ryo clashing his two sabers against Urbosa' scimitar, and the two of them glaring at each with smirks.

Revali was still standing on the castle's second wall, shooting at enemies with his Great Eagle Bow. Despite not missing a single target, the Dragon Legion was still making a lot of progress. He turned his head toward Link who didn't move from his position, unlike the other Champions. This annoyed him.

"What are you still doing here?!" he angrily shouted. "We're at war, here! If you are truly the Hero, then get down here and help our friends!"

Link just stared silently at the Rito Champion. He then sighed and jumped down from the wall with his paraglider. Once on the ground, he unsheathed his Master Sword and Master Shield to engage with the enemy, cutting through them with precision and agility.

Revali scoffed before his attention got carried by a wave of arrows that took down many of the Hylian archers. He glanced toward the Archer Squad of the Dragon Legion. Alright, they want to play this? Let's see what they can do against the greatest Rito archer of all time!

Revali charged an arrow and took a split-second before shooting it. The arrow flew through the air at full speed before touching Hunter right in the shoulder, making him collapse and shout in pain. The Rito Champion smirked as the cheetah was carried away by his fellow bowmen.

It was then that he spotted an orange blur in the air shooting javelins at many Hylian soldiers and archers. He only took a few seconds to recognize his brother quickly flying his way across the air, dodging the arrows, replying with tossing javelins and making his way toward the castle with the intention of saving his brother.

Revali took a glance back and saw King Rhoam glancing down on him. The Rito Champion knew that if he didn't act right now, he would consider this treason and would not only take away his title but also brand the Rito tribe as traitors. He couldn't let that happen...

"...I'm sorry, little brother..."

Rukkic managed to take down most of the archers and could now fly straight o the castle. "Hold on, Aquila! I'm coming!" However, Rukkic got stopped in his tracks by a dark blue figure jumping in his way. Before he could even call his brother's name, Revali's wing curled like a fist and collided right into his stomach - into his Dragon Legion's mark.

This mark wished his brother would have never accepted.

Rukkic spat saliva out of his beak as pain rushed through his midsection and the wind got knocked out of his lungs. Revali shouted and pushed his fist further, sending Rukkic crashing down on the ground with a strong impact. He then flapped his wings and kept position in the air as the orange Rito coughed and struggled to stand up.

He gave a look of shock and confusion at his brother. "Revali...why-ARGH!" He suddenly groaned in pain and collapsed as a sword slashed across his back, cutting his flesh and some of his feathers away. Link glanced down at the defeated Rito now lying on the ground.

This caught the attention of his friends. "RUKKIC!" Vexx shouted in horror. "URGH!"

Unfortunately, this distraction was enough for Daruk to smash him across the face with his weapon. "Sorry, I don't really like attacking people in the back like this," the Goron Champion said with rubbing the back of his head.

"NO!" Kya sadly exclaimed upon seeing her Rito friend falling. Hearing quick footsteps behind her, she turned just in time to see Mipha piercing her leg with her trident and follow with a spinning kick across her face which knocked her back.

"I'm sorry, but you should not have let your guard down, Kya," the Zora Champion said with looking at the Lieutenant clutching her bleeding leg in pain.

Ryo could see all of that happening from the top of the wall. "This is no good," he mumbled. Then, out of reflex, he rose his sabers to block Urbosa's scimitar. "It's coward to attack people when they're looking away, Champion."

"Then don't do it," Urbosa simply said. "The moment you let your guard down is when you lose the duel!"

Spyro and Cynder looked around the battlefield. Things were not going well at all! The Sheikah Guardians had arrived and were blowing most of their troops with their beams, the Lieutenants were taking a beatdown from the Champions, Hunter was injured, and Crash was too busy fighting with Redire to do anything.

"What do you think of our situation, Spyro?" Cynder asked, knocking a guard away with her Shadow Claws.

Spyro sighed. "Honestly...I think we'll need a miracle to win this one..."

"AQUILA!"

Everybody immediately froze upon hearing a loud voice shouting from the air. All the present warriors turned their heads to see the figure of a dark bird standing on top of an hill with a glare in his yellow eyes. Spyro gasped.

"JAMESON!"


	334. Dragon War part 2

**Author's shouts:**

 **Jameson: Come on, brother, I know you can stop it!**

* * *

"I-It's Champion Revali's younger brother!" a Royal Guard exclaimed.

The fights on the battlefield ceased and everyone looked up toward the black owl Rito standing on top of a hill. He had some extra Dragon Legion soldiers with him and crossed his wings as he was visibly pissed off.

"Little Jameson! I was wondering where he was gone!" Daruk exclaimed.

"NO, JAMESON! GET AWAY!" Everybody turned to look at Revali who was screaming in panic. "AQUILA IS ALREADY FACING A TERRIBLE FATE AND I WAS FORCED TO INJURE RUKKIC! I DON'T WANT YOU TO GET IMPLIED INTO THIS TOO! PLEASE, JUST GET AWAY FROM HERE!"

The Rito Champion then heard a faint chuckle coming from the ground. Looking down, he saw his other brother with an amused, though painful, look on his face as he weakly stood up. "That won't be necessary, Revali; Jameson will change the course of this war."

"What the heck are you talking about?!" Revali exclaimed with an annoyed look. "You know as well as I do that Jameson is not on the same level as you, Aquila, and I! He's not ready to get into a war like this!"

Rukkic's smirk grew wider. "This is where you're wrong. During our nine months away from Hyrule...Jameson trained a lot and I can tell you that he has nothing left of this sloppy and awkward fighter he was when we were kids. In fact...I'd even say that he's the strongest of all the Lieutenants!"

Revali's eyes widened in disbelief. "W-What?!"

"HOLD ON, AQUILA! I'M COMING!" Jameson shouted before flapping his wings and darting his way toward the battlefield.

"Archers! Take him down!" Redire ordered after kicking Crash away. The Hylian archers charged their bows and started shooting arrows at the black owl Rito. This forced him to land down on the ground where three Sheikah Guardians immediately surrounded him and got ready to shoot.

"Jameson!" Revali shouted.

However, the young Lieutenant only smirked and, in a split-second, grabbed his baseball bat, jumped to a Guardian, slammed his weapon into it which broke it into pieces, bounced off him, smashed the second Guardian, and repeated the same process with the third and last one. He defeated the three Guardians in a matter of seconds.

"W-What?!" Mipha gasped in shock. "H-He defeated three Sheikah Guardians in only three hits?! But how?!"

Scoffing as if this was just a warm-up routine, Jameson resumed his run toward Hyrule Castle. Only, a huge barrage of soldiers blocked his way. "Stand down, Rito!" one of them ordered.

Jameson just rolled his eyes. "Really? I just took down your biggest force with ease and you still want to fight me? You'd be good at Cinemasins!" The Rito then rose his right wing and positioned his feathers as if they were claws. Then, red energy started charging on his wing and his eyes became red as well.

"RED PHOENIX TALONS!" Swinging his wing, Jameson sent a wave of red energy that knocked away all the soldiers, sending them flying in the air and cleaning the way.

Revali blinked his eyes in disbelief. His little brother who could barely stand against someone of Redire's level nine months ago could now take down Sheikah Guardians and Hylian soldiers like they were insignificant bugs? And what was that Red Phoenix Talons technique he just used? Was that really his brother?

"This little guy's strength is very impressive!" Daruk exclaimed. "Too bad I'm forced to stop him from reaching the castle."

However, before he could walk away, a voice called for him. "Where are you going?!" Daruk turned around to see Vexx standing up with a glare on his face that was partially covered in blood. "Our fight is not over yet!"

"Y-You can still stand up after taking a direct hit from Boulder Smasher?!" the Goron Champion asked in disbelief.

"Oh, trust me, you haven't seen what I'm truly capable of!" The Valdani suddenly started floating in the air and made lava stoned fly around him. They formed a shell around his body it exploded seconds after to reveal he was now wearing an armor of lava stones over his whole body including his face which made his eyes become yellow globes. "STONE SUIT!"

"W-What is this armor?!" Daruk exclaimed in surprise.

Vexx started running toward him, each step causing a loud BOOM! noise. Once he was in range, Daruk swung his Boulder Smasher again, but this only resulted in his weapon getting knocked away by the Valdani. He then slammed both of his lava stone-covered fists into the Goron's stomach, causing him to spit saliva and getting knocked many feet away.

"BRING IT ON!" Vexx roared.

Meanwhile, Mipha was watching Jameson's progress on the field. She was about to jump in and stop him, only to be forced to duck as a boomerang came flying at her. She saw it fly back into the hand of a visibly tired Kya who was still holding her bad leg.

"Kya? You're still up?" the Zora Princess asked in disbelief.

"I once survived a wolf's bite in the neck, y'know," the human girl said with a chuckle.

"Please Kya, stand down. I don't want to hurt you again."

"Sorry, Princess, but I can't stand down until my friend is safe." She took her fighting stance and rose her boomerang. "Let's do this!"

Sighing, Mipha charged at Kya with the intention of knocking her out. However, the Lieutenant had one more move in her arsenal. She charged her Boomy with energy and waited for the Zora Champion to be in range. "BOOMY STORM!"

Kya launched her Boomy around in to create a circle of energy that caught Mipha unaware and knocked her away.

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!

The duel between Urbosa and Ryo was still raging on. None of the two swordsmen could get an advantage over the other. They had a few cuts here and there, but they were mostly covered in sweat and panting.

"I didn't know you Lieutenants could be so stubborn!" the Gerudo Champion said with a smirk.

Ryo grinned in return, spitting his straw away. "It's very simple; we can't let anyone hurt one of our crewmate's friends!"

Meanwhile, Jameson was still progressing through the battlefield, taking down any enemy trying to block his way. Eventually, he came to a stop as before him stood none other than Redire himself. He pointed his Knight's Sword at him.

"Stand down, Jameson!" he ordered. "As my student and friend, I don't want to fight you!"

Jameson just stared at the Captain. "I don't want to fight you either, Redire...but I have to save Aquila from execution!"

"There's no guarantee that he'll get executed, Jameson!" Redire begged him. "Please, the King knows mercy; maybe he'll forgive him and let him go! We can even prove that he was not the thief!"

Jameson just shook his head. "Sorry, but I know the King is not the forgiving kind. And I won't let my brother face his wrath for a crime he didn't commit! So get out of the way now!"

Redire shook his head and charged at his student and friend. Swinging his sword at him, Jameson managed to duck the attack and slam the tip of his bat to the back of his head, knocking him out. He mumbled 'sorry' before resuming his run toward the castle.

The black owl Rito almost made it to the wall...when another figure came in his way. A familiar one wearing a blue tunic.

"L-Link?!"

Indeed, the Hero supposed to defeat the Calamity and sealing away darkness was blocking his path. And from the look on his face, he was not going to let him enter nicely. He grinned and rose his baseball bat.

"I heard a lot about you and your fighting skills, Link! Time to see if you can live up to the legend!"

The Lieutenant and Champion charged at each other, swinging their weapon at the same time. Jameson's baseball bat collided with Link's Master Sword, creating a wave of red and black energy from one side and a light green one from the other.

* * *

 **Wow! Jameson is sure causing a lot of damage, isn't he? Let'S hope he can make it through Link and save his brother before it's too late.**


	335. Dragon War part 3

**Author's shouts:**

 **Jameson: Yeah, go save Aquila, Jameson!**

 **DextrousCloth31: Yeah, Jameson made a lot of progress during the last 9 months. If they all work together, they can win this fight.**

 **DJ Bat: Ouais, pas encore.**

* * *

"ARGH!"

After clashing his baseball bat with Link's Master Sword, Jameson felt his Red Phoenix Power clashing with the darkness sealing one. However, while the struggle was equal for a while, Jameson eventually felt himself getting overwhelmed and got knocked back many feet away, landing on his back with a loud thud.

"W-What the heck?!" the black owl Rito groaned while standing up. "H-How could I lose? I felt like I was winning for a moment." He gazed up toward Link running in his direction. "Is the Master Sword THAT strong?"

Link pushed a battle cry as he charged at Jameson, ready to swing his sword at him. However, an iceball flew out of nowhere, knocking the Knight away and leaving him with some frost on his body. The black owl Rito turned his head to see his king running at his side.

"S-Spyro!" he exclaimed.

The purple boy turned his eyes to him. "Go, Jameson! I'll take care of him; go save your brother!"

Jameson smiled and nodded. "Thanks, Majesty!" He ran toward the castle once again with his baseball bat in his wing.

Spyro then looked at Link who broke out of the ice and glared at the Dragon King. His purple eyes glanced with defiance. "Come, Hero of Time or not, I will not let you harm my friends!"

After managing to run past the first wall of the castle, Jameson was getting very close to the castle. Revali was staring at him from the skies, flapping his wings, and narrowing his eyes. He grabbed an arrow and charged it into his Great Eagle Bow.

"Sorry, little brother; this won't kill you, but it won't tickle either!"

Revali released the arrow which was sent flying toward his little brother's leg. However, a javelin suddenly came out of nowhere to collide with it, stopping it a few meters away from the black owl Rito. Hearing the sound alerted him and he turned his head to see Revali in the air and a visibly hurt Rukkic arriving beside him.

"Revali! Rukkic! Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," the orange Rito replied despite bleeding from the back. He was still glaring toward their other brother.

"Revali, what the heck are you doing?!" Jameson asked with looking at the Rito Champion as he landed on the ground. "Aquila needs our help; why would you try to stop us?!"

"I don't have a choice!" Revali replied with glaring at his little brother. "I don't like this either, but starting this war wasn't the solution! You realize that you're causing damage to our army and lowering our chance to stop the Calamity when it'll return?!"

"SHUT UP!" Rukkic angrily shouted. "I know why you're REALLY doing this! You know that choosing to help Aquila will result in you losing your precious title of Champion as well as your right to control your Divine Beast! You don't want to lose your time to shine against the Calamity! In other words, you're choosing your title over your own brother!"

Revali gasped at these accusations. He was about to fight back...but no word came. Was Rukkci telling the truth? Was he really choosing his title over Aquila?

"GUYS! I GOT HIM!"

Everybody jumped and turned toward the sound of the voice. They were surprised to see Spike coming out of Hyrule Castle with none other than Aquila himself at his side. "SPIKE! AQUILA!" all the Dragon Legion members exclaimed.

"What?!" King Rhoam exclaimed from his balcony. "H-How is that possible?!"

Jameson grinned. "It's simple; Spike was with me when I arrived. Since I knew it would be hard to free Aquila from the dungeon, I asked Spike to sneak into the castle and release him while we fought the Hyrule Army on the outside!"

Rukkic smiled and placed a wing on his brother's shoulder. "Jameson! You're a genius!"

BANG!

Before he could do anything, Revali got knocked away by a shadow ball from Cynder who then landed on the ground. "Quick! Let's get out of here before it's too late!"

Nodding, everyone started running behind the Dragon Queen. Aquila took Spike in his wings and placed him on his back since his small feet did not allow him to run as fast as them. Jameson and Rukkic got on either side of their now safe brother.

"It's good to see you again for so long, bro!" Jameson happily said.

"I'm glad to see you after nine months too - though I wish it was under different circumstances," Aquila admitted. "But you really didn't have to start a war just to save me!"

"It's this stupid King who started it!" Rukkic bitterly said. "What matters is that you're safe now!"

Cynder and Jameson used their combined strength to take away any soldier or guards coming in their way. "DRAGON LEGION!" the queen shouted. "AQUILA IS SAFE! FALL BACK TO THE SHIPS!"

Hearing this, the DL fighters started holding back the enemy to allow their companions to escape. Spyro and Lieutenants managed to run away as the Champions were too tired from their fight to chase them - not like they really wanted to anyways. Before long, the Dragon Legion managed to reach the coast of the island and get on their ships. Once they were sure everyone was present, Spyro ordered everyone to set the fleet and sail off to the sea once more.

Still standing in the middle of the battlefield where the fights ended, Revali did not pay attention to the disappointed King who ordered his men to gather the injured and take care of them. He did not even felt like mocking the Knight for failing to stop the attackers - as much as he hated to admit it, the Hylian still did better than him today.

The Rito Champion could only gaze upon his failure. He was glad that Aquila managed to escape and was now safe with Rukkic and Jameson...but that also meant he would probably never see them again; they were now enemies of the king - and by definition, him too.

Revali rubbed his eyes with his feathers. "What have I done...?"

* * *

"Man, what a fight," Vexx sighed as he sat against the wall of the main ship. "I didn't have to use my Rock Suit since my fight against Yabu."

"I'm glad none of our men got killed during this fight," Kya said with adjusting her Boomy in her hair. "We got many injured, but they'll all make it."

She then noticed a visibly exhausted Ryo sitting in his corner and chuckling. "Even if this war was really serious...I cannot deny that I had a lot of fun fighting with the Gerudo Champion."

"There, you should be fine now," Aquila said as he finished bandaging Rukkic's back and torso. "I'd still recommend you to take a lot of rest until it heals."

"Thanks, Aquila," Rukkic said with a smile.

The snowy owl Rito nodded and turned toward Jameson. "I'm really impressed by how strong you've become in only nine months, Jameson. Mind to tell me how it was possible?"

The younger brother chuckled and rubbed his beak. "That's a long story. But I'm glad my newfound powers allowed us to achieve victory."

Aquila's happy face dropped. "I wouldn't call this a victory; the people of Hyrule now sees the Dragon Legion as an enemy and the King thinks I'm an outlaw. And we don't even know who the real thief is. Another thing that bothers me is that we caused a lot of damage to Hyrule Castle during this war. This could complicate things for when the Calamity will return."

"Don't care about the Calamity anymore!"

Everybody turned to look at Rukkci who stared at them with a look filled with anger and hate.

"The Calamity is no longer our problem. All that matters now is that we help King Spyro and Queen Cynder reach their goal in taking down the World Government."

Aquila was surprised by the hateful words coming out of his brother's beak. "But Rukkic; if the Calamity succeeds, then Hyrule will be destroyed and all the people within the island will get killed!"

Rukkic glared at him again. "I don't care. The King turned on us and broke our alliance for something as stupid as a stolen treasure; if Hyrule gets destroyed by the Calamity, it's gonna be his fault. This is their problem now..."

* * *

 **And...the Dragon War arc is done!**

 **Yeah, I know the end was a bit rushed, but to be honest, I was really excited to start the next arc. This one will be written by my cousin, Vincent.**

 **So, the Dragon Legion managed to save Aquila who is now an outlaw for the people of Hyrule and both sides are now enemies. Like Aquila said, despite the Legion succeeding in saving their friend, technically, the Yiga Clan and Silverbeard's crew are the true winners in this because the alliance is now broken. Will they manage to make peace to face the Calamity?**

 **We'll find it in another arc. For now, I hope you enjoyed the Dragon War arc more than my previous ones. Especially you, TheDragonSaver, Jameson The Phoenix Owl, and KR-Orion.**


	336. The raven in the ice

**It's time to start the Tao Dragon arc, my friends! This one will focus on many of my dear friend TheDragonSaver's OCs as well as some of mine as they go on adventures and...well, I won't tell more as I don't want to spoil anything.**

 **This arc was originally supposed to be written by my cousin, but I found out he was copying on someone else's work and had to delete all of his work to do it myself. You have no idea how much I was disappointed in him.**

 **But this time, I take things in my hands and gonna make my own, creative work. I gotta tell you, though, that this arc is inspired a lot by Nickelodeon's Avatar: The Last Airbender in terms of geography and mythology. But except that, the characters are owned either by TheDragonSaver, myself, other of my friends, or Dreamworks Studio.**

 **Enjoy ;)**

* * *

 _Fire_

 _Water_

 _Ice_

 _Air_

 _Lightning_

 _Earth_

 _Metal_

 _Those are the elemental Chi known across all of China. Some of the greatest heroes in China were either Kung Fu Masters, Chi users, or even both. However, very little know about the story of the war tearing apart the Independent Lands of China._

 _Located very far to the west of China, the Independent Lands are a set of islands over which neither the Emperor nor the Imperial army has jurisdiction. These islands are divided into four countries: the Fire Country, home to the Fire Nation, the Water Country, home to the Water Tribes, the Earth Country, home to the Earth Kingdom, and the Air Country, home to the famous Ninja Clans, including the Sky Ninjas._

 _For generations, these four countries lived together in harmony through peaceful sovereignty. However, the Fire Nation's greed and thirst of power led them to start invading other countries to impose their monarchy. They wiped out most of the Ninja Clans, left the Water Tribes with little to live with, and raged war against the powerful Earth Kingdom - a war that is still lasting to this day._

 _The only one who could stop them was the Tao Dragon, a mystical hero who possesses the power of Aether which gives him or her the ability to use all the elemental Chi. However, when the world begged for the Tao Dragon to come to rescue them, he vanished and remains not found._

 _However, fast-forward to present days, and things are about to change a lot. Listen to the story...of Tao Dragon Karasu._

* * *

The cold wind was blowing across the frozen tundra of the Water Country's South Pole. A little fish was splashing around near a floe of nice, not seeing the yellow eyes of a very hungry grey fox glaring at him. The predator remained crouched as he slowly approached the water animal, rose his spear...

GLOOM!

...And then stopped as a glowing light blue ball formed around the fish, slowly lifting him out of the water and into the air where he could no longer breath. The grey fox sighed annoyingly and pierced the fish with his spear to end his suffering. After the glowing ball faded away, he grabbed the dead fish in his mittens before turning toward his sister.

"I was getting this, Aurora. You didn't have to use your little magic tricks to interfere."

The female jackal crossed her arms over her chest. "It's no magic trick, Tama; it's Aura. The power given by the world's life energy itself."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," the grey fox named Tama said with rolling his eyes. "The point is you shouldn't underestimate your big brother's hunting skills."

"Yeah, sure," Aurora said with rolling her eyes.

"What is that supposed to mean? Are you underestimating me?"

"Ever since that time you almost got killed by a lion-seal after hitting it with your boomerang, yes."

"IT WAS ONLY BECAUSE YOU DISTRACTED ME!" Tama annoyingly shouted at his sister. He then took a deep breath and sighed. "Anyways, that should be enough fish for the next few days. Let's go back to the village."

Tama placed the dead fish into a wooden basket filled with dead fish and a few sea prunes before walking away. Aurora was bouncing in the snow next to him. The grey fox was about to ask her to clean his clothes when they get back to the village...when something strange happened.

The ground started shaking and the two siblings lost their footing, sending Tama face-first into a pile of snow. The fox waited for the shake to end before standing up and shake the snow off his face. "What the living heck was that?!"

Tama then saw Aurora looking in a direction with her eyes wide open. "W-What's that?!" Following her gaze, Tama also widened his eyes in surprise.

Not too far from them, a huge bubble of ice came out from the ocean and pulled large chunks of ice away from the floe. But the most concerning part was that they could see a glowing figure inside the ice. It looked like an avian of some sort.

"Tama! There's a bird trapped in there!" Aurora exclaimed in shock.

"Quick!" Tama stood up and the two siblings made their way to the giant ice bubble by jumping on chunks of ice in the water.

Arriving before it, Tama quickly grabbed the little wooden axe that he used to cut wood and started slamming it against the wall of ice. However, after around five strikes, the avian figure inside the bubble started glowing so much that the grey fox had to cover his eyes.

Suddenly, an energy explosion sent the two siblings flying back a few feet - not in the water, luckily - and a huge beam of light flew up right to the sky. After many seconds, Aurora and Tama were able to look as the light faded away.

"What was that?!" the grey fox asked in shock and confusion.

Aurora hopped her way back to the now broken ice bubble and peered inside. To her surprise, the avian she saw earlier groaned, standing up and stretching his body. It was a male raven with pitch black feathers wearing navy blue robes. He had a sword of some kind tied to his hip and a purple scarf around his neck. His head feathers were tied in a ponytail by a purple band.

He blinked his light green eyes a few times before staring at the two confused siblings with a smile. "Hello there, I'm Karasu," he said with bowing politely.

"Hi, Karasu. I'm Aurora. And this is Tama, my brother."

As the grey fox waved at him, the raven named Karasu gave a curious look. "Is that so? Strange; you seem to be different species."

"Yeah, that's a long story," Tama said, pulling his axe away.

The raven stretched his body a lot before looking all around him. "What'S going on here?"

"You tell us. What were you doing in the ice? Why aren't you frozen? And what's with that sword?"

"I'm not sure about the first two questions. As for the third, this is my Masamune sword," Karasu replied with a smile. He then thought about something and ran back in the broken ice bubble. "Fin!"

The two siblings exchanged curious looks before following him...and then widened their eyes. Karasu was hugging the face of a giant reptilian creature that had emerald green scales and bright yellow eyes. The creature smiled and nuzzled the raven.

"W-What's that?!" Tama asked.

"This is Fin Fang Foom, but just call him Fin. He's my dragon friend," Karasu replied.

"...D-Dragon?" Aurora asked in disbelief. "But...didn't they go extinct, a hundred years ago?"

"Not all of them, my young friend," Fin replied softly.

"H-He can talk?!" Tama exclaimed.

"Of course he can," Karasu replied before looking around the tundra landscape. "So, do you guys have any home around here?"

Aurora was about to answer but got silenced by Tama. "Don't answer that. This light beam you made moments ago, did you tried to warn the Fire Navy?"

"Come on, Tama," Aurora said with rolling her eyes. "Does he really look like a Fire Nation spy to you?" She then looked at Karasu. "Our village is located east from here."

"Alright, Fin can give you a ride there if you want."

"Huh, I don't think this would be a good idea-" However, Tama's protest was pointless as he ended up on the dragon's back with his sister and Karasu. The grey fox screamed as the emerald dragon flew across the sky and toward east...

* * *

 **That's it for the first chapter, my friends. Aurora and Tama discovered Karasu and his dragon sleeping into an ice bubble. They are now heading back to their village with their new friends. What surprises are in for them?**

 **Tama is a Samoan name and** **is the variation of the name Tamah or Tamar. Tama Janowitz, the American novelist, is a famous bearer of this name. It comes from the Hebrew name Tamara, which means "date palm tree". The final 'a' in this name gives it a sensual Slavic tone.**

 **Karasu means "Raven" in Japanese. As for Aurora...well, it fits with her skill to use the Aura.**

 **Karasu and Aurora are OCs of TheDragonSaver. Tama is mine. And** **Fin Fang Foom is a character of Marvel Comics. Since TheDragonSaver like dragons, I decided to give his OC a dragon.**


	337. Light beams and hot tea

Fin needed rest and decided to settle in a spot to sleep which left his three friends to go back to the village on foot. Tama was walking ahead while his sister and new raven friend were having a little chat at the back.

"So, the _Sky_ Air Temple?"

"Yup," Karasu said with a nod. "You should see it during spring; the trees and bushes bloom and the sun is shining in the hallway."

"Karasu, you don't have to make up stories to get me to like you, okay?" Aurora said.

Karasu looked at the jackal and laughed a little. "Why would you say that, Aurora?"

"It's a bit hard to believe people are living in the Sky Temples again. I mean, after what the Fire Nation did to the Sky Ninjas, it would seem disrespectful to just move into their temple like that."

Karasu suddenly stopped walking. He gave a curious and serious look to Aurora. "What do you mean? What did the Fire Nation do?"

"Come on, Karasu. Everybody knows the story. You can't have been trapped in the ice _that_ long..." However, Karasu did not crack a smile and kept staring seriously at the jackal. "The Fire Nation wiped out the Sky Ninjas a hundred years ago. The Sky Temples are all in ruins."

Karasu took three steps backward and trembled a bit. "N-No. That's not possible..."

Aurora reached her paw toward him. "Karasu..."

However, before she could finish her sentence, the raven opened his wings and flew away. The jackal girl could only watch him disappear toward the horizon they came from. "Where's he going?" Tama asked as he came beside her.

The jackal sadly sighed. "I think he's going to find a terrible truth..."

* * *

The cold wind was blowing against Lord Shen's white feathers. It was so cold here - colder than he remembered it being, two years ago. But he did not care. For now, he was too busy scanning the frozen landscape through his spyglass at the top of his Fire Nation steamer.

His body was starting to feel numb from staying out in the cold for so long. The peacock would have to go back inside and use his Fire Chi to relieve himself soon. Right now, he kept looking all around the tundra for a sign of the legendary Tao Dragon. But so far, the only things he saw were ice, cold water, snow, snow, and even more cursed SNOW!

"Lord Shen," a soft, friendly voice called from behind. "You have been out here for a long time. Wouldn't you like to come in for a hot cup of tea?"

Shen turned around to the sight of his uncle's light brown feathers and eyes. His chubby figure covered by the traditional red Fire Nation robes was standing in the doorway. Longwei, the only one in the High Peacock Council who stood for Shen when the Fire Lord decided to exile him. Not even his parents or his sister dared to go as far as following him in exile in search of the Tao Dragon.

"Sure, Uncle," Shen said, walking toward the doorway. "Hot sea sounds alright."

The two peacocks closed the door behind them and sat around the table onto which were laying a kettle and two tiny cups. Longwei poured hot tea into both cups, inhaling the steam from his own tea before exhaling and looking at Shen.

"Why are we here again, Nephew? Wouldn't you rather search for the Tao Dragon in the tropics?"

"If the Tao Dragon was hiding in the tropics, someone would have found him by now," Shen replied before taking a sip of his hot tea. "Besides, I thought you didn't believe in the Tao Dragon, Uncle."

"It isn't that I don't believe he exists, Shen. It is that it might not be your destiny to find him."

This statement caused Shen to scowl at his uncle. "And what is my destiny, Uncle? To languish in exile while Mayuko takes my crown? To die without honor and be forever remembered as Gongmen's greatest failure? Is this a new family tradition I didn't know of?"

Longwei sighed after finished a sip of tea. "Destiny is not a simple matter of success or failure, Lord Shen. Destiny is the road you walk as you pass by all the victories and defeats of your life. A wise man recognizes when he's trying to walk a path that will take him to places he does not truly want to go."

Suddenly, a huge glowing light coming from the outside caught the peacocks' attention. Shen quickly pulled his teacup down to go out. He was forced to shield his eyes from the light with his wing before being able to see a big light beam going straight to the sky. After a few seconds, a realization came into him.

It was him! The Tao Dragon!

"It's him! The Tao Dragon!" Sehn turned toward the lower levels of his steamer. "Set for the direction of this light beam immediately!" A grin then formed on his beak. "Looks like chance has finally decided to come to me, old man!"

Even though he didn't turn around to look at him, Longwei sighed in a mix of sadness and relief for his nephew.

* * *

 **I know this chapter was a bit short, but the next one will be longer.**

 **So, Shen has finally been introduced into this story. Which is a good thing because he's a fan-favorite character in the KFP fandom. As you can probably guess already, he's gonna play a major role in this arc.**

 **"Longwei" means "Dragon" and "Greatness" in Chinese. You'll understand why I decided to give this name to Shen's uncle later on.**


	338. The Sky Temple

**Before we start this chapter, I'd like to thank RiodanJaneiro97 who wrote the first half of this chapter for me. I truly appreciate your help, dude.**

* * *

The golden sun appeared over the horizon, producing rays of a glorious sunny day that peaked over the mountains all over the Independent Lands. It was truly a beautiful setting. But what could be seen was a light green figure flying at top speed in the horizon.

Fin, a large green lime dragon, flew through the air with such force that he could feel the warm breeze flowing past his wings as he gracefully flapped his large green wings. Also sleeping on his back could be seen was a small ninja raven. His name was Karasu.

He had recently been freed from an iceball by a young jackal and young grey fox living in the Water Country. Their names were Aurora and Tama respectively.

Slowly but surely, she explained to him that the whole clan was wiped out by the deathly Fire Nation. He never believed the words she said. So he jumped on Fin's back and they immediately left the Water Country to find the rest of the Ninja Clan. Believing that they were still alive of course. But Aurora knew that what they were about to discover could cause great pain and sadness inside of him.

Fin was flying through the air with such speed like a lightning bolt. As he was in quite a hurry to help Karasu find his friends to find the truth. Hoping that Aurora was wrong.

Karasu slowly woke up from his slumber as he was peering over Fin's head yawning in the process.

"Fin, ahhhh. Are we nearly there yet my friend?" he curiously asked his dragon friend.

"Oh, you're awake already huh? Almost, I feel as though we will be arriving shortly," he replied with a small grin.

"I hope so because I really hope that Aurora was wrong!" Karasu said with a concerned voice.

"I still can't believe you survived in the Ice? I would have thought you'd freeze to death," Fin replied with a slight chuckle.

Karasu looked offended at these words and scoffed at his remark. "Me? Die? Oh, that's where you're wrong! It takes more than that to kill me!" Karasu replied with determination.

"Well, now we can help you find your friends. Because we have arrived!" Fin declared loudly.

Karasu surprised by this remark jumped to his feet and walked to the shoulders of Fin, overlooking the home of the Sky Ninja Clan.

"I'm home...," he said in a soft voice as Fin was gliding gracefully to the surface below looking for a safe place to land.

Once he landed, Karasu jumped off his back and turned to him. "Wait here...I'm going in alone," he said with a confident tone.

"Suit yourself. I'll rest here," Fin replied with a small grin as Karasu then began walking towards the temple calling for his friends in the process.

"Hey! Hello?! Guys, it's me! I'm alive! Hello?!" Karasu shouted numerous times to nobody in particular, just hoping that any sign of his clan would come running towards him to welcome him back. But something didn't seem right to him. He felt a cold shiver down his spine.

"Let's check the temple," he thought aloud. But before entering the temple he places one wing on his Masamune blade, preparing for the worst case scenario.

He entered the temple, slowly and stealthily moving his talons up the steps checking his shoulder for any detectable movement. But what he feared was what he saw in the next room which made his eyes look in pure shock and horror.

"What...the...hell happened here?" Karasu couldn't breathe as what appeared in front of him were several bones and rotten bodies from Fire Nation soldiers as well as the raven ninja clan warriors.

Something has woken up inside of Karasu. His heart was beating at a rapid pace. His wings were shaking. His breathing turned into heavy grunts while gritting his beak. His eyes that were bright green were filled with fiery rage and hate.

"NOOOO! THIS CANNOT BE! THIS ISN'T TRUE! AHHHHHHH!" Karasu screamed with rage at the top of his lungs. But something else happened which was an unbelievable sight. Lightning appeared from the skies crashing down all around him. Destroying everything in sight.

The temple was being destroyed by the raging lightning. The walls were being destroyed, the ceiling was crumbling and the floor beneath him began to crack and rip apart. The whole temple came tumbling down with a loud 'CRASH!' But he was so full of hate and rage in his eyes and heart.

But once he stopped screaming he began to slowly calm down. And the rage in his eyes and his heart was replaced with the feeling of guilt and sadness.

"100 years I was trapped in Ice. If I hadn't run away...They'd still be alive..."

"It's not your fault, Karasu, you couldn't have predicted this. Come on let's get some rest." Fin arrived next to him and lay down on what was the temple floor. Karasu then arrived next to him and they both suddenly fell asleep.

"Aurora, I'm sorry I didn't believe you..." was the last thing he mumbled before drifting off to sleep.

* * *

7 hours later

Karasu was breathing heavily while sleeping through a peaceful slumber after the tragic occurrence that happened the night before. But as he was sleeping he felt a small peck on his head.

"Ow! What the..." As he woke up he noticed a small puffin bird with a seal head. He was currently sniffing at his face which made him feel ticklish.

"Hey, hehehe! Stop that!" The puffin slowly sat down, staring at him with innocent black eyes. Looking like he wanted someone to play with. "Forget it. I'm not in the mood!" Karasu replied quite harshly, but that didn't stop the puffin who slowly kicked what looked like a nut towards him.

"Oh, you want to play fetch?" The puffin jumped up and down excitedly. "Ok...FETCH!" When he said that he threw it high in the air. But something weird happened. The puffin shot up at lightning speed and kicked the nut straight back at his head. "OW! OH, IT IS ON!" he said with determination.

Karasu began chuckling and kicking the nut back and forth with his new friend. In between passes Karasu slowly becomes attached to the little puffin. "Quite an energetic little guy," he thought in his head while enjoying playing with him. Although they were having so much fun, the puffin kicked the nut so hard it hit Fin in the eye, causing him to softly groan and shoot wide awake.

"OW! HEY! WATCH IT!" Fin shouted angrily while growling which made Karasu show an amused smile while the puffin hid behind him in fear.

"Sorry Fin. It was an accident," Karasu replied with a slight chuckle. Although fin wasn't really amused.

"Haha, very funny, who's this little guy?" he replied, referring to the puffin hiding behind Karasu's back.

"I don't know, he just came and woke me up. I don't think he has a name," he replied while patting his small head. "I think I might keep him, we could use another member for our group," Karasu said while the puffin jumped up and down excitedly which made Fin and Karasu slightly chuckle.

"Fine, but he's your responsibility. Now come on, let's gather some supplies before our long flight back to the water country," Fin declared while walking to a small stream to have a drink of water.

Karasu then nodded his head in agreement before asking his new friend, "Do you know where we can find more fruits and nuts?" The puffin then nodded his head quickly before grabbing his wing and luring him to the forest where he saw plenty of fruits and nuts growing. "Good job little guy," Karasu grinned while softly patting his head.

So for the next several hours or so they all started gathering several delicious fruits and nuts for the journey. Karasu gathered mangoes, oranges, and papaya while the puffin could only gather small nuts because of his smaller size.

After filling up on supplies, Karasu then took a quick glance at the deceased temple that was half rubble and half crumbling rocks. "Hold on, I'll need to gather some more arrows and ninja stars for the journey," he said with a straight face.

Fin sighed while staring at the destroyed temple as well, then replied "Fine but don't take too long, it's nearly nightfall and we don't want to be here too long." After his reply, Karasu then entered the temple gathering several arrows for his bow and arrow, and several ninja stars. He couldn't help but let out a small tear while softly mumbling under his breath. "The Fire nation will pay for what they did." He then walked out of the temple with an angry look.

When nightfall came, it was time for the three friends to head back to the Water Country to find Aurora and Tama, and plan their next move. Although he couldn't believe that Aurora was telling the truth about what has happened to his clan.

"Fin, let's go," Karasu replied while putting his new puffin friend in the satchel on the back of the saddle. Before he climbed on his back and sat next to the satchel on top of his saddle.

"I agree, let's go," Fin replied before slowly flapping his enormous green wings and ascending in the air, and flying on course back to the Water Country.

But, as they were flying away from the place, Karasu looked behind at the deceased temple which was nothing but broken debris and rubble from the lightning strikes. He then let a small tear emerge from his eye before sniffing and turning around with a determined look towards the orange glowing sunset. With the sting of pain in his heart.

But one thing was on his mind. He wanted to find the person responsible for the Fire Nation's attack on his home. One thing was for sure though. He wanted them to pay for what they did to his clan.

* * *

 **Man, I'm feeling sad for poor Karasu. Waking up after a hundred years and discovering that all the people you knew are gone...that's hard.**

 **I wanna thank RiodanJaneiro97 again for writing this awesome chapter. This allowed me to publish two chapters in one day. As an author, I'm not ashamed of sometimes getting help from my friends.**

 **Also, for those of you who didn't realize it yet...the little puffin with a seal head is a Porg from Star Wars. Yeah, I love those adorable little creatures, you can judge me if you want. How do you think Karasu and Fin should name him?**


	339. Return of the Tao Dragon

**Before we start this chapter, I'd like to share an info with you: Karasu would be voiced by Ryan Potters who is known for playing Hiro Hamada from Big Hero 6 and Tama would be played by WWE pro wrestler Roman Reigns, cousin of Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, and will soon play in Hobbs & Shaw. Just to give you an idea of how they sound.**

* * *

Fin kept flying through the air while Karasu was sitting on the satchel of his back, having a little fun with his new porg friend. "Have you decided how to name him yet?" the green dragon asked.

"Hmmm," Karasu said with rubbing his chin. "What about...Dum Gai?"

The dragon rose an eyebrow. "...Really? You wanna give him this name?"

"Yes, it sounds funny." Karasu looked at the horizon where he saw a Fire Nation steamer breaking through the tundra's ice and heading straight toward a little village. Karasu's eyes widened as he immediately knew it was Aurora and Tama's. "Oh no!"

The raven immediately opened his wings and flew off Fin's back.

* * *

Tama was sweating nervously as he was standing on top of the snow wall surrounding his village. He knew that the light beam created by Karasu's release earlier would cause the Fire Nation to come to investigate it. The grey wolf decided to put on his best warrior suit along with his white, black, and red battle facepaint. Once it was done, he took his wooden spear, boomerang, and wood axe and took position on the snow wall to wait for the enemy to arrive.

He was not going to let those scums hurt his family.

As his yellow eyes scanned the horizon for the incoming enemies, the ground suddenly started shaking, alerting the people of the village. Tama took out his axe as a shadow started coming out of the mist and toward them...and it was huge! The poor grey fox could only look helplessly as the Fire Nation steamer broke through the ice and right into the snow wall, breaching it and sending him flying back a few feet away.

The huge ship's landing board opened onto the pile of snow and out of it slowly walked a white peacock dressed in maroon robes with two Fire Masters on either of his sides. His metal talons clanked on the metal ramp with every step he took.

Tama, who recovered from his fall, let out a battle cry as he charged at the peacock, swinging his axe at him. However, Shen nonchalantly ducked, delivered a strike into the grey wolf's chest, kicked him to the side, and continued advancing as if nothing had happened. Soon, he arrived before the terrified villagers.

His crimson eyes filled with hate and rage scanned all the water people standing before him. "Where is he." That wasn't a question. It was a command. "Where is the Tao Dragon."

Aurora blinked. There was a stunned silence. "The Tao Dragon vanished a hundred years ago," Aurora ventured. "If he has returned, he has not done so here."

The albino peacock scowled even harder. "Don't make the mistake of lying to me," he said, then raised his voice. "I saw the light coming to the sky!" He then glared at Aurora. "You know something."

The young jackal was trembling a bit under the crimson eyes' glare. Just then, a battle cry was heard and Shen turned around to see Tama charging at him with his wood axe again. The avian nonchalantly made him flip over his shoulder by using his own momentum against him.

The grey fox growled angrily and swiftly grabbed his boomerang before throwing it at his enemy. Shen simply lowered his head to duck it. Tama then took out his wooden spear and charged at the peacock, looking to pierce him with his weapon. However, Shen swiftly grabbed his Guan Dao and used it to cut the grey fox's spear to pieces, finishing with a kick to his chest which knocked him down.

Shen pointed his Guan Dao at the defeated canine...who simply smirked. Suddenly, the boomerang came back flying to its source and hit Shen right behind the head, making him groan in pain, before returning into Tama's paw.

However, not only was the peacock not knocked out, he even looked more pissed off than before. Just as he was about to shoot a jet of fire at Tama, a figure came down from the sky and delivered a dive kick to the peacock's face, knocking him away into one of his Fire Masters.

"Karasu!" Aurora exclaimed as the raven landed on the snowy ground.

He turned toward them with a smile. "Hey, Aurora! Hey, Tama!"

"Hey," Tama said, not really in the mood for having a chit-chat.

Karasu then turned toward Shen who recovered from his attack and rose his Guan Dao. The raven decided to take out his sword and the two avians started walking around in circles. They scanned each other, looking for an opening.

"...I've trained, struggled, searched, and meditated all my life for this day," Shen mumbled without lowering his defense. "...And the legendary Tao Dragon is just a little ninja?"

"That's still better than being a moody teenager," Karasu replied smugly.

"T-The Tao Dragon?!" Aurora mumbled from behind where she was watching the whole scene.

Shen let out an insulted growl and charged his Guan Dao with Fire Chi before shooting a huge blast toward Karasu. This last one charged his sword with Lightning Chi before launching a strike which collided with the fire blast, creating an elemental explosion. While the attack was dissipating, Karasu turned around and looked at the scared villagers.

After the attack dissipated, Lord Shen was about to attack again, only for the raven to rise his wing to make him stop. "Wait, I surrender! I'm just asking you to please not harm those villagers!"

Aurora and Tama gasped at this. Shen just stared at the raven...before nodding and pulling his Guan Dao away. Karasu pulled his sword back into his sheath before allowing the two Fire Masters to tie his wings behind his back and bring him toward the steamer.

"Karasu! No!" Aurora called and tried to go help her friend, but Tama caught his sister's arm to stop her.

As Shen and the Fire Masters entered the ship and the entrance ramp started closing, Karasu looked at his friends one last time with a smile. "Don't worry, it will be alright..."

Once the ramp was completely closed, the engines turned one and the steamer sailed off to the sea once again...

* * *

Later on, the villagers were still shaken by what happened with the Fire Nation men but still worked on rebuilding the village's damage. Aurora, however, was still sitting onto the ice floe at the edge of the sea. The young jackal was visibly shaken but then got joined by her brother from behind.

"Aurora-"

"We have to go after them, Tama," the jackal firmly said.

"I know, but-"

"When will you accept the fact that Karasu is not a bad guy? If we don't go helping him, no one else will. Besides, you saw him using Lightning Chi, this means that he is-"

"Aurora!" The jackal turned around to see her brother looking seriously at her. "Are you just gonna stand there and talk, or are you gonna come with me?" he asked with pointing at a canoe watercraft he packed with paddles and bags of food.

Aurora gasped before smiling and hugging her brother. "Tama! You're the best!"

"I know," the grey fox chuckled. "Come on, let's go."

"What do you two think you're doing?" The two siblings froze and turned around to see their grandma standing there with a raised eyebrow.

"Huh...we're...," Tama mumbled, trying to find an excuse.

The elder grey fox advanced toward her grandhcildren...before handing them a backpack. "You'll need to be better suited than this for the journey ahead of you. I put some extra rations in this along with warmer clothes for the warmer zones you'll travel through and a new spear for you, Tama."

The siblings were surprised by their grandma's support. "It has been such a long time since I had hope. But you brought it back, my little jackal," she said with hugging Aruroa. She then turned toward Tama. "Your father would be so proud of you, Tama. Keep a good eye on your sister, would you?"

"I will, Grandma, don't worry," the grey fox replied with hugging his grandma back.

"This young raven is the Tao Dragon. He's our world's only hope. You two found him for a reason. Now, it is your destiny to help him save the Independent Islands."

The two siblings stared at each other in silence before looking at Tama's canoe. "There's no way we can catch up with a steamer with this canoe."

"What do you suggest we do then? Swim?" Tama sarcastically asked.

"Need help, young people?" Everybody turned to see Fin landing before them from the sky with a serious look. "Get on my back; I'll help you catch up with the steamer."

* * *

Meanwhile, on the steamer, Karasu looked as Shen was holding his Masamune sword in his wings, admiring the clean, silver blade.

"This is a very beautiful sword with a fine blade," the peacock mumbled before pulling the weapon back in his sheath and glanced at the raven. "This will make a wonderful gift for the Fire Lord." He then turned toward his two Fire Masters. "Set off for the Fire Country; we're going back home."

Karasu suddenly grinned. "You seem to have forgotten a detail; I'm a Lightning Master!" Right after saying that, Karasu created a small lightning explosion with his body which knocked Shen and the Fire Masters away while also snapping the ropes binding his wings.

Shen groaned and looked up as the ninja grabbed his sword that he dropped and quickly unsheathed it. However, before the two avians could clash again, Shen spotted a figure in the sky coming toward them. "What is that?"

Karasu turned to look at it and smiled. "Fin!"

Shen groaned angrily and started shooting fire blasts at the raven who blocked them with his sword. However, a powerful blast knocked the sword out of Karasu's wings and Shen then delivered a violent kick to his chest which knocked him off the ship and into the water down below.

"KARASU!" Aurora, Tama, and Fin exclaimed in horror while Dum Gai just screamed in panic.

Shen walked over to the edge of his ship and looked at the water down below. He was surprised when a glowing blue light appeared under the surface and a water tornado blasted up in the air. Karasu landed on the desk again, but he was different. His body was shining with a blue light and his eyes were a pure white too.

Swinging his wings around, the young ninja knocked away Shen and all the Fire Masters who rushed on the deck away with his water tornado. Needless to say, Aurora and Tama were surprised by this display.

"You saw that?!" Aurora asked in shock.

"He can use Lightning...AND Water Chi?!" the grey fox said in disbelief.

After this display of power, the light blue aura faded away and Karasu collapsed on the ground, tiredness taking over him. Fin quickly landed on the ship and the four friends rushed over to the young ninja.

"Karasu!" Aurora said with taking her friend in her arms.

Karasu weakly groaned and looked at them. "Aurora. Tama. Fin. Dum Gai."

"Hey, pal," Tama said with a smile.

"I...I dropped my sword."

"Got it," the grey fox said with running to grab the ninja's sword and ran back to his friend. As more Fire Masters came out of the ship and toward them, Aurora created a small Aura blast to knock them away but didn't knock them unconscious.

"Let's go!" Everybody gathered onto Fin's back, ready to leave. However, Shen managed to climb back on the ship and rose his Guan Dao. "I won't let you escape like this-OW!" He got interrupted as he received Tama's boomerang to the face.

"That's for destroying my snow wall, buddy!" Tama said with a chuckle after grabbing his boomerang back.

Fin then flapped his wings and flew away from the ship. At the same time, Uncle Longwei walked out of the ship and yawned before seeing the Fire Masters knocked down and Shen rubbing his head in pain. "...Did I miss something?"

"Let's take them down, Uncle!" Shen ordered.

The two peacocks performed a move simultaneously and shot a double blast of fire toward the flying dragon. Karasu saw it coming and stood up at the back of Fin's body to slash the attack in two with his sword. This caused one half of the blast to crash against the side of a snow wall that collapsed onto the steamer, preventing it from advancing.

"No!" Shen angrily growled as he saw his enemies flying away and laughing on the emerald dragon's back.

"Good news for the Fire Lord," Longwei said, stepping next to his nephew. "The Fire Nation's greatest threat is just a young Sky Ninja."

Shen turned to scowl at him. "This young Sky Ninja, Uncle, did this," he said with pointing at the pile of snow covering half of the ship. "I won't make the mistake of underestimating him again." He then looked at his Fire Masters. "Start getting us out of this mess right now!"

* * *

Meanwhile, far from there, Fin was flying toward the setting sun which gave an orange tint to the sky. "H-How did you do that back there?" Aurora asked Karasu. "It was the most amazing thing I've ever seen!"

Karasu looked down. "I don't know. I just...did it."

The jackal and grey fox gave the raven serious looks. "Why didn't you tell us you were the Tao Dragon?"

Karasu remained silent for a while before answering, "...I never wanted to be it. This caused so much trouble in my life...before I got trapped in the ice with Fin."

A long silence settled in. Finally, Aurora decided to spoke: "But Karasu, the world has been waiting for the return of the Tao Dragon for over a decade. We all have been waiting for the Tao Dragon to put an end to this war."

"And how am I supposed to do that?"

"According to legends, you possess the power of Aether which allows you to use all the elemental Chi. You already have mastered Lightning; this leaves water, earth, fire, metal, and ice," Aurora counted on her fingers.

"So...how are we gonna do that?" Karasu asked.

Suddenly, Tama pulled out a map of the world, opened it on the satchel, and traced a line over it with a pencil. "What's that, Tama?" Aurora curiously asked.

"This is the path we're gonna take to reach the North Pole. There, we can find someone for both of you to properly teach the use of Water Chi." The grey fox then smirked at them. "We left the Water Country; it's time for the journey of Team Tao to begin!"

* * *

 **Alright, Team Tao have escaped from Lord Shen and are now heading for the north! It's the start of the journey for Karasu, Aurora, Tama, Fin, and Dum Gai.**

 **BTW, did you caught the pun with Dum Gai's name? If yes, lemme know.**

 **And also...LMAO, Tama avenged his snow wall!**


	340. Confrontation with Cinead

**Before we start this chapter, TheDragonSaver told me his actor choice for Aurora's voice: Emily Blunt, know best for her roles as Mary Poppins in "Mary Poppins Returns", Rita in "Edge of Tomorrow", and Tempest Shadow in "My Little Pony: The Movie".**

* * *

Shen growled angrily as he ate his rice bowl. He still had no clues of the Tao Dragon's whereabouts and the damage done to his ship caused it to lose speed. "When I catch those brats who helped him, I'm gonna make them wish they were never born."

Across the table, Longwei raised his eyes from his rice soup and lowered his chopsticks. "And how do you plan to go about catching them?"

"Last time we saw them, this dragon was bringing them north. I bet they are going to try and reach the Northern Water Tribe and find someone to teach Water Chi to the Tao Dragon.

Shen stirred his rice soup and glowered until a Fire Master came to stand inside the door of the dining room. "Lord Shen, we have entered the harbor."

"Finally," the white peacock said, dropping his rice bowl a little too hard. One of the chopsticks flopped out onto the table, but Shen was already halfway out of the room. The peacock wasn't that happy, to be honest, as he tried to avoid the Fire Navy stations as much as possible. To have to put his steamer in for repairs here of all place was infuriating.

Shen emerged on the main deck and came to stand at the bow, glaring out at the harbor as the ship struggled toward the pilings. Midday had passed more than an hour ago and the dock bustled with soldiers going about their work. And, as if the universe was against him, the Captain's flagship was ducked by the only empty space.

"Uncle, I want the repairs made as quickly as possible," Shen told his uncle as the two of them walked down the entrance ramp of the ship and down on the harbor. "I don't wanna stay too long in this dirty place and risk losing his trail."

"You mean the Tao Dragon," Longwei nonchalantly said.

Shen suddenly stopped in his tracks and gave a serious look to his uncle. "Don't mention his name on these docks! Once words get out that he's alive, every Fire Master will be out looking for him. I don't want anyone getting in the way."

"Getting in the way of what, Lord Shen?"

The two peacocks turned around to see Captain Cinead arriving. He was no ordinary wolf: his fur was a blood red with dark blue markings on the right side of his face and golden earrings decorating his right ear. He was proudly wearing the Fire Nation's red robes and walked toward the two peacocks with a straight, dignified back. However, it was the black wolf with a sealed eye walking beside him that caught Shen'S attention.

"Xing..."

"Captain Cinead," Longwei greeted the wolf with a smile.

"It's _Commander_ now, General Longwei," the wolf said with still bowing in respect nonetheless.

" _Retired_ General," Longwei corrected with a small chuckle.

"How are you doing, Shen?" Xing asked the white peacock in a friendly tone.

"I'm doing well, Xing," Shen replied in a surprisingly friendly tone as well, even smiling a bit. "I sure hope the Commander is not causing you too much trouble."

"Don't worry; I can live with him for now," the black wolf replied with a chuckle.

"The Fire Lord's brother and nephew are welcome guests any time. What brings you to my harbor?" Cinead asked the two peacocks, pretending he hasn't heard what his subordinate just said.

"Our ship is being repaired," Longwei replied with pointing a wing at the badly damaged steamer.

"Wow, did you run into a giant sea snake or something?" Xing asked, visibly surprised by the current state of the ship.

"Well, you wouldn't believe what happened," Shen said. "Uncle, tell Commander Cinead and Xing what happened."

The old brown peacock widened his eyes and looked alternatively between his nephew and Commander Cinead. "Huh...yes, yes! I will do that! It was incredible...did we crash or something?" he mumbled the last part to Shen.

"Yes, right into an Earth Kingdom ship," the white peacock quickly said.

"Really?" Cinead asked (even Xing seemed to have a hard time believing them). "You must fill me in with all the thrilling details." The wolf leaned toward Lord Shen. "Care to join me for a drink?"

Shen narrowed his eyes in response. "Sorry, but we have to go."

However, before he could leave, the banished prince got stopped by Longwei who put his wing on his shoulder. "Lord Shen, show Commander Cinead your respect." He then looked at the red wolf with a smile. "We would be honored to join you. Do you have any jasmine tea? It's my favorite."

Shen face-winged at this. "That old bird..."

* * *

A few moments later, Shen and Longwei were sitting inside Commander Cinead's tent and around a square-shaped wooden table to eat some fine quality rice, dumplings, and jasmine tea. While Shen and Xing caught up about what happened since the last time they saw each other, around a year and a half ago, Commander Cinead told Longwei about the Fire Nation's current progress on their conquest for the Independent Islands.

"...And by year's end, the Earth Kingdom's capital will be under our rule," the red wolf concluded with looking at a map of the Independent Islands. "The Fire Lord will finally claim victory in this war."

"If my uncle thinks the world will follow him blindingly, then he is a fool," Shen spat in disgust.

"All those years at sea have done little to temper your tone," Cinead said with a chuckle. "So...how is your search for the Tao Dragon going?"

"I'm sure you must have at least a lead by now, right?" Xing asked his friend.

However, to his disappointment, Shen shook his head while looking down. "We haven't found anything yet."

"Are you really surprised? The last Tao Dragon died a thousand years ago along with the rest of the Sky Ninjas," Commander Cinead said. A little smirk then formed on his lips. "Unless you have found some evidence that the Tao Dragon is still alive?"

"No...nothing..."

"Lord Shen, the Tao Dragon is the only one who can prevent the Fire Nation from winning this war. If you have an ounce of loyalty left, you'll tell me what you found."

"I haven't found anything. As you said, the Tao Dragon probably died a long time ago." The white peacock then stood up and walked toward the exit. "Come on, Uncle, we're going."

However, before he could leave, two soldiers suddenly blocked his path with their spears and another one walked in toward the commander. "Commander, we interrogated the crew as you instructed. They have confirmed Lord Shen had the Tao Dragon in custody and let him escape."

Shen frowned and cursed his dumb crew in his head. Couldn't they keep their mouth shut?! "Now, remind me," Cinead said with a smirk. "How exactly was your ship damaged?"

* * *

Moments later, Shen and Longwei were forced to sit down with the former telling the whole story to Commander Cinead while the latter just enjoyed his jasmine tea. "So a lonely and confused ninja raven beasted you and your Fire Masters," Commander Cinead said with a scoff. "You're more pathetic than I thought."

"I underestimated him once but it's not gonna happen again," Shen said in a serious tone.

"Not it will not...because you won't have a second chance," Cinead simply said.

"Commander Cinead, I've been hunting the Tao Dragon for over five years-"

"I don't care!" Cinead interrupted him with firmly swinging his paw to create a small jet of fire for intimidation. "Capturing the Tao DRagon is too important to leave it in the hands of a banished prince."

"Commander, if I may-" Xing tried to say.

"You may not!" the commander stopped his subordinate with a glare. He then turned back to the white peacock. "He's mine now!"

Shen growled and jumped off his chair, looking to pin the red wolf down and slash his face. However, two soldiers restrained and made him sit back in the chair.

"Keep them here," he ordered.

As the red wolf walked away, Shen angrily kicked into the table, knocking it down along with the jasmine tea and food set on it.

"...More tea, please," Longwei politely demanded.

* * *

Sometime later, Commander Cinead returned and looked at the two peacocks who did not move from their position. "My search party is ready. Once I'm out to the sea, my guards will escort you back to your ship and you will be free to go."

"Why? Are you worried I'm gonna try and stop you?" Shen sarcastically asked.

Commander Cinead suddenly started laughing a lot. "You? Stop me? Impossible."

Shen suddenly stood up from his chair again. "Don't underestimate me, Cinead! I will capture the Tao Dragon before you!"

"Lord Shen, that's enough!" Longwei tried to calm his nephew down.

"You think you can compete with me? I have hundreds of warships under my command. And you...you're just a banished prince who did not even receive support from his friends nor his own family."

These words caused Shen'S crimson eyes to burn with even more rage while Xing looked down in shame, in his corner of the tent. "You're wrong! When I bring the Tao Dragon back to the Fire Nation, the Peacock Council - including the Fire Lord - will welcome me with honor and I will go back home to restore my rightful place on the throne of Gongmen!"

"If your parents really wanted you home, they would have let you by now," Cinead said with a serious look. "But they didn't do anything for you when the order of your banishment was given by the Fire Lord. To them, you are nothing by a failure and a shame!"

"That's not true!"

"Your white feathers should be enough of a proof."

"Want me to make your fur even redder than it already is?"

"Is that a challenge?"

"A fire duel, at sunset."

"Very well. It's a shame your parents won't be here to see me humiliate you," Cinead said before turning around and walking out of the tent.

"Lord Shen, have you forgotten what happened last time you had a fire duel?" Longwei asked with concern.

"...I will never forget..."

* * *

By the time sunset fell, the sky was tainted with an auburn color and all the harbor people gathered in the middle of a field where the fire duel was set to take place. Longwei and Xing looked nervously as Shen and Cinead were getting ready for what should be a violent encounter.

"Remember for your Fire Chi basics, Lord Shen," Longwei advised his nephew. "They are your best weapons."

"I refuse to let him win," the white peacock firmly declared before turning and walking in the duel zone with the red wolf.

"Be careful, Shen," Xing nervously mumbled to himself.

A soldier rang a gong indicating the start of the duel and both Fire Masters took their fighting stances. After walking around in circles for a while, Shen's impatience took over and he started the battle by launching fire punches toward the red wolf.

Unfortunately, this last one easily dodged them all, even breaking on blast with his fist. Shen panted a bit as these attacks caused sweat to form on his body. After dodging and blocking all of the peacock's fire attacks, Cinead started shooting fire by himself.

"Physics, Shen! Break his roots!" Longwei called from the sidelines.

The red wolf shot fire blasts at the white peacock who did his best to block them but eventually got knocked down on his back. As Shen groaned in pain and tried to sit up, Cinead jumped in the air, looking to stomp him with his flaming foot.

However, if he thought the Gongmen Prince would go down that easily he was wrong.

Rolling to the side, Shen side a leg sweep to knock Cinead off his balance and onto his back. He then curled his wing like a fist to punch him across the face, breaking his nose, and making blood flow out of it. As the red wolf groaned in pain, Shen pinned him down with his metal talons onto his chest, opening his tail feathers and glaring down at him.

"...You lost."

Pulling his talons off, Shen turned around and walked away with his head high in pride. Cinead, refusing to accept defeat, growled and shot a fire blast toward the peacock. However, Longwei jumped in the way, blocking the attack, and knocking him back with a kick to the chest.

"So this is how the great Commander Cinead acts in defeat?" he asked with disgust. "Disgraceful. Even in exile, my nephew is still more honorable than you." The old peacock then gave a little smile. "Thanks again for the tea. It was delicious."

The two peacocks then walked away and made their way back to their steamer. "...Did you really mean that, Uncle?" Shen decided to softly ask after a moment.

"Of course...I told you jasmine tea if my favorite," Longwei said with a chuckle.

As Cinead growled and retreated to his quarters, Xing watched his friend leave again with his only good eye.

"Good luck, Shen. I hope our paths will cross again soon..."

* * *

 **This chapter was more focused on Lord Shen as I also wanted him to have his time in the spotlight. And Uncle Longwei too XD**

 **Now, the character of Cinead is based on an old legend of my country. It talks about a fire wolf born during a red moon. I don't know if the real one is a jerk like the one in this fanfic, but I sure hope not.**

 **Now, as you probably guessed, Xing is actually Wolf Boss from Kung Fu Panda 2. "Xing" is the name my friend, TheDragonSaver, gave him in his fanfics "Phoenix of Ying, Dragon of Yang" and "Kung Fu Academia". Since this arc uses a lot of content he created, I decided to honor his idea and give the name to Wolf Boss.**


	341. The Amazonian Warriors

"Are you sure you have any idea of where we're going, Tama?" Aurora asked her brother without looking away from her brother's pants which she was currently stitching.

"I'm telling you, Aurora, we're following the path I traced on the map," the grey wolf annoyingly responded.

"And on which part of the map should be right now?"

"We should be...over water."

Aurora looked over the satchel on Fin's back to see there was nothing but endless water all around them. "Wow, we're on the right path then," the jackal sarcastically said.

Karasu was teasingly wiggling a dead fish over Dum Gai for the little porg to jump and try to catch it in vain all the time. The raven then noticed his emerald dragon friend flying lower and yawning. "Hey, Fin, is something wrong?"

"...I'm just tired, Karasu," the dragon replied. "I've been flying nonstop ever since we escaped from those pyromaniacs."

"We should find a place to go down for Fin to rest a bit," Aurora said as she finished stitching Tama's pants and gave them back to her brother. "Look! An island!"

Indeed, an island came into view and it looked non-habited at first sight. Fin decided to flap and land down onto a little beach where small waves were hitting the shore. "Great, we can build our camp and spend the night here," Karasu said as he hopped off onto the sand.

"Is that really a good idea?" Aurora asked. "I mean, with the speed of their steamer, I'm afraid these Fire Masters will catch up to us rather quickly."

"I'm sorry, Aurora, but I can't fly a meter more," Fin said in a tired voice.

"And besides, with the pile of snow Karasu left them in, I'm sure it will take quite a while before going after us again." Tama then grabbed his backpack and headed away toward the island's jungle with his sister following.

"Where are you going, guys?" Karasu asked them.

"Our grandmother gave us clothes for warmer climates like this one before we left," Aurora explained. "We're gonna put them on. We'll be back in a moment."

After they left, Karasu decided to go sit on a rock farther on the beach's side and try to meditate for a bit. Though with all the events that happened recently - his return to the world after a hundred years, the loss of his ninja clan, the realization of a conflict with the Fire Nation - it was a bit hard to stay focused. Luckily, his two friends quickly returned.

Tama changed his warm parka for a pair of dark blue pants with bandages for his feet and no shirt, leaving his upper body exposed. He was pretty toned and had a Polynesian tattoo on his right bicep. Surely a sight that would make any girl giggle.

As for Aurora, she changed for a light blue sports top and skirt that left her abdomen exposed. She also had black fingerless gloves and bandages on her feet. The jackal girl noticed Karasu staring at her with a pretty interesting look. "Huh...is something wrong, Karasu?"

The raven shook his head out of his thoughts and blushed a bit. "N-No, everything's going well, hehe!"

"Alright, let's set the camp up for the night," Tama said and started unpacking their bags. However, he then heard a noise coming from the trees around. "...Something's watching us."

Suddenly, figures jumped down from the air and surrounded the group. Before they could do anything, the friends got knocked down, tied up with ropes, and blindfolded with gags. Dum Gai even got trapped in a bag.

"...Okay, we're in trouble," Tama mumbled.

* * *

Moments later, the three friends got tied together around a wooden pole of some sort. A male voice was talking to them.

"You three have something sneaking going on. And if you don't answer all our questions, we're throwing you down in the water to drown."

"Show yourselves, cowards!" Tama angrily said.

The strangers obeyed and removed the blindfold from Tama's eyes. The grey fox could now see that the strangers were all females wearing pretty revealing clothes. The one who removed Tama's blindfold was a female ocelot with orange fur and black spots. She was wearing a light green sports top on her chest and a loincloth of the same color. Additionally, she had golden bracelets on her wrists, light green markings on her forehead that were fitting with her emerald green eyes, and arm saber blades tied to her back.

"Who are you? Where are the men who ambushed us?" Tama angrily asked.

"There were no men; WE ambushed you," the ocelot responded in a firm tone. "Now tell us, who are you and what are you doing here?"

Tama just blinked at them and then chuckled a bit. "Wait a sec', there's no way a bunch of women took us down."

The ocelot suddenly grabbed his shoulder and got to his face. "A bunch of girls, huh? Looks like someone'll be drowning tonight."

"Wait, don't hurt him!" Aurora suddenly called. "He didn't mean it; my brother's just an idiot sometimes."

The female ocelot blinked her eyes curiously. "...He's your brother? But you're a jackal."

"Yeah, we're adoptive siblings to be precise."

"I'm sorry we came to your home without your permission," Karasu politely said after he and Aurora got their blindfolds removed too.

"What tells us that you are not Fire Nation spies?" the male asked again. He was a male snowy owl wearing blue robes and had yellow eyes. "The Amazon Tribe have remained out of the war so far and we intend to keep it that way."

"The Amazonian Tribe? I thought it was just a myth," Karasu said.

"Well, it's not. This tribe has remained out of existence until the late Tao Dragon Radhe Ashmet met with them and earned their friendship," the male owl said. "I, myself, spent a lot of time searching for their existence and finally achieved it."

"You knew Radhe?!" Karasu asked in surprise and then smiled. "I know her too!"

"Ha! How could you possibly know her? Tao Dragon Radhe came here four hundred years ago. She's been dead for centuries," the male owl said with pointing at the mole the three friends were tied to which depicted a peahen.

This peahen was lime green in color with white facial expression and was wearing a golden dress that looked like a mix of Indian and Persian style. She looked very beautiful and elegant.

Karasu stared at the statue then back at the male owl. "I know her because I'm the new Tao Dragon."

"That's impossible; the last Tao Dragon was a Lightning Master who disappeared a hundred years ago!" the female ocelot claimed.

"That's me."

"Throw the impostor to the ocean!"

However, before they could do anything to them, Karasu charged lightning in his body and snapped the ropes holding him back with it. This move released his friends and caused the male snowy owl and Amazonians to stare at him in surprise.

"Oh my god... It's true. You ARE the Tao Dragon!" the owl exclaimed.

Soon, the villagers started cheering as the Tao Dragon's return brought them hope once again.

* * *

"The Tao Dragon is on Amazon Island?!" Shen exclaimed in shock to the seller who brought fish to his dining room.

 **(Yes; the news spread really fast in this world XD)**

Shen then turned toward his uncle. "Uncle, get the rhinos ready; he's not running away from me this time!"

The old peacock pointed toward the warm fish they just got served. "Are you going to finish that?"

Shen quickly returned and grabbed the steaming fish away. "Actually...I was going to save it for later..."

* * *

The people of Amazon Island quickly became hospitable to the Tao Team, giving them food, a place to sleep, and even cleaning Fin's scales while he rested. The dragon was not bothered at all; 100 years in the ice didn't really make him smell fresher for more.

Aurora walked around the market to buy some food for the team's journey. Once it was done, she searched for her brother but ended up finding Karasu staring at the statue of Radhe with a very interesting look.

"Karasu? You alright?" the jackal asked as she approached her friend.

"Oh, hey, Aurora. Yeah, I'm fine."

Aurora stared at the statue and then looked back at the raven. "Say, what did you meant when you said that you were this girl?"

"Oh, that's true, I didn't tell you," the young ninja said with turning toward his friend. "The Tao Dragon is an entity getting reborn into a different body every time he or she dies. It has been like this ever since the beginning of times."

Aurora looked at Karasu in surprise. "R-Really?! So, you're the reincarnation of generations of elemental masters who protected the Independent Islands?"

"Yup," Karasu said with a nod before looking at the statue of Radhe again. "I might be a reincarnation, but I'm not those warriors for more. My path is my own."

Aurora smiled and put her paw on the raven's shoulder. "I know, Karasu. Say, have you seen my brother? I've been searching for him for a while."

* * *

In a small house of the Amazonian Village, the ocelot and her fellow Amazonian warriors practiced their fighting skills until the apparent leader sighed and turned toward the entrance door. "You can come in, you know."

Tama walked out from behind the wall and stepped inside the room. "Sorry ladies. Didn't mean to interrupt your dancing lessons. I was just searching for someone to do some workout with."

"Well, you're at the right place," the ocelot said. "Sorry about yesterday; I didn't know you were friends with the Tao Dragon."

"It's okay," Tama assured. "I mean, usually, I'd hold a grudge, but since you are girls, I'll make an exception."

"I hope so. A big, strong man like you, we wouldn't stand a chance," the ocelot sarcastically said.

"True, but don't feel bad. After all, I'm the strongest warrior in my village."

"Wow, best warrior, huh? In your whole village. Maybe you'd be kind enough to give us a little demonstration," the ocelot said with a grin.

Tama was surprised by the demand and rubbed his chin a bit before smiling. "Alright, if you want to. I know this might be hard, but try to block my attack."

The grey wolf went for a punch...which the ocelot easily blocked by planting a finger into the grey fox's shoulder, making him groan in pain.

"Ouch! Good...of course, I was going easy on you. Now, try to block this." He went for a kick which the ocelot ducked and performed a leg sweep to make him fall on his back. "Alright, no more Mr. Nice guy!"

Tama charged at the ocelot who easily dodged all his attacks, hit a back elbow to the side of his head, and stunned him long enough to finish him with a kick to the chest that knocked him down. "Anything else you wanna teach us, oh mighty warrior?"

As the Amazonian warriors laughed, Tama could only take this as the biggest embarrassment of his life.

* * *

Later on, as the sun started setting at the horizon, the Amazonian warriors were almost done with their training. Suddenly, they saw none other than Tama walking through the entrance with a shy look.

"Huh...hey, Reaca," he told the ocelot.

"Hoping for another dance lesson?" she asked him.

"Huh, look, let me explain..."

"Spit it out; what do you want?"

"...*sigh*" Tama bowed at Reaca. "I would be honored if you would teach me."

The ocelot was surprised by the grey fox's demand and rose an eyebrow while crossing her arms. "Even if I'm a girl?"

"...I'm sorry for insulting you earlier. I was wrong..."

Reaca stared at him before sighing. "Alright, stand up; I'll teach you how to REALLY fight like a warrior."

"Thank you," the grey fox said with smiling and standing up. "So, what's the first lesson?"

Reaca held him a fan. "Take this and throw it into the tree."

Tama obeyed and started tossing the fan toward a tree outside the room. However, no matter how hard he tried, he just couldn't pierce the trunk with the tool. It wasn't like tossing a boomerang at all.

"It's not about strength," Reaca told Tama with putting her paw on his shoulder. "Our technique consists to take our opponents' strength and use it against them. Loosen up." She then took another fan. "Think of this fan as an extension of your arm. Wait for an opening and then..."

She went for an attack which Tama managed to dodge and knocked the ocelot off her feet and onto her back. She looked in surprise at the grey fox who looked surprised as well and then smiled.

"You learn faster than I thought. Let's try it again."

* * *

Meanwhile, Aurora was at the beach, trying to get some water that she could warm up to remove any bacteria and fill their bottles again for the journey. It was better than buying fresh water on the market. However, in the middle of her work, she heard a loud noise and turned her head to see a familiar metal ship coming toward the beach.

"Shen!" she gasped.

The steamer's entrance ram opened and out of it walked Shen and his Fire Masters riding on big rhinos with red armors. "Find the Tao Dragon; I want him alive!" he ordered.

As she saw the riders heading toward the Amazon Village, the jackal quickly turned around to go find her friend and brother.

* * *

Meanwhile, back in the house, Reaca launched a series of attacks which Tama all managed to block. "Not bad," the ocelot said with a smile.

Suddenly, the male snowy owl they met earlier arrived at the entrance. "Reaca! Fire Masters have arrived on our shore! Come quickly!"

* * *

Shen led his men at a swift march toward the island's only village. From afar, a couple of villagers saw him and ran out of sight. Now, the streets stood empty all around him. Except for the quick figures ducking through the shadows.

Shen noticed them, but hardly. The white peacock saw footprints belonging to a dragon on the beach upon arrival. The Tao Dragon was here and that's all that mattered.

"I'm looking for someone," he said loud enough for everyone to hear him. "Just give me the Tao Dragon and no harm will come to your village."

Suddenly, the quick shadows jumped down from the rooftops and knocked down the Fire Riders. The Amazonian Warriors swiftly attacked all of them and managed to take them down in a matter of seconds. Reaca then charged toward Lord Shen, looking to cut him down with her arm saber blades.

However, the peacock was not going down that easily. He opened his tail feathers to blindfold her long enough to kick her away from him. Tama and the other Amazonian Warriors then surrounded him, only to be blasted away by a fire explosion from the furious peacock.

"Nice try, Tao Dragon, but these little girls can't save you," Shen mumbled before throwing knives toward Tama.

CLANG!

The throwing knives got stopped by a bunch of ninja stars coming out of nowhere. "Looking for me?" Shen turned around to see a black raven landing in the middle of the street.

"Exactly," Shen said with a smirk.

Both opponents took out their respective weapon (Masamune Blade for Karasu and Guan Dao for Shen) and got in fighting stance. For many seconds, they glared at each other.

"What's he waiting for?" Shen though.

Knowing how calm the raven was, Shen decided that, if he wouldn't attack first, then he'll be the one to start and charged forward. Soon, they engaged in close combat, clashing their metal weapons against one another. Since Shen had a larger reach of attack, and could also use his metal talons, Karasu had to get on the defensive.

Eventually, he got on the offensive and swung his sword at Shen who dodged it and went for a strike that Karasu blocked. The encounter lasted very long with both fighters either blocking or dodging the other's offensives until they jumped away from each other, but immediately charged forward once more and went for a punch. Simultaneously, their attack reached the other's face, knocking them back at the same time. They got back up quickly and panted a bit while rubbing their cheek.

"Not bad!" Karasu said with a smirk before raising his blade. "Ready for the next part?"

Shen also smirked. "I'm waiting for just that!"

They charged and engaged another close combat with their weapons meeting with loud CLASH! every time. Shen actually managed to land a kick in the raven's face before jumping back. However, Karasu followed and delivered a strong wing smash that caused Shen to be knocked back, but he performed moonsaults to regain his balance.

Karasu suddenly charged his sword with Lightning Chi which he shot at Shen. The peacock managed to block it with his Guan Dao and immediately got back in fighting stance. However, he realized that the raven had disappeared after the attack. His best friend was behind him and went for a kick which Shen managed to block at the last second before re-engaging the close combat.

At a moment, the two avians took off in the sky and turned it into an aerial battle. The spectators had to look up to follow the fight. Even there, they could barely find openings in their opponent's defense and soon, they decided to get back to the ground. As soon as they reached it, Karasu shot some ninja stars which collided with throwing knives Shen shot simultaneously. The two birds panted heavily.

"Okay then, you used a Chi strike; allow me to use mine." Shen charged his weapon with Fire Chi and shot a fireball at Karasu. The raven managed to dodge it, but Shen immediately charged afterward with his fire charged Guan Dao, so, Karasu charged his Masamune Blade with Lightning Chi.

Every time the two weapons clashed with each other, it caused a bigger CLASH! and also sent sparks and flames flying around. They kept striking over and over again, sweat forming on their skin and feathers until they gave an ultimate smash that caused a small Chi explosion sending both of them flying back. They panted in exhaustion as they tried to stand up.

Before Shen could attack once more, Karasu shot a lightning bolt which knocked him away. Panting, Karasu looked around at the damaged village as Aurora came to join him.

"...Look at what I brought to this place..."

"Karasu, it's not your fault," Aurora assured.

"Yes it is; these people got their town destroyed trying to protect me," the ninja raven said in shame.

"Then let's get out of here. Shen will leave this village to follow us. I know it feels wrong to run, but it's the only way."

As the Amazonian Warriors kept fending off the Fire Masters, Tama and Reaca regrouped behind a house to chat. "There is no time to say goodbye!" the ocelot seriously said.

"What about 'I'm sorry' then?" Tama responded.

"Sorry for what?"

"...For treating you like a girl while I should have treated you like a warrior."

"I am a warrior." Reaca suddenly gave a kiss to Tama's cheek. "...But I am a girl too."

Tama blushed a bright red and didn't know what to say. "Now get away; we'll hold them off," Reaca said with standing up and running to go join her friends.

Tama did the same, standing up to go join his friends and sister on Fin who took off and flapped his wings to take off to the sky again. Shen noticed it and growled.

"Go back to the ship! Do not lose sight of them!"

As Fin left the island, Karasu could not help but look back toward the burning village. Aurora came to put a paw on his shoulder. "I know it's hard but you did the right thing. Shen would've destroyed the whole place if we stayed. You did the right choice."

"Yeah...I just wish I could have done more to protect these people," Karasu sadly said.

"We'll just have to become stronger and win against the Fire Nation," Tama declared with a very rare fire burning in his eyes.

* * *

 **Yeah, I know Tama acted in a sexist way in this chapter. However, you'll have to give him credit for recognizing his mistake. And also, he has a potential love interest.**

 **As you realized after two encounters, Karasu is no strong enough to defeat Shen yet. He'll have to work a lot in order to be up for the peacock and a lot of baddies to come.**

 **Also, a male snowy owl with an Amazonian tribe inside China's Independent Islands. Does this remind you of something?**


	342. The King of Naliwen

After about three weeks since Amazon Island, Karasu, Aurora, Tama, Fin, and Dum Gai arrived in the Earth Kingdom. They had decided to stop there, mostly because Karasu begged his friends to come with him so that he could visit some of his childhood memories.

They landed too far from their destination and walked a few minutes up to a small hill. Karasu smiled and spread his wings wide, seeing the city sprawling before him.

"The Earth Kingdom city of Naliwen!" the raven announced proudly.

Just a short way across the valley in front of Team Tao, a walled city rested atop a huge rock promontory. It was accessible only by a narrow, switchback road. The city looked both impressive and impregnable.

"I used to always come here to visit my friend Shugan," Karasu told his friends.

"Wow! We don't have cities like these in the South Pole!" Aurora said, eyes wide.

"They have buildings here that don't melt," Tama remarked with rubbing the back of his head.

"Well, let's go, slowpokes! The real fun is inside the city!" Karasu said with opening his wings and taking off in the air.

"Wait, Karasu!" Aurora called him before he could get away. "It could be dangerous if people find out you're the Tao Dragon!"

Tama nodded in agreement as Karasu came back. "You need a disguise."

"So, what do you want me to do? Make myself pass for a girl?"

"Not exactly," Tama said with a little grin. A few moments later, Karasu was wearing a huge fake head of hair and mustache made out of some animal's fur. The raven scratched under the wig, feeling uncomfortable.

"Oh, this is so itchy!" Karasu complained with scratching himself with his wings. "How do you live with that, Tama?"

"Comes naturally," the grey fox shrugged. "Now, you look just like my grandpa."

"Technically, Karasu is over a hundred years old," Aurora pointed out.

Karasu grabbed a stick laying on the ground and took a fake old man voice. "Now let's get to skippin', young whippersnappers! The big city awaits."

Karasu began to walk hunch over, dissimulating his saber into his ninja vest and walking with his stick. About half an hour later, they walked up to the access road.

"You guys are gonna love Naliwen," Karasu said with enthusiasm. "The people here are the friendliest in the world."

Just as he spoke, a rough voice was speaking loudly. They stopped short at the sound and looked up at the gate just up ahead. A merchant was trying to get into the city, but the three guards were giving him trouble.

"Rotten cabbages! What kind of slum do you think this is?!" a guard shouted at him.

The guard was holding one of the offending cabbages. He crushed the cabbage in his paw and knocked those in the merchant's arms over the side of the access road. The guard then used Earth Chi to push a lump of the ground, knocking the merchant's cabbage cart high into the air and over the side of the access road. The cart and all the merchant's cabbages plunged hundreds of feet to the valley floor below.

"NOOO! MY CABBAGES!" the merchant cried out as he looked over the side of the road in lament.

Karasu smiled nervously. "Just keep smiling..."

The raven walked forward with his nervous smile, Dum Gai trotting loyally at his feet. Aurora tittered uneasily but she and Tama still followed their friend. The guard who had just obliterated the cart walked forward to meet them. He lifted a huge boulder above Karasu's head.

"State your business!" the guard snapped.

Wanting to have a little fun with these rude guards, Karasu rushed out from under the rock in a move way too fast for his supposed age. He pointed an accusing feather at the guard and used his old man's voice.

"My business is my business, young man, and none of yours! I've got half a mind to bend you over my knee and paddle your backside!"

The guard dropped the stone behind him in surprise. Karasu glanced behind him to see Aurora and Tama both staring at him, terrified of what he was doing.

"Settle down, old timer, just tell me who you are," the guard muttered.

"Name's...Denzo," Karasu quickly said. "And those are my nephews."

Aurora came forward with a nervous smile. "Hi, name's...Raisha."

The guard pointed at the jackal. "You seem like a responsible young lady. See that your uncle stays out of trouble. Enjoy Naliwen!"

"We will," Aurora replied.

The guard motioned for them to pass. They walked forward into the city with Tama trailing. "Wait a minute!" the guard snapped and the friends froze. He grabbed Tama by the shoulder just after he passed.

"You're a strong young boy. Show some respect for the elderly and carry your grandfather's backpack," he sternly said.

"Good idea!" Karasu said, holding back a laugh.

The raven threw the bag to Tama. The friends then continued on through the gate which was of stone and consisted of three movable, interlocking stone walls. They were all shocked by the size and power of the fortification. The gates began closing again as they moved to pass through it. As they walked, Dum Gai peaked his head out of Karasu's fake hair and the entrance guard noticed it.

"...Okay, I need to rest a bit; I just hallucinated that a puffin with a seal head came out of that old bird's hair."

Team Tao made it inside the gate and looked over a railing at the interior of the city. There were many houses with roofs painted in Earth Kingdom green. There were chutes all over the city with crates and packages sliding along them. While speaking, Karasu pointed to Earth Masters working the delivery system as he explained the mechanics of the system to Aurora and Tama.

"This is the Naliwen delivery system. Miles and miles of tubes and chutes. Earth Chi brings the packages up and gravity brings them down."

"Great, so they get their mail in time," Tama sarcastically said.

Karasu nodded. "They do get their mail in time, but my friend Shugan found a better use for those chutes..."

FLASHBACK

 _A young coyote with spiky orange fur with a headband tied around his head looked over the city. The boy, Shugan, had a few missing teeth and a slightly insane facial expression._ _"Look around. What do you see?"_

 _"Umm...the mail system?" a younger Karasu asked._

 _Conspiratorially, he said," Instead of seeing what they want you to see, you gotta open your brain to the possibilities."_

 _Karasu thought about it for a moment. "A package sending system?"_

 _"The world's greatest super slide!" the young coyote said, excited._

 _Karasu looked down at the top of the chute they were looking at. Now that he was thinking about it, it really did look like a humongous slide. It was a very tempting idea._

 _"Shugan, you're a mad genius!" he cheered. Shugan smiled widely, laughing and snorting._

 _The two friends got in one of the transport bins and with a little push of lightning, were rocketing down the slide, laughing hysterically._

FLASHBACK ENDS

Karasu blinked his eyes and came back to reality. Without missing a beat, he led his two friends to the exact same spot where he and Shugan stood all those years ago. After a minute of convincing them to get in, they finally joined him. The raven was excited as they teetered on the edge, but the other two seemed to be a little leery.

"One ride, then we're off to the North Pole, Tao Dragon's honor," Karasu promised with a wing on his chest.

"That sounded like fun at first, but now that I'm here, I'm starting to have second thoughts!" Tama said nervously, peering down at the long shot.

As he finished his sentence, Karasu looked down with him, not hard to do since he was at the front. It was a bit intimidating, he had to admit. But the young ninja was not going to back down so easily.

Without giving his friends to say anything else, Karasu pushed forward and the bin dropped into the chute, rocketing the group away. As they accelerated down the chute, a neighboring chute became visible, clearly going to merge with theirs. A rack of spears was dropping down this other chute and after the two paths merged, Tama was soon ducking down to avoid getting killed. He and Aurora made distressed noises as they tried to avoid the spears.

Karasu rolled his eyes. "I'm on it! I'm on it!"

The raven started rocking the bin back and forth in the chute. He soon derailed them out of the chute and their bin free fell onto a rooftop below before sliding downward. Below, he saw a group of Earth Kingdom soldiers getting addressed by an officer.

When their bin fell right in front of them, they all jumped in surprise. Karasu grabbed the front of the bin and tried to pull it up with his foot into Aurora's face. Tama was panicking in the back. Karasu used his Lightning Chi to propel them back in the air once again. Within a few minutes of jumping around, he finally managed to get them back on a chute.

"Karasu, do something! Use your Lightning Chi!" Aurora panicked.

"Yeah! Good idea! It'll make us go even faster!" Karasu called back, wondering why he hadn't thought of that.

He blasted lightning behind them, making the bin speed up. The city dwellers looked at them in alarm as they whizzed down by the chute. As they approached the drop down the last major chute, they all screamed as they saw the off-load point just ahead of them. Rather than hitting the package ahead, they hit the side of the trench and ran off the track again. They all fell down but Aurora used her Aura to bring everyone back into the bin. They bounced off a roof and into what looked like a man's workroom, destroying his pottery. They bounced off the floor and out the window.

"Sorry!" Karasu called out as they dropped into someone's living room and flew through their house. Outside, they crashed through the wall of the balcony and dropped again, screaming.

Just below them was the merchant from before, cradling his cabbages fondly. He looked up and jumped back just as the bin fell onto the cabbage cart, destroying it completely, and blowing the cabbages all over the place. They landed in a heap and Karasu's disguise was now gone.

"My cabbages! You're gonna pay for this!" the merchant cried furiously.

Team Tao was quickly surrounded by soldiers and Karasu smiled sheepishly. "Two cabbages, please?"

* * *

A short while later, they were led into the king's throne chamber. It was decorated in the shades of Earth Kingdom green. The aged king, a visibly old dark orange coyote, sat on his throne in the distance, for it was a large room. Karasu peered closer at the ancient king and saw with amazement that he wore the same crazy expression as Shugan in his memories. But he had to be long dead by now. There was no way this old coyote could possibly be Shugan.

The king looked upon them as the guards behind the three friends forced them to kneel.

"Mmmmh?" he muttered.

"Your Majesty, these juveniles were arrested for vandalism, traveling under false pretenses, and malicious destruction of cabbages," a guard reported.

Karasu glanced over the cabbage merchant who glared back at him. "Off with their heads! One for each head of my cabbages!" he screeched, making Karasu flinch.

"Silence! Only the king can pass down judgment. What is your judgment, Sire?" the guard asked.

They all looked at him with pleading eyes. The old king stared at all of them in turn. "Throw them...a feast!" he said cheerfully.

The guards made noises of surprise and the merchant of chagrin. "Huh?" Karasu said, completely confused.

* * *

Within minutes, Team Tao was seated at a table loaded with food. Dum Gai ate goodies on the right side of the table while Karasu sat in the middle with Aurora and Tama on either side of him. Behind them stood the king.

"Hehehe!" he laughed. "The people in my city have gotten fat from too many feasts, so I hope you like your nephews without skin."

Tama was already chewing on a huge piece of cheese. "Man, you have NO idea how hungry I was!"

"Is it just me, or is this guy's crown a little crooked?" Aurora asked, leaning over to whisper in Karasu's ear. She made cuckoo motions at the side of her head as she spoke.

The raven shrugged, watching the king as he sat on the seat at the opposite end of the table. He turned toward Karasu, his green eyes narrowing a bit. "So tell me, young raven, where are you from?"

"I'm from...Kangaroo Island," Karasu lied as smoothly as he could.

"Oh, Kangaroo Island, eh? I heard this place is really hopping!" he said, grinning.

Team Tao stared at him blankly. The silence was broken by Tama's laughter which made his friend and sister look at him in confusion. "What? It was pretty funny," the grey fox said defensively.

The king yawned tiredly. "Well, all these good jokes are making me tired. Guess it's time to the hay."

As he ended his sentence, he suddenly grabbed a chopstick and tossed it at Karasu. The raven swiftly unsheathed his sword to cut it in half before it could touch him. The guards looked at the display in surprise.

"There's a Sky Ninja in our presence. And not just any Sky Ninja; the Tao Dragon!" the king announced to everyone in the room.

He stood and Karasu quickly pulled his Masamune sword away, trying to act like he hadn't done anything.

"Now, what do you have to say for yourself...Denzo?" the king asked shrewdly.

Karasu sighed, knowing it was useless to try to deny anything now. He then quickly grabbed Tama and Aurora before heading toward the exit, only for the guards to block their escape.

"You can't keep us in here. Let us leave," Aurora snapped.

"Lettuce leaf?" the king asked as he picked up a lettuce leaf from the plate in front of him and took a bite.

Tama leaned over to speak in a low voice. "We're in serious trouble. This guy is nuts!"

The king turned to them, now very serious. "Tomorrow, the Tao DRagon will face three deadly challenges. But for now, the guards will show you to your chamber."

"My liege, do you mean the good chamber or the bad chamber?"

"The newly refurbished chamber."

"Wait, which one are you talking about?"

The king shook his head. "The one that used to be the bad chamber until the recent refurbishing that is. Of course, we've been calling it the new chamber, but we should really number them. Huh...take them to the refurbished chamber that used to be bad!"

* * *

Tao Team was quickly led out by the guards. They walked a short while down dark hallways until they reached a dead end. The wall was torn open by the guard's Earth Chi and revealed a large room. They were thrust in it and the "door" was closed behind them. The chamber was beautiful, spacious, and furnished with three comfortable beds.

"This is a prison cell? But it's so nice," Aurora said, looking around in amazement.

"He did say it was newly refurbished," Karasu pointed out.

"Nice or not, we're still prisoners," Tama darkly said.

Karasu's mind wandered to the coming day and he nervously paced around the room. "I wonder what these challenges are gonna be."

Aurora shook her head. "We're not sticking around to find out. There's gotta be a way out of here."

Karasu looked around for a moment before spotting something. "The air vents!"

"If you think we're gonna fit through that, then you're crazier than the king," Tama said, looking at the small, circular hole in the wall.

"We can't, but Dum Gai can." Dum Gai was sprawled on the bed, nibbling onto an apple he held between his small wings. "Dum Gai, I need you to find Fin and bust us outta here!"

Karasu picked him and walked over to the wall before stuffing him face-first into the vent. He only made it about halfway before stopping.

"Go on, boy, go find Fin!"

However, Dum Gai only squirmed helplessly in the hole while screaming. He was stuck. "How was Fin supposed to help us anyway?" Tama asked with rubbing his forehead.

"Fin is a ten-ton dragon; I thought he could figure out something."

"Well, no point in arguing now," Aurora said, flopping herself onto a bed. "Get some rest, Karasu. Looks like you'll need it for tomorrow."

The raven walked dejectedly over to the last unoccupied bed and promptly fell asleep.

* * *

He was awoken only what felt like minutes later as the room shook. He jumped with a start to see an Earth Master opening the door. He turned his head and saw with fear that the other beds were empty.

"Aurora! Tama!" He angrily turned toward the guard. "Where are my friends?"

"The king will free them if you complete your challenges."

Karasu narrowed his eyes. "And if I fail?"

"He didn't say. Your sword, please?"

Karasu gave his sword to the guard, a bit hesitant to surrender his treasured weapon. He was also forced to give him his bow, arrows, and ninja stars. A few moments later, Karasu entered the throne room flanked by two guards. The king stood in the middle of the room, wearing a horrible purple, blue, and light green robe.

"First, Tao Dragon, what do you think of my new outfit? I want your honest opinion," he said, showing off his clothes.

Karasu blinked. He wasn't going to tell his honest opinion and say that he looked absolutely ridiculous. A coughing sound was heard behind him as he stared at the king.

"I'm waiting," he impatiently said.

"I guess it's...fine," the raven said, grimacing a bit.

He clapped his paws together happily and jumped up and down for a moment. "Excellent! You passed the first test."

"Really?" Karasu asked, perking up. Maybe this wasn't going to be so hard after all.

The king seemed to think for a moment. "Well, not one of the deadly tests. The real challenges are much more...challenging."

Anger boiled inside Karasu as he ran up to the king. "I don't have time for your crazy games! Give me my friends back! We're leaving!" he hissed.

The king tisked. "Ohh, I thought you might refuse..."

At this moment, a "door" was opened by guards holding Aurora and Tama in the corridor off to the side. The guards placed small bracelets on their wrists which contracted to fit snugly as soon as they were worn. Aurora and Tama struggled to take them off, but they couldn't.

"...So I will give your friends special souvenirs. Those delightful bracelets are made of pure genemite, also known as creeping crystal. It's a crystal that grows incredibly fast. By nightfall, your friends will be completely covered by it. Terrible fate, really. I can stop it, but only if you cooperate," the king kindly said.

Karasu watched as the bracelet on Aurora's wrist grew a little and her face paled. "Ah! It's already creeping!" she whimpered.

The raven sighed in defeat. "I'll do as you want."

The king grinned evilly. "Mmmmm!"

* * *

Karasu stood in a new cavern, half an hour later, on a small stone parapet with a waterfall running in the middle. The cavern floor was covered in stalagmites. In the upper left corner of the room, the king, the guards, and Karasu's friends stood on a balcony. Crystal already covered the forearms of both their arms.

The king laughed. "It seems I've lost my lunch key and I'm hungry."

Karasu looked up at the key hanging by a long chain in the middle of the waterfall. A ladder reached up from the ground of the cavern to about where the key dangled.

"Oh, there it is. Would you mind fetching it for me?" he dramatically asked.

Easy enough.

Karasu jumped into action. Using his ninja skills, he bounced from stalagmite to stalagmite. He charged into the waterfall, holding his breath, and began climbing up the ladder. The force of the water stopped him from making any progress though.

"Ooooh, climbing the ladder. No one's thought of that before," the king cajoled loudly.

Karasu lost his grip and was shot out of the waterfall. He was just about to get impaled when he recovered and slid between two stalagmites, one foot on each side of the breach. He breathed a sigh of relief and looked up at his friends, regaining his determination.

This time, he flew up in the air and was soon staring down at the key. He concentrated, trying to set his mind, then dived into the waterfall. He was immediately shot right back out and he managed to grab onto a stalagmite again. The ninja looked back up at the king and his friends. The crystal now covered them up to their shoulders.

"That's right. Keep diving head in, I'm sure it'll work eventually," the king said, board with Karasu's tactics.

What he said though gave an idea to the raven. He broke off the top of the stalagmite he was holding and threw it at the chain holding the key. Using his Lightning Chi, he made sure it broke the chain and it carried the bottom part of the stalagmite along with the key up to the balcony.

The tip of the stalagmite embedded itself like a spearhead into the top of the doorway. The key now dangled just over the surprise king's head.

"There, enjoy your lunch! I want my friends back now!" Karasu firmly said.

He waggled a finger at the raven. "Huh, not yet. I need help with another matter. It seems I've lost my pet, Flopsy."

* * *

A minute later, Karasu found himself in the second arena. He looked around spotted a cute little primal bunny rabbit with big floppy ears below.

Karasu jumped down in the arena and gracefully landed next to the rock the bunny was sitting on. "Okay, found him!"

The king and his friends now stood at the railing around the top of the arena, watching him. "Bring him to me! Daddy wants a big kiss from Flopsy!"

Karasu was just about to grab the bunny when suddenly, a huge monstrous beast landed right behind him, making the ground vibrate slightly from the impact. The beast looked like an overgrown beast of some sort, with fluffy ear, and big giant fangs. The little bunny squealed and took off.

"Flopsy, wait! Flopsy! Flopsy!" Karasu cried and dashed after him.

Karasu chased the bunny while the monster chased him, the king cackling maniacally all the time. The bunny ran into a rabbit hole in the wall of the arena and he slid up next to it, sticking his wing into the hole to try and catch him. He rummaged around but found nothing.

Meanwhile, the monster closed in. The raven watched as he came closer, snarling madly, and then got an idea. He stood up and faced the monster just as he arrived. "Flopsy?"

The monster stopped instantly and wagged its tail. The big animal picked him up tenderly, making gentle noises. Karasu was surprised but laughed when Flopsy gave him a huge lick.

"Flopsy!" he said, rubbing his head.

The beast dropped him and scaled the arena wall in response to the king's kissing noises and whistling. He flopped down on his back in front of the king.

"Awww, that's a good boy! Yes, who has a soft belly?" the king said as he began to rub Flopsy's belly. Flopsy's left paw hit the ground in pleasure.

Karasu flew up onto the railing of the arena and turned toward his friends. Aurora was in front of him, covered from head to ankle in crystal. "Guys, are you okay?"

"Other than the crystal slowly encasing my entire body, doing great," she sarcastically replied.

Karasu looked over at Tama to see he was in no better shape. A new length of crystal grew on the left side of his head, causing him to lose balance and fall down.

Karasu angrily turned over to the king who was still rubbing his pets' belly. "Come on, I'm ready for the next challenge," he severely said.

The king kept a stir of crazy laughter as he led them to the next arena.

* * *

They were now standing in in an Earth Master arena. It was ill-lit and largely featureless except for the dirt floor. There were two large balconies; the king and Karasu on one, Aurora and Tama - now encased in crystal except for their face and feet - on the other.

"Your final test is a duel and as a special treat, you may choose your opponent. Point and choose," the king said as two enormous coyotes showed up to his flanks. The champion on the left was a muscular coyote with a nasty smile and a huge axe. The champion on the right was a mammoth fighter who looked like he relied upon brute strength. Karasu was a bit terrified at the sight of them.

The young ninja thought about his two options, trying to figure out which one would cause him the less harm and who he could beat quickly. "So, you're saying that I will get to fight whoever I point to?"

The king narrowed his eyes. "Choose wisely."

Karasu glanced between the two warriors one more time before his eyes settle on the frail, old king. "I choose you," he said with pointing a feather at him.

His eyes narrowed and he smiled smugly. "Haha! Wrong choice!"

The king, with some effort, corrected his slumped posture. He dumped his robes to reveal a surprisingly muscular physique for such an old man. He was clearly formidable and Karasu recoiled, realizing his mistake.

He was also apparently an Earth Master, for he immediately stomped the ground, blowing him far out into the arena. The raven landed in the dust as the king launched himself off the balcony and landed close to him, laughing evilly while he stared him down.

"You thought I was a frail, old man, but I'm the most powerful Earth Master you'll ever see," he coldly said.

Karasu gulped nervously and nodded over the balcony. "Can I fight the guy with the axe instead?"

The king shook his head. "There are no take backs in my kingdom. You might need this!"

He motioned to a guard who threw his sword to Karasu. As soon as it was back in his wings, the king immediately launched several boulders at him which the raven dodged.

"Typical Sky Ninja tactic: avoid and evade. I'd hoped the Tao Dragon would be less predictable," he mocked as Karasu felt a small burst of annoyance.

He launched another boulder at Karasu who dodged and launched himself into the air. The king looked amazed. "Do you have any surprises for me? Sooner or later, you'll have to strike back."

He launched another stone at the raven which missed but exploded upon impacting the ceiling of the arena. The debris knocked him to the ground and he lost his sword as he hit the rubble. He got back up and ran at the king as he began walking around. With each turn, he made a huge pillar of rock to block his path. One of them caught him in the guts as it rose into the air.

"Oh, you'll have to be a little more creative than that!" the king cried.

Karasu jumped off the pillar, opening his wings and flying down. He flew around the arena and approached the king from his right side. When he was close enough, Karasu launched a bolt of lightning at his opponent who blocked it with a sheet of stone raised from the arena floor. A second later, he emerged from behind the stone shield, a smile on his face.

"Did someone leave the window open? It feels a little drafty in here!" He then dropped his smile. "Are you trying to wake me up with some electricity?"

Karasu glared and dived as the king kicked over the stone sheet and began to raise it on earth dug out of the arena's surface. He shot the earth underneath the stone sheet at him which knocked him over and he smacked his head against rocks. The king struck the ground with his fist, sending a shockwave through the arena surface right at him. Karasu flipped backward and avoided the shockwave, but he was now close to the rear wall of the arena.

"How are you going to get me from way over here?" the king yelled while laughing.

A feeling of determination came over Karasu and he began to run at his opponent. This last one used the side of his foot to dash the earth and the ground around Karasu became quicksand, causing him to fall in. The king raised tow boulders and sent them to smash Karasu as this last one struggled.

The young ninja escaped just in time as the rocks smashed together, right where he had been moments ago. He jumped straight at his opponent, unleashing a blast of lightning that knocked him and the stone sheet he stood upon back against the wall of the arena.

He raised one of the boulders from where he had just failed to crush Karasu and pulled it back toward him at a frightening speed. Karasu saw it just in time and did a backflip that barely allowed him to get up and over the flying boulder. The boulder, of course, moved on to almost crush the king, but he broke it into many pieces as it reached him.

With tremendous effort, he tore the entire gate of the arena out of the ground and held it over his head. Karasu widened his eyes in terror and began to run in circles, charging lightning in his sword. The king threw the massive earth mound, but Karasu's lightning strike sliced it in two.

Without missing a beat, the raven ran forward between the rock pieces and pinned the king down with the tip of his sword. He smiled and looked up pointedly. The raven also looked up as a little piece of rock bounced off his head. He froze when he saw that overhead, one of the two halves of the rock hovered, ready to crush both of them.

"Hehe! Well done, Tao Dragon. You fight with much fire in your heart," the king said and threw the rock to the side of the arena. He then fell backward into the floor, disappearing and leaving a king-shaped hole.

"Huh?" Karasu said, flabbergasted.

He watched as a hole opened up in the floor of the balcony near Aurora and Tama and the king emerged, the hole closing instantly below him. Karasu flapped his wings to fly up and down next to him. He noticed that his two friends were almost completely encased in the crystals. He had finished the tests just in time.

"You've passed all my tests. Now, you must answer one question," he cheerfully said.

Karasu twisted his beak angrily. "That's not fair! You said you would release my friends if I passed your tests."

He waved his paw dismissively. "Oh, but what's the point of tests if you don't learn anything?"

Aurora groaned. "Oh, come on!"

"Answer this one question and I will free your friends from these crystals. What...is my name?"

Karasu's beak dropped. how was he supposed to know his name?!

The king smiled and left the room. "From the looks of your friends, I'd say you only have a few minutes."

Karasu turned to them with a worried expression. "How am I supposed to know his name?"

"Think about the challenges, maybe it's some kind of riddle," Aurora said, thinking for a moment.

"I got it!" Tama exclaimed.

Karasu turned toward her with hope. "Yeah?"

"He's an Earth Master, right? Rocky! You know, because of all the rocks?"

Silenced followed and Karasu coughed uncomfortably. That was the worst suggestion by far. "We're gonna keep trying, but this is a good backup," Aurora said with rolling her eyes.

Karasu thought about it for a moment, going over everything he went through today. "Okay, so back to the challenges. I got a key from the waterfall, I saved his pet, and I had a duel with him."

"And what did you learn?"

"Well, everything was different than what I expected," Karasu replied, thinking back to Flopsy and how the king transformed.

A piece of crystal started growing some more, pressing into Aurora's cheek. "And...?"

"Well, they aren't straightforward. To solve each test, I had to think differently than I usually would..." Suddenly, something came to the raven's mind. "I know his name!"

He practically ran to the king's room, the guards dragging Aurora and Tama behind him. When he got there, he walked forward until he was standing in front of the king. He came and stood a few feet away from him as well, once again hunched over and in his regular green robes.

"I solved the question the same way I solved your challenges. As you said a long time ago, I had to open my brain to the possibilities," Karasu said and winked.

The king began to laugh and snort, just as he did as a young coyote.

"Shugan, you're a mad genius!" Karasu said and ran to hug his old friend.

"Oh, Karasu. It's good to see you. You haven't changed a bit...literally," Shugan said, hugging back tightly.

He rubbed the raven's head teasingly and Karasu smiled, happy to find that not everyone he had known was gone. Aurora and Tama approached, still encased in crystal. Only their faces were still showing.

"huh, over here!" Aurora called and panicked.

"Little help?" Tama yelped.

Shugan made a pulling gesture with his fist, shattering the crystal from around both Water Tribe members. Crystal flew all over and King Shugan caught a piece in his paw.

"Genemite is made of rock candy," he said and took a bite. "Delicious!"

"So this crazy king is your old friend, Shugan?" Tama asked, eyeing Shugan up and down.

"Who you calling old?" Shugan asked, annoyed. He paused and sighed after a moment. "Okay, I'm old."

"Why did you do all of this instead of just telling Karasu who you were?" Aurora asked.

"First of all, it's pretty fun messing with people, hehe. But I do have a reason." He turned to Karasu. "Karasu, you have a difficult task ahead. The world has changed in the hundred years you've been gone. It's the duty of the Tao Dragon to restore balance to the world by defeating the Fire Lord. You have much to learn. You must master all the elements of Aether and confront the Fire Lord, and when you do, I hope you will think like a mad genius!"

Karasu smiled and pressed his wings together, bowing respectfully. "And it looks like you're in good hands. You'll need your friends to help defeat the Fire Nation," he said just as Dum Gai arrived and jumped on Karasu's shoulder. The raven smiled and patted his black, orange, and white head. "And you'll need Dum Gai too."

"Thank you for your wisdom. But before we leave, I have a challenge for you!" Karasu coyly said, grinning mischievously.

* * *

Five minutes later, the two friends were flying down a chute, King Shugan at the front and Karasu at the back. They were both having a blast as the wind rushed by them, just like when they were both kids.

At least, it was fun until they accidentally crashed into a familiar cabbage merchant's cart again.

"MY CABBAGES!"

* * *

 **Poor merchant; he really don't have any luck with his cabbages, right?**

 **Now, if there's one lesson you must retain from this chapter, it's that you must not always just think straightforward and believe things are simply what they are; you can think like a mad genius too. It could give unexpected results, you'd be surprised.**

 **Also, Shugan means "Trunk" in Chinese.**


	343. The platform prison

Three days after leaving Naliwen, Team Tao made a small camp in a remote forest. After spending one night there, Tama left to go get some food while Karasu and Aurora sat on a natural stone patio. Eventually, Tama returned from his hunt.

"I'm back, guys," he announced.

"Great; I'm starving," Karasu said with a smile. "What did you find?"

The grey fox opened his bag and started rummaging through it. "Let's see...some nuts, some berries, and...more nuts."

"Again? We've been eating only that since leaving Naliwen," Aurora complained. "We should have asked Shugan to bring some food from his city."

"Hey, I'm not a five-star cook, sista; you can only eat what I'm lucky enough to find," Tama simply said. He then heard a loud rumbling noise and turned his head toward it. "What was that?"

"I don't know; let's find out," Karasu said, standing up and making his way toward where the noise came from.

"Wait for me," Aurora said and ran after him.

"Wait, we must get in the opposite way from noises like this; not toward!" Tama called. He groaned. "Why nobody ever listens to me?"

Karasu and Aurora crept up behind a fallen tree and peered over cautiously, Tama joining them. They looked down at a river bed where a male golden cat wearing the Earth Kingdom's green clothes and headband was practicing his art there, moving a huge boulder.

"An Earth Master!" Aurora mumbled. "Let's go meet him."

"Huh, we don't know if he's dangerous, so I suggest we approach him cautiously-" Tama started, but his sister already jumped to go meet the Earth Master. "...Am I speaking alone here?"

"Hello! I'm Aurora, what's your name?"

The young Earth Master looked at her in surprise and quickly ran away on all four. "...I think he's not happy to see us," Karasu said with rubbing the back of his head. An idea then came to his mind. "Hey, that guy's gotta be running somewhere. Maybe a village with a market!"

Aurora smiled. "That would be great. That way, we won't need to eat nuts and berries for dinner. Let's go!"

"Hey! I worked hard to get those nuts and berries!" Tama called as his friend and sister along with Dum Gai ran in the Earth Master's direction. "...Yeah, I don't really like nuts either."He ran after them.

* * *

A few moments later, Team Tao arrived into a walled Earth Kingdom village. The three friends walked from one stall to the other to buy some food for tonight. While Karasu and Tama were paying for some fish, Aurora looked around the village and saw the Earth Master from earlier entering a building.

"Hey!" Aurora called, alerting the young golden cat who rushed into the building and closed the door. The jackal followed him, opening the door and entering a long, mostly empty room with the boy and an older golden cat woman. "Hey, you're that kid! Why did you run away before?"

"Huh, you must have confused me with someone else," the boy said dismissively.

Karasu and Tama then stepped through the door. "No, I'm pretty sure you're that same guy we saw using Earth Chi earlier," Tama said.

The boy gasped as he and his mother shut the door and closed the blinds. "They saw you doing what?!" the boy's mother snapped with a glare.

"They're crazy, mom. Don't believe what they're saying," the boy nervously said.

"You know this is dangerous! They would take you away if they see you using Earth Chi!" the mother hissed.

They then heard footsteps outside and Tama gave a peek through the window to see Fire Nation soldiers stepping through the market street. "How long has the Fire Nation been here?" the grey fox asked while still looking outside.

"Five years. The Fire Lord uses our town's coal mines to fuel his ships," the elder golden cat explained.

"They'Re thugs; they steal from us, and everyone here is too much of a coward to do anything about it," the boy said, his voice quivering with rage.

The woman turned sharply toward her son. "Quiet, Haru. Don't talk like that."

Aurora gave them a confused look. "But Haru's an Earth Master. He can help."

"Earth Chi is forbidden to use. It caused nothing but misery for this village. He must never use his abilities," she said coldly, stealing a glance at Haru.

"How could you say that? Haru has a gift. Asking him not to use Earth Chi is like asking me not to use my Aura. It's a part of who we are," the jackal argued.

The golden cat shook her head. "You don't understand."

"I understand that Haru can help you fight back. What can the Fire Nation do to you that they haven't already done?"

"They could take Haru away! Like they took his father!" she bitterly said, her voice cracking with pain.

The three members of Team Tao widened their eyes and looked at Haru who lowered his gaze in sadness.

* * *

After this conversation, Haru led the three guests to an outbuilding not too far from his home. The inside of the barn had already cots with some farm supplies.

"My mom and I are willing to let you sleep here for the night, but you should leave in the morning," Haru advised.

"It's okay, we appreciate your generosity," Karasu said with politely bowing.

Fin walked in and snuggled into a corner filled with hay. "So comfy..."

Haru then tapped Aurora on the shoulder. "Hey, do you want to come with me?" he asked.

Aurora nodded and the two of them walked out of the farm to go for a little walk. The jackal was feeling awkward that he wanted to be around her after she had been so rude. She chose to make amends. "I'm sorry about earlier; I didn't know about your father."

He shrugged. "That's okay. It's funny the way you talked back in the store; you reminded me of him."

"Thanks," Aurora said, feeling a bit less guilty.

"My father was very courageous. When the Fire Nation invaded, he and the other Earth Masters were outnumbered ten to one, but they fought back anyway."

"He sounds like a great man."

"After the attack, they rounded up my father, every other Earth Master, and took them away. We haven't seen them since."

"So, that's why you hide your Earth Chi?" he asked as the two of them arrived onto the crest of a small hill that overlooked the countryside.

"Yeah." Haru knelt down and used his Earth Chi to raise two small stones which he made twirl above his paw. "The problem is that the only way I can feel close to my father now is when I practice my Earth Chi. He taught me everything I know."

Aurora came to sit beside him and placed her paw on a small golden necklace resting above her chest. "See this necklace? Back in my home country, my mom gave it to me so that I could give it to someone one day."

"It's beautiful."

Aurora looked down. "I lost my mother when a sect assaulted our village. This necklace is all I have left of her."

"It's not enough, is it?"

"No..."

The two friends sat down on the hill for a while longer before hearing someone screaming: "Help!"

"The mine!" Haru exclaimed and the two friends rushed to the mine entrance where an old goat was trapped under a pile of collapsed rubbles.

Aurora quickly used her Aura powers to keep the ceiling in position and prevent the old goat from getting completely buried. "Help me!" this last one begged.

"Haru! I won't be able to hold on for much longer! You gotta do something!" Aurora pleaded.

"I can't move it; we gotta get help!" Haru said and turned around to run and get help.

"There's no time! There's a way to help him, Haru," Aurora said with pleading eyes.

"I-I can't," Haru said, face pained.

"Please, there's no one around to see you, it's the only way!"

Harun hesitated for a moment...before taking a determined look and getting in position. With a swift throw of his fist, the earth pinning the old goat down was pushed back into the mine, saving him.

"Haru, you did it!" Aurora cheered as she helped the old goat back up. Luckily, there was a hospital not too far where they led the old goat before Haru went back home while Aurora went to the barn to sleep. Karasu and Tama were already laying on their cots while Dum Gai went to sleep with Fin.

Aurora took the time to explain everything to her friend. "It was so brave of Haru to use his Earth Chi to help that old man."

"You must have really inspired him," Karasu said with a smile.

Tama yawned. "Everyone should get some sleep. We're leaving at dawn."

"Aww, can't we just sleep in for once?" Aurora whined.

"Absolutely not! This village is crawling with Fire Nation troops. If they find out we're traveling with the Tao Dragon, we'll be eating fireballs for breakfast. Good night."

"That would still be better than eating those nuts and berries you took from the forest," Karasu chuckled.

"As I said, good night," Tama growled.

* * *

The next morning, Aurora left to go get some water from the village while Karasu and Tama remained behind to get their things prepared to leave. Eventually, Aurora came back and she had a hurried and panicked look on her face. "What's wrong, Aurora?" Karasu asked.

"They took him! They took Haru away!" the jackal said.

"What?!" Karasu and Tama exclaimed at the same time.

"That old goat we saved turned him in. It's my fault, I forced him to use his Earth Chi."

"Slow down, Aurora, when did this happen?" Tama asked with putting a paw on his sister's shoulder.

"Haru's mother said they came for him at midnight."

"Then it's too late to track him down. He's long gone," Tama said with looking down.

Aurora looked down for a while...before giving a look of determination. "We won't have to track Haru...because the Fire Nation will take me to him! It's time to make some Earth Chi use."

As the jackal turned around and walked out of the barn, Tama and Karasu exchanged confused looks.

A few moments later, Aurora arrived into a part of the village where some Fire Nation soldiers were gathered. The jackal used her Aura powers to levitate a stone and dropped it near the soldiers who were shocked. One thing led to another, and Aurora got cuffed and dragged away by the soldiers toward a Fire Navy ship that sailed away.

"What now?" Karasu asked Tama.

"We're gonna follow them and wait for Aurora to set Haru free. I hope she'll be fast; we can only give them twelve hours. Let's go," Tama mumbled back as he and Karasu got onto Fin's back and flew after the ship while making sure not to get spotted.

* * *

By midday, the ship arrived at the prison which was an offshore platform. It was huge, dark, and industrial. The rest of the team managed to see that Fire Nation soldiers were keeping Earth Masters all around and forced them to work all across the platform. Since the prison was entirely made of metal with no trace of earth, there was nothing those poor masters could do to fight off the enemy.

The team waited in a safe spot until night time before Aurora managed to regroup with them. "So, what did you learn?" Karasu asked her.

"I found Haru and I got to meet his father too," Aurora said. She then looked down sadly. "I tried to encourage them to fight back, but they did not react. They lost all hope, guys. But we can't simply give up on them..."

Karasu stared at the jackal before putting his wing on her shoulder. "I will go see them tomorrow. They should regain hope upon seeing the Tao Dragon has returned!"

"But even if you do, there's no earth all around; they won't be able to fight back."

"I wouldn't say that," Tama suddenly said with a thinking look. He then pointed up at the steam towers at the top of the platform. "You see those towers? They are creating smoke. And if there is smoke, there is fire. And how do you make a fire in a coal mine?"

Aurora gasped. "With coal!"

Tama nodded with a smile. "Exactly; I will find a way to make those towers explode so that the coal will be released and be used as weapons for the Earth Masters."

Karasu grinned. "Alright, we got a plan."

* * *

The following day, as dawn began to rise, all the prisoners were gathered in one spot to eat the dirty food they were given. Aurora slammed a metal spoon against a plate to get everyone's attention.

"People of the Earth Kingdom! My name is Aurora and I have a special guest for you today!" she announced and pointed to Karasu who landed her.

"Earth Masters!" the raven called. "My name is Karasu! Why are you letting those bullies of the Fire Nation mistreating you like this? Stand up and fight! I'm the Tao Dragon and I will get you out of this prison!"

Some Fire Nation soldier chuckled at this. "The Tao Dragon would have to be a Lightning Master. Are you a Lightning Master, boy?"

As the soldier kept chuckling, Aurora ran and knocked him down. "Leave him alone!"

"Why you little...!" The soldier angrily groaned and was about to jump on Aurora, only for Karasu to swiftly take out his saber and shot a lightning bolt right at the soldier, knocking him away.

Everybody present was shocked as lightning emanated from the raven's body. "H-How is he doing that?! All Lightning Masters should be dead! Kill him!" a soldier ordered.

BOOM!

Just then, one of the two towers exploded and Tama came crashing beside his friends with a huge pile of coal. He even had some in his mouth which he spat out." Eww! Sounds like building a bomb is harder than it sounds..." He then joined his two friends and took out his spear. "Alright, you can join us now, everyone!" he nervously said as the Fire Nation soldiers surrounded them.

Haru made the first move by using a lump of coal which he shot in the face of a soldier, knocking him down. He then turned toward an elder male golden cat who was his father. "Dad, we gotta help them!"

"And we will!" his dad said with taking his fighting stance. As a Fire Master shot a blast of fire, the old cat created a wall of coal to block it and shot it right into said master to knock him away.

Soon, the Earth Masters all started fighting back and the prison turned into a battlefield. The prisoners quickly took the advantage thanks to Karasu shooting lightning bolts, Aurora using her Aura to blast them away, and Tama taking them down with his spear. Fin even joined in and whipped the soldiers away with his tail.

Before long, all the Fire Nation soldiers were defeated and the prisoners reached for the ships to sail away toward their home. "Victory! We are free, my brothers!" Haru's father cheered and everyone beamed in joy.

"Thanks a lot, Tao Dragon, we are eternally grateful for what you did," Haru said with bowing to Karasu who was driving on Fin's back.

"You should thank Aurora; she's the one who decided to save all of you from this prison," Karasu said with pointing his wing at the jackal who blushed.

"That's true. Thanks a lot, Aurora. I will never forget what you did. I'm sure your mother would be proud of you," Haru said with a smile.

"Thanks, Haru," the jackal said with a smile and placed her paw on her necklace...only to find out it was no longer there. She widened her eyes and started looking all around. "Oh no! My necklace! I lost it! Where is it?!"

* * *

Back on the platform, Shen leaned down to pick a golden necklace in his wing. He recognized it as that young Aura Master's. His life became much easier. With this jewel, he could be able to bargain with them.

Lord Shen stared out at the ocean, grinning to himself and plotting.

* * *

 **Team Tao managed to free the Earth Masters of a village and befriended Haru. But now, Aurora lost her mother's necklace. Which consequence will it have on the future? Stay stunned to find out.**


	344. The winter solstice

Team Tao flew across the open sky over a lush river valley. It was a beautiful day with lazy, puffy white clouds and sunshine. Fin was moving slowly through the clouds, drifting lazily. While Karasu was trying to meditate and Aurora was playing with Dum Gai, Tama couldn't help but stare blankly at all the clouds.

"You know," he said, "I always wondered if we could actually sit on a cloud, like a pillow or something." After saying that, he reached his paw to touch a nearby cloud...and it instantly became all wet.

"Sorry to break your fantasies, but clouds are made of water, Tama," Karasu said with a chuckle.

Tama rolled his eyes before looking ahead and widening them. "Hey, what's that?"

Karasu and Aurora followed his gaze to see that a good portion of the valley was a pure black instead of green and looked like a scar. Team Tao quickly landed on the floor of the valley where the area was damaged. Upon landing, ashes floated softly. Trees were burnt all around and the terrible smell of ash filled the group's noses, making them cough a bit.

"Listen. It's so quiet, there's no life anywhere," Tama said, his voice sounding too loud in the dead calm.

It was disturbing; there were really no sounds, no signs of life. No birds, or animals or anything. Just a sea of grey and black ash. Karasu spotted footprints on the burnt ground, actually dotting a lot of the place. This caused his face to drain.

"What's wrong, Karasu?" Tama asked as he joined his raven friends. Upon noticing the footprints, he too gasped. "Fire Nation! These savages make me sick! They have no respect for-"

"Shhh!" Aurora hissed sharply.

Tama glared at her. "What? I'm not allowed to be angry?"

Aurora pointed not so secretly at Karasu, but the raven didn't care. He was too upset. He sunk to his knees in the dust and sighed. He began to run his wings through the burnt earth, almost feeling all the pain that had been caused there.

"Why would anyone do this? How could I let this happen?" he asked quietly, not really speaking to anyone. He hated himself for this, for not doing anything to stop it. It was his fault; everything that had gone wrong in the world was his fault.

"Karasu, you didn't let it happen. It has nothing to do with you," Aurora softly said.

"Yes, it does. It's the Tao Dragon's job to protect nature. But I don't know how to do my job."

"That's why we're going to the North Pole. To find you a teacher."

"Yeah, a Water Chi teacher, but there's no one to teach me to be the Tao Dragon. I mean, my mother and father did do everything they could to help me get ready. They also said that Tao Dragon Roccio would help me."

Tama gave a curious look. "Tao Dragon Roccio?"

"He was the Tao Dragon who came before me," Karasu explained.

"Really?! But he must have died over a hundred years ago, how is he supposed to help you?"

Karasu shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know." The raven suddenly received a nut to the face and turned to see Dum Gai chipping at him. "What was that for?"

"He's trying to cheer you up," Aurora giggled.

* * *

"Uncle? Uncle Longwei!"

Shen was walking through the forest in search fo his uncle who disappeared around thirty minutes ago. When he found him, he swore himself to kill him. Eventually, he found a familiar Fire Nation soldier dress hanging on a branch and then, Longwei laying in a bath. The tub was made of rock and was fled by a stream coming out of the rocks behind it.

"Aaah, my nephew," the old peacock said in a relaxed voice. "Come and join me; the water is perfect!"

"We don't have time, Uncle. We're on the Tao Dragon's trail and I don't want to lose him!" the white peacock firmly said. "So get out of the water now!"

"As you wish." Longwei stood up and Shen immediately lifted his wing to block to view.

"Huh, on second thoughts, why don't you take a few more minutes. But you have half an hour to be back at the ship or I'm leaving without you," Shen said before storming off.

"Ahhh!" Longwei sighed as he sat back into his hot bath. He remained there for many minutes before hearing a noise from the branches. "You forgot something, Nephew?"

Suddenly, the ground started shaking the old peacock found himself trapped in an earth prison. Three Earth Kingdom soldiers came out from the forest and surrounded him. "Looks like we found a Fire Nation soldier!"

"And not just any soldier," one of the other soldiers said with giving a good look at the old peacock. "The brother of the Fire Lord himself, "The Dragon of the West" Longwei."

* * *

After sitting in the ashes for a while, Team Tao decided it was time to leave and continue their journey north. However, they heard a noise and turned to see an old pig dressed in green using a stick as he approached them. He looked at each of them before his gaze stopped on Karasu.

"Who are you?" Tama asked in suspicion.

"When I saw the dragon, I thought it was impossible, but this sword...are the Tao Dragon, my young friend?" he asked Karasu.

"I am, sir."

"My village desperately needs your help," the old pig said with a pleading voice.

Karasu looked at his friends and back at the old pig. "Alright, take me to them."

* * *

The sun was about to go down behind hills in the distance. Team Tao followed the old pig into the walls of an Earth Kingdom village. Much of it had been burned down and destroyed. Karasu was saddened to see this. The group entered one of the buildings where all the village was gathered. As the old pig introduced them to all the villagers, an adult gazelle, probably the village's chief, walked over.

"This young raven is the Tao Dragon."

The chief looked up and down at Karasu. "So the rumors are true." He bowed. "It is the greatest honor of a lifetime to be in your presence."

Karasu bowed in return. "Nice to meet you too. So, is there anything I can help you with around here?"

The chief looked at him with a pained expression. "I'm not sure..."

"Our village's in crisis; he's our only hope. For the last few days, at sunset, a spirit monster comes and attacks our village. He is Hei-Bai, the black and white spirit."

"Why is it attacking you?" Aurora asked with rubbing the back of her head.

The chef moved to the threshold of the doorway, looking at the setting sun. "We do not know, but each of the last three nights, he abducted one of our own. We are especially fearful because the winter solstice draws near."

Tama frowned. "What happens then?"

"As the solstice approaches, the natural world and the spirit world grow closer and closer until the line between them is blurred completely," the old pig said, quivering slightly.

"Hei-Bai is already causing devastation and destruction. Once the solstice is here, there is no telling what will happen."

"So, what do you want me to do exactly?" Karasu asked, not sure as to what he could do.

The old pig shrugged and smiled. "Who better to resolve a crisis between our world and the spirit world than the Tao Dragon himself? You are the great bridge between us animals and spirits."

"...Yeah, right," Karasu said with a nervous smile.

Aurora then pulled her friend away. "You seem unsure about all this, Karasu."

"It's because I don't know anything about the spirit world," Karasu mumbled. "I'm a Sky Ninja, for god's sake, not some sort of boogeyman!"

"So, can you help these people?" the jackal asked.

"I have to try. Maybe I will learn what to do naturally."

Aurora put her paw on the raven's shoulder and smiled. "I think you can do it, Karasu."

Tama nodded in agreement. "Yeah." He then looked away. "We're all gonna get eaten by spirit monsters."

* * *

When the sun had nearly set, Karasu stood in the middle of the village and near the outside forest while Aurora, Tama, Dum Gai, and the rest of the village remained into the main building. Since nothing was happening, Karasu simply walked around the village with a wing on the handle of his sword.

"Hello, spirit? Can you hear me?" he randomly called. "The sun has set. Where are you, Bei-Hai? Spirit, please, leave this village in peace! ...Okay? Well, I guess it's settled then."

He turned back to walk to his friends. However, he stopped after a few feet as he heard whisper-like noises behind him. The raven stopped and then heard the dull thuds of gigantic feet. Realizing something was wrong, he swiftly turned around...

And got face to face with Hei-Bai.

Hei-Bai was as big as a house, with six legs and black-white orca-like markings all over his body. He was vaguely mammalian and had razor sharp teeth. "...Hi?" Karasu waved innocently at him.

The creature shot a blast of air and blue energy came out of its mouth. Karasu did not move, but his sword was blown to the ground. The spirit reared itself up on its hind-most legs and bellowed, releasing another jet of blue energy from its mouth. It got back on all six legs and charged into the village, ignoring the raven.

"Hey! Wait!" Karasu called, grabbing his sword and running after the creature.

The monster ignored him and started destroying buildings with its brute strength and blue energy jets. "Stop that right now!" Karasu angrily called as he jumped in front of the creature. "I'm trying to do my job as bridge between the two worlds and OUF!"

Using its tail, Bei-Hai whipped Karasu away into a building, making him land down with a loud thud. "That's it, he needs help!" Tama said, jumping out of the building by the window and running toward his raven friend with his boomerang. "Hei-Bai! Over here!"

As the spirit monster was standing over Karasu, the grey launched his boomerang. The weapon swung through the air before hitting the creature's side and bounced off harmlessly. It fell down on the floor and the creature turned its head to see what had hit him.

"Tama, go away!" Karasu snapped as the grey fox arrived beside him.

"No, Karasu; we'll fight this thing together," Tama firmly said with taking out his wood axe.

However, before the two friends scould argue any further, Hei-Bai suddenly grabbed Tama and ran back toward the forest with him. "Tama!" Karasu shouted in horror and immediately flew after him.

* * *

"Uncle? Uncle!" Shen and his men walked over to the hot bath where he had left his uncle, but the old peacock was nowhere to be seen. "Where is he?" the white peacock snapped.

The Fire Masters looked all around to find nothing but Longwei's robes. They noticed the bath was broken with stone projectiles. "This pile of rocks..."

Shen frowned. "My uncle got captured by Earth Masters!" Great, his day just turned ALL the better...

Three hours later, Shen'S company was on the trail of his Uncle and his captors. After figuring out that he had been taken, they had discovered the tracks of what looked like three ostrich horses. They had quickly returned to the ship and followed the tracks ever since.

After a while, they discovered something that convinced Shen that they were on the right trail. He jumped off his war rhinoceros and picked up a brown feather that he could recognize between a thousand. "That's Uncle Longwei's. Move out!"

The sun was about to set when Shen saw something that stopped him in his tracks. A flapping noise caused him to turn around and see a familiar emerald dragon flying in the air.

"The Tao Dragon!" Shen gasped. He yanked the reigns to turn the beast back but then stopped.

Was he really going to sacrifice his uncle's life to chase the Tao Dragon? Although the raven was essential for his return home, his uncle was the only Fire Chi teacher and family he had out there. Even though he infuriated him, he was the only person he trusted...and cared about.

Shen looked at the trail that led to his captured uncle and then looked back at the dragon, indecision tugging at him. After a minute of tossing things around, he looked at the trail following his uncle and made his decision. He was going after his uncle...

* * *

"Tama!" Karasu shouted as he flapped his wings as fast as he could to catch his friend.

"Karasu!" the grey fox cried.

"Hold on!"

KArasu dashed forward and extended his wing for Tama to grab it. However, before they could make contact, the grey fox and Hei-Bai suddenly vanished. Karasu fell down from the sky in surprise, cracking his head against a stone, and his world faded to black.

When Karasu woke up, he was laid out at the base of a stone statue of a bear. He sat up, surprised that his head was not hurting him. He looked up and saw a crescent moon overhead, bathing the land in silver moonlight.

The raven suddenly jumped in horror. "Tama!" Looking around, he saw absolutely nothing and dropped his head in defeat. "I failed..."

With nothing left to do, he walked back to the village. By the time he arrived, the sun started rising and Aurora was sitting at the village's entrance, joined by the old pig. "I'm sure they'll be back," he softly said.

Karasu sighed sadly. "I'm sorry, Aurora. But I lost Tama." The raven gave a curious glance as his jackal friend was not responding. "Hey, Aurora! Did you hear me? I-"

Karasu tried to touch her shoulder, but his wing moved through her. Upon further investigation, the raven saw that his body was translucent as if he was a ghost. Then, he realized what was going on.

"I'm in the spirit world!"

Great. What was he supposed to do now? He had no idea how he got into the spirit world, let alone getting out of it. The young raven could only walk along the path of the forest. He scanned the tree line, looking for something that might help him. An idea suddenly came to his mind and he felt stupid for not thinking about it before.

"Tao Dragon Roccio, how can I talk to you?!" he shouted.

Naturally, he got no response and started to despair. Sighing, Karasu turned around to return to the village...only to see the blue spirit of a dragon flying through the air and coming to him. The raven quickly unsheathed his sword, trying to charge it with lightning...but that didn't work.

"Crap! I can't use my Lightning Chi in the spirit world!"

The dragon suddenly landed in front of Karasu, causing the young raven to fall on his rear. He gulped nervously. "You don't know where Tama is, do you?"

In response, the dragon bent its head down and touched Karasu's with one of its whiskers. As soon as he touched him, the raven's eyes started burning like they were on fire and his body glowed a bright blue light.

A flashback began of a familiar old tiger riding the dragon while Karasu was riding Fin. In life, the dragon was red and brown. The flashback ended as the blue dragon broke its touch. Karasu smiled as he realized who this dragon was, relief replacing his fear.

"You're Tao Dragon Roccio's animal guide! Like Fin is to me! I need to save my friend and I don't know how. Is there some way for me to talk with Roccio?"

The dragon bent its neck and Karasu jumped on it. He then took off in the air and flew toward an unknown destination.

After many minutes of flying (Karasu noticed this dragon was faster than Fin), Karasu and Roccio's dragon approached a volcanic island. It had a beautiful Fire Temple on it which they entered. The dragon landed on the floor of a secret chamber at the top of the temple. It was empty except for the statue of an old tiger in the background. Karasu flew down and walked toward the statue.

"I don't understand. This is just a statue of Roccio," Karasu mumbled.

He looked back at the dragon who touched him with his whisker again. Karasu got another vision. This time of a huge, flaming comet rocketing through the sky. The vision ended as the dragon broke contact and Karasu blinked.

"Is that what Roccio wants to talk to me about? A comet? When can I talk to him?"

The dragon lowered its head in response. The raven turned and saw that a light was shining through a tiny window high up in the ceiling. The shaft of light, previously blocked by the dragon, now hit the wall near Roccio's right shoulder. The dragon touched him again and a vision of time passing at the Fire Temple began. Three days passed in quick succession before the light touched the statue's forehead and the vision ended there.

Karasu immediately understood.

"The light will reach the statue on the solstice in three days. Then, I can talk to Tao Dragon Roccio!" He then turned toward the dragon. "But I can't wait that long. I need to save Tama now."

The dragon huffed as Karasu got him and they departed at a terrible speed. They made their way all across the forest and then reached the stop where Karasu's true body in its Draconic Aura state (as he liked to call this form) was sitting on top of the bear statue. The dragon vanished into the statue while Karasu returned in his body.

When he woke up, the raven blinked many time,s feeling as if he had been sleeping for weeks. Wasting no time, he opened his wings and flew back to the village. He now knew how to deal with Hei-Bai.

When he arrived, he found Aurora sitting by herself with Dum Gai trying to cheer her up. Upon seeing Karasu returning, the puffin with a seal head let out a happy scream which alerted Aurora. Gasping, she quickly ran to hug Karasu before giving him a serious look.

"You're back! Where's Tama?"

Karasu looked down. "I'm not sure..."

* * *

After many hours of chasing, Shen'S company finally caught up with the Earth Soldiers who captured his uncle and managed to defeat them. After getting released, Longwei was able to join in the fight and actually battle alongside his nephew to win the fight.

"Excellent, Lord Shen," he congratulated.

"You taught me well," the white peacock replied with a smile. He then realized his uncle was still wearing nothing but a loincloth and looked away. "Now would you put on some clothes before I start having nightmares?!"

* * *

Karasu once again stood at the village's gate. It was night by now. Aurora and the others were watching from inside the main building, nervous as to what would happen. The young ninja raven was feeling a bit tired from standing on the same spot for hours.

Soon, the spirit monster returned, roaring and releasing the blue energy from its mouth. Karasu used his Lightning Chi to create a barrier around him, similar to what he did in the Sky Temple. "Karasu, what are you doing? Run!" Aurora cried.

The creature roared again, but Karasu flapped his wings to land on his forehead. His wing shined a blue light and he could see the superimposed image of a panda bear over Hei-Bai. He then flapped to another building roof.

"You're the spirit of this forest. Now I understand. You're upset and angry because your home was burned down. When I saw the forest had burned, I was sad and upset. But nature will make that this forest will grow back," he told him as reasonably as possible.

The spirit stood still while the raven spoke. The spirit soon smiled and turned into a true panda, roaring before turning around and returning to the forest.

Aurora and the others came up behind Karasu while he was still standing on the porch. Together, they all watched the panda exit. Suddenly, Tama and a few villagers appeared out of nowhere before the group, looking confused.

"Tama!" Aurora beamed as she ran to hug her brother while the villagers did the same with their beloved ones.

"W-What happened?" Tama asked.

"You were trapped in the spirit world for 24 hours. How you feeling?"

Tama looked seriously pained. "I really...need to use the bathroom!"

Fifteen minutes later, after Tama returned, the village chief spoke to Team Tao as they were about to leave. "Thank you, Tao Dragon. If there only were a way to repay you for what you have done."

Tama shrugged. "You could give us some supplies and money."

Aurora angrily elbowed her brother. "Tama!"

"What? We need stuff."

The chief bowed. "It would be an honor for us to help you prepare for your journey."

As he left to get supplies, Aurora turned toward Karasu. "I'm so proud of you, Karasu. You figured out what to do all on your own."

The raven smiled sheepishly. "Actually, I did have a little help. And there's something else."

"What is it?" the jackal curiously asked.

"I need to talk to Tao Dragon Roccio and I think I've found a way to contact his spirit."

Aurora grinned. "That's great!"

Tama nodded. "Creepy but great."

"There's a temple on a crescent-shaped island and if I go there on the solstice, I'll be able to speak with him," the raven explained.

Aurora frowned. "But the solstice is tomorrow."

"Yeah, and there's one more problem. The island is in the Fire Nation..."


	345. The winter solstice part 2

**Before we start this chapter, I'd like to make a shoutout to Ricardo The Black Hawk who finished his story "The Rio The Darkness Saga Remastered". That was truly an amazing story, my friend.**

* * *

The full moon was shining its light over the peaceful Earth Kingdom village that Karasu saved from Hei-Bai. Right now, the raven was pulling against his dragon, trying to get him to move.

"Come on, Fin, move!" he said in frustration.

"I told you; this is not a good idea, Karasu," the emerald dragon stubbornly said.

"Look, I'm sorry, but Aurora and Tama cannot come with us," Karasu said and looked down. "If they got hurt, I'd never forgive myself... Now, move your big butt!"

"I think his big butt is trying to tell ya something."

Karasu froze and turned to see Aurora, Tama, and the rest of the village awake and looking at him. "Please, don't go, Karasu. The world can't afford to lose you to the Fire Nation. Neither can I," Aurora softly said with a pleading look.

Karasu shook his head and sighed as he remembered his vision of the fire comet. No, he had endangered them enough like this, and going to the Fire Nation was too risky. "But I have to talk to Tao Dragon Roccio and find what my vision means. I need to get to the Fire Temple before the sun sets on the solstice. That's today."

The raven jumped on Fin'S back, but the two siblings stood before him before the emerald dragon could take off. "We're not letting you go to the Fire Nation, Karasu," Aurora said.

"At least, not without your friends. We got your back, brother," Tama added with a smile.

At that moment, Dum Gai flapped onto Karasu's shoulder and let out a "CHIP!" of agreement. "You are not alone into this, my old friend," Fin added with a nod.

The chief then arrived with a bag of supplies which he handed to the young raven. "It's a long journey to Crescent Island. you must leave immediately if you want to get there before sundown. Good luck."

Karasu nodded. "Let's go!" Fin flapped his wings and took off with Team Tao on his back.

* * *

A few hours later, the chief was sleeping in his home, when someone came knocking at it. Yawning, he went to open it...and got face to face with a crimson-eyed white peacock.

"Hello, old man. Seen the Tao Dragon lately?"

* * *

As the sun was starting to rise in the blue sky, Fin was flying across the clouds and above the bright blue sea. Both he and the animals he carried on his back were sleepy from the lack of rest they got since the day before. The events with Hei-Bai drained a lot out of them.

"Come on, Fin; I know you're tired but we have a long way to go. Please, faster," Karasu urged his dragon friend.

"Okay, geez!" the dragon annoyingly said and tried to fly faster. He was definitely not on the same speed as the spirit dragon Karasu met the night before.

Team Tao failed to notice that below them, on the endless sea, Shen's Fire Nation steamer was on their trail. The white peacock was on the main desk, watching closely at the emerald dragon while his uncle was standing behind him, shaking his head in despair.

"Sailing into Fire Nation waters...," he mumbled. "Of all the foolish things you have done in your thirty-two years, Lord Shen, this is the most foolish!" he said, sounding concerned and frustrated.

Shen pretended not to hear him and kept his focus on Team Tao with his spyglass. "I have no choice, Uncle," he said, hoping Longwei would understand.

"Have you completely forgotten that the Fire Lord banished you?!" he snapped angrily. Shen turned away from his spyglass to look at him. "What if you're caught?"

"I'm chasing the Tao Dragon. My uncle will understand why I have to enter his territory," Shen argued back.

Longwei shook his head. "You give him too much credit. My brother is not the understand type."

Shen didn't want to hear any more of this. His uncle was nothing but an old bird jealous of his brother. Shen's uncle - the Fire Lord - was a great man, and once he returned, he would welcome him with pride.

Looking once again through his spyglass, he spotted the emerald dragon in the sky. "There they are! Helmsman, full steam ahead!"

Luckily, up in the sky, Aurora managed to spot the steamer in time. "Karasu, we got trouble coming!"

"Yeah, and it's coming fast!" Tama added.

Back on the steamer, the Fire Masters prepared a catapult and Shen set a gas stone on fire. "On my mark...fire!" he ordered and the projectile was shot in the air.

"Fireball!" Aurora shouted in panic.

Hearing her warning, Fin dodged to the right to avoid the burning projectile. "We have to get out of Shen's fire rang!" Tama shouted. "Fin, can you go any faster?"

"Yes...but there's only one problem," the emerald dragon said with giving a shocked look.

Shen saw the same thing as him and gave the exact same look. "A blockade!"

Both the raven and peacock looked in dismay at the double line of Fire Nation warships stretching to either side of the horizon. The decks of the warships were lined with trebuchets.

"If we fly north, we can go around the Fire Nation ships and avoid the blockade. It's the only way!" Karasu said.

However, Aurora shook her head. "There's no time."

"This is why I didn't want you to come; this is too dangerous!"

"And that's exactly why we're here."

"Let's run this blockade!" Tama said with a determined look.

Karasu stared at his friends before smiling. "Fin!"

"I'm on it!" the dragon replied and flew faster toward the blockade.

Back on the steamer, Shen frowned toward the escaping dragon. "They're not backing down!"

"Lord Shen, please. You have to turn around," Longwei said in a pleading look. "If the Fire Nation arrests you, there is nothing I can do. Do not follow the Tao Dragon."

Shen stared at his uncle...before sighing sadly. "I'm sorry, Uncle..." He then turned toward his men. "Run the blockade!"

Meanwhile, on one of the blockade's ships, a certain red fox was staring at both the emerald dragon and Fire Nation steamer through a spyglass. "The Tao Dragon AND the banished prince of Gongmen..." Commander Cinead grinned as he lowered his spyglass. "This must be my lucky day."

Xing was still standing at the commander's side. "What are your orders, Commander?"

"Shoot this dragon down."

"But there's a Fire Navy ship in the range; what if it gets hit?" the wolf asked his commander.

"So be it. It belongs to a traitor," the red wolf simply replied. "Ignite the projectiles!" The Fire Nation soldiers obeyed their commanders and set the catapults' projectiles on fire. "Shoot them down!"

Simultaneously, all the warships in the blockade launched fireballs. Karasu, Aurora, Tama, and Dum Gai screamed as the fireballs came racing toward them. Fin swerved and dipped to avoid the fireballs. One of them came out of nowhere and grazed at the emerald dragon's back. "Fin!" Aurora exclaimed.

"Don't worry; my scales are resilient to fire!" the dragon assured his passenger.

Each ship shot multiple fireballs into the air as Fin burst through the clouds, a cumulus trail in his wake. Then, after many minutes, the dragon somehow managed to fly past the blockade and get to the other side safely.

"We made it...," Karasu mumbled.

* * *

Lord Shen's ship was not so lucky, however. Many fireballs landed extremely close to the ship and generated waves that broke across the deck. Bad luck landed on them as a fireball crashed on the back part of the ship. The engine master quickly rushed out on the main deck to warn Shen.

"Lord Shen, the engines are damaged! We need to stop and make the repairs!" he shouted.

Shen narrowed his eyes and turned back to the front of the ship. "Do not stop this ship!"

Meanwhile, on the warship, Commander Cinead looked as Team Tao flew further into the Fire Nation with their dragon. "Where do you think they are heading, sir?" Xing asked him.

The red wolf frowned. "I'm not sure." He then turned toward Shen's steamer. "But I bet a certain banished prince will know..."

A Fire Nation soldier then arrived. "Sir, our boarding party is ready to apprehend Lord Shen's ship."

"Wait," Commander Cinead said with raising his paw. "Cut the engines, let them pass."

"Sir?" the soldier said with a surprised look.

The soldiers obeyed and stopped the warships, allowing Shen's steamer to go past the blockade. As the ship passed, Shen and Cinead stared at each other, their faces masked by determination. The white peacock didn't fully relax before the blockade was far behind him.

Shen and Longwei looked at the blockade fading into the distance. The elder peacock looked pensive and stroked his beak. What was Commander Cinead plotting?

They'll find out soon...

* * *

Team Tao flew for hours into the empty Fire Nation sky. Fin grunted as tiredness started taking over, but continued to fly as he had nowhere to stop and rest. And the rest of the team was half-asleep on his back too.

However, Dum Gai suddenly let out a scream that alerted Karasu and the raven looked ahead to see the crescent-shaped island ahead. "There it is! The island where Tao Dragon Roccio's dragon took me to!"

Fin flew toward the island. The island they had been seeking sat on a promontory directly below the volcano. Everybody got down from Fin who collapsed and Karasu patted his head. "Nice job, buddy."

Aurora walked over to the dragon's belly and gently rubbed it. "Oh! You must be tired."

"No, no, I'm still full of energy," Tama assured while stretching nearby.

"I was talking to Fin," the jackal deadpanned.

Karasu stared up at the steep path leading to the Fire Temple. With Aurora and Tama behind him, they walked hesitantly up the path. They continually looked left and right in anticipation of an attack. After another hour of walking, they finally made it and crouched behind a low wall in front of the temple.

"I don't see any guards," Aurora mumbled, looking around.

"The Fire Nation must have abandoned the temple when Tao Dragon Roccio died," Tama said, standing up.

"It's almost sundown. We better hurry," Karasu said and leaped over the wall. The others followed and, knowing they were running short on time, ran as fast as they could through the temple. Once inside the place, they started tip-toeing, not sure if this place was truly abandoned.

Tama suddenly stopped. "Wait, I think I hear something..."

They all turned and froze when they saw five elder men in red robes behind them. One of them spoke and identified the group: "We are the Fire Sages. Guardians of the temple of the Tao Dragon."

Team Tao exchanged puzzled looks. Karasu decided to step forward. "Great! I am the Tao Dragon."

"We know," the same Fire Sage said, his voice low and dangerous.

Three of the sages assumed stances and shot fireballs at the raven. This last one quickly unsheathed his sword and sliced them away before turning to his friends. "Run! I'll hold them off!"

He turned back to the five sages as Aurora and Tama run into the corridor with Dum Gai. Charging Lightning into his sword, Karasu swung it and shot a lightning strike that knocked all five sages down. By the time they recovered, the ninja was already gone after his friends.

"If the Tao Dragon contacts Roccio, there's no telling how strong the boy will become! Split up and find him!" one of them said.

* * *

Karasu ran into the corridors with no plan until he finally managed to reunite with his friends. "Which way must we go?" Tama asked in panic.

"I don't know!" Karasu honestly replied.

After running for a moment, the team hit a dead end. At the same time, a Fire Sage headed their way. With no escape possible, they all took their fighting position.

"Wait, I don't want to fight you," the lynx said. "My name is Shyu. I'm a friend."

Tama snorted. "Fire Masters aren't our friends."

Shyu approached them carefully and bowed before Karasu. "I know why you are here, Tao Dragon."

The raven blinked his eyes in surprise. "You do?"

Yes," he said with standing up. "You wish to speak with Tao Dragon Roccio. I can take you to him." He suddenly pulled down a light fixture on the wall which opened a secret entrance. The lynx gestured toward the secret passage. "This way."

Karasu and his friends exchanged unsure looks...but realizing they had no choice, decided to enter the secret passage as Shyu followed and closed the passage behind them...

* * *

Dark smoke billowed from the back of Shen's damaged ship as they kept sailing through the water. The white peacock was still trying to figure out what Cinead was planning and gripped the bar of the desk in irritation.

"What's he up to, Uncle? Why didn't Commander Cinead arrest me?" he asked.

Longwei spoke from behind him, confirming what he already guessed. "Because he wants to follow you. He knows you'll lead him to the prize you're both after...the Tao Dragon."

Shen gave a glance of determination, looking at a one-person canoe strapped to the side of the ship. "If Cinead wants to follow our trail of smoke, that's exactly what I'll let him do."

"What are you talking about?" Longwei asked, looking at him like he had gone mad.

"I'll take the canoe and use the smoke for cover. When I'm a good distance away, you change the ship's course and lead Cinead off in another direction. He'll never suspect!"

Shen wasted no time and informed his men of his plan. He was then about to climb into the canoe when he turned at his uncle. "Uncle, keep heading north. Cinead will follow the smoke trail while I use it as cover."

* * *

Team Tao followed Dhyu grudgingly, walking down the stairs into a vast and cavernous system of tunnels. There was a stream of magma flowing to their side.

"Tao Dragon Roccio once called this temple his home. He formed these secret passages out of the magma," Shyu explained.

"Did you know Tao Dragon Roccio?" Karasu curiously asked.

The lynx shook his head. "No. But my grandfather knew him. Many generations of Fire Sages guarded this temple well before me. We all have a strong spiritual connection to this place."

Karasu looked at him in wonder. "Is this how you knew I was coming?"

"A few weeks ago, an amazing thing occurred. The statue of Tao Dragon Roccio, its eyes...began to glow! At that moment, we knew you had returned to save the world."

"If this is the Tao Dragon's temple, why did the Fire Sages attack me?" Karasu asked, still not clear on that part.

Shyu looked down in disgrace. "Things have changed. In the past, the Sages were loyal only to the Tao Dragon. When Roccio died, the Sages waited eagerly for the next Tao Dragon to return. But he never came."

Karasu paused and leaned against the tunnel's wall, guilt washing through him. "They were waiting for me."

Tama put his arms around the raven's shoulders. "Hey, don't feel bad. You're only a hundred years late."

"They lost hope the Tao Dragon would ever return," Shyu continued. "When Fire Lord Ezra began the war, my grandfather and the other Sages were forced to follow him," he said and shook his head in dismay. "I never wanted to serve the Fire Lord. When I learned you were coming, I knew I would have to betray the other Sages."

Karasu smiled, knowing he owed this man so much for staying loyal to the Tao Dragon even though he had disgraced that title. The lynx would suffer if it was ever discovered that he helped Karasu. He bowed respectfully to the elder man.

"Thank you for helping me," he sincerely said.

He smiled warmly in return as they continued climbing up the steps of the tunnel. "We'll follow these stairs to the sanctuary," he said as they ascended a long spiral of stairs. "Once you're inside, wait for the light to hit Tao Dragon Roccio's statue. Only then will you be able to speak with him."

They walked up the final steps of the temple and proceeded toward the doors to the sanctuary. Shyu suddenly gasped. "No!"

"Shyu, what's wrong?" Karasu asked in surprise.

"The sanctuary doors...they're closed," he said with an empty voice.

Tama frowned, confused. "Can't you just open them with your Fire Chi?"

Shyu shook his head. "No. Only a fully realized Tao Dragon is powerful enough to open this door alone. Otherwise, the Sages must open this door with five simultaneous fire blasts."

"Five simultaneous fire blasts, huh?" Tama said with rubbing his chin. An idea then came to his mind. "I might be able to help you with that."

A few moments later, Tama finished crafting five mini bombs which he planted into all five holes of the doors. "I understand; you will make all these bombs explode at the same time to activate the mechanism," Karasu said.

"Exactly," Tama confirmed with a smile. "Shyu, can you lit up the fuses?"

The lynx nodded and shot a small fire beam which lit up the bombs' fuses. The friends all went to hide behind pillars to protect themselves from the explosion.

BOOM!

The group peeked out from behind the pillars...to see the doors were unmoved. "WHAT?!" Tama exclaimed in disbelief. "But those bombs were supposed to be as powerful as a real fireblast!"

"Great, any other idea now?" Karasu asked with rolling his eyes.

Aurora approached the doors and noticed the explosions left some marks on the metal doors. She then smiled. "I think I have an idea..."

* * *

A few moments later, the four other Fire Sages rushed on the scene. "Hurry, the Tao Dragon has entered the sanctuary!" Shyu told them.

"How did he get in?" one of them asked.

"I don't know. But look at these fire marks," he said with pointing at the marks on the doors. "And look there!" he added with pointing at a shadow from inside the room visible on the floor.

"He's inside! Open the doors immediately before he contacts Tao Dragon Roccio!"

The five Fire Sages took their stances and shot five simultaneous fire blasts into the holes, activating the mechanism and opening the doors...to reveal Dum Gai standing inside?

"That's the Tao Dragon's porg? He must have crawled through the pipes!"

The little puffin with a seal head then jumped onto the Fire Sage's face while Aurora and Tama took down two others, and Shyu caught the fourth one into a headlock. "Now, Tao Dragon Karasu!"

The raven came out from the shadows...with none other than Lord Shen holding his wings behind his back. "The Tao Dragon's coming with me," he firmly said.

The Fire Sages then broke free and managed to overpower Tama, Aurora, Dum Gai, and Shyu. "Close the doors, quickly!" Shen ordered as he started carrying Karasu down the stairs.

Karasu turned to see his friends getting chained to the pillars and the Sages starting to close the doors. No. He couldn't let his chance slip by after all the hard work they did.

The ninja swiftly grabbed Shen and made him flip over his shoulder, sending him to fall down the stairs. He then ran toward the doors of the sanctuary which began to close. Thanks to his small size, the raven managed to slip through the doors just before they closed and get into the room.

"He made it!" Aurora beamed.

* * *

The room was exactly like in Karasu's spiritual vision with Tao Dragon Roccio's statue. The light from the window was now on the statue's chest.

"Why isn't anything happening? I don't know what I'm doing! All I know is Lightning Chi! Please, Tao Dragon Roccio, talk to me!" the raven begged.

* * *

Outside the room, Shen and the four other Sages shot their fire blasts into the holes, but the doors didn't open. "Why isn't it working? It's sealed shut!"

"It must have been the light. Tao Dragon Roccio doesn't want us inside," one of the Sages said, frustrated.

* * *

Karasu stared at the statue as the sunlight moved up to its face. When the light hit the statue's eyes, they began to glow. The room started getting filled with white smoke which, once cleared, revealed that Karasu was now standing face to face with Tao Dragon Roccio. The raven looked around in surprise and realized he was standing on top of a mountain.

"It's good to see you, Karasu. What took you so long?" he said in a deep, warm voice.

Shocked and amazed, Karasu bowed deeply to his former self.

* * *

Shyu was forced to kneel as a furious Shen glared at him. "Why did you help the Tao Dragon?"

He looked back at Shen evenly. "Because it was once the Sages' duty. It still is our duty."

Suddenly, from behind Shen came the sound of clapping hands. He turned around and froze when he saw Commander Cinead approaching with Fire Nation troops.

"What a moving and heartfelt performance. "I'm certain the Fire Lord will understand when you explain why you betrayed him..."

One of the Fire Sages bowed. "Commander Cinead..."

The red wolf turned to Shen, grinning nastily. "And Lord Shen, it was a noble effort. But your little smoke screen didn't work. Two traitors in one day, the Fire Lord will be pleased."

A Fire Nation soldier moved forward and grabbed the white peacock who strained a bit. Karma really sucked. He glared furiously at Cinead. "You're too late, Cinead. The Tao Dragon's inside and the doors are sealed!"

He laughed and shook his head. "No matter. Sooner or later, he has to come out."

* * *

Roccio looked down seriously at Karasu. "I have something very important to tell you, Karasu. That is why, when you were in the spirit world, I sent my dragon to find you," he said.

"Is it about that vision? The one with the comet?" the young raven asked.

"Yes," Roccio responded with nodding.

Karasu frowned curiously. "What does it mean?"

The light of the mountain range faded into a starry night sky. The comet slowly crossed overhead behind Roccio as he spoke. "One hundred years ago, Fire Lord Ezra used that comet to begin the war. He and his fire army harnessed its incredible power and dealt a deadly first strike against the other countries."

Karasu's emerald green eyes followed the comet as it faded on the horizon. "So the comet made them stronger?"

"Yes. Stronger than you could even imagine."

"But that happened a hundred years ago. What does the comet have to do with the war now?"

"Listen carefully," Roccio said and the scene changed again to an image of Fire Lord Mordred. His body was black against a wall of flames. "Ezra's comet will return by the end of summer. And Fire Lord Mordred will use its power to finish the war once and for all." The figure or Mordred rose its arms and created a fire explosion that caused Karasu to flinch.

"If he succeeds, even the Tao Dragon won't be able to restore balance to the world. Karasu, you must defeat the Fire Lord before the comet arrives."

Karasu gasped, fear coursing through him. "But I haven't even started learning Water Chi, not to mention air, earth, fire, ice, and metal."

Roccio stared seriously at him. "Mastering the elemental Chi takes years of discipline and practice. But if the Independent Lands are to survive, you must do it by summer's end."

Fear and worry washed across Karasu's features. How was he going to do this in just a few short months? He knew he had to because if he didn't, the world he knew would disappear by his fault.

He looked up at Roccio. "What if I can't master all the elemental Chi in time? What if I fail?"

He smiled comfortingly. "I know you can do it, Karasu, for you have done it before. The solstice is ending. We must go our separate ways...for now..."

No! He couldn't leave. There was still so much Karasu needed to know.

"But I won't be able to come back to the temple. What if I have questions? How will I talk to you?"

He placed a paw on the avian's shoulder. "I am a part of you. When you need to talk to me again, you will find a way."

He closed his golden eyes for a moment before they flashed open again with determination. "A great danger awaits you at the temple. I can help you face the threat. But only if you are ready."

As he spoke, Karasu's body began to glow with blue light and his eyes burned. Even his beak started to feel hot with the strange Draconic glow. He glanced at Roccio with his now bright white eyes.

"I'm ready."

* * *

Commander Cinead and his men waited for the doors to open while Tema Tao and Lord Shen were tied to the pillars behind them. Suddenly, the doors glowed with light and slowly opened. "FIRE!" Cinead ordered.

The Fire Masters shot powerful fire blasts toward the figure coming out...only for them to be stopped as the figure walking out was a familiar southern Chinese tiger with golden robes.

"T-Tao Dragon Roccio?!" Shyu exclaimed in surprise.

The tiger swung his paws and sent the fire back at the troops who were knocked them. The fire also melted the chains holding Aurora, Tama, Dum Gai, Shyu, and Shen. The white peacock wasted no time leaping out of the temple by the window, using his feather to glide down.

Shyu started tugging on Aurora's arm. "Tao Dragon Roccio's going to destroy the temple! We have to get out of here!"

"Not without Karasu!" Aurora firmly said.

Tao Dragon Roccio stood in the doorway. He raised his arm and brought it down on the floor of the temple. The force of the strike reddened the floor and molten lava rose to the surface. He lifted it up, pulling the magma from deep within the volcano.

The whole temple started shaking and, as the Fire Masters escaped, Roccio turned into Karasu once again, the raven panting in exhaustion. "Karasu! You're alright?" Tama asked his friend.

"Yeah," he responded. "Where's Shyu?"

"I don't know. Let's get out of here!"

Nodding, Karasu charged his sword with Lightning Chi and destroyed the temple's wall with it. they all jumped out and landed on Fin who immediately flew away just as the temple crashed and was completely destroyed.

"Phew, that was close!" Tama sighed in relief with rubbing his forehead.

"So, what did you learn from Tao Dragon Roccio, Karasu?" Aurora asked him.

The raven gave them all a serious look. "Guys...we don't have as much time as I thought we would have to accomplish our mission..."

* * *

 **And that's the end of the winter solstice two-chapter episode, guys.**

 **Huge twist: Karasu only has until summer's end if he wants to save the Independent Islands from the Fire Nation. Will our young ninja raven managed to master all the elemental Chi and complete his Aether until then? Let's hope so.**

 **Next chapter: Aurora will try to improve her Water Chi along with Karasu, the raven also trying to learn Ninja Magic.**


	346. The Water Scroll

Karasu paced up and down restlessly as Fin flew through a mostly cloudy sky, broken only by a few shafts of sunlight that pierced through some area of clouds. The raven had been like this for a better part of the day.

Tama turned to look at him, slightly annoyed. "Would you sit down? You're making everyone nervous. What's bugging you anyway?"

Karasu sighed in frustration. He had already explained everything to his friends, the previous night as they escaped the Fire Temple. "It's what Tao Dragon Roccio told me. I'm supposed to master all the elemental Chi of Aether before the comet arrives."

"Well, let's see, you've pretty much mastered Lightning Chi and that only took you one hundred-twenty years...I'm sure you can master everything else by summer," the grey fox sarcastically said.

Karasu looked at him with a frightened expression on his face. "I haven't even started training in Water Chi and we're still weeks away from the North Pole! What am I gonna do?!"

Aurora suddenly grabbed his wing and made him sit down with her. "Calm down, it's gonna be okay. If you want, I can try and teach you some of the stuff I know."

"You'd do that?" Karasu asked with a smile.

The jackal girl nodded with a smile before looking below Fin. "We only need to find some water first."

"Maybe we can find a puddle for you to splash in," Tama jokingly remarked.

About ten minutes later, Team Tao found their water source: a huge waterfall with a river flowing swiftly by. "Me and my loud mouth," Tama mumbled with rubbing his forehead.

Fin quickly jumped into the river with a huge SPLASH!, sending water right onto Dum Gai who began angrily chirping at him. "Awww, so good! I haven't taken a good bath like this in ages..."

"Hey, wait for me!" Karasu called to his dragon friend and started removing his robes and scarf.

"Huh, remember why we're here," Aurora deadpanned.

"...Oh, yeah. Time to practice Water Chi," the raven sheepishly said, putting his clothes back on.

"Great. So, what am I supposed to do?" Tama asked.

"You could...clean Fin's scales and claws," Karasu suggested.

The grey fox crossed his arms. "So, while you guys are playing in the water, I'm supposed to give a beauty treatment to Fin?" The raven nodded sheepishly. "...Alright."

* * *

Shen was shooting blast after blast of fire at his sparring opponent, taking out all of his frustration on him. Cinead. Blast. His uncle. Blast. Fire Lord. Blast. The raven. Blast, blast, blast.

He still couldn't believe that ninja escaped him again. He had to stop underestimating him. Next time they met, he would have a handle on things. After all, there was still that necklace he could use against them.

Suddenly, the ship tilted to starboard, knocking both Shen and his sparring partner off balance. "Someone's changing our course!" he hissed furiously.

He looked furiously at the bridge and, without wasting a moment, made his way up there to see the wheelman. Slamming the door open, he stormed inside with a glare.

"What's the meaning of this mutiny?! No one told you to change course!" he yelled.

The helmsman nodded over to his left where Uncle Longwei was playing Pai Sho with some of the crewmen. The old peacock grinned sheepishly.

"Actually, someone did. I assure you it is a matter of utmost importance, Lord Shen."

Shen perked up, walking over to Longwei hopefully. "Is it something to do with the Tao Dragon?"

He shook his head. "Even more urgent. It seems...I've lost my lotus tile." He moved a piece forward on the Pai Sho board.

Shen blinked his crimson eyes. "...Lotus tile?"

"For my Pai Sho game. Most people think the lotus pile insignificant, but it is essential for the unusual strategy that I employ."

"You've changed our course for a stupid lotus pile?" Shen asked, incensed.

"See, you, like most people, underestimate its value. Just give me ten minutes to check the merchants at this port of call. Hopefully, they'll have the lotus pile in stock and I can get on with my life!" he dramatically said.

Shen worked hard to contain his anger, ultimately releasing a gout of flame from his beak that licked over the ceiling. He looked furiously down at a smiling Longwei who was soon clouded with smoke.

"I'm lucky to have such an understanding nephew."

* * *

"Awww, thanks a lot, Tama," Fin sighed happily as Tama brushed his back with a branch.

"Don't get used to it," the grey fox deadpanned.

Meanwhile, Aurora started her Water Chi lessons with Karasu. "This is a pretty basic move, but it still took me months to perfect it. So don't get frustrated if you don't get it right away." Karasu nodded at her. "Just push and pull the water like this..."

The jackal girl started bobing gracefully back and forth, the water on the edge of the river moving with her. "The key is getting the wrist movement right," she said while being concentrated.

Karasu got up and imitated the movement. "Like this?"

Aurora looked over to check his position before turning back to the water in front of her. "That's almost right. If you keep practicing, I'm sure eventually-"

"Hey, I already got it!" Karasu exclaimed and Aurora looked over, surprised.

The raven was moving around a respectably sized wave of water, executing moves that the jackal had never seen or heard of before.

She blinked. "Wow, I can't believe you got that so quickly. It took me two months to learn that move," she said, a little unhappy.

Karasu shrugged and smiled at his jackal friend. "Well, you had to figure it out on your own. I'm lucky enough to have a great teacher."

"Thanks," Aurora said, smiling as she shook off her annoyance.

"So, what's next?" the raven eagerly asked.

Since he seemed to have things basically figured out, Aurora decided to make things a bit tougher. "This is a more difficult move. I call it "streaming the water'."

She moved her paws and pulled out a stream of water from the water, beginning to loop it around. "It's harder than it looks, so don't be disappointed if..."

She glanced up and, to her amazement, Karasu had already mastered this move. He was moving his stream of water around as if it was a toy while the jackal stood motionless. After a few minutes of his frolicking, her mood soured. She dropped her stream of water.

Karasu played a bit more with his before dumping it back in the water. Aurora nodded, trying to keep hold of her annoyance. "Nice work, though the over-the-head flare was unnecessary."

Karasu blushed and rubbed the back of his head. "Sorry...so, what's next?"

"Well, I kind of know this other move, but it's pretty hard. I haven't even totally figured it out yet. The idea is to create a big, powerful wave," she explained while raising a blob of water out of the river, but it fell back upon itself when her concentration collapsed.

"So, like this?" Karasu raised his wings and a huge wall of water shot up in the air. Aurora gasped at him furiously. How was this possible? The raven had never used Water Chi a day in his life and yet he was already better than she was!

Karasu's huge water wave charged toward Tama who barely had time to turn around before getting swiped away from Fin and into the water. "Karasu!" the grey fox angrily shouted.

"Looks like I got the hang of that move," Karasu happily said with turning toward Aurora. "What's next?"

"That's enough practicing for today," the jackal crossly said.

"Yeah, I'll say. You just practiced our supplies down the river," Tama said, pointing toward the supplies they received from the previous village getting taken away by the river because of Karasu's wave.

"Sorry about that," Karasu said with rubbing the back of his head. "We should try to find somewhere to replace all that stuff.

"Ugh, it was hard enough when you were just a Lightning Master," he shot back before sinking back down into the water.

* * *

After half an hour of flying around, Team Tao finally found a little port village. They landed a little ways away from the village, hiding Fin before going into it. As they walked down a market street, they stuck close together as though-looking sailors, merchants, and shady types ran past each other.

Karasu and Aurora waited outside while Tama walked into a shop, coming out with a bag filled with new supplies. "We have exactly three yuan left from the money King Shugan gave us. Let's spend it wisely," the grey fox said.

"Huh...make that three yuan, Tama," Karasu said with rubbing the back of his head.

"Why's that?" Tama asked with raising an eyebrow.

The raven pulled out a little instrument from his navy blue robes. It was a dark blue ocarina flute. "I couldn't resist buying this."

"An ocarina?! You wasted one of our pieces for an _ocarina_?!" the grey fox annoyingly shouted.

"Sorry, Tama...but my mom used an instrument just like this to help me relax when I was a kid, so...," the raven explained with a slightly sad look.

This caused the two siblings to exchanged a gaze of sympathy. "Huh...yeah, whatever."

As Team Tao resumed walking through the market street, they heard the loud voice of a male monkey dressed in Earth Kingdom green clothes calling for people to come to his shop. "Earth Nation! Fire Nation! Water Nation! So long as bargains are your inclination, you're welcome here! Don't be shy!"

Karasu and Aurora exchanged a look. "No, don't even think about-" Tama started, but stopped as his two friends went to see the merchant anyways. "...Do you guys ever listen to me?" he angrily groaned before following them.

Team Tao entered the man's shop which was inside a ship. They started looking around, but just by the look of things, this guy was clearly a pirate.

Karasu was looking at some strange costumes before hearing a voice behind him: "This is quite the interesting animal you got there. A porg, right?" Karasu turned around to see a green parrot dressed in pirate clothes coming toward him. "I'd like to have a pet like that if you're interested in bartering."

Dum Gai ran to hide behind Karasu's leg, trembling in fear. "Dum Gai's not for sale," the raven said defensively.

Aurora walked around until she saw a scroll rack. To her surprise, one of them had the Water Tribe symbol on it. Curiosity getting the best of her, the young jackal grabbed the unscroll and unrolled it to reveal instructions on how to perform various Water Chi techniques. Her eyes lit up and she drew an intake of breath, excited.

"Look at this, Karasu. It's a Water Chi techniques scroll," she happily said as the raven joined her.

"That's cool!" he said before looking at the scrolls and noticing something too. He reached his wings to pick up three scrolls and gasped. "These are scrolls of Ninja Magic! Where did you get scrolls like these?"

"Let's just say I got my contacts," the green parrot said with taking the four scrolls from the two friends.

Aurora looked at her money bag containing only two yuan coins now. "So...how much for all those four scrolls?"

"I have a nobleman in the Earth Kingdom who wants to buy them," the captain said. "He's offering me...four hundred yuan. You kids have this amount?"

Aurora walked away while Karasu gave a serious look to the captain. "Sir, there's something you should know. I'm a Sky Ninja on an important mission to save this world. These Water Chi techniques and Ninja Magic scrolls could be very useful to help me accomplish my quest. So...if you were to accept it for...two yuan, I'll be very grateful," the raven said, giving a hopeful smile.

"...You think I'm an idiot, boy? I won't let go of such rare items like this! Now get out of here!"

"Let's go, Karasu," Aurora said with grabbing the raven's wing and dragging him away.

"Aye, aye, captain!" Karasu called to the parrot before leaving.

"Boy, pirates don't talk like that at all!" he angrily replied.

Soon, the three friends were walking away from the ship, Aurora ahead of the group for some reason. "What was that all about, Aurora?" Karasu asked once they were a good distance away.

"Yeah, I thought you were going to fight and scream at this pirate to get your scrolls," Tama said in agreement.

"I'll just feel a lot better once we're away from here," the jackal nervously replied, earning curious looks from her friends.

"Hey you, get back here!" someone yelled from behind. Turning around, they saw the pirate monkey jumping down from the ship with his other crew mates who all glared at Team Tao and took out their weapons.

"...RUN!" Karasu exclaimed and the friends ran away from the angry pirates.

A chasing scene ensued with the group of friends running through the market place to escape from the pirates. At one point, they ran past a cabbage cart which the pirates destroyed on their way to follow Team Tao.

"My cabbages!" the merchant exclaimed. "This place is worse than Naliwen!"

 **(AN: XD, poor cabbage merchant! He really doesn't have luck with his cabbages!)**

* * *

Eventually, Team Tao escaped the pirates and made it back to Fin, and then the waterfall. The friends panted in exhaustion from all the running. "Are all pirates this terrible?" the raven asked with pulling his sword away.

"I don't know...but that's why I took this," Aurora said, pulling out the four scrolls they wanted to buy out of her top.

"No way!" Karasu exclaimed in shock.

"Isn't that great?"

Tama groaned and rubbed his forehead. "No wonder they wanted to kill us; you stole their scrolls!"

"I prefer to think of it as "high-risk trading"," the jackal said, self-satisfied.

"Nice job, Aurora!" Karasu happily congratulated his friend and took the four Ninja Magic scrolls as she handed them to him.

Aurora then rolled her eyes at her brother's angry expression. "Tama, where do you think they got them? They stole them from a Water Master and Sky Ninja."

The grey fox shook his head. "It doesn't matter. You put all of our lives in danger just so you can learn some stupid, fancy splashes!"

"These are real Water Chi forms. You know how crucial it is for Karasu to learn Water Chi," she snapped back, starting to lose her patience.

Tama turned and walked around, muttering, "Whatever."

Karasu rubbed his forehead. "Well, what's done is done. Now that we have these scrolls, let's start learning new tricks."

Aurora nodded at him with a smile.

* * *

After they docked their ship at a little port village, Shen and his uncle walked through the market area. Saying that Shen was pissed off at wasting his time just so that his uncle could find a stupid tile for his stupid game would be an understatement. After wandering around for hours, the old peacock finally sighed.

"I've checked all the shops on this pier. Not a lotus pile on the entire market place."

"It's good to know this trip was a complete waste of time for everyone," Shen bitterly said with glaring at his uncle.

Longwei shook his head happily. "Quite the contrary. I always say the thing better than finding something you were looking for is finding something you weren't looking for at a great bargain!"

Suddenly, a parade of Fire Masters walked by, carrying armloads of merchandise that Longwei had just bought. One of them was some kind of brass musical instrument.

"You bought a sumki horn?!" Shen asked in disbelief.

"For music nights on the ship. Now, if only we had some woodwinds," he said longingly.

As they resumed walking, the two peacocks stopped by a pirate shop. Shen was getting impatient as his uncle was examining all sorts of strange-looking items. The white peacock watched the parrot he assumed was the captain out of the corner of his eyes. He was speaking to one of is Barkers.

"We lost the Water Tribe jackal and the little ninja raven traveling with her," the Barker angrily said.

Shen's eyes widened and he quickly walked up to them. "This ninja raven, was he wearing a Masamune sword?"

* * *

"I just wanna try this one move first and then it's all yours," Aurora said, pointing to a move of the Water Chi techniques scroll. "Just hold it off for me," she said with giving it to Tama who took it in his paws before his sister backed up close enough to the river.

The technique she wanted to learn was the "Water Whip". It looked easy enough. The jackal raised a stream of water from the river and whipped it around, only to receive the hit on her forehead which left a burning sensation. Aurora rubbed her forehead and sighed in annoyance before trying again, this time hitting Dum Gai on the butt, making him "CHIP!" in pain and running away.

"Why can't I get this stupid move?" she angrily snapped.

Karasu then returned from training with his Ninja Magic scrolls and heard the conversation. "You'll get it," he positively said and decided to try the Water whip too.

Aurora glared in annoyance as the raven made the Water Whip correctly on his first try. "You just gotta shift your weight through the stances," he happily said, gracefully manipulating the whip for a few seconds before dropping it back into the river. "There, the key to master Water Chi is-"

Aurora snapped. Angrily, she shook her fists in front of her. "Will you PLEASE shut your air hole?! Believe it or not, your infinite wisdom gets old sometimes. Why don't we just throw the scroll away since you're so naturally gifted!"

Karasu looked over at Aurora in surprise, not expecting this reaction from her. She glared angrily at him, shaking her head in disapproval. "What?" she snarled.

She looked at Karasu who seemed a little...frightened. Her heart dropped to the bottom of her feet and she mentally kicked herself. How could she have yelled at him like that? It wasn't his fault if he was better than she was. He was the Tao Dragon; he was supposed to be better than her, for crying out loud! He didn't deserve to be treated like he was a nuisance.

"Oh my gosh, Karasu, I'm so sorry. I don't know what came over me. But you know what, it won't happen again," she said, guilt beating at her. She rolled up the Water Chi techniques scroll and handed it to Karasu. "Here, this is yours. I don't want to have anything to do with it anymore."

The raven smiled slightly. "It's okay."

* * *

The small cutter craft of Shen's ship slowly steamed away on a small river, looking for any sign of the Tao Dragon and his friends. The cutter craft and the pirate ship were moving up the river in parallel. Shen and the captain stood at the deck of the cutter craft ship.

"Shouldn't we stop to search the woods?" the pirate captain asked.

"We don't need to stop. They stole a Water Chi techniques scroll, right?" Shen asked, annoyed by the parrot's lack of intelligence.

"Hu-huh."

"Then they'll be on the water..."

* * *

Later, as night fell over the forest, Team Tao set up a fire and slept into their sleeping bags for the night. However, Aurora remained awake and waited for her brother and friend to be asleep before quietly sneaking out of her sleeping bag.

She got up and quietly removed the Water Chi techniques from Karasu's bag, dying to use it again. As she turned to leave, she arrived before Dum Gai who was looking curiously at her with his big black eyes. The jackal shushed him with a finger before her mouth and patted his head. She then walked off into the forest.

Aurora walked down the river far enough so that the others wouldn't hear her. She was practicing but failing to produce the Water Whip. "Shoot! Come on, water, work with me!" she said, frustrated.

She lifted a globe of water out of the river and tried to manipulate it, but failing one time after the other. She mumbled bad words underneath her breath. She started wielding her fifth stream of water.

"Okay, Aurora, shift your weight through the stances..." The stream collapsed. "...Ugh!"

Suddenly, she heard the sound of grinding metal. She ran over to a row of bushes to her left and parted them to reveal Shen's cutter craft beached on the river bank. She turned to run, trying to get to Karasu and Tama as quickly as possible, but there stood a pirate who grabbed her.

"No! Let go of me!" she yelled.

She summoned a Water Whip with which she smacked the pirate in the face. Het let go of her and the jackal tried to run away...only to bump into Shen who delivered a spinning kick to her chest, knocking her to the ground. He was stronger than he looked!

"I'll save you from the pirates," he said with a smirk.

A few moments later, Aurora found herself tied to a tree with Lord Shen, his uncle, and the pirates she stole the scrolls from surrounding her.

"Tell me where the Tao Dragon is and I won't hurt you and your brother," he said confidently.

"Go jump in the river!" she hissed.

"Try to understand, I need to capture him to restore something I've lost. My honor. Perhaps in exchange, I can restore something you've lost," he said, trying to sound reasonable. He walked around to the back of the trunk so he was standing behind the tied jackal.

Suddenly, her mother's necklace appeared at her neck, Shen holding it in place. Aurora blinked in shock as Shen walked away with the necklace. She tried to break free from her binds, hating the white peacock touching it.

"My mother's necklace! How did you get that?!" she growled.

Shen snorted in irritation. "I didn't steal it if that's what you're wondering. Tell me where he is."

Even though she really wanted her necklace back, Aurora wasn't ready to give up on Karasu. "No."

The captain walked forward, now fed up. "Enough of this necklace garbage! You promised the scrolls!"

Shen took the Water scroll, making fire with his wing beneath it. "I wonder how much money this is worth?"

The pirates gasped. "No!"

The peacock smirked. "A lot, apparently. Now you help me find what I want, you'll get this back, and everyone goes home happy. Search the woods for the raven and meet back here."

"Fine," the captain grumbled.

* * *

By dawn, Tama was the first one to wake up with a yawn...and the first thing he noticed was the absence of his sister. "Where did she go?" He took a look into Karasu's bag and realized one scroll was missing. The Water Chi one. "I can't believe it..."

"What's wrong?" Karasu asked as he woke up and stretched his body.

"She took the scroll. She's obsessed with that thing. It's just a matter of time before she gets us all in deep-"

The grey fox was cut up when his paws got wrapped in a sling coming from somewhere in the nearby trees. Karasu was about to jump in and help him, but before he could unsheathe his sword, a web was shot at him and he got carried away by two pirates with the third following, leaving Tama behind.

"Oh, what? I'm not good enough to kidnap?" Tama snapped, irritated. Just then, another web caught and carried him away. "...Thank you."

* * *

A few moments later, the pirates came back to the meeting point with Karasu and Tama in custody, their paws/wings tied before them. Shen was looking at them with a satisfied smile, holding the Water Chi scroll in his wing.

"Nice work," he said approvingly, his crimson eyes training on Karasu who glared at him.

"Karasu, this is all my fault," Aurora sadly said, guilt in her voice.

"No Aurora, it isn't," Karasu reassuringly said, trying to make her feel better.

"Yeah, it kind of is," Longwei said, not rudely, just stating a fact.

"Give me the raven," Shen said to the pirate captain.

"You give us the scroll," he shot back.

"You're really gonna hand over the Tao Dragon for a stupid piece of paper?" Tama suddenly spoke, sounding flabbergasted. Everybody looked at him in confusion.

"Don't listen to him! He's trying to turn us against each other," Shen said in panic.

The captain gave a greedy look at the grey fox. "Your friend is the Tao Dragon?"

"Sure is, and I'm sure he'll fetch more on the black market than that fancy scroll," Tama continued with a grin.

"Shut your mouth, your Water Tribe peasant!" Shen angrily threatened.

Karasu was about to object...but then understood what Tama was trying to do. "I'm just saying, it's bad business sense. Just imagine how much the Fire Lord would be willing to pay for the Tao Dragon. You guys would be set for life!"

"Keep the scroll," the captain ordered. "We can buy a hundred with the reward we'll get for the raven."

"You'll regret breaking a deal with me!" Shen shouted and shot a fire blast alongside his Fire Masters toward the pirates, causing an explosion. The pirates grabbed their weapons and engaged the Fire Masters in a battle.

While everybody was busy fighting, Karasu managed to escape his ropes thanks to his ninja tricks. He then free Tama and Aurora with his sword and they all made their way to the pirate ship on the shore. They tried to push it into the river, but it didn't move.

"We would need a team of rhinos to move this thing," Tama said after they stopped.

Karasu smiled. "A team of rhinos...or two Water Master," he said with giving a look to Aurora who smiled in return.

Together, the raven and jackal pulled the water back and forth the beach, slowly raising the water level around the prow. The ship eventually began to float.

"Everybody in!" Tama called as they all jumped into the pirate ship and sailed away.

However, the break was cut short as the pirates saw them leaving and stole Shen's cutter craft boat to catch up with them. "Tama, can you make this ship go any faster?" Karasu asked as he saw the pirates getting dangerously close.

"I don't know; this wasn't made by the Water Tribe!" the grey fox nervously replied from the ship's wheel.

Soon, the pirates started jumping on the ship and invaded the deck. Karasu jumped down before them and started jumping from one point to the other. Eventually, he was moving so fast that it looked like there were multiple versions of him, confusing the pirates. Taking his chance, the raven swung his wings, sending a wave from the river that knocked all but one pirate offboard.

Aurora took care of the last one, using her Water whip to smack him down in the river. "Aurora! You did it! You did the Water Whip?" Karasu beamed.

"I couldn'T have done it without your help," the jackal said with a smile. "What was that cloning technique you used?"

"It's a ninja technique I learned from the scroll. It consists of moving so fast that it looks like there are multiple me and confusing the opponent," Karasu explained with a smile.

Eventually, they left the ship before it was sent crashing down a waterfall to be completely destroyed and reunited with Fin to fly away.

Shen arrived on the edge of the hill alongside his uncle to see both the pirate ship and his cutter craft destroyed at the bottom of the waterfall." My boat!" he angrily shouted.

"Lord Shen," Longwei said from behind after catching his breath, "you're really gonna get a break out of this...but the lotus tile was in my sleeve the whole time!" he exclaimed with taking his game piece out from his sleeve.

Reaching his limit, the white peacock grabbed the lotus tile and tossed it down the waterfall. "NOOOO!" Longwei shouted dramatically.

Shen glared at the emerald dragon who faded in the distance. "I'll get you one day, Tao Dragon..."

* * *

As Fin flew lazily through the clouds, Aurora decided it would be a good time to apologize for her behavior. "Karasu, I still owe you an apology," she said without looking at him. "You were just so good at Water Chi mastering without really thinking. I got so competitive that I put us all in danger. I'm sorry."

The raven nodded and gave her a comforting smile. "That's okay, Aurora."

"Besides, who needs that stupid scroll anyway?"

"Is that really how you feel?" Tama asked and his friends looked over to see he was holding the Water Chi techniques scroll in his paw.

"The scroll!" Aurora gasped happily. She reached for it, but her brother pulled it away.

"First, what did you learn?" he said seriously.

The jackal rolled her eyes. "Stealing is wrong." She took the scroll and grinned wickedly. "Unless it's from pirates!"

The friends all burst out laughing.

* * *

 **Man, these 5000 words long chapters are really draining it out of me!**

 **So, Team Tao got their hands on new scrolls holding Water Chi and Ninja Magic techniques. Aurora mastered the Water Whip while Karasu learned a ninja technique - this last one is based on one I saw him using in "Phoenix of Ying, Dragon of Yang". I know it isn't the one you wanted to see, TheDragonSaver, but we all gotta start somewhere.**

 **Next chapter: We're gonna meet a character that I was very excited to introduce...**


	347. The freedom fighters

Three days after their encounter with the pirates, Team Tao decided to take a break from traveling in a beautiful forest. A pale blue sky was stretching above them, the vast deciduous trees going on for miles. The trees were blanketed in leaves of fiery reds and oranges; there was just a hint of green left on one or two. The air was alive with the chirps and whirrs of insects.

Team Tao stood in a small clearing, lounging around and checking supplies. After a while, Karasu noticed one of their members was missing. "Where's Dum Gai?" he asked, turning to his friends.

Just then, Dum Gai's scream echoed through the forest. The raven immediately jumped to his feet and flapped his wings toward the direction of the noise. He quickly found the little porg trapped in a snare about fifty feet above the ground.

"Hang on, Dum Gai!" the raven said with jumping up and cut the rope with his sword, causing the snare to fall and release the poor porg.

While Karasu and Aurora made sure Dum Gai was not hurt, Tama checked on the snare. "This is a Fire Nation trap. You can tell from the metal work. We pack up our camp and get moving," he said with turning toward his friends.

They quickly returned to the clearing where Fin was waiting lazily. They packed up their things and began loading them onto Fin when Tama made them stop.

"Ah-ah, no flying this time," he harshly said.

Aurora turned to him, confused. "Why not?"

"Think about it," the grey fox seriously said. "Somehow, Lord Shen and the Fire Nation keep finding us. It's because of Fin; he's just too noticeable."

"What? Fin's not too noticeable," Karasu protested.

Tama turned to him, exasperated. "He's a gigantic fire breathing monster: it's kinda hard to miss him."

Fin turned at him with an annoyed expression and flapped his massive wings. "You know I can hear all you're saying, right?"

"I know you all want to fly, but my instincts tell me we should play it safe this time and walk."

"Who made you the boss?" Aurora asked, annoyed.

"I'm not the boss; I'm the leader," Tama defensively said.

"You're the leader? But you still don't have an adult voice," Aurora said, incredulous.

"What are you talking about? My voice's perfectly developed and manly."

"...Good point."

"Besides, I'm a warrior and the older of this group, so I'm the leader."

"Sorry to burst your bubble, but Karasu is over a hundred year old and the Tao Dragon. So if anyone's the leader, it's him."

"Leave me out of this argument," Karasu protested.

"Why do you always think someone has to be the leader? I bet you wouldn't be bossy if you kissed a girl," Aurora said with crossing her arms.

Tama flushed, outraged. "I-I kissed a girl! You just...haven't met her."

Aurora snorted. "Who? Grandma? I already met Grandma."

"No, besides Grandma. Look, my instincts tell me that we have a better chance of slipping through on foot and a leader has to trust his instincts," Tama said.

"Okay, we'll try it your way, oh wise leader," Aurora said, fighting a laugh.

"Who knows, maybe it will be good to walk," Karasu optimistically said.

However, after about four hours of walking, Karasu got as tired and irritated as Aurora. "Walking stinks," he whined. "I wonder how I ever managed to go so far before learning how to fly."

"Why don't you ask Tama's instincts? They seem to know everything," Aurora suggested and shared a fit of laughter with her raven friend.

"Ha, ha. Very funny," Tama sarcastically said. "Look, guys, I'm tired too. But the important thing is that we're safe from the...," as he spoke, Tama pushed away leaves from a set of bushes, revealing a Fire Nation camp with at least twenty soldiers who all turned to look at them, "...Fire Nation?"

"RUN!" Karasu exclaimed. Just as the friends turned around to leave, one of the Fire Nation soldiers shot a fire blast at the bushes to set them of fire and break their escape.

"We're cut off!" Aurora gasped.

The twenty Fire Nation soldier, now all armed, approached the trio as they got ready to fight. "If you let us pass, we promise not to hurt you," Tama said.

"What are you doing?" Aurora quietly asked.

"Bluffing?"

However, one of the soldiers didn't seem to buy it. "You? Promise not to hurt us?" he asked, incredulous.

There was a quiet zip and thud suddenly. The soldier looked surprised for a moment before groaning and collapsing face-first on the ground. His men lowered their weapons a little bit.

"H-How did you do that, Tama?" Karasu asked in surprise.

"Huh...actually, I have nothing to do with this," the grey fox honestly replied.

Suddenly, a noise was heard from the branches and a person jumped down to knock two Fire Nation soldiers at once. This person was a young male raccoon - around the same age as Tama. Except for a red vest, he was dressed from neck to toe in dark green clothing. What little armor he had - shoulder caps and hip-upper tight covers - were mismatched. His fur was white and red, and his eyes were emerald green. He was holding a twig in his teeth and two hook blades in his paws.

He rushed forward with his shuang gou they took it was called - the twin hooked swords - in each paw. He hooked a leg each one another pair of soldiers and sent them head over heels. With a polished body flip, he launched them through the air. They ended up in a heap on top of their comrade.

"Down you go," the raccoon said in a silky voice.

Team Tao looked at the newcomer in surprise. They didn't even have to warn him of a soldier coming behind him as he swiftly took him down with one hook sword too. "They're on the trees!" one of them called.

Suddenly, a little panda bear wearing a metal helmet jumped down from the tree branches, landing on the soldier's shoulders and messing with his helmet. Another set of soldiers received arrows that knocked their weapons off their hands. Looking up, they saw a woodpecker wearing a rice hat shooting at them with a bow and arrows.

The unexpected fighters were joined by a brown bear wearing green protection on his abdomen and a tree trunk tied to his back. He easily knocked away one soldier thanks to his huge size. Then, a bee wearing brown baggy pants and shirt, a headband around his forehead, and red markings on his cheek arrived too. He used a little knife to slash across a soldier's torso, taking him down.

Aurora used water from her water bottle to Water Whip soldiers away while Karasu slashed others with his Masamune sword. Tama pushed a battle cry and was about to take one soldier down with his wood axe, only for the raccoon to take him down instead with a kick to the face.

"Hey, he was mine!" the grey fox pouted.

The raccoon smiled slightly. "Gotta be faster next time."

The brown bear used his tree trunk to smack soldiers away while the raccoon defeated one soldier with his hook swords. In the process, he landed before Aurora and smiled at her. "Hey."

"Hi," Aurora replied, looking at his handsome face. Together, they turned toward the camp which was now deserted by all but the newcomers.

"You just took out a whole army by yourselves, that was impressive," Karasu praised with putting his sword away.

Tama scoffed. "Army? Pffft. They were only like twenty guys!"

The raccoon turned toward Team Tao. "My name is Detra and these are my freedom fighters. The woodpecker is Longshot, the bee there is Killer Bee, the big brown bear with a trunk is Pipsqueak, and the little panda boy is The Duke."

After the presentations were done, the central fire was put out and Detra's freedom fighters started looking around, picking up crates of supplies and weapons. Detra was reclining against the trunk of a tree on the perimeter of the camp. After a moment of hesitation, Aurora nervously approached.

"Um...thanks for saving us, Detra. We were lucky you were there," the jackal girl said.

She turned to look at her with a small grin. "I should be thanking you. We were waiting to ambush those soldiers all morning. We just needed the right distraction. And then, you guys stumbled in."

"We were relying on instincts," she sarcastically said with glancing in Tama's direction.

"You'll get yourself killed doing that," Detra disapprovingly said.

The grey fox just scoffed at the bad call and walked away. Meanwhile, the little panda named The Duke plunged his paw into a barrel to take out some sort of yellowish jelly. "Hey Detra, these barrels are filled with blasting jelly."

"That's a great score," the raccoon said in approval.

Pipsqueak held up a large crate and said, "And these boxes are filled with jelly candy!"

"Also good. Let's not get these mixed up."

The freedom fighters started packing everything into a four-wheeled wagon. "We'll take the stuff back to the hideout," Pipsqueak said.

"You guys have a hideout?" Karasu asked.

Detra smiled at him. "Wanna see it?"

"Yes!" Aurora beamed.

* * *

Everyone was walking along the forest floor. Pipsqueak pulled the wagon next to Fin. The trunks were massive to make the emerald dragon feel small. Eventually, Detra, who led the group, stopped.

"We're here," he said with turning to everyone.

"Where? There's nothing here!" Tama said.

Detra shook his head and handed a rope with a loop on the end to the grey fox. "Hold this."

"Why? What is this gonna do?" The loop ended around Tama's wrist and pulled him up in the tree canopy in a split-second.

Detra chuckled before offering another rope to Karasu who politely denied. "I can go up there on my own," he said with flapping his wings and joining Tama in the tree canopy. Dum Gai flapped his wings to follow. Detra chuckled and used a rope to get up there, taking Aurora with him before rising up, causing the jackal girl to look at his handsome face and blush.

The group ended up on a plank-covered platform high in the canopy. Wooden stairs spiraled up the trunk and a suspension bridge linked their platform to elsewhere. All workmanship was of tree house quality. It was nonetheless beautiful and amazing.

"Nice place you got!" Karasu complimented as he looked around at the platforms. Several nearby trees had the same platforms, stairs, and bridges. They all had tent-like huts.

Aurora and Detra walked a bridge while standing close to each other and looking at parts of the tree village down below. "It's beautiful up here!" Aurora exclaimed.

Detra nodded. "It's beautiful...and more importantly, the Fire Nation can't find us."

Killer Bee flew up to join them. "They would love to find you. Wouldn't they, Detra?" he said.

"It's not gonna happen, Killer Bee," the raccoon replied, grinning widely.

Aurora and Tama walked alongside Detra. "Why does the Fire Nation want to find you?" Tama asked.

"I guess you could say I've been causing them a lot of trouble. See, they took over a nearby Earth Kingdom town, a few years back. We've been ambushing their troops, cutting off their supply lines, and doing anything we can to mess with them," Detra explained. "One day, we'll drive the Fire Nation out of here for good and free that town."

"That's so brave," Aurora said in admiration.

Tama came from behind just to break his little sister's fantasies. "Yeah, nothing braver than a raccoon in a tree house," he sarcastically said.

Aurora glared at him. "Don't pay any attention to my brother."

"No problem. He probably had a rough day," Detra replied, understanding.

"So, you all live here?"

"That's right. Longshot over here?" he replied, nodding to the archer woodpecker who was walking alongside The Duke. "His town got burned down by the Fire Nation. And we found The Duke trying to steal our food. I don't think he ever really had a home."

"What about you?" Aurora asked after a brief pause.

Detra stopped. All the group except Aurora and him moved on. "Fire Nation killed my parents. I was only eight years old. That day changed me forever..."

Aurora bowed her head slightly. "Tama and I lost our adoptive mother to the Fire Nation. As for my original parents, they were Egyptian...I lost them to a sect when I was a baby."

"I'm so sorry, Aurora," he said, turning to look at her. Tama watched his sister for a bit before walking away, leaving her alone with Detra.

* * *

Later that night, Detra held a feast. Team Tao was seated at the head of a long table with no legs and soft pillows for chairs. In the hideout below, ropes with glowing lanterns hung between branches. Sentries kept watch and several upper platforms while they sat at the banquet table on the largest platform.

Halfway through the meal, Detra stood and climbed on the table. "Today, we struck another blow against the Fire Nation swine!" he declared with raising his glass high into the air.

The followers on the table and upper platforms cheered. Karasu and Aurora smiled while Dum Gai chirped happily and Tama just looked grumpy.

"I got a special joy from the look on one soldier's face when The Duke dropped down on his helmet and rode him like a wild hog." the Duke joined Detra and pretended to ride the Fire Nation soldier again to make the freedom fighter laugh before letting Detra continue. "Now, the Fire Nation thinks they don't have to worry about a couple of kids hiding in the trees."

He rose his wooden cup and took a sip from it. "Maybe they're right." The fighters booed at that. "Or maybe...they are dead wrong," Detra said, his voice low and dangerous.

His face was bathed in an angry red color from the lanterns. His freedom fighters cheered wildly. She left the table and sat with Karasu and Aurora again.

"Hey, nice speech, Detra," Karasu told her.

"Thanks. By the way, I was really impressed with you and Aurora. You showed some great fighting skills today."

Aurora felt her face blushing. "Well, it's normal for Karasu. He's the Tao Dragon. I could use some more training."

Detra turned toward Karasu with an impressed look. "Tao Dragon, huh? Very nice."

"Thanks, Detra."

"So, I might know a way that you and Karasu can help in our struggle."

Tama suddenly stood. "Unfortunately, we have to leave tonight," he said cooly before walking away.

"Tama, you're kidding me! I needed you on an important mission tomorrow," Detra said pleadingly.

The grey fox stopped and turned to look at him. "What mission?"

* * *

Detra and Tama were perched on tree branches, the next morning. The raccoon made some bird-like noises with his mouth to communicate with Pipsqueak and Killer Bee who were perched on other branches nearby. They responded with similar noises.

THAK!

Detra turned his head to see Tama planting his wood axe against the trunk. "What are you doing?"

"Shhh, it amplifies vibrations," the grey fox said with pressing his ear against the wood axe and listening closely.

"Good trick," the raccoon complimented with a grin.

"Nothing yet... Wait! Yes, someone's approaching," Tama said in a low voice.

"How many?"

Tama listened for more vibrations. "I think there's just one."

Detra whistled again. "Good work, Tama. Ready your weapon."

Nodding, Tama took his axe out of the trunk and looked down the road to see who would come. To his surprise, it was an old goose wearing Fire Nation red robes. "Wait, it's just an old man," the grey fox whispered.

However, Detra ignored him and jumped down, walking before the startled old goose. "What are you doing in our woods, you leech," the raccoon snarled furiously.

"Please, sir, I'm just a traveler," the man said, scared out of his mind.

Detra took a threatening step and, with one swipe of his hook sword, sent the man's cane flying from his wing. The old bird backed away, but when he tried to flee the way he came from, he ran face-first into Pipsqueak's chest. The force of the impact knocked him to the ground; the big bear looming over him. He tried to crawl away but Pipsqueak's foot on his backside effectively pinned him.

Detra glared down at him. "Do you like destroying towns? Do you like destroying families? Do you?!"

"Oh...please, let me go...have mercy...," the old man cried, frightened.

Deatra leaned toward him furiously. "Does the Fire Nation let people go?! Does the Fire Nation have mercy?!"

The raccoon wound up a kick to the old man's face. Tama lunged forward, not able to bear another second of this torture. The raccoon's foot was snagged by his boomerang before it could contact with the old avian's face. He released him when he looked furiously at him.

"Detra, he's just an old goose!" Tama snapped, shocked by his actions.

Detra narrowed his eyes at the grey fox again and flicked his hair out of his face. "He's Fire Nation! Search him!"

Pipsqueak held the prisoner and Killer Bee stepped up. "But he's not hurting anyone!" Tama pleaded, looking sadly at the old man. Honestly, how could anyone this old be such a threat? Except for King Shugan of course.

"Have you forgotten that the Fire Nation killed your mother? Remember why you fight!" he said back.

Killer Bee turned to Detra. "We've got his stuff, Detra," he said, holding a shoulder satchel the old man was carrying. The old goose was back on the ground, tears streaming from his face.

Tama shoved Detra's shoulder, making him turn around to look at him. "This doesn't feel right."

Detra shoved him back. "It's what has to be done. Now, let's get out of here." He pushed past the grey fox roughly. Pipsqueak and Killer Bee followed.

Tama looked at the old man still on his wings and knees. Fighting back his rage against Detra, the grey fox leaned down and helped him to his feet. He patted his shoulder once the old bird was standing and smiled softly.

"You should go," he told him quietly and the old bird nodded gratefully.

"Come on, Tama!" Detra yelled furiously just then.

Tama slowly turned then ran after the others.

* * *

At the hideout, Tama sat against a tree trunk while Karasu was sitting in a meditating position and playing his ocarina. Aurora approached her brother from the side.

"Hey, Tama. Is Detra back?" she asked, not really curious about it but wanted to get her brother's mind away from whatever was bothering him.

Tama's face darkened. "Yeah, he's back. But we're leaving."

Aurora started. "What?" The grey fox's statement also caught Karasu's attention and caused him to stop playing his instrument.

"Your boyfriend Detra's a thug," Tama snapped, turning toward his sister.

The jackal balked. "What? No, he's not."

Tama stood up and swiped a paw at his sister. "She's messed up, Aurora."

Karasu frowned a bit. "What do you mean, Tama? Did something happen between the two of you?"

"He beat and robbed a harmless old man!" Tama yelled in frustration.

Aurora crossed her arms suspiciously. "I wanna hear Detra's side of the story."

"Fine!"

A few moments later, Team Tao was in Detra's tent and Aurora asked the question directly to the raccoon. This last one closed his eyes and frowned. "Tama, you told them what happened but you didn't mention that the guy was Fire Nation?" he asked in disbelief.

The jackal shot a hard look at her brother. "No, he conveniently left that part out."

Tama threw up his paws angrily. "Fine! But even if he was Fire Nation, he was still a harmless civilian!"

Detra shook his head. "He was an assassin, Tama." He pulled out a knife and thrust it into a nearby block of wood. It was a sinister-looking curved blade. "See? There's a poison compartment for poison in the knife," the raccoon said and pulled on the ring, removing a small glass tube filled with red liquid. "He was sent to eliminate me. You helped save my life, Tama."

Aurora smiled, relieved. "I knew there was an explanation."

"I didn't see any knife!" Tama objected.

"That's because he was concealing it," Detra sighed.

Aurora turned to her brother. "See, Tama? I'm sure you just didn't notice the knife."

He glared fiercely at her, his yellow eyes sparkling with agitation. "There was no knife! I'm going back to the hut and packing my things!" he snapped and stalked out of the hut.

Detra stood, his eyes wide with worry. "Tell me you guys aren't leaving yet. I really need your help."

Karasu sighed sadly for Tama before turning toward the raccoon. "What do you need us for?"

"The Fire Nation is planning on burning down our forest. If you both use Water Chi to fill up the reservoir, we could fight the fires. But if you leave now, they'll destroy the whole valley," Detra said, his voice dark with anger.

Karasu and Aurora exchanged a brief gaze before nodding in agreement. They were okay with helping and leaving after that. As they walked out of the hut, Aurora noticed a concerned look on her raven friend's face. "Hey, what's the matter with you?" she asked with a nudge.

Karasu turned to her. "We should talk to Tama."

Aurora sighed and nodded. Tama was not going to like the fact that they decided to stay. They entered their hut and found him tying up a roll on the floor.

After an awkward pause, they decided to just get to the point. "We can't leave now with the Fire Nation about to burn down a forest!"

"I'm sorry, Aurora. Detra's smooth but we can't trust him," the grey fox said back, as calm as ever.

"You know what I think? You're jealous that he's a better leader and a better warrior!" Aurora snapped now irritated.

Tama sighed and turned to his sister. "Aurora, I'm not jealous of Detra. It's just my instincts that-"

"Well, my instincts tell me that we need to stay a little longer and help Detra. Come on, Karasu," Aurora said and stormed out of the hut.

Karasu did not dare to get between these two when they were arguing. He turned to look at Tama and said, "Sorry, Tama" before exiting the hut too.

* * *

Later on, when night time fell, all of Team Tao (minus Fin who slept in the tree roof) slept peacefully into their hut. That was until Tama could hear the distinctive voice of Detra speaking softly: "Let's go."

The grey fox stirred then snapped awake. He pulled the door flap aside enough to see some of Detra's followers descending on the rope lines. Now was the perfect time to figure out what they were doing.

He left the hut and took a rope down a lower branch. On the ground below him, Detra's freedom fighters were quietly pushing the loaded wagon as he led them out of the camp. The grey fox stealthily followed.

In the dark valley, a walled town sat on the far side of a river that cut through the forest. Upstream, and up toward the wall of the valley was an old fall, and beyond that, a man-made dam. A bare cliff off to the reservoir's left provided the view.

As Detra and his boys emerged from the forest, Tama hid behind a large group of bushes. The raccoon went to the edge and looked down on the lam below. The reservoir behind it was low. He turned back to the wagon.

"Now listen, you are not to blow the dam until I give the signal. If the reservoir isn't full, the Fire Nation troops could survive," he said.

Tama stiffened and The Duke jumped off the wagon. "But what about the people in the town? Won't they get wiped out too?" he sadly asked.

Detra placed a hand on his shoulder. "Look, Duke, it's the price of riding this area of the Fire Nation," he said and turned to Longshot. "Now don't blow the dam until I give the signal, got it?"

Longshot nodded silently, his face grave. Tama watched for a moment and just as he was about to leave, he heard a rustling just behind him. He gasped as a large paw dragged him out by his ears. He looked up to see Pipsqueak holding him up by the ears. Killer Bee's knife was instantly to his throat.

"Where do you think you're going, fox boy?" Killer Bee sneered nastily. They started dragging him over to where Detra was standing near the edge of the cliff. If he could have gotten away from his captors, just one good move would have sent the raccoon flying over the edge. Tama smiled bitterly at the idea.

Pipsqueak still held Tama's ears as they stopped in front of their leader. "Tama, I'm glad you decided to join us," the raccoon coldly said.

The captors forced Tama on his knees and he rubbed a sore spot on his shoulder where they had squeezed too hard. The grey fox glared at the raccoon. "I heard your plan to destroy the Earth Kingdom town."

Detra smiled icily. "Our plan is to get the valley rid of the Fire Nation."

Tama jumped to his feet. "There are people living in there, Deatra. Mothers, fathers, and children."

"We can't win without making some sacrifices."

"You lied to Karasu and Aurora about the forest fire!"

"Because they don't understand the demands of war. Not like you and I do."

"I do understand. I understand that you would do anything to get what you want."

"I was hoping you'd have an open mind, but I can see you've made your choice," she sighed, feigning a saddened expression. Pipsqueak and Killer Bee tied Tama's paws in his back. "Take him for a walk. A _long_ walk."

"You can't do this!" Tama snarled.

Detra tisked and grinned. "Cheer up, Tama. We're gonna win a great victory against the Fire Nation today."

* * *

Detra led Karasu and Aurora up the riverside upriver from the dam. The collected water behind was much less than the larger cavity of the reservoir. The river leading down to it was a thread compared to its 'rainy season' gully. They were walking upriver along its west flank.

"Detra, I'm sorry about how Tama has been acting," Aurora softly said.

"No worries; he already apologized," Detra responded and the jackal blinked at him in surprise.

"Really?" Karasu asked in surprise. "Strange; I don't hear Tama apologize very often. He's too stubborn for that."

Detra nodded. "Yeah, I was surprised too. I got the sense that maybe you talked to him or something."

"Yeah, I did," Aurora said, still surprised. She wasn't expecting her brother to listen to her for once.

"I guess something that you said got through to him. Anyway, he went on a scouting mission with Pipsqueak and Killer Bee."

Aurora smiled a bit, feeling relieved. "I'm glad my brother cooled off. He can be so stubborn sometimes."

They were now walking in the gully beside the 'river'. Karasu paused after noticing something strange. He moved just in time to avoid a geyser that would have blasted him in the air.

Detra turned. "All right, we're here. Underground water's trying to escape through these vents. I need you guys to help it along."

Aurora shifted on her feet uncomfortably, rubbing the back of her head as she stared at the geyser. "...I've never used Water Chi on water I can't see. I don't know..."

Detra stood in front of her and placed his hands on the sides of her face. "Aurora, you can do this," he said, his green eyes shining in confidence.

Karasu stared at them and cleared his throat uncomfortably. "What about me?"

Detra laughed lightly. "I know the Tao Dragon can do this."

The raven smiled and nodded in agreement. He and Aurora walked over to one of the geysers and started combining their Water Chi on it. After a few minutes, a blobby stream of water emerged from the hole. Combining their efforts, Karasu and Aurora sent the stream to join the river.

"Yes! Good job!" Detra cheered. This river empties into a reservoir. A few more geysers and it'll be full."

"Alright, let's keep this up, Karasu," Aurora beamed, leading her raven friend to another geyser.

"Okay. You two keep it up. I'll go check on things at the reservoir," Detra said before turning and walking away.

Aurora turned over to him before he could disappear. "We'll meet you over there once we're done."

Detra froze for a moment. "Huh... Actually, it's probably better you meet me back at the hideout once you're done."

* * *

After what felt like half an hour, Karasu and Aurora decided to call it quits. Finishing with another geyser, Karasu huffed and looked around him. "I think that'll be enough."

Around them, around a dozen geysers were flowing into the river. Aurora laughed and nodded. "Let's catch up with Detra at the reservoir."

"Didn't he say to meet him at the hideout?"

"Well, we finished early. I'm sure he'll be happy to see us," Aurora said, smiling to herself as they began to head down the river.

* * *

At around midday, they made it to the cliff that overlooked the reservoir. The duo stood at the edge of the cliff and noticed four of Detra's freedom fighters unloading barrels from the wagon and arranging them.

Aurora peered closer, trying to figure out what they were doing. "...What are they doing?"

Karasu stood beside her to give a good look. Thanks to his raven's more developed view, he saw better and gave a surprised look. "Hey, those are the blasting jelly barrels they got from the Fire Nation!"

"Because Detra's gonna blow up the dam!" the raven immediately understood.

Aurora balked at him. "What? No, that would destroy the town! Detra wouldn't do that!"

It was impossible. Everything the freedom fighters did was to protect the innocents, to rid the land of the Fire Nation. Detra wouldn't sacrifice an entire village for his plans...would he?"

"I've gotta stop him!" Karasu said, opening his wings to take off.

However, before Karasu could take off, Detra crossed his path from behind him and kicked him in the face. The avian groaned a bit before regaining his composure and glaring at the raccoon.

"Yes I would," Detra said calmly, his face grim.

Aurora froze. "Detra...why?!"

He didn't turn to look at her. "Aurora, you would too if you just stopped to think about it. Think about what the Egyptian did to your parents. We can't let that happen to anyone else ever again."

"This isn't the answer!" the jackal pleaded.

The raccoon turned and walked to her with sad eyes. "I want you to understand, Aurora. I thought your brother would understand but-"

"Where's Tama?" she growled, angry. Tama had been right; she should have never trusted Detra.

Karasu suddenly kicked the raccoon in the face to push him away. "Stay away from my friend! I am your opponent!"

Detra narrowed his eyes. "So be it..."

Both fighters wasted no time taking out their sword and quickly charged for a sword duel. Their blades clashed, every time causing a CLING! and sending sparks flying. The raven almost managed to cut the raccoon's arm, only to get blocked by his hook with the sharp end of his own forcing against it, causing a CRIIIIIC! sound.

Changing tactic, Karasu grabbed Detra's arm with his wings and tried to hit a knee strike which he blocked with his other arm and pushed him back, but this time, Karasu actually managed to kick him in the face and pushed him back a bit, but he quickly used his hook swords and pushed forward to hook the raven with her sword, only for him to somersault behind him, catching his arms with his talons in the process and throwing him to the ground.

After hitting the ground, Detra dropped his swords but managed to get on his feet quickly. He charged forward and sent a storm of quick kicks which Karasu blocked as well as he could, but soon got forced to jump in the air to avoid getting kicked. Detra took benefit of this to catch his hooks from the ground and jump high in the air, taking Karasu by surprise as he didn't expect him to be able to jump this high. To the raven's horror, Detra actually managed to stab his hook into Karasu's wing, making a lot of blood fly out.

"KARASU!" Aurora called in terror.

As if that wasn't bad enough, the raven landed from so high on his back with Detra still on top of him and he didn't remove his sword from his wing. "Gaaargh!" Karasu groaned in pain and looked up at his merciless opponent. When he finally took out his hook and got ready to aim for another strike, Karasu quickly lifted his other wing and shot a jet of Electric Chi to knock him back a few feet away.

"He's better in sword fighting than I thought!" the raven though as he got back up and held his bleeding wing in pain. What was even worse was that he could no longer take off in the sky in case he would need to put some distance between them.

Before he could completely recover, Detra charged again and swung his blood-covered hook at him, managing to scratch a little cut on his black chest, before jumping and holding on him with his four limbs. He started delivering a series of strikes to the raven's already damaged chest with his fists. Luckily, he quickly fought back with pecks to the raccoon's head and knocked him away with a strong knee strike in the stomach.

"Okay, it's time to go all out now!" Karasu though as he started using his speed to grab and shoot many shurikens. Detra used his hook swords to block them all, creating even more sparks at every shuriken contact. He blocked them all with great speed and soon, tens of blocked shurikens were scattered on the ground.

However, before the raccoon could attack once again, he was suddenly knocked against a trunk by a jet of water. Aurora arrived and groaned as she used a nearby river to shoot one jet after the other at Detra, not giving him the chance to fight back. Eventually, she used an Aura wall to pin him against the trunk, finally defeating him.

"Why would you do that?" Aurora asked as Karasu ripped a piece of his vest to bandage his wing. "I trusted you. You lied to me. You're sick and I trusted you!"

A signal call was suddenly heard. Karasu and Aurora were startled and looked at the valley beyond, where it came from. Detra gave an answer call.

The jackal looked at him in panic. "What are you doing?"

Detra smiled smugly at her. "You're too late."

"No!" both Aurora and Karasu gasped, horrified.

A flaming arrow suddenly raced down to the base of the dam as they watched in horror. "No...," Karasu whispered.

The center of the dam exploded in a cloud of smoke and fire. The two friends could only watch as a massive wall of water got over the dry falls and down to the town. Inside the town, the streets seemed empty for the occasional barrel and a market table with cabbages. The water rushed through the open gate as a cresting wave dwarfed it. The wall and gate were swallowed as the wave struck the town.

Even from here, the two friends could see the damage. "Tama didn't make it in time," Karasu mumbled, a tear falling down on his cheek.

"All those people...," Aurora said, just as sad. she then turned toward Detra in rage. "Detra! You monster!"

"This is a victory, Aurora. Remember that. The Fire Nation is gone and this valley will be safe," he shot back victoriously.

"It will be safe without you," Tama's voice suddenly said.

In shock, DEtra looked up to see Tama, Dum Gai, and Fin rise from below the level of the cliff. "Tama!" Aurora gasped happily.

"I warned the villagers of your plan just in time," Tama continued with a fixed glare on Detra.

"What?!" he gasped, furious.

"At first, they didn't believe me. The Fire Nation soldiers assumed I was a spy. But one man vouched for me. The old man you attacked. He urged them to trust me and we got everyone out in time."

"Tama, you fool! We could've freed this valley!" Detra snarled, his eyes glaring daggers at the grey fox.

Tama's eyes also darkened. "Who would be free? Everyone would be dead."

"You traitor!"

"No, Detra. YOU became the traitor when you stopped protecting innocent people."

Detra turned to Aurora. "Aurora, please help me!"

The jackal just snorted. "Yeah, right. Goodbye, Detra," she said as she and Karasu climbed onto Fin's saddle. The dragon flapped his wings and took off, leaving Detra still pinned against the tree behind.

The sky they flew through was empty save for a few wispy clouds. After Aurora finished properly treating Karasu's injured wing, the raven turned toward Tama. "We thought you were going to the dam. How came you went to the town instead?"

Aurora smiled. "Let me guess; your instincts told you?"

Tama smiled proudly. "Sometimes they work."

Karasu laughed to himself as he noticed a detail. "Huh, Tama? You realize we're going the wrong direction, right?"

The grey fox was a bit surprised but quickly recovered. "But they can be wrong too."

All of Team Tao laughed as Fin turned into the opposite direction...

* * *

 **Yeah, sorry for not updating this story in a while, guys. I wanted to progress with my other stories "Quest For Awesomeness" and "Heroverse".**

 **Detra is one of my favorite characters as he is a tragic hero who turned wrong despite his good intentions. His fighting style is called Sun Bin. I admit that I took inspiration from Mortal Kombat character Kabal to create him. Hence why he's using hook swords.**

 **Now, if you'll excuse me...I need some sleep! I'm tired from writing so much...and it's 1:00 in the morning...**


	348. 100 years ago

**Before starting this new chapter, I'd like to wish a happy birthday to my best owl buddy, Jameson The Phoenix Owl who celebrated his birthday yesterday.**

 **And second...as you know, this storyline is vastly influenced by Avatar: The Last Airbender. I like to follow the correct chronology. The last episode was based on the book 1 chapter 10 but I decided to skip the chapter 11 and make my own original story. Why? Because "The Great Divide" is a very pointless episode. Seriously, I don't even understand what was the point of this chapter.**

* * *

"You got it, Karasu."

A very younger Karasu smiled and chirped happily as he was flying through the clear sky of the day. There was one raven on either side of him. One of them was a beautiful female dressed in a pink kimono while the other was a male dressed in a silver ninja vest and had a katana tied to his back.

"We love you, Karasu," the female softly said.

"I love you too," the young Karasu said while happily flapping his wings. He flew farther until the clouds ahead of him turned dark and the sound of thunder could be heard. "Whoa, there's a storm coming, Mom and Dad... Mom? Dad?"

The young raven turned around and gasped as his two parents were fading away into smoke. "We needed you, Karasu," the female said before fading away.

"Why did you run away?" the male also asked before also fading into the wind.

Karasu's eyes started filling with tears. "I-I didn't mean too! Please, come back!"

Suddenly, a bolt of lightning came back of nowhere to strike the ninja raven who fell down into the raging ocean down below. Karasu flapped his wings as hard as he could but was inevitably dragged down into the ocean's abyss...

* * *

"NO!" Karasu sat up and awoke with a scream, his feathers covered in sweat.

Tama instantly jumped on his feet, his spear into his paws and looking all around. "What is it? We're under attack?"

Karasu panted a bit before rubbing his forehead and answering. "No. Sorry. I just made another nightmare."

"You're making a lot of them lately," Aurora remarked after sitting up. "Are you feeling okay, Karasu?"

"Yes, it's nothing," the raven said and simply went back to sleep. "Goodnight, guys."

"Goodnight, Karasu," the two siblings said before going back to sleep too.

* * *

The next day, Team Tao's progression got stopped by a huge thunderstorm accompanied by violent, thundering bolts of lightning. While all the team found refuge into a cave, Tama insisted to go out into the storm to find them something to eat around a good fire. Fin decided to take a nap, tired from all the flying he did and Dum Gai kept him company.

Karasu ventured deep into the cave and, to his surprise, actually found a hot spring. Deciding he deserved to relax a bit, the raven removed all of his clothes, save for the bandages around his injured wing, and plunged into the warm water.

"Awww," he happily sighed. "This feels so good. The first bath that I take in over a hundred years. I seriously needed this..."

The raven closed his eyes and relaxed for many minutes before he heard a noise and something getting into the water with him. "Who's there?"

"Oh, it's me, Karasu," said Aurora's voice. "Sorry, I didn't notice you were there."

Karasu's face quickly went red as he realized the jackal was naked in the same bath as his... _alone_. "W-Wait," he called before she could get out. "I-I don't mind you staying with me. It's not like I can see anything because of the water and the steam."

"Oh, okay..." Aurora blushed but sat back in the bath while making sure her body remained underwater at her neck level. A long moment of silence passed with the two friends relaxing until the jackal decided to break it. "Karasu? I was wondering...what are those nightmares you made recently about?"

Karasu was a bit surprised by the question and set his gaze down on the water. "It's about...over a hundred years ago...when I was still living with my clan at the Sky Ninja Temple..."

Aurora blinked at him. "Now that I think about it...you never truly told us anything of your time before Tama and I found you into this ice prison. I've always been curious to know...if you don't mind."

Karasu just smiled at his friend. "It'll be my pleasure to tell you everything you want to know." The raven took a deep breath and started talking.

"I had two parents. My mother was called Hikari. She was a magician - the greatest of our clan. While she could not use Chi in any of its forms, she was a genius in the art of using Ninja Magic. And my father was called Ryuu. His skills with a sword were mashed up only by his leadership qualities. The reason why he was the leader of our clan. He's the one who taught me to fight with a sword and even helped me crafting my Masamune sword."

"They sound like very good people."

"Yup, the most caring and loving parents someone could wish for. They loved me and did everything they could so that I could become a great Sky Ninja. I became a master in the use of the sword, bow and arrows, ninja stars, and even grappling hook. I even unlocked my Lightning Chi earlier than most other kids." Karasu's happy face dropped. "...Then came _that_ day."

"What day?"

"The one where it was found out that I was the Tao Dragon. The other ninja clans we were associated with gathered to make me pass some tests...and they were positive; I was the Tao Dragon. It was at this moment that everything changed for me. I had to train twice harder, the kids I used to play with no longer wanted to because it would apparently be 'unfair' and 'make the game unbalanced'."

"Wow, that's very sad," Aurora said in compassion.

"Oen day, while I was playing a game of Pai Sho with my mother, she saw me looking sad and assured me that things would be fine. She told me that one day, I would make faithful friends that would stay by my side, no matter our differences in appearance, character, or race. I always looked to have my own team to go on adventures since that day. My mom also told me that there was an old legend saying that the dragon would cross path with the phoenix and the two would bring balance to our world. I'm not entirely sure what that's supposed to mean."

Karasu's face got even darker at that moment. "Then, the clans did the worse thing I thought was imaginable. I spied on my father talking with the other clan leaders. They were talking about me. My father argued that they had to do what was best for me while the others said that they had to do what was best for the world because I was the Tao Dragon. They decided that my parents' affection for me was getting in the way and that they were going to take me away from them to train in the Eastern Sky Temple."

"What?!" Aurora exclaimed with a look of shock. "This is absurd! They have no right to take a kid away from his parents!"

"Unfortunately, they could. After hearing that, the bottle was too full. I decided to run away with Fin, my only friend left and flew as far from my home as I could. I traveled across the Independent Islands, made some friends here and there, and also took time to train some younglings who wished to become warriors. Then, as we were flying toward the South Pole to see the Water Tribe, Fin and I got caught into a storm and fell into the ocean. I don't remember clearly what happened before I blacked out. Then, next thing I know, I woke up into the ice with you looking over me..."

Aurora remained silent. She didn't know Karasu's life before the war was so tragic. Getting rejected by his own society simply for being the reincarnation of the one supposed to save their world, getting separated from his parents, falling asleep for a hundred years, and waking up to find everyone he knows gone... It was much worse than Aurora's own story. Sure, she did lose her parents as a kid and had to leave her home country of Egypt, but at least, she had Tama, Bohai, and the Water Tribe to look after her.

"Aurora...I'm sorry," Karasu said after a moment.

"Sorry? Sorry for what, Karasu?"

"If I hadn't run away...nothing all of this would have happened. This war with the Fire Nation would have never been and everyone would live in peace. But I had to run away because I'm a coward and-"

"No, Karasu!" Aurora firmly said, causing the raven to look at her in surprise. "Remember what I told you: the Fire Nation assaulted the Sky Temples and killed everyone. If you hadn't run away, they would have probably killed you too."

"How do you know that?"

"I don't; it's just a feeling," the jackal said. "But ever since you returned, things have gone better. You give everyone something they didn't have in a very long time."

"What?"

"...Hope."

Karasu stared at Aurora for a moment...before smiling. "Thank you, Aurora."

"Any time," she said with smiling in return.

Karasu got out of the water to get himself dry with a towel and wrapped his purple scarf around his neck. This scarf that his mother made for him as a kid... After pulling his pants on, Tama entered the cave. He was all wet but seemed to have caught something good to eat in his bag.

"Good news, everyone!" the grey fox happily said with passing his paw through his wet fur. "We're gonna have fresh fish for dinner tonight! And I even found some good herb to make a medicine for your wing, Karasu!"

The raven smiled and gave his towel to his friend so that he could get himself dried as well. "Tama, I want to thank you too."

"No probs; you know I like hunting and fishing."

"No, I mean thank you for being my friend and helping me so far in spite of all the trouble I caused you."

Tama blinked his eyes curiously, not sure why his raven friend decided to say that all of a sudden. However, he still smiled nonetheless. "No probs. Remember what I told you: you're not alone and we got your back."

* * *

"Seriously, can you be more arrogant than that?" the lieutenant of Shen's steamboat angrily said, swinging his teacup around.

He and his men were currently sitting together into the steamer's dining room around a table. They were taking a well-deserved break after spending all day getting their butt kicked by Lord Shen who constantly criticized their fighting styles. It was never good enough: they were always too slow, not strong enough, etc. Let's just say that the lieutenant didn't take this very well.

"Seriously, this spoiled prince thinks he can tell me _anything_ about respect?" the lieutenant angrily said with slamming his teacup on the table.

"You shouldn't be so hard on him," a soft voice said and everyone turned to see Uncle Longwei entering the dining room.

"Oh, General Longwei," the lieutenant said with standing up. "I'm sorry, we didn't-"

"It's alright, Lieutenant," the old peacock kindly said with a smile. "May I join you?"

"O-Of course, I beg you," the Lieutenant said with pulling a chair for the brown peacock to sit with them.

He stroked his beard and started to speak. "Try to understand, my nephew is a complicated young man. He has been through so much..."

The crew members gave curious looks to Uncle Longwei as they never heard about Lord Shen's story prior to being banished. "As you all know, Shen is the son of the King and Queen of Gongmen City, Xiangxin and Bai Xi. He studied their specialty, fireworks, and was destined to take over the throne of Gongmen once he was old enough."

"However, life is full of unexpected surprises. One day, during a meeting of the Peacock Council - one of the most important councils in China's modern society, Shen and his family came and attended the meeting. I was present as well. They discussed military strategies and other stuff. The Fire Lord was leading the council for being the ruler of the Fire Nation, he was the most important and influent one on the whole council."

"Shen was not really paying attention; he found those meetings boring. However, at one point, the generals decided they were going to sacrifice an entire division just to serve as a distraction for our enemies in the Earth Kingdom. My nephew heard this and voiced his disagreement over this, claiming that they could not just sacrifice young people like they were mere toys that could be thrown away."

"All the members of the council glared at Lord Shen and scolded him for speaking out of place. The Fire Lord branded him a traitor for what he did and decided to banish him into the Independent Islands as punishment with all the other council members agreeing. The King and Queen begged the Fire Lord to forgive their son and the Queen even cried. But my brother did not change his mind and banished my nephew, forbidding him from coming back to modern China until he found the Tao Dragon and brought him back. In hopes of comforting his parents, I decided to follow Shen into his banishment to give him a parental figure and a guide."

"This is why Lord Shen is so desperate to find the Tao Dragon; he wants to restore his honor and return to his home of Gongmen City. As, shall he not return in time, the Gongmen's throne will be given to his foster sister, Lady Mayuko."

The crew members all exchanged gazes. They didn't know Lord Shen's reason for being banished was so...selfish. There was nothing wrong with telling the truth even against authority figures. Shen only took the defense of soldiers about to be sent into a suicidal mission.

Everyone ate their food in silence for the rest of the dinner. After that, they all climbed up on the deck where their Lord was awaiting. The lieutenant bowed. "My Lord, I want to personally apologize for the deception we caused you earlier. I promise we will work harder and help you capture the Tao Dragon."

The white peacock just stared at him before turning around toward the steamer's peak. "Very well. I was not expecting anything else. Resume your training." Once the crew members were far enough, Shen leaned toward Longwei who came beside him. "You talked to my men, didn't you?"

"Me? Nah, I just shared some of my spiritualty of old man with them," the old peacock said with a laugh.


	349. The Masked Avian

Commander Cinead and Xing stood on top of a Fire Nation fortress' wall alongside Colonel Shinu, looking down on particular archers. They were all hawks dressed in brown clothes with red markings and holding bows and arrows. They released volley after volley of arrows onto targets and managed to hit the dead center multiple times with terrifying precision.

"Absolutely not. The Yu Yan Archers stay here. Your demand is denied, Commander Cinead," Colonel Shinu said in a deep, firm voice.

Cinead was growing frustrated. He had been arguing with the man for over ten minutes now and, not used to being denied, was growing very irritated. "Colonel Shinu, please reconsider. Their precision is legendary. The Yu Yan can pin a fly to a tree from a hundred yards away without killing it. You're wasting their talents using them as mere security guards."

Colonel Shiru glared in irritation. "I can do whatever I want with their talents. They're my archers and what I say goes."

"But my search for the Tao Dragon is-"

"Is nothing but a vanity project! We're fighting a real war here and I need every man I've got, Commander!" the Colonel snapped.

"But-"

"That's final! I don't wanna hear another word about it!"

Cinead grumbled as a messenger hawk suddenly arrived and delivered a message to him. The red wolf opened it to read...and then smirked before turning toward Colonel Shinu. "It appears I've been promoted to the rank of Admiral. My request is now an order."

Colonel Shinu bowed and exited. As Cinead looked down at the Yu Yan Archers while Xing turned his head and caught sight of a masked avian running away and fading into the night. Who was that?

* * *

"ACHOO!" Tama sneezed again.

Team Tao stopped into another cave located inside a forest. Right now, Tama was wrapped into his bed cot with many blankets. The grey fox caught a cold after going to hunt into yesterday's thunderstorm and now really needed to rest as he was in no condition of continuing.

"I think it's the first time I see you getting ill like this, Tama," Aurora remarked as she placed a wet towel onto her brother's forehead.

"I...hate...being sick...," Tama groaned with a frown before sneezing again.

"How's he doing?" Karasu asked his jackal friend.

"His state is not too bad but he'll need some time before being able to continue traveling," Aurora replied.

"Unfortunately, time is exactly what we're lacking right now. We must find a way for me to learn all Chi before summer's end." The raven then grabbed his stuff, preparing to leave. "I know some medicinal plants that can help him recover faster. Keep an eye on him; I'll be back soon."

"Be careful out there, Karasu. There's a Fire Nation fortress not too far from here," Aurora called before her raven friend flew away.

* * *

A few moments later, Karasu arrived into a vast greenfield with many plants and flowers spreading all around. He immediately started searching and picking up the plants he was searching for. After around half an hour, he found everything he needed and could now return to the cave and prepare Tama's medicine.

However, just as he was about to take off, he heard an unusual whistling in the wind. The raven swiftly unsheathed his sword just in time to block an arrow that came flying at him. As he looked around Karasu realized that above him, a huge number of arrows arched toward him.

Karasu swiftly dodged and blocked the arrows with his sword. He was about to take out his bow and shoot arrows of his own but the archers were nowhere to be seen. It took many seconds to realize said archers were standing in the surrounding trees, a look of malice on their dark hawk faces.

As two more volleys of arrows came toward him, Karasu used his Ninja Clones technique to create multiple versions of himself and confusing his attackers. After the volleys, the raven charged toward the archers and shot a lightning strike which destroyed one of the trees. However, the hawks managed to move out in time before they could get hurt.

Karasu tried to get away in the opposite direction but even more archers came to block his way. They fired arrows but Karasu dodged and ran in the opposite direction. If he was to fight for too long, he would get tired and be certain to lose. Dodging hails of arrows, he jumped off the cliff and opened his wings to take off.

However, before he could get too far, the archers shot some arrows accompanied by a net that wrapped itself around the raven, causing him to fall down to the ground below. He quickly used his katana to cut the net's rope, but more arrows came to knock his weapon away and pierce his clothes which pinned him to the ground.

As the helpless avian struggled the break free, the hawks surrounded him and knocked him out with a smash behind the head...

* * *

When Karasu woke up, his head was hurting like crazy and he had a massive headache. He was being held by his upper body, his wings stretched out and his face turned downcast as he remembered what happened to him. The only question on his mind was who captured him?

The room was dark but there was a fire in the room that shed some illumination. The raven raised his eyes in defiance as he looked around. He was a prisoner in a large room with two stone pillars that had fires on their crests. He was shackled to them from his wings.

Karasu looked at himself to realize his weapons were gone. Of course. But another thing was missing. "Hey, where's my scarf?" no response. "I said WHERE IS MY SCARF!"

The raven started struggling violently in his bonds when the room's door opened and he narrowed his eyes as Cinead walked into the room, his paws behind his back. Xing was on his heels.

"So this is the great Tao Dragon? Master of all elements. I don't know how you've managed to elude the Fire Nation for a hundred years, but your little game of hide and seek is over," the red wolf tauntingly said.

"Where is my scarf? Give it back NOW!"

"Here it is," Xing said as he placed the purple scarf back around the raven's neck. "I'm sorry but we had to make sure you didn't have anything that could allow you to escape."

"Why do you care so much about it anyway? It's a simple scarf," Cinead said.

"It's not a simple scarf, it's a gift of my...," Karasu stopped himself from talking and looked away. "Whatever."

"Tell me, how does it feel to be the last Sky Ninja left?" Cinead asked, putting his face up to Karasu's. "Do you miss your people?"

Karasu's look of defiance melted and he dropped his head, sadness stabbing at him.

"Oh, don't worry, you won't be killed like they were," Cinead said comfortingly and Karasu looked at him in anger. "See, if you die, you'll just be reborn and the Fire Nation will have to begin its search for the Tao Dragon all over again. So I'll keep you alive...just barely."

"I will end you!" Karasu hissed furiously.

Cinead chuckled and walked out of the room. Xing stopped for a moment and turned toward Karasu to mumble: "Sorry" before following Cinead and getting out of the room, the doors closing behind.

* * *

Meanwhile, outside Karasu's room, a figure managed to make it through the guard and get inside the fortress. This figure briefly stopped into the moonlight to reveal some sort of avian - a peacock apparently - dressed in a black camouflage dress and a white phoenix mask covering his face. He had two swords tied to his back. He stopped behind some barrels to see Admiral Cinead standing on a balcony of the main building to look over the battalion of Fire Nation soldiers.

"We are the sons and daughters of fire," he started his speech. "The superior element! Until today, only one thing stood in our path to victory. The Tao Dragon! I am here to tell you that he is now my prisoner!" The soldiers cheered loudly. "This is the year Ezra's comet returns to grant us its power!" Another wave of cheer was heard. "This is the year the Fire Nation breaks through the walls of Eralith and burns the city to the ground!"

As Cinead spoke, the masked avian scoffed in disgust before making his way into the main building.

* * *

Karasu kept his head low, wondering if he would found a way to get out, if someone would come to his help, or if he truly failed the world...

He suddenly heard screaming and fighting noises on the other side of the door which suddenly opened. The raven noticed four Fire Nation guards knocked out and laying on the ground behind the figure of an avian dressed in black and wearing a white phoenix mask.

"Who are you?" Karasu asked. Suddenly, the masked bird took out duel swords and charged at the raven. "No!"

Karasu closed his eyes, expecting to get killed. However, upon opening them, he realized that his wings were free. This masked bird had free him! Karasu looked up at the masked bird who then handed him his Masamune sword along with his bow, bag of arrows, and ninja stars.

"Thanks for saving me. But who are you?" Karasu asked.

The masked bird didn't answer and just gestured to follow him as he walked out of the room. Karasu followed, wincing a bit at the defeated figures of the guards.

* * *

Once outside the main building of the fortress, Karasu and the masked bird made their way around the guards, trying to sneak their way out by the main gate. However, they barely made a few steps that:

"RING THE ALARM! THE TAO DRAGON HAS ESCAPED!" someone shouted from inside the building.

At the same time, they reached the middle of an open area and many Fire Nation soldiers spotted them. "Figure we couldn't get out of this one easily," Karasu mumbled as he took out his sword.

As the soldiers attacked, Karasu started by easily taking out some soldiers with pressure point strikes. The masked bird got in the fight as well, using his dual swords to disarm the soldiers and even give them bad wounds.

After taking down the first wave, Karasu made his way down the main corridor, using his blade as to not hurt the guards. Even if they did a lot of wrong to the Independent Islands, he didn't want to kill anyone. The masked bird quickly caught up with him, chuckling at all the soldiers the raven took down by himself.

"Sir, the Tao Dragon has taken out most of the guards!" a soldier reported to Admiral Cinead.

"Grrr, send the elites down there to stop them!" the red wolf growled.

Soon, elite soldiers came down to block the two avians, covered in armor and carrying massive warhammers. Using his speed, the ninja jumped over the elite soldiers and cut off the ties of their armor, making them fall to the ground. One of them rose his hammer on the masked bird who swiftly dodged before delivering a spinning kick to his face, knocking him back a little.

He then went over to the next elite, tripping him over and then grabbing the warhammer to slam it on the other one's head. He snarled before running after Karasu.

He managed to catch up with him as he faced another armored guard. Thinking fast, the two avians jumped on either side of him, delivering a simultaneous kick to both sides of his face which knocked him out. Karasu smiled at his savior before the duo continued their way toward the exit gate.

However, a familiar wolf got in the way of their exit. "Stand back right now!" Xing ordered, rising his sledgehammer.

As Karasu was about to deliver a lightning strike, the masked bird suddenly grabbed him from behind and held a sword to his throat. The wolf stopped in surprise and turned to look at Admiral Cinead who glared angrily, knowing this masked bird would not hesitate to kill the Tao Dragon which would make their years of research pointless.

"Let them pass," he said through gritted teeth.

The soldiers reluctantly moved aside, allowing the masked bird to walk out fo the fortress with a sword still pressed against the raven's slender throat. However, once they were far enough from the gate, Cinead smirked and leaned toward a Yu Yan Archer.

"Shoot him."

Obeying, the hawk rose his bow and shot an arrow that flew through the air before hitting the masked bird right into the mask, causing him to slump to the ground. Karasu gasped in shock as he stared at his savior/kidnapper.

A crowd of Fire Nation soldiers then rushed through the open main gate and ran toward the avians' position. Karasu tossed a smoke bomb to cover their escape and hesitated to remove his rescuer's mask but did so anyway. He dropped it in fright when he instantly recognized this hostile face.

Lord Shen.

Karasu backed up a little. A part of him really wanted to fly away and leave this calamity behind...but he then looked at the peacock and felt gratitude into his chest. He had been the one to save him. If it weren't for him, he would have never made it out of this fortress. And as much as he tried to deny it to himself...he actually felt sympathy for the peacock. He knew he was cruel, horrible, and greedy, but there was more than meet the eye...good was in him, he could sense it. Karasu knew Shen wasn't the man he pretended to be. But if he just left him there to die, he would never get to see the real him. He would never get the chance to try and show him he was a friend...

Karasu turned and saw the Fire Nation soldiers getting closer through the smoke. Knowing he was probably insane for doing it, he grabbed Shen's stuff, picked him up, and tossed him over his shoulder.

He was heavier than he looked. Not that he was fat or anything, it's just that physical strength was not Karasu's best skill. When the dust cleared, however, the two avians were gone without a trace for the Fire Nation soldiers to follow.

"They escaped," Admiral Cinead growled angrily when Xing came to join him.

"Admiral, I need to tell you something."

"What is it?"

"When the Toa Dragon and this masked bird ran toward me, I saw...something. Two different auras: the one around the Tao Dragon was a black dragon while the one around the masked bird was a white phoenix."

"And what is that supposed to mean?"

"...I'm not sure, sir."

* * *

Shen blinked his eyes open and all he saw was white. After a few moments of blinking his eyes repeatedly, the white turned to a blurry view of the forest. All he knew was that he was looking straight up into the canopy overhead and it was morning.

The peacock turned his head to the side and his eyes widened in surprise as he saw Karasu sitting on a nearby root. He looked forlorn and Shen wondered what was the matter with him.

Wait. What had come over him lately? Why was he concerned about this insignificant raven? He was trying to kidnap him for god's sake! He needed to get his head out of the clouds and focus on what was important. This raven was no one and nothing special. He was just an item, something he needed to restore his old life back to normal. What happened to him was no concern of his. He would return him to the Fire Lord and that would be the end of their story altogether. He just needed to wait for the perfect opportunity to attack, and since his vision was still all blurry, that wasn't an option for the moment.

"You know what the worse part of being born over a hundred years ago is? I miss all the friends I used to hang out with. Before the war started," he said, still looking down at the ground. "I used to always hang with my friend Kuzan. The two of us, we'd get into so much trouble together. He was one of the best friends I ever had..." He turned to face Shen who could only lay there, puzzled. Why wasn't he running? He knew what the prince planned on doing to him. And since he no longer had his mask on, he obviously knew it was him and not some hero who'd come to save the day. He tuned back as Karasu continued talking.

"And he was from the Fire Nation, just like you. If we knew each other back then, do you think we could have been friends too?"

That cut Shen for a short moment. From the Fire Nation. Friends?

The peacock forced himself away from the thought. He and Karasu would never be friends or anything close to friends. He was the key for him returning home, and that was all he needed him for...no matter how appealing the idea of being civilized was. But Shen wanted to go home, and unfortunately, he needed Karasu to get there. Dead or alive, this raven was going to get him home.

It was now or never.

Shen was laying on a bank of earth, Karasu next to him, perched on a tree root. After a pause, when he was sure the raven's guard was down, he shot forward and let loose a huge gout of flame at him. However, Karasu dodged and flew away in the air.

Shen watched him leave out of sight, sighing in frustration. Sulling and with that infuriating ninja plaguing his mind, Shen walked past his uncle on the main deck. He was practicing with the sumki horn he had bought when they had their run-in with the pirates.

When he spotted his nephew, Longwei stopped playing and smiled. "Where have you been, Lord Shen? You missed music night! Lieutenant Jee sang a stirring love song."

Lord Shen held back his annoyance and ignored his uncle's question. "I'm going to bed. No disturbance," he growled darkly, walking away.

The peacock stomped back to his cabin, fuming over everything that happened last night. Even though he had sworn that he would never let his guard down when around him again, that was exactly what he had done. He let Karasu and his annoying little statements get to him.

As he laid awake in his own chamber, he became lost in his thought. The question that bothered him the most was: why did he do it? Why did Karasu save him? Had he taken pity on him or had he truly cared if he lived or died? He had been so horrible to him and his little friends...so why would he help him or even want to? Karasu could have just left him there and let Cinead get him, but he didn't. And what had that little comment he had left him with been? 'Do you think we could have been friends?'

Shen looked at the Fire Nation symbol hanging on his wall. 'From the Fire Nation, just like you...'

Shen glared at the flag and then rolled over in annoyance.

There was no way that raven would ever be his friend. And there was no way he could give up his place on the throne of Gongmen City...

* * *

Karasu finally made it back to the cave. Downcast and exhausted from everything that happened, he tossed the medicinal herbs and plants next to Aurora who was still tending after her brother. "There's everything you need," he said before dropping onto Fin to rest.

"Your trip sure took some time," Aurora remarked. "Did you make new friends or something?"

Karasu sighed as he placed his wings behind his head. "No, I don't think so..."

* * *

 **As you probably noticed, the last two chapters are heavily focused on both Karasu and Shen. I felt like developing these two on the front stage and also showing you some parallels they have in common. Have you noticed which ones?**

 **What is gonna happen next? What did Xing saw when Karasu and Shen charged at him? Will Shen's actions have repercussions for him later on? Stay stunned to find out.**


	350. Bato of the Water Tribe

Team Tao stopped flying when they reached a distant shoreline. The sun started setting down at the horizon, causing the sky to turn amber in color and the other end opposite from the sun started turning dark as the stars came out. The group has been flying for now three days. According to Tama, they should reach a sanctuary to rest for a while that shouldn't be too far now.

Karasu was walking alongside Tama, looking around boringly, when something suddenly flashed out of the corner of his eye. Nearby, a strange blade had been stuck in the ground of a forested area. Karasu reached down to pick up the weapon as Tama came up behind him.

"Look at this. A dagger made out of a whale's tooth," Karasu said as he examined the weapon with interest.

Tama grabbed it. "Lemme see that." He examined the blade entirely. "This is a Water Tribe weapon," he said after a moment. "See if you can find anything else."

Aurora arrived and blinked her eyes at seeing her two friends searching the zone. "Huh, have you lost something?"

"No; we found something," Karasu replied with a chuckle.

The jackal looked over to Tama who was brushing away some leaves and found a broken arrow on the ground. He picked and inspected it up. "It's burned," he said with a frown.

The grey fox tossed it aside and walked over to a tree with burn marks. "There was a battle. Water Tribe warriors ambushed a group of Fire Masters," he said, brushing the fur on his head.

"And who won this fight?" Aurora asked.

"I can't tell; there's not enough traces and signs," Tama admitted.

* * *

Team Tao decided to settle for the night and slept around their campfire. During his sleep, Tama made a dream about the last time he saw his father, Bohai. It was two years ago, the day he left with the other Water Tribe warriors. He begged his father to take him on his boat, but Bohai told him that the village needed him to protect it. He was left in charge of the village's protection during Bohai's absence.

The following day, the group resumed walking along the shoreline toward the sanctuary located on the map. Aurora suddenly gasped. "Hey, look! The sanctuary is in view!" she beamed with pointing forward where a small town and temple could indeed be designed.

"We've finally arrived?" Karasu asked, excited to finally get to rest a bit in a safe place.

However, Aurora's smile suddenly dropped. "Wait a second, something's wrong."

Everyone ran up to the sanctuary...and found it in the exact same state as Karasu's Sky Temple: a lot of ruins, no signs of life, weak houses, and dead trees.

"This is not possible...!" Aurora mumbled with her eyes wide open in shock.

"But it was supposed to be a safe sanctuary! What happened?" Karasu asked with a look of shock.

"The Fire Nation. No doubt," Tama said with a glare.

"You are travelers?" a voice asked them. They all turned to see a figure walking out of the sanctuary. "You must be tired from walking for a long time in the wild. I'm sorry, but the sanctuary is abandoned." The figure then came closer to reveal a grey fox just like Tama. "But you're welcome to rest with me if you want to."

This grey fox was wearing blue Water Tribe clothes, just like Aurora and Tama back at the South Pole. The two siblings gasped at unison. "B-Bato?!" they exclaimed.

The fox also widened his eyes. "Aurora?! Tama?! Is that really you?!"

The two siblings ran to hug the grey fox named Bato. "Yes, it's us," Tama confirmed. "We missed you so much."

Bato returned the hug. "My, you've grown so much since I've last seen you. Aurora, you're now a beautiful young woman." This compliment caused the jackal to blush a bit. "And Tama, you're bigger than two years ago. You've become a young warrior." Bato's attention then shifted to Karasu. "I don't you, do I?"

Tama walked over to Karasu's side and wrapped an arm around his shoulders. "Bato, this is Karasu, a Sky Ninja and the Tao Dragon."

Bato looked in surprise. "Really?"

"Yes, it's me, sir," the raven replied with bowing politely.

"By my elders, I didn't think I'd live long enough to see the return of the Tao Dragon," Bato said. "How did you end up meeting my little friends?"

"This is a long story, Bato," Aurora said. "Can we inside the sanctuary to talk about it?"

"Sure, come in. I was justly preparing some food," Bato said, leading Team Tao into the sanctuary.

* * *

And so, while Fin remained outside the sanctuary's main building with Dum Gai keeping him company, Team Tao got into one of the destroyed sanctuary's rooms where Bato was residing. There was a cauldron currently over a fire with its content boiling. Tama looked into it and his eyes widened.

"No way! Are these...stewed sea prunes?!"

"Yes," Bato said with a nod as he took a spatula to fill bowls of the soup for his guests. "I had some extra rations with me which is how I managed to hold on my own after getting separated from the others. Here, Karasu, try some," he said with handing the final bowl to Karasu.

The raven took his bowl and sniffed the content. The smell was weird and caused him to frown slightly. However, he didn't want to be impolite and reject the food graciously offered to him, so he brought the bowl to his beak and pulled the content inside. The warm soup didn't taste anything in particular, but the stewed sea prunes were rather...sour. The avian couldn't help but frown as he forced himself to swallow the sea fruits. He wondered how his friends could eat the same food with happy looks on their faces.

"I forgot how good they taste!" Tama happily said as he chewed on his stewed sea prunes.

"So tell me, how did my friend's kids end up traveling with the Tao Dragon?" Bato asked after taking a sip from his bowl.

And so, Team Tao told their new fox friend their whole journey from the South Pole all the way up to where they were right now. There were moments Bato paused them to ask questions and the team gladly answered them all.

"Wow, you kids got on your very first journey and this is a heck of a journey," Bato said after they finished talking.

"Bato, I have a question for you," Tama suddenly said. "Have you seen my father recently?"

Bato smiled. "I was justly about to tell you kids. I'm expecting a message from your father," he said which earned him a surprised look from Karasu. Aurora and Tama told him so much about him; he would love nothing more than meeting their father.

Tama also perked up. "Really?"

Aurora looked like she was ready to jump. "When?"

"Any day now. Your father said he'd send a message when they found the rendezvous point. If you wait here until the message arrives, you can come with me and see your father again, Bato said, smiling at their excited faces.

Karasu's heart plummeted. He straightened up at this and looked at his friends, fearing that he might lose them.

Aurora sighed longly. "It's been over two years since we've seen Dad! That would be incredible, right Tama?"

Her brother nodded, staring at his paws folded in his lap. "I do really miss him. It would be great to see Dad..." He then paused and turned around to see Karasu with a slightly sad look on his face. Tama sighed and then turned back to Bato. "I'm sorry Bato...but we won't be able to come with you."

"What? Why not?" the other grey fox asked with a slightly surprised look.

"As much as I'd love to see Dad again, Karasu needs us more. We must get him to the North Pole so that he can learn Water Chi and save our world for the Fire Nation Nation."

Karasu was a bit surprised but then smiled at how his friends were faithful to him. Sure, he felt slightly bad for preventing them from seeing their father again, but it would make sure to repay this to them one day.

Bato just smiled. "Very well, I'm sure your father would understand. He'll be very proud of you." Suddenly, a rumbling noise was heard outside the building. "What was that?"

The group rushed out of the sanctuary's building to see a group of Fire Nation riders led by Lord Shen who had broken through the sanctuary's wall. "Awww, seriously? Can't we catch a break?" Tama annoyingly groaned.

"I'm taking care of the Tao Dragon," Shen mumbled to his men. "You capture the others."

Obeying him, the soldiers attacked Aurora who used her Water Whips and Aura Blasts to defend herself while Tama started swinging his wood axe and boomerang around.

Both Karasu and Shen got in their fighting stance, ready for their re-re-match. After gazing for a moment, they both charged forward and went for a strike which they blocked simultaneously. They then kicked back and engaged a quick close combat which saw both of them either dodging or blocking the other's attacks.

Eventually, Karasu jumped back and shot shurikens which Shen blocked with his Guan Dao before replying by launching throwing knives which Karasu dodged. They then both stopped and Karasu noticed that Aurora's necklace was tied around Shen's wrist.

"Hey! That's Aurora's necklace! Give it back!" the raven ordered.

Shen just gave him a grin. "If you want it so much, then come and get it."

Groaning in anger, Karasu charged and collided his electric-charged sword against Shen's fire-charged Guan Dao which created a small explosion, sending both avians to crash into the sanctuary's wall.

Karasu managed to recover in time to dodge a dive kick from the peacock and fought both with his sword and Kung Fu moves while Shen used his Guan Dao and advanced Ca Li Fo moves. After almost an entire minute of close combat, the raven landed his first strike by hitting Shen in the shoulder with his wing and followed with a kick to the stomach that pushed him back.

"Alright, I think now's a good time to use Chi," the raven though and summoned Lightning Chi in his wing which he shot toward the peacock.

Of course, the prince avoided the attack with ease, but this gave the raven an opening to attack with his sword. However, Shen ducked the attack and countered with a violent headbutt, hitting his opponent hard in the face. He immediately followed with a kick which the raven dodged by rolling out of the way and quickly grabbed his bow to shoot an arrow which Shen grabbed his little hand just in time and roasted it with fire.

Shen charged his Guan Dao with fire once again and charged. Swinging his burning weapon, Karasu swiftly dodged and managed to land a few pressure point strikes to paralyze him, causing Shen to fall face-first on the ground.

"I'll take that," Karasu said with taking Aurora's necklace from a grunting Shen. "Guys, it's time to go!"

Team Tao gathered onto Fin's back and the dragon immediately took off into the sky. The friends waved to Bato who did the same on the ground before fading into the forest. The Fire Nation soldiers should be out for long enough to allow him to escape them.

"Phew, that was close," Aurora sighed in relief.

"Guys...I wanna thank you for not leaving me," Karasu softly said.

"No problem, Karasu. We promised to get you to the North Pole after all."

"And besides," Tama said with a smile, "you're part of our family too."

Aurora nodded in agreement and hugged Karasu tightly. "And we need you too."

Karasu understood the double meaning of her words and blushed a bit. "I wish I could give you a little piece of home, Aurora. Something to remind..."

The jackal shrugged. "It'll okay."

"Not even something like this?" Karasu asked with a grin and taking out the necklace, causing Aurora to look at it with a huge smile. She happily grabbed it and wrapped it around her neck where it belonged.

"Oh my gosh, thank you so much, Karasu!" Aurora beamed and kissed the raven's cheek, causing him to blush even more.

He was glad his friends were with him...


	351. The Fire Deserter

A few days after Team Tao's run-in with Shen, they became totally and completely lost. They were currently wandering down a forest road, the sun casting red and orange rays across the sky. They would have to make a camp soon but with Shen not too far behind them, they wanted to make sure they were a safe distance away from any civilization.

In the middle of the road, they discovered a circular notice board. Aurora walked over to inspect it, hoping to find a map or something. Karasu and Tama followed closely.

"This should give us a good idea of what's around here," the jackal said as she inspected the mind.

"Maybe we can find a good restaurant to eat; I'm starving," Tama said with looking at his bag of walnuts.

"How about this; the Fire Day Festival," Karasu said as he pointed a poster for an event wearing that name. "There will be shows produced by Fire Masters." A smile formed on the raven's beak. "This could be a chance for me to learn from Fire Chi users!"

"You might wanna rethink that," Tama deadpanned as he looked on the other side of the board. "Look at this."

Karasu and Aurora walked to where Tama was standing and saw wanted posters with one of them showing Karasu. "A poster of me?"

"This is bad," Tama said with a frown.

"I think we better keep moving," Aurora said. If there were wanted posters of Karasu around here, there was a greater chance he would be caught, and she would die before letting this happen. But, to avoid unnecessary trouble, she would rather keep him away from Fire Masters as much as possible.

"Guys, I'm gonna need to learn Fire Chi sooner or later," Karasu said. "This might be my only chance to see a Master in this art up close."

Aurora thought about it before taking a decision. "I guess we could check it out."

Tama gasped at them, shocked. "What?! You want to walk into a Fire Nation town where they're all fired up with their...y'know, fire?"

Aurora shrugged, knowing this would most likely be better for Karasu. "We'll just wear disguises. There's a nearby costume shop where we can get costumes to get unseen into the festival. At worse, we'll just leave if things go wrong."

* * *

And so, Team Tao got to the costume shop where they got their dresses to get into the festival. Aurora and Tama bought red hoods with special fire-themed kabuki masks to cover their faces.

"Karasu, are you done soon with your costume?" Tama called.

"Coming out," the raven called back. He walked out of the changing room with his costume...and it was rather...unexpected.

His costume consisted of red harem pants with flame designs on the sides and a red top on his chest that was round for some reason, golden bracelets on the raven's wings, a red mask on his beak, and red markings around his eyes. This made him look so...feminine that it was awkward.

"W-What the heck is that?!" Tama asked with a dumbfounded look.

"My costume, of course," Karasu replied as if that was normal.

"B-But you can't go around dressed like a girl!"

"I found him pretty seductive like this," Aurora mused.

"Are you kidding me, Aurora?!"

"Think for a second, Tama; the Fire Nation knows that I'm a guy. So if I go at the festival and make myself pass for a girl, then we'll get less attention," Karasu explained.

"I got a feeling you'll get more, on the contrary," Tama deadpanned. "And how did you make your chest become round?"

"By hiding fruits in my bra, of course," Karasu said with a chuckle.

* * *

Karasu gazed around in excitement as they stood in the Fire Nation town and its main square which was full of people. Overhead, the sky was filled with colorful fireworks. Around them, children frolicked, revelers ran by in ornated costumes, including several people almost completely concealed in a dragon outfit, and all participants were wearing colorful masks.

"This place looks amazing!" Karasu said with looking around with an excited look.

Tama leaned toward the raven and whispered, "Pss, Karasu, I took you got some admirers," with pointing at some by-passers who stared at Karasu with charmed looks.

"I told you this disguise would work," Karasu said with a chuckle.

"Okay, you two go have fun; I'm gonna go get something to eat," Tama said with walking away.

Karasu and Aurora walked around the festival, watching stuff and trying some food as well. Eventually, they found a Fire Master showcasing Fire Chi tricks on a stage such as summoning a fire dragon and making it dance around before making it explode into thousands of confetti, getting cheers from the crowd.

The two friends walked together through the crowded festival when they came across a group of female dancers performing a group traditional Chinese dancing for the crowd. Upon the end of their performance, the audience cheered loudly while the ladies bowed to them.

"And now," one of them said, "we would like to invite someone from the audience to join us for our final performance!"

An idea came to Aurora's mind. "Hey, since you're dressed as a dancer, why don't you join them?"

The raven shook his head. "I don't have a clue about how to dance; it's just a costume."

Aurora grinned a bit before grabbing Karasu's wing and lifting it up. "Here! Over here!" she called toward the performers.

"Aurora! What are you...?!" Karasu said in shock.

One of the performers noticed them and smiled. "It seems we have a volunteer!"

"But I-" Karasu tried to protest, but the dancer pulled him into the dancing circle. He gave a glare toward Aurora who just grinned. "I'll get you back for this!"

Suddenly, the music started and the female dancers started their dance. Karasu just stared at them for a while before he started feeling the beat. His hips started moving to the rhythm of the song and before long, he started performing some sort of belly dancing. Everybody looked in awe as he made graceful and elegant moves with his midsection.

Aurora smiled at how her friend went from a Sky Ninja to a graceful dancer.

* * *

"So you really belly danced in front of a whole audience?" Tama asked in surprise, almost choking on his fire bean buns. Karasu was blushing madly behind his red mask and gave a sneak glare at Aurora who just giggled.

The group walked out of the town after a few hours and got back to where Fin and Dum Gai had been awaiting them to leave. However, as they started changing back into their normal dress, a cloaked figure suddenly approached them.

"Who are you?" Tama asked with grabbing his spear.

"You... You are the Tao Dragon!" the figure said, removing his cloak to reveal a cheetah with amber eyes.

Tama gasped in surprise. "You're a Fire Nation soldier!"

Karasu had no idea how he came up to that conclusion, but he had a feeling he wasn't wrong.

The cheetah nodded. "Was. My name's Chey."

"So, Chey, what do you want from me?" Karasu curiously asked.

"I serve a man. More than a man really, he's a myth, but he's a real, a living legend, Aries the Deserter. He was a Fire Nation general...or was he an admiral?" Chey paused, trying to gather his thoughts.

Tama rolled his eyes. "We got it; he was very highly graded."

Chey nodded. "Yay! Way up there! But he couldn't take the madness anymore. He's the first person to ever leave the army and live. I'm the second, but you don't get to be a legend for that. That's okay though. Aries is a Fire Chi genius. Some say he's mad, but he's not. He's enlightened."

Karasu cocked his head to the side. "You mean there's a Fire Master out there who's not with the Fire Lord?" The raven looked at his friends in excitation. "We gotta see him! He can train me."

Tama looked at his ninja friend like he had lost it. "We're not gonna go find some crazy Fire Master!"

Chey looked offended. "He's not crazy! He's a genius! And he's the perfect person to train the Tao Dragon! That's why I came to meet you."

Tama just shook his head, looking as stubborn as usual. "Look, thanks for the offer, but we're leaving for the North Pole in the morning."

"Tama, this could be my only chance to meet a Fire Master who would actually be willing to teach me," Karasu said, annoyed that his fox friend would just toss aside his only chance to train with fire.

"It can't hurt just to talk to him," Aurora said, standing up and putting her paw on her brother's shoulder.

Tama sighed. "Why no one ever listens to me?"

As he turned to stalk away from the group, he almost ran right into a spear that appeared out of nowhere. In a flash, the group was surrounded by men wearing straw hats and armor while also holding spears.

"Don't move!" one growled.

They shoved them all into a tight group and swiftly began leading them through the forest. "Aries told you not to look for the Tao Dragon!" one of the men snapped quietly at Chey.

Tama started and whipped on Chey. "Hold on, you know these guys?"

"Oh yeah! Lin Yi's an old buddy. Right, Link Yi?" he said with a smile.

Lin Yi lowered his spear to Chey. "Shut up! Keep moving."

They continued walking for a few more hours in total silence. Aurora kept a firm arm wrapped around Karasu's waist and her other around Tama's shoulders. Around midnight, they reached a beautiful little village with random small, lean cottages scattered about everywhere. There were little stone paths that led down the hill and to the houses. At the bottom was the biggest hut of all, resting right on the bank of a calm little river.

Li Yin shoved Chey forward and glared darkly at him. "Go on. He sees only you."

Chey looked nervous. "Oh, that's okay, we can chat later."

"Is that where Aries is? I need to talk to him right away," Karasu declared, marching forward. However, Lin Yi stopped him with his spear.

"No! You wait here." He turned slightly and pushed Chey forward roughly. "Go now!"

Chey sighed and looked at Karasu, nodding encouragingly. "Don't worry. Everything'll be fine. He's a great, great man!"

Chey walked toward Aries' hut and disappeared inside. With nothing better to do, Karasu, Aurora, and Tama settled down to sleep, nestling into Fin's warm body. He was gone for what they guessed was half an hour before he finally appeared again. When Chey exited Aries' hut, Karasu's eyes snapped open immediately and he sat up. As the cheetah approached, Karasu noticed he didn't look at him and kept his stare on the ground.

"What happened? Is Aries willing to see me now?"

Chey sat down across from him glumly. "He won't see you. He's very angry that I brought you here. He wants you to leave immediately."

"Finally! Let's hit the road," Tama said, apparently awake as well as he jumped to his feet. He stretched his back out like a cat.

"Why won't he see me?" Karasu asked in shock and disappointment.

"He says you're not ready. Says you haven't mastered Water, Ice, Wind, and Earth Chi yet."

Karasu frowned in confusion. "Wait, how does he know that?"

Chey shrugged. "He saw the way you walked into the camp. He can tell."

"I'm going in anyway!" the raven said in determination.

He walked across the entrance to Aries' hut. He took a deep breath, knowing it was now or never, and parted the curtain to walk into the darkness. Inside, a figure was sitting cross-legged amidst a semi-circle of candles, his back facing Karasu.

"Get out," a deep gravelly voice growled.

"Master, I need to learn Fire Chi," Karasu decided to be direct.

"Only a fool seeks his own destruction."

Karasu sat down, ready for anything this master was going to throw at him. "I'm the Tao Dragon. It's my destiny to-"

"Destiny? What would a mere Sky Ninja know about destiny? If a fish lives its whole life in this river, does he knows the river's destiny? No! Only that it runs on and on out on his control! He may follow where it flows but he cannot see the end. He cannot imagine the ocean," Aries growled.

Karasu was totally lost. Where had that come from? "Okay, fine, but tit's the Tao Dragon's duty to learn all of the Aether disciplines."

"To master the Aether disciplines, you must first master discipline itself. But you have no interest in this, so I have no interest in you! Now get out."

Karasu wasn't going to give up that easily. "Please, I have to learn. This could be my only chance," he said fiercely.

Aries turned around to face him in anger. Karasu noticed that he had a strange thin scar that went from his forehead all the way over his eye and down his chin on the left side of his south Chinese tiger face. "Are you deaf? How can I teach you if you refuse to listen? Before learning Fire Chi, you must learn Water, Ice, Wind, and Earth. Water is cool and soothing, ice is immobile and refreshing, wind is natural and easy to control, and earth is steady and stable, but fire, fire is alive! It breathes, it grows, without a master, a rock will not throw itself! But fire will spread and destroy everything in its path if one does not have the will to control it! That is its destiny! You are not ready! You are too weak!"

At this final pronouncement, the candles flamed up around Aries to illuminate the entire tent. When the flames went out, the room got black.

Karasu was consumed by anger and pure power. Willingly, he let himself fall into the Draconic Aura state. He felt Tao Dragon Roccio surround him, fill him, becoming him. It was exactly the same thing that had happened to him back at the Fire Nation temple. Tao Dragon Roccio was speaking through him, using the raven as a link to the living world.

Roccio used his Chi and lit up one candle directly in front of Aries. The other candles had disappeared. Instead of the tent, a tree was behind the Deserter. In front of him stood Tao Dragon Roccio who completely took over the raven's body.

"You think I am weak?" Roccio growled furiously.

"Tao Dragon Roccio! No! No!" Aries gasped, inclining his head in respect. "I did not mean that!"

Roccio did not listen. "I have mastered the Chi of Aether a thousand times in a thousand lifetimes. Now, I must do it again. You will teach the Tao Dragon Fire Chi."

At this final statement, Roccio raised his left paw and the tree behind Aries burst into flames.

Aries and Karasu both came out of their trances at the same time. The ninja felt Roccio leave his body and everything returned back to normal. He breathed a sigh of relief. "Yes, yes, I will teach you."

"Really? Thanks a lot, Master," Karasu happily said with bowing in respect.

"Why do I have a feeling like it won't be easy?" the south Chinese tiger asked.

* * *

Karasu's training began next morning.

As Aries and the raven stood outside the hut, Tama was sitting nearby to fish in the river while Aurora was practicing her Water Chi skills. Karasu stood bandy-legged on a flat stone in the river with Aries eyeing him critically.

"Widen your stance." Karasu complied. "Wider! Bend your knees. Now concentrate." Karasu tried as hard as he could to concentrate and please the Fire Master. "Good, good!" he said in his gravelly voice.

Seeing the tiger walking away, Karasu called for him. "Wait, what do I do now?"

Aries whipped around, startling the raven. "Silence! Talking is not concentrating! Look at your friends, are they talking? No, because they know to concentrate on what they're doing!"

Karasu was getting a bit impatient. "But what am I concentrating on?"

"Feel the heat of the sun. It is the greatest source of fire. Yet, it is in complete balance with nature," Aries simply said.

Karasu stared at the sun...before nodding at Aries and assuming his stance while concentrating his spirit.

* * *

A few days later, Karasu's training had not improved much. No matter how hard he tried, he just couldn't get his mind and focus away from all that happened since he came out of that ice prison and the events of the Ezra comet. At the moment, he and his master were busy climbing the slope of a mountain, the raven being forbidden to fly and only to walk and climb.

"So...am I close to start making fire with my wings?" the raven questioned.

Aries shook his head. "No fire yet."

"What?" Karasu impatiently said. By this point, they were standing atop the mountain, the surrounding countryside beautiful in the sun's morning glow.

"Power in Fire Chi comes from the breath. That is why you must master proper breath control," Aries calmly explained.

"So...I must learn how to breathe?"

"Assume your stance," Aries said, ignoring the raven's question, and this last one complied. "Now, inhale through the nose and exhale through the mouth without talking."

Karasu obeyed and started taking deep breathes through his nose which he released through his mouth. Smiling, the Fire Master walked down the path and out of view as his student continued to practice, a look of fierce determination on his face.

* * *

Hours later, Aries had still not returned. Irritated, Karasu got tired of practicing "breathing" and decided to head back down. The old feline probably forgot about him.

Once back at the village, Karasu flew his way straight to Aries' hut. Hesitating a moment, he parted the curtain into Aries' candlelit hut and entered.

Aries turned his head sharply to glare at the raven. "What are you doing here?! I did not tell you to stop!"

Karasu gulped; this tiger's glare was very intimidating. "I've been breathing for hours."

"You want to stop breathing?"

Karasu angrily threw his wings in a gesture of frustration. "I want you to stop wasting my time! I already know how to squat, breathe, and feel the sun! I barely have a few months left ahead of me, so I need to learn how to produce fire with my wings!"

Aries lowered his head. "Ughhh. I had a pupil once who had no interest in discipline. He was only concerned with the power of fire, how he could use it to destroy his opponents and wipe out the obstacles in his path, but fire is a horrible burden to bear. Its nature is to consume and without control, it destroys everything around it."

Karasu sighed in defeat as Aries poured himself some tea. "Learn restraint or risk destroying yourself and everything you love."

Without another word, Karasu exited the tent, knowing this tiger was right.

* * *

About three days after they had been at the village, Aurora woke up one morning to find Karasu sitting by himself on a stone near the riverbank in front of Aries hut. Before the jackal could go check on him, the Fire Master walked out of his hut to stand in front of the raven.

"I thought about what you said. I promise I'll be more patient," the avian softly said.

Aries just stared at him and Aurora prayed that he would forgive him for what he had done wrong. "We're going to work with fire now."

Karasu looked at him with a surprised smile. Standing up, he bowed politely. "Let us begin, Master."

Aries suddenly caught a falling leaf between his thumb and his index finger, beginning to burn a tiny hole at the point of contact. He handed it over to Karasu. "Concentrate on the fire. I want you to keep this flame from reaching the edges of the leaf for as long as you can."

The hole was spreading with the flame even as Karasu assumed his stance and began to concentrate. Suddenly, a rebel guard approached the pair, panting in exhaustion.

"Master! There is trouble!"

Karasu's concentration broke in a heartbeat. "What's going on?"

"Concentrate on your leaf," Aries snapped as he left with the guard.

Karasu tried to stay focused on the leaf while Aurora practiced her Water Chi. After a few minutes, she noticed Karasu was groaning angrily and his emerald green eyes darkened. She sighed and dropped her water. "What's wrong, Karasu?"

"Honestly, I don't know, Aurora," Karasu sighed with rubbing the back of his head. "As a ninja, my best weapon is stealth and it required me a lot of patience to perfect it...but I just can't do the same with Fire Chi." He closed his eyes and took deep breathes. "I must do much more if I wanna be ready for the Fire Lord..."

The leaf began to smoke and before long, fire appeared all around Karasu. The fire formed a circle around the raven and exploded outward. The shockwave of flame engulfed Aurora and seared her paws which she had raised to protect her face. The jackal cried out in pain as an intense heat engulfed her paws and burned her bare flesh. She crumpled to her knees, paws wrapped around her as she tried to push past the pain. It was the worst physical pain she had ever felt in her life and it wouldn't stop. It just kept getting hotter, the pain getting more intense...

"Aurora!" Karasu gasped in horror, rushing at his friend's side. "Are you okay? I'm so sorry!"

Aurora knew it wasn't his fault; it was just an accident, but she was in too much pain to comfort him at the moment. And just then, Tama came out of nowhere. "Aurora, what's wrong?" he asked and looked at his sister. He then glared at Karasu. "What did you do to her?!"

Tears started forming in the corners of the raven's emerald eyes. "I-It was...I...I didn't mean to..."

Tama suddenly jumped onto Karasu, pinning him to the ground in anger. "I told you we shouldn't mess around with this! Look at what you did! You burned my sister!"

Unable to stand the pain, Aurora got up and ran away to heal herself. Tears started flowing out onto the raven's cheeks as he stared at the fleeing jackal.

"You burned my sister! This is all your fault!" Tama said before getting off Karasu and going after his sister.

Aries also returned and simply gave a disapproving and disappointed look to Karasu before walking away.

* * *

Aurora ended up near a riverbank and knelt down, taking deep breathes and plunging her burned paws into the water to cool them off. She sighed in relief as this made her feel a bit better.

However, something strange then happened. Her paws started glowing a bright blue light and the pain faded away. Upon putting her glowing paws out of the water, she realized the burning marks were completely gone!

"You have healing abilities," Aries' voice suddenly spoke from behind her. She turned to see him approach. "I understand; by mixing your Water Chi with your aura powers, you were able to create a new healing technique."

He sat next to her, his old face saddened. "I've always wished I were blessed like you. Free from this burning curse."

Aurora balked. "But you are a great master. You have powers I'll never know."

"Water brings healing and life. But fire brings only destruction and pain. It forces those of us burdened with its care to walk a razor's edge between humanity and savagery. Eventually, we are torn apart."

Just when the jackal was about to respond, the water before them exploded with a blast of fire. Aries quickly rose to a defending stance and broke the flames that came toward them. Aurora jumped to her feet when she recognized Cinead's riverboats coming toward them.

"Go get your friends and flee!" Aries yelled at her. "Do not come back here or you will all be destroyed. Hurry!"

Aurora did as he asked, her heart pounding in fright as Aries turned back to face the boats which were shooting fireballs at him. They landed harmlessly around him. With a few powerful motions, he produced an awesome wall of fire perhaps a hundred feet across the entire river in front of the ships.

But she didn't stop to oggle at it. Her entire focus was on her brother and Karasu.

* * *

As soon as Tama disappeared from his sight, Karasu made straight for Aries' hut like the coward that he was so he could be alone and kick himself.

He couldn't believe what he had done. Aurora must hate her...because he sure hated himself. He wished he had been the one to get burned. Frankly, he hoped she was mad at him, he hoped she would come here and tell him that she and her brother were leaving and they never wanted to see him again. It was what he deserved.

"Aurora! Are you alright?" he heard Tama ask outside.

"I'm fine. We've got to get out of here. Where's Karasu?"

The raven winced. Here they go.

Aurora walked through the hut's curtain, seeing her raven friend sitting alone amongst the candles, his back facing the entrance. "Aries tried to tell me that I wasn't ready. But I was so obsessed with saving the world that I allowed my impatience to take over. I'm never going to use Fire Chi again."

"You'll have to eventually," she said, her voice as gentle and warm as ever.

Karasu shook his head. "No, I cannot risk doing the same mistake again..." He was never going to hurt her again.

"It's okay, Karasu. I'm healed," she said and the raven heard the smile in her voice.

Karasu started in shock. "What? How?"

Aurora shook her head and the ninja turned to face her. "I'll explain later. But right now, we have to get out of here. Cinead and his soldiers are attacking!"

Karasu shot to his feet. "Where?"

Aurora looked at him sternly; she obviously knew where his thoughts were going. "By the river. They captured Aries." Karasu started to run but Aurora caught him by the wing before he could leave the hut. "No! Don't be stupid, let's just get Tama and go."

Karasu tried to shove her away, fighting against his jackal friend. "Let me go, Aurora!"

"Karasu..."

"I have to help him! Don't you get it? I'm not going to let anyone else get hurt because of my stupidity!" he spat, desperate to reach Aries before Cinead could do anything to him.

Aurora let him go, looking like she was going to lose it any moment. But she let him go and that was all that mattered at the moment. Karasu nodded at her in assurance before taking off in the air.

* * *

He reached the riverbank in no time and spotted all the men from the air. He was close enough to hear everything they were shouting at each other. Cinead and his men stood against Karasu's lone master.

"Look at you. You were once great. I can't believe my former master has become nothing more than a simple savage," Cinead sneered.

Aries glowered at him. "It is you who have embraced savagery, Cinead."

The red wolf sniffed hotly. "It's Admiral Cinead, now."

"That title will not help you against the Tao Dragon. Do not try to fight him! You are no match!" Aries replied, smugness in his voice.

Cinead laughed. "I think I can handle a scared little ninja."

"I have never seen such raw power." Karasu's heart warmed up at this statement. He thought Aries hated him.

"Aries!" he cried as he landed down.

Cinead eyed him hungrily before turning back to Aries. "We'll see. Men, take the deserter!"

Aries was suddenly surrounded by five of Cinead's men. As Karasu looked at him in worry, the tiger looked at him, smiled, winked, and wrapped himself in a massive ball of fire. When it dissipated, he was gone.

"It's a trick! He ran off into the woods! Find him!" Cinead yelled angrily and then turned back to Karasu. "Let's find out what my old master has taught you."

Karasu balked, his emerald eyes growing wide and blinking in surprise. "YOU were Aries' student?"

Cinead snorted. "Until I got bored." He shot two fireballs at the ninja raven who managed to dodge them both. "I see he taught you how to duck and run like a coward. But I doubt he showed you what a Fire Master is truly capable of!" he snarled.

He shot another fireball at Karasu and it flew over his head as he performed a backbend to avoid getting roasted. "whoa! I almost felt the heat of that one," Karasu said, deciding to taunt his opponent a bit.

"I'll show you heat!"

He shot several more volleys which Karasu either dodged or broke with his sword. Cinead's blasts had torched most of the surrounding forest and the sky filled with smoke.

"No self-control...," Karasu mumbled to himself as an idea came to his mind.

"Stand and fight, Tao Dragon!"

"Oh, we were fighting? I thought you were just getting warmed up."

"I was!" Cinead shot many more volleys all of which missed.

"Is that all you got? Man, they'll make anyone an admiral these days!" Karasu said and chuckled tauntingly.

Crying in frustration, Cinead shot fire blast after fire blast while Karasu used his Shadow Clone technique to dodge them all until the red wolf stopped to pant.

"You already lost this battle, Cinead," Karasu said with a grin.

Cinead looked at him as if he was insane. "Are you crazy? You haven't thrown a single blow!"

Karasu motioned to his left. "No, but you have."

Cinead followed his look...and gasped as he realized all three of his ships had been destroyed by his own fire blasts. Karasu had been tricking him!

"Aries said you had no restraint. Too bad; it caused your own defeat," Karasu said and waved his wing before taking off in the sky to get onto Fin's back as he flew by.

Down below, Cinead growled angrily and shouted really out loud, causing the flames of his burning boats to erupt even more.

* * *

"Wait, where's Aries?" Karasu asked as Fin was flying away.

"He disappeared. They all did," Tama answered.

The raven looked down sadly at Aries' now empty compound before it disappeared from sight. "Goodbye," he mumbled, wishing he had more time with his Fire Master.

Aurora then noticed something. "Karasu! You're burned!"

The raven looked down at his wing to indeed see a burning mark. "Oh, it must have happened during my fight with Cinead."

"Here, let me take care of it," Aurora said, using the water from her water bag and her aura power to heal the burning mark on Karasu's wing.

"H-How did you do that?" the raven asked in surprise.

"It's my new healing ability," the jackal replied with a sweet smile.


	352. The Northern Water Tribe

Aurora looked at the waves just below Fin's belly as the emerald dragon made his way just above the surface of the water. It has been three days since Team Tao met with Aries and his gang and everything have been relatively calm since. Well, except for their stop at the Northern Sky Temple where they met a group of refugees led by a scientist who sold weapons to the Fire Nation in exchange for their safety. Team Tao helped them rising up and, though the battle has been intense, they ultimately won against the invaders thanks to Tama's military genius.

"I'm not one to complain, but can't Fin fly any higher?" Tama asked petulantly.

Fin was flying across an ice field in the open ocean. He was obviously tired. His claws were brushing against the surface of the water.

Karasu turned angrily at his grey fox friend, surprised by his lack of concern for Fin. "I have an idea; why don't we climb on YOUR back so that you can fly us to the North Pole?" the raven annoyingly asked.

"Oh, I'd love to! Climb on, everyone!" Tama sarcastically said and showed his back. Dum Gai happily jumped on it and let out a happy chirp.

Aurora sighed at the boys' bickering. "Look, we're all just tired and cranky because we've been flying for two days straight."

Tama groaned. "And for what? We can't even find the Northern Water Tribe! There's nothing up here."

Suddenly, a noise was heard up ahead. Ice was moving rapidly toward Fin. The dragon tried his best to avoid the ice coming at him, but a jet managed to eventually touch his paw causing him to fall down in the water. Out of the icebergs, several ornate wooden skiffs came to surround Fin. They were manned by people in Water Tribe garb.

Aurora gasped in amazement and excitement. "They're Water Masters! We found the Water Tribe!"

They were finally there...

* * *

Fin swam in formation with the Water Tribe boats, happy to not be flying anymore even though the cold water was not very comfortable for him. Karasu suddenly got up and smiled in excitation.

"There it is!"

Just ahead of them was a massive ice wall with towers and turrets. "The Northern Water Tribe...," Aurora said in amazement, just as excited as her brother. This trip would mean a lot for all of them.

"We're finally here," Tama sighed.

They looked over at one of the Water Tribe skiffs where the Water Masters crew used Water Chi in unison. They turned back to the city wall where the Water Masters had removed a semi-circular opening to reveal a tunnel that led into the city. One of the Water Masters on the skiff motioned Team Tao forward and Fin swam in. They looked all around inside the tunnel as Fin swam in, then to the lock where the tunnel opened into. Overhead, they saw that the lock was square and that the Water Masters lined the tops of the lock's four walls. The three sides of the lock not adjacent to the main wall had water behind them almost to the height of the city wall. The Water Masters opened sluices gates along the three walls of the lock to raise the water level. The wall opposite to the main city wall began to lower itself, ultimately to free a path for Fin to continue.

Aurora was utterly amazed. "I can't believe how many Water Masters live up here!"

"I'm sure we'll find a Master to teach us!" Karasu positively said with a smile.

The lock wall dropped beneath the waterline with a few boats waiting in the channel beyond as Fin swam out. As he continued on lazily, his three passengers all smiled and looked around them in wonder.

The city was incredible. It was made of ice and was breathtakingly beautiful. It also had three interior walls in addition to the main city walls. All the way in the back was apparently some sort of citadel or temple. On the roof of one of the buildings in the city, an older man and a young boy watched as Fin followed a Water Tribe skiff through the canals. Soon, more people joined them. In fact, as they went, small crowds of people began to gawk at Team Tao from houses and footbridges. Karasu politely bowed to them as they passed. The city was loaded with beautiful streams, waterfalls, and fountains. They passed another boat with a Water Master and a very beautiful young Water Tribe snowy owl with a slightly more purplish coat rather than the normal blue. Tama focused on her and blushed.

"This place is beautiful," Aurora said in awe.

"Yeah...," Tama dreamingly said without looking away from the snowy owl girl.

* * *

Shen stared up at the rapidly waning, almost new moon. His crew was currently stationed at a dock. The sound of a stringed instrument playing a simple staccato tune and the rhythmic beating of drums filled the air. The musicians consisted of four men - including Shen's uncle and the Lieutenant - who were sitting around a campfire on the main deck of the ship.

Uncle Longwei was singing slightly out of tune along with the music and Shen resisted the urge to clamp his wings over his ears to keep them from bleeding.

"Winter, spring, summer, and fall. Winter and spring, summer, and fall. Four seasons, four loves. Four seasons, four loves," he sang.

During the song, two crewmen danced in front of the fire. From where he sat in the shadows, Shen slightly smiled. That infuriating raven returning to his thoughts once more again. Before he could dwell on it too much though, he shook his head and snapped out of it. Thoroughly irritated by the music, he decided to call it a night and stormed off to his cabin.

* * *

Later that night, Team Tao watched as three Water Tribe men played huge kettle drums in unison. They were in a plaza near the main citadel. A huge fountain dominated the rear of the plaza and on either side, huge pews made out of ice provided seating for many onlookers. They were seated at the city dignitaries table at the head of the plaza as the guests of honor.

Fin was happily sitting beside the table as Water Tribe men brought him a huge plate of food on which he happily chewed. At the center of the plaza, Team Tao watched curiously as four attendants lowered some sort of huge steaming platter of food or something onto a stage in front of them.

Chief Hale stood to address the crowd. "Tonight, we celebrate the arrival of our brother and sister from the Southern Water Tribe, and they have brought with them someone very special, someone whom many of us believed disappeared from the world until now. The Tao Dragon!"

The crowd cheered wildly as Karasu smiled and bowed at them all. Dum Gai raised his head from where he was resting in the raven's lap, letting out happy screams at the attention his friend was getting.

"We also celebrate my daughter's 16th birthday!" The chief backed up and aside to reveal the beautiful snowy owl girl flanked by two attendants walking up to the table. They all bowed, smiling. "Princess Weixing is now of marrying age."

Aurora noticed Tama was looking at her and awe and couldn't help but giggle silently.

"Thank you, Father. May the great Ocean and Moon Spirits watch over us during these troubled times," the princess said, her blue eyes warm as she gazed over her subjects.

"Now, Master Tyto and his students will perform!" the chief announced and motioned toward three men who now stood on the dais in front of the fountain opposite the dignitaries' table.

The centerman, a tyto barn owl, was clearly the eldest with some rides on his face and dark-grey feathers. They began manipulating water from three enormous amphorae in front of them. The crowd began to cheer and Karasu and Aurora looked at each other in utter delight while they also clapped. As the Water Chi show continued, Tama was chewing on a lot of food when someone came to sit beside him. It was Princess Weixing.

The grey fox saw her and almost choked on his food. He started thinking of something to say without making himself look like a fool. "Hum...Tama. Southern Water Tribe."

Weixing smiled and bowed slightly. "Very nice to meet you."

"So, huh...you're a princess?" She nodded. "That'S good. My friends and I are new here. So, I was wondering if you could...show me around or something?"

"Sure, I'd like to," the princess replied with a giggle as she could easily detect the grey fox's nervousness.

Aurora laughed and then turned her attention back to the plaza fountain. In front of it stood the Chief and Master Tyto. Karasu stood up and went to meet with them.

Chief Hale gestured to the raven. "Master Tyto, meet your newest student, the Tao Dragon."

As Karasu bowed respectfully, Tyto eyed him shrewdly. "Just because you're destined to save the world, don't expect any special treatment."

"I'm not expecting any. Arigato, Master," Karasu said with rising up again.

"In that case, I'm expecting you at sunrise. Goodnight," Tyto growled and walked away.

* * *

Shen rolled over restlessly, his cabin room on the ship dark as night as he tried to slow his racing mind. His wings were folded across his chest irritably as sleep continued to evade him. The door at the far end of the cabin opened suddenly and someone leaned in. Though the peacock's back remained to the cabin door, he didn't have to look to know it would be his uncle. He did not look at him as he spoke.

"For the last time, I'm not playing the sumki horn," he snapped. The old bird had already asked him five times.

"No, it's about our plans. There's a bit of a problem."

Shen frowned. His voice sounded off; it was almost too...edgy.

Shen sat up and turned just as his worst nightmare entered the room behind Longwei. "I'm taking your crew," Cinead said bluntly.

"What?!" Shen roared, leaping to his feet. He was beyond rage.

"I've recruited them for a little expedition to the North Pole," the red wolf replied as calm as ever, a smirk on his face.

"Uncle, is that true?"

"I'm afraid so. He's taking everyone. Even the cook."

Cinead's smirk grew. "Sorry you won't be there to see me capture the Tao Dragon. But I can't have you getting in my way again."

Shen charged at him in anger, but his uncle prevented him from tackling Cinead who walked over to inspect the dual swords on his wall - the same swords he had used to save Karasu. Cinead's face swelled in anger as he recognized the blades. As he took one off the wall, Shen's eyes went wide in alarm and his beak twisted a bit. His heart hammered a mile a minute in his chest as he realized the danger he was in. Thankfully, his uncle had no knowledge about his other half - the Celestial Phoenix, so he didn't have to worry about him giving anything away.

Cinead began practicing with the sword as he removed it from the wall, swinging it around calculatingly. "I didn't know you were skilled with dual swords, Lord Shen."

"Well, as you know, my fighting style is Ca Li Fo, meaning I'm skilled with many weapons. Though I prefer my Guan Dao and throwing knives."

"Have you heard about the Celestial Phoenix, General Longwei?" Cinead asked the brown peacock.

Longwei shrugged. "Yes, just the legend. A hero with the power of a legendary phoenix that can clean evil from this world."

Cinead snorted. "He doesn't have such power, but he's real all right. He's a criminal, an enemy of the Fire Nation." He handed the sword to Longwei. "But I have a feeling that justice will catch up to him soon."

Shen glared, hearing the warning in his voice. He'd like to see this dumb red wolf try and do anything to him. He would bring him down in two seconds flat.

Cinead moved to exit the cabin. "General Longwei, my offer to join my mission still stands, if you change your mind."

He closed the door behind him with a loud bang, leaving the two of them in the black.

* * *

The next morning, Karasu and Aurora were walking up a huge ice staircase up to the citadel. "I've waited for this day my whole life! I finally get to learn from a real Water Chi Master!" the jackal said in excitation.

As they reached the top, they spotted Master Tyto manipulating a blob of water when he noticed them. "You arrived just in time, Tao Dragon," he remarked with pulling the blob back into the pool.

"Moshimoshi, Master," Karasu said with bowing politely. "This is my friend, Aurora, the one I told you about."

Aurora bowed while Karasu introduced her, but Master Tyto simply stared at her as if she was a bug. He shook his old owl head. "I'm sorry. I think there's been a misunderstanding. You didn't tell me your friend was a girl. In our tribe, it is forbidden for girls to learn Water Chi."

Karasu gaped at him while Aurora's body stiffened, reflecting the anger she felt. "What do you mean, you won't teach me?" she snapped, walking up to Tyto. "I didn't travel across the entire world so you could tell me no!"

"No."

"But there must be other female Water Masters in your tribe!" Aurora yelled, outraged. Even Karasu had to admit this was ridiculous. How did the master have students if he wouldn't take girls?

"Here, the females learn from Vivian to use their Water Chi for medical purposes only. I'm sure she would be willing to take you as her student despite your bad attitude," Tyto snapped.

Aurora didn't back down. "I can already heal, I want to fight!"

"I can see that. But our tribe has customs, rules."

"Well, your rules stink!" Aurora snapped before storming off.

Karasu sighed sadly as he was in no position to convince this old owl to train his jackal friend. "Why don't we get started," Tyto said smugly.

* * *

Tama ran over a footbridge that spanned one of the city's many canals. Beneath the bridge, he spotted Princess Weixing's boat slowly moving along.

"Princess Weixing! Good morning!" he called as he came up beside her boat on the sidewalk along the side of the canal. He started walking with her boat as it floated down. "Hey, how about that picnic last night? Boy, your dad sure knows how to throw a party."

Princess Weixing smiled warmly at him. "I'm happy you enjoyed yourself."

"Well, it wasn't as much fun after you left."

Princess Weixing looked away, blushing in the most adorable way. Tama smiled brightly and blushed too.

"So, I'm still hoping we can see more of each other," he ventured, really hoping she wouldn't take him for some kind of stalker or something.

Princess Weixing laughed and the sound made butterflies erupt in the grey fox's stomach. "Do an activity and making you visit the city, you mean?"

"Yes! At...a place. For...some time."

"I'd love to," she said and the grey fox could have melted right there. She pointed a wing at a bridge in front of them. "I'll meet you on that bridge tonight."

"Great! I'll see you-" Tama was too busy gawking at Princess Weixing to realize he reached the end of the sidewalk and fell into the canal.

* * *

Shen was still laying on the bed of his cabin, just as he had been for almost three hours. The door opened and Longwei stuck his head in. "The crew wanted me to wish you safe travels."

Shen snorted, hoping his "crew" all got burned to a crisp. "Good riddance to those traitors."

Longwei sighed and paused for a moment. "It's a lovely night for a walk. Why don't you join me? It would clear your mind." He sighed again when Shen refused to respond. "Or just stay in your room and sit in the dark. Whatever makes you happy."

Longwei left, closing the door behind him. Now it was Shen's turn to sigh.

Maybe he was right...nothing good could happen if Shen just wallowed around all day. So, he had hit another bump in the broken-down road that was his life. It shouldn't bother him much; he hit bumps almost every hour. And plus...Cinead would not stop until he had the raven. He already had a head start and was almost as determined as Shen.

Almost.

If he would not stop, neither would Shen. He would not rest, he would not eat, he would not even blink until he had the raven safely away from the red wolf. He was his, his destiny...not his, and nothing was going to take him away from him. As soon as his uncle got back, he would go after Cinead, with a crew or not. He was NOT going to come in second to him anymore.

Suddenly, there was a massive bang from somewhere on the ship and Shen sat straight up in bed, alarmed. Something was wrong...with his uncle out walking, no one was supposed to be on this ship besides him. Maybe he had come back...

"Uncle?" Shen opened his door to look out into the corridor. "Uncle, is that you?"

Nothing.

He jumped out into the hallway in a fighting stance after grabbing his Guan Dao and throwing knives. Warily, he advanced to the bridge, ready for instant combat around every corner. He walked around the bridge and found absolutely nothing wrong. Confused, he turned and looked out one of the bridge windows to see a green parrot...just sitting there and staring at him with evil beady eyes. He croaked at him and then took off. The peacock's eyes flew open with terror as the realization of what the bird's appearance meant struck him.

The pirates!

Shen was too late. He spun and saw a trail of lit gunpowder reaching barrels of what he suspected was blasting jelly. He threw his wings up to protect himself as the bridge deck and main deck exploded, blasting him out of the bridge window.

* * *

Tama headed to the canal in the Northern Water City, his heart stammering in his chest. It was night and time for him to meet Weixing. He ran up the winding staircase attached to the bridge where Waixing waited to meet him. A little nervous, the grey fox slid to her.

"Hi, Princess Weixing," he said, offering her something. "I made you something. I carved it myself."

The snowy owl picked the little wooden object in her wing. "Oh, cute bear."

"Actually, it's a fish," Tama said with turning it sideways to reveal its right form. "See, with a fin."

"Oh," she said lamely. Suddenly, her face darkened and she looked at him with saddened eyes. "I'm sorry! I made a mistake. I shouldn't have asked you to come here!"

Weixing turned and practically ran away from the grey fox, disappearing into the night. Stunned and hurt, Tama threw the carving into the canal in anger.

Women!

* * *

Karasu, Aurora, and Tama were all staying in a small house in the Water City. Inside, they were all sitting on a huge rug together, depressed looks on their faces.

"How's warrior training going?" Aurora asked glumly.

"It's really not that easy," Karasu admitted as he untied his ponytail allowing his head feathers to fall naturally.

"What about you, Tama?"

"I-I just don't get it," the grey fox said with kicking a bag on the floor and flopped on said bag, using it as a pillow. "One minute, she wants to go out with me and the next, she's telling me to get lost!" He paused his annoyed rant. "So, how's Water Chi training?"

Aurora flopped onto her sleeping bag, depressed. Her hood flopped over her head. Karasu frowned, equally as annoyed with his horrible master as the jackal was. "He won't teach her because she's a girl."

Tama frowned and looked at them like they were idiots. "Why don't you just teach her, Karasu?"

Aurora raised her with a smile and looked at her raven friend. "Why didn't I think of that? At night, you can teach me whatever moves you learned from Master Tyto. That way, you have someone to practice with and I get to learn Water Chi. Everyone's happy!"

"I'm not happy," Tama deadpanned.

"But you're never happy," Aurora responded. "Come on, Karasu."

She left with the raven in tow and Tama remained to lie down, a sour expression on his face.

* * *

Aurora and Karasu walked through the darkened streets for a while before they came to a stop in a quiet dark corner at a canal. They were on some sort of ledge or small plaza that ended with steps that went down into the canal water.

Breathing deeply, Karasu raised a whip of water out of the canal. "Master Tyto said this move is all about sinking and floating," the ninja explained as he demonstrated.

He sent the water over to Aurora who started manipulating it. "I got it!" she cried, elated.

The water began to whip around her very fast, then up and out of sight entirely. Karasu rubbed the top of his head in amazement. "That was amazing!"

"That wasn't me," Aurora said, confusion all over her face.

They both looked up to see Master Tyto standing on the bridge above them. He had the water Aurora had been bending. He tossed it away into the canal below and seemed very unhappy.

"I...I was just showing Aurora a few moves," Karasu tried to explain with a nervous smile.

Master Tyto merely looked at the raven with cold, unforgiving eyes. "You have disrespected me, my teachings, and my entire culture."

"Yeah, but-"

"You are no longer welcome as my student."

He turned and walked away, leaving Karasu and Aurora astonished.

* * *

Without wasting any time, Karasu and Aurora got straight to the chief. Once there, they explained everything that had happened and he called for an assembly. Once everyone was there - including Tama - Aurora once again explained everything. There was no way she was going to let Karasu take the fall for her selfishness.

She just wouldn't let go of the Water Chi and because of her stupidity, she had possibly cost him the only chance he might have at learning Water Chi. She'd never felt so low before.

Everyone was at the plaza where the feast was held. Karasu, Aurora, and Tama all stood in front of the chief, Princess Weixing, Master Tyto, and what looked to be the tribe's council who all sat on a dais.

Chief Hale just wouldn't listen to the jackal's pleas. "What do you want me to do? Force Master Tyto to take Karasu back as his student?"

"Yes, please!" Aurora argued like she had been for at least ten minutes now.

Chief Hale glared at her. "I suspect he might change his mind if you swallow your pride and apologize to him."

The idea was hateful to the jackal and it showed. Her eyes turned to Karasu and he turned to look at her, his beautiful emerald eyes wide...obviously not knowing what to do with the situation. She sighed, her anger subsiding as she looked at his wonderful face. She turned back, clearly unhappy.

"Fine."

Master Tyto smiled smugly. "I'm waiting, little girl."

Furious, her hand balled up instantly to a fist at this insult and she snapped. "No! No way I'm apologizing to a sour, old man like you!"

As she spoke, cracks opened in the floor beneath her as her Water Chi abilities began to get out of control. She ended up pointing directly at Master Tyto, her finger almost in his face.

Karasu looked around nervously. "Huh, Aurora..."

Aurora ignored him. This was between her and Tyto alone. "I'll be outside if you're man enough to fight me!" she growled, a look of challenge on her face.

Princess Weixing drew her breath in surprise as the men stiffened. While the others stood frozen, Aurora stormed out of the building.

"What are you doing, Aurora?" Karasu nervously thought.

* * *

Shen looked darkly from his position at the side of the room. His uncle and Cinead were having tea opposite of each other at a low table. A map of the world hanging on the wall occupied much of the space behind them.

"I'm devastated to hear about Lord Shen," Cinead said cheesily. "Just devastated."

Shen smirked at his uncle's pained face, eyes closed. "The Fire Lord will not be pleased when he learns who was responsible," the old peacock said.

Cinead, suspicious, frowned. "You know...who was behind the attack?"

"Yes..." He slammed his wing on the table. "Pirates! We had a run-in with them a while back." Cinead's frown turned to a smile. "They wanted revenge."

"So, have you reconsidered my offer?"

Longwei nodded. "Yes, I accept. It will be an honor to serve as your general." He raised his glass in a toast. "To the Fire Nation!"

Cinead raised his glass as well. "To victory!"

As they were making a toast, Shen turned his head to see Xing standing on the other side of the room. The wolf eyed him with a very interested look. The peacock started sweating, realizing his childhood friend was going to recognize him and inform Cinead about his presence...

But the wolf simply gave him a little wink and looked away.

* * *

The three members of Team Tao walked down the long steps of the citadel. Tama was, as usual, paranoid. "Are you crazy, Aurora?! You're not gonna win this fight!"

The jackal took off her coat and tossed it at her brother, hitting him right in the face. "I know! I don't care!"

Karasu was clearly upset and Aurora felt bad for causing him so much distress...but this was something she had to take care of. She was not a mere woman.

"You don't have to do this for me, Aurora. I can find another teacher," Karasu told his friend.

"I'm not doing it for you! Someone needs to slap some sense into that guy!" she snapped, not meaning to sound so cross with him but too angry to control her temper.

They reached the bottom of the steps as Master Tyto appeared at the top. Aurora turned and sneered at him. "So, you decided to show up?" He simply walked past her. "Aren't you gonna fight me?"

"Go back to the healing huts with the other females where you belong," he said without turning.

Insanely angry, Aurora drew a water whip out of the ground and whipped Tyto on the back of the neck. He stopped and the jackal grinned nastily.

Tyto turned to face her. "Fine. You want to learn to fight so bad, study closely!"

On either side of the plaza at the bottom of the steps, there were two huge pools. Tyto grabbed most of the water in each and floated it around himself. Unafraid, Aurora ran at him but was flung backward when she was hit by the water. She stood again, perhaps ten feet away from Tyto. He used the water to create a wall around both of them. It spun faster and faster, creating a whirlpool effect.

"Don't worry, I'm not going to hurt you!" Tyto said mockingly.

The whirlpool constricted, but before Aurora was knocked back down, she swung her arm, almost as if she was swinging a bat, deflecting the water off on a different trajectory. The errant wall of water hit Tama and blew him backward. "OW!"

Not stopping to make sure her brother was okay, Aurora ran at Tyto with an aura whip. He raised a ramp of ice in front of her which she slid up and then backflipped off, landing neatly on the guardrail of the citadel steps behind Tyto. He liquefied the ramp and threw it at the jackal. Luckily, she broke the tamp with an aura staff.

"You can't knock me down!" she snarled.

The crowd behind her cheered.

Very angry and determined, she bore down on the old owl. Tyto raised a sheet of ice between him and his raging opponent. She broke the ice as she reached it and threw several blows at Tyto, one of which narrowly missed his face, before he washed her out of his way and into one of the pools with a wave of water.

Tyto smiled with satisfaction as she broke the surface of the water and the crowd cheered. She then raised a circular pedestal of aura and began to shoot several circular pieces at the old owl. He broke them as they arrived with swift Tai Chi movements. The last one however narrowly passed to the left side of his face.

When it was gone, he turned back to Aurora with a bewildered and perhaps somewhat impressed look on his face. She brought a stream of water around her which she threw at Tyto who caught it and began to twirl it around him. Aurora ran at him again but he washed her backward and onto her back when he released the stream of water. The jackal looked over at Karasu and Tama who were waiting in stunned anticipation at the outcome.

By this point, Aurora was starting to feel her energy drain, her fur wet, and breathing heavily. She jumped back up in a fighting stance, ready for more. She shot two aura balls at the owl who dodged, allowing them to destroy the ice pillars behind him.

"Well, I'm impressed. You are an excellent Water and Aura Master," he said, a mocking edge still in his tone.

"But you still won't teach me, will you?"

"No."

With a cry of effort, she raised a rolling wave along the floor to Tyto. He raised a pillar of ice when the wave reached him. He liquified the base of the ice column and began to flow forward on it, like an iceberg riding along a river. Aurora rose her own stream of water and knocked him off his iceberg but the old owl quickly grabbed her water and shot it away while he slid around. He knocked Aurora down, her mother's necklace falling on the ice near her.

Tyto then did a few moves with his wings to wrap an ice prison over Aurora's body, trapping her and making any move useless. She struggled in vain, unable to get her hands and arms out of it.

Master Tyto walked toward her in a solemn way. "This fight is over."

"Come back here! I'm not finished yet!" she screeched.

"Yes, you are."

He suddenly stopped in surprise, picking up her necklace. "This necklace...," he mumbled.

"It's mine! Give it back!" Aurora angrily growled.

To her surprise, Tyto actually released her from her water prison and turned to look at her. "This necklace...it belonged to your mother, right?"

* * *

Shen watched as his uncle walked down a corridor in Cinead's ship while he walked in the other direction. They stopped within abreast of each other and began to whisper.

"Our plan is working perfectly. Cinead doesn't suspect a thing," Longwei mumbled.

Shen removed his stolen guard mask. "You didn't have to do this."

After Cinead had tried to kill him, Shen swam to the shore and found his uncle. Once they figured out what had happened, they found Cinead's ship, snuck the prince onboard, and stole a Fire Nation guard uniform.

Longwei smiled. "No nephew of mine is going to stow away on a ship without some backup!"

Shen was going to be eternally grateful to this peacock. "Thank you, Uncle."

Longwei froze, hearing a sound. "Someone's coming!" Shen replaced his mask as his uncle kept telling him orders. "Stay hidden until we get to the North Pole and the Tao Dragon will be yours! Good luck!"

Yes...this time, Shen would make sure he came out victorious. And Cinead would get to see him take his victory away before he burned him to a crisp.

* * *

Master Tyto was still holding Aurora's necklace. "This necklace...belonged to Cairo."

"Y-You knew my mother?!" Aurora asked in shock.

"Yes... Your tribe and ours were very close allies, many generations ago, before the war...and...this day..."

Suddenly, Weixing drew a deep breath and ran away. Karasu came over and placed a wing on Tama's shoulder. "Go get her."

Without needing anything more than that, Tama ran after the princess...

* * *

Tama literally spent the rest of the day looking for Weixing. In a city this big, she could have gone anywhere and it was impossible to figure out where she went. The day turned into night and eventually, the grey fox found Weixing standing alone on the same bridge they had been on the night before. Her expression hardened as she heard the grey fox approaching.

"What do you want from me?" she quietly asked.

"Nothing. I just want you to know I think you're amazing...and I never thought a girl like you would ever notice a guy like me."

Princess Weixing sighed. "You don't understand."

Tama shook his head, his heart clenching painfully as he spoke. "No, no, see, that's the thing. I think I do understand now. You're a princess and I...I'm just a southern warrior adopted by the leader."

Weixing looked at him in shock. "No, Tama..."

The grey fox sighed. "It's okay. You don't have to say anything." He turned to leave. "I'll see you around, okay?"

Suddenly, she grabbed Tama and kissed him hard on the mouth. "...Okay, now I'm REALLY confused. Happy...but confused."

She held his paws in her wings. "I do like you! A lot. But we can't be together and not for the reason you think. It's because..." She sighed and looked away. "I'm engaged. I'm sorry!"

She turned away from him and once again disappeared from his sight.

* * *

Karasu was standing in the training plaza near the steps with several other students before Master Tyto. He was moving a ball of water around and threw it after a few motions.

Master Tyto nodded. Not bad! Not bad! Hehehe! Keep practicing and maybe you'll get it by the time you're my age!"

Karasu rolled his eyes before turning his eyes at the sound of footsteps. Aurora was running to the group. "Hey, Aurora."

After everything went down yesterday, Tyto had finally caved and let Aurora join his lessons as a student. She bowed to Tyto. The old owl's stare turned icy and Karasu gulped, praying that he wasn't going to change his mind and make Aurora leave.

"What do you think you're doing? It's past sunrise." He smiled. "You're late."

Karasu smiled and placed his wing on the jackal's shoulder. "It's good to see you here."

Aruroa smiled a beautiful and warm smile. "You too."

* * *

Shen stood on the upper decks of Cinead's ship, watching silently as his uncle and the admiral walked on the outside walkway aroudn the bridge.

"My fleet is ready. Set a course for the Northern Water Tribe," Cinead ordered.

Shen looked behind him to see dozens of Fire Navy ships firing up their engines in preparation to launch the final assault on the Northern Water Tribe.

This was going to be an intense battle...

* * *

 **Yes, I know it's sexist, but most women were forbidden from learning some stuff reserved for men, such as fighting, in the older days of China's history. I'm glad things changed in our modern days.**

 **So, Team Tao found the Northern Water Tribe, Karasu and Aurora found a teacher to teach them Water Chi, and Tama got a love interest. What could go wrong? I mean, except Cinead about to launch a huge attack on the city?**

 **It doesn't look like it, but I started this arc about a month ago now. We're getting close to its conclusion with only two chapters remaining. After that, the first part of the Tao Dragon arc will be done.**


	353. Water City's Battle

Karasu watched with a chuckle as Aurora took down another student with one of her upgraded Water Chi techniques. It was the tenth one the jackal girl defeated in one day. Master Tyto approached from over her shoulder.

"Nice try, pupil Sam. A couple more years and you might be ready to fight a sea sponge," the old owl commented to the defeated student. He then turned to the other ones who were lying on the ice, defeated. "Would anyone mind for a rematch with Aurora?"

They all shook their heads.

Master Tyto sighed at their cowardly behavior. "Aurora, you have advanced more quickly than any student I have ever trained. You have proven that with fierce determination, passion, and hard work, you can accomplish anything. Raw talent alone is not enough."

Aurora turned her head to see Karasu smiling at her. She was so happy to know that her raven friend was proud of him.

* * *

Tama was walking alongside Princess Weixing on a bridge over a canal in the city. "So they don't have palaces in the Southern Water Tribe?" the lady snowy asked the grey fox.

This last one stopped to look at her with a chuckle. "Are you kidding? I grew up in a block of ice. Ironically, I was born on a beach."

Weixing giggled a bit before looking seriously at Tama. "Tama, this is wrong."

He groaned, even though he knew she was right. "What's wrong? We're taking a walk?"

Princess Weixing sighed and rubbed her eyes. "I'm engaged. It just...feels..."

Tama's smile faded as she began to walk away...but returned but he got an idea. "I know what you need!" he said and ran to her side. "You need to meet my good friend, Fin!"

Weixing frowned. "Who?"

Tama smiled and took her to where they kept the emerald dragon. He was into a pen, eating a huge pile of meat in front of him. Once they found him, they both climbed into his saddle.

"Ready to go for a ballad, Fin?" Tama asked his dragon friend.

"Whenever you want, Tama," the dragon replied with a smile.

"Alright, hold on tight, Weixing. Let's go, Fin!"

The dragon soared into the nearly cloudless sky. "Oh...my...goodness!" the snowy owl cried in surprise as the dragon shot into the air, roaring as he stretched his wings. They looked down at the city and the water outside the main gate. Fin flew effortlessly through the sky, beating his massive wings. "Wow! I can't believe you do this every day!"

"Yeah, we pretty much live here," Tama said with stretching his back.

"It's beautiful up here," the snowy owl said, staring into Tama's eyes with a smile.

"Yeah...," he replied blankly, getting lost into her blue eyes.

There was a silent pause between them while they looked at each other with adoration. They leaned closer and they came close to kissing before breaking off.

"Whoo! Yeah! Good times! Good times!" Tama said, blushing as he remembered the princess' engagement. Around them, small snowflakes began to fall. "Hey, look!" he said and pointed at them.

The group flew into a squall of snowflakes...which were strangely black. Weixing looked around in alarm. "What's happening?"

"Oh no," Tama whispered, his heart sinking to the bottom of his feet as the black snow continued to fall everywhere. They landed Fin back in the city and jumped off. As soon as his feet hit the ground, Tama bent down and picked up some ash from the ground. "Soot," he darkly said.

Weixing was confused, as well as she should be. She had never seen this before. "What?" she asked.

"I've seen it before. Right before my village was attacked. It's soot mixed with snow."

"But why?" the princess asked, still confused.

Tama turned to her grimly. "It's the Fire Nation. They've closed in on the North Pole. And from the looks of the stuff..." He turned and looked over the ocena horizon which was darkened by a dense grey cloud. "...I'd say there's a lot of them."

* * *

"This will truly be one for the history books, General Longwei," Cinead said.

They were on the bridge of Cinead's flagship with Shen standing in his guard's disguise by the wall once again. Xing was present as well.

"Just think, centuries from now, people will study the great Admiral Cinead who destroyed the last part of the Water Tribe civilization. You're lucky you're here to see it," he rambled and Shen rolled his eyes from under his mask.

Longwei was not pleased with this. "Be careful what you wish for, Admiral. History is not always kind to its subjects."

Cinead shrugged. "I suppose you speak from experience? But rest assured, this will be nothing like your legendary failure at Eralith."

Longwei rolled his eyes while Shen smirked. "I hope not, for your sake."

"Tell the captains to prepare the first strike."

Longwei turned and walked away. Shen followed him and took a roundabout way to meet up with him in their usual hallway.

"We'll be landing soon. Do you have a plan?" he whispered to his nephew.

The white peacock removed his mask. "I'm working on it, Uncle."

* * *

Water Tribe warriors ran about everywhere. Two Water Tribe men struck a gong with alternating strokes on top of one of the city's buildings. The gong had symbols representing both the moon and the ocean on it. Many city dwellers were running up the steps of the citadel, including Master Tyto, Tama, and Princess Weixing.

The princess stopped suddenly grabbing the grey fox's hand and bringing him to a halt with her. "What's wrong? We have to go!" Tama said with pointing at the citadel.

Weixing released her grip on him. "No, Tama, wait. I can't see you anymore. Not at all."

His gut clenching, Tama turned in surprise. "What? We're just friends!"

"I wish we could just be friends, but I like you too much and it's too confusing to be around you. I'm marrying someone else."

Tama could tell this was upsetting her...a lot. "You don't love him, do you? You don't even seem to like him."

Weixing sighed. "But I do love my people."

Tama sighed in exasperation. "You're not marrying them."

"You don't understand. I have duties to my father, to my tribe. I have to do this. Goodbye!" she said, her face pained as she continued running up the steps.

Tama looked distraught at Weixing's sudden departure and then looked to the sky in disbelief. "For the love of my ancestors!" He continued up the steps and ran inside.

Chief Hale was beginning a speech to a group of Water Tribe warriors. His voice echoed through the great hall as he spoke. Behind him sat Princess Weixing and Master Tyto. On the floor, their backs to a nearby wall sat Karasu and Aurora, Tama joining them silently.

"The day we have feared for so long has arrived. The Fire Nation is on our doorstep. It is with great sadness that I call my family here before me, knowing well that some of these faces are about to vanish from our tribe. But they will never vanish from our hearts. Now, as we approach the battle of our existence," he raised his arms up to the heavens in supplication, "I call upon the great spirits! Spirit of the Ocean! Spirit of the Moon! Be with us!" He lowered his arms and continued his address. "I'm going to need volunteers for a dangerous mission."

Tama immediately stood up. "Count me in."

Aurora glared at him. "Tama!"

Man other men and woman stood up in the crowd with the grey fox. "Be warned. Many of you will not return. Come forward to receive my mark if you accept the task," the Chief said, his face grim.

The volunteers formed a line in front of the Chief to receive their marks. It was a set of three red lines on the forehead, made from some paint or ink that the Chief held in a bowl in front of him. Tama was the third in line. As he left, the grey fox turned and made eye contact with Weixing before he turned again and walked away, hoping he would live to see her again.

* * *

Karasu sat on one of the pylons at the top of the citadel steps. He looked out over the city walls to the ocean horizon in the distance. Behind him, the Chief approached.

"The stillness before battle is unbearable." As he spoke, Aurora walked up behind the raven and snatched his wing, holding it tightly. "Such a quiet dread."

"I wasn't there when the Fire Nation massacred my people," Karasu said, a fierce expression on his face. "I'm gonna make a difference this time."

Giving Aurora's paw a gentle squeeze, Karasu let go and stood up on top of the pylon, Aurora to his left and the Chief to his right.

He took off and made for the front of the city. All looked calm and quiet on a beautiful sunny day. A solid line of Water Tribe warriors lined the top of the city wall, their faces painted for war.

At the center of the line, Karasu sat atop Fin, ready for battle. Aurora and Tama stood next to his left. They all looked out to the sea with expressions of fierce determination. In the distance, a single ship was seen. It launched a fireball which hurtled directly at the center of the city wall. It struck the water symbol in the center of the wall and blew a massive hole through it Many defenders were blown backward into the city by the concussion along with huge chunks of ice and debris.

Another fireball flew through the air toward the city. It landed in a canal with an explosion of smoke, water, and fire. The Fire Nation crew launched another fireball from the trebuchet on the approaching ship's foredeck. It struck the right side of the city wall, shattering a piece of it. Fin recoiled and roared as the smoke and exploding ice created havoc around him.

"Alright, let's go, Fin!" Karasu shouted through the noise.

"Okay, Karasu!" the emerald dragon responded and launched off the wall toward the Fire Navy ship while the defenders on the wall tried to reorganize.

As they flew, Fin let out another enraged roar in the sky. As the duo approached the Fire Navy ship, it fired a few fireballs at them. The emerald dragon managed to swiftly dodge them all, the last one getting sliced in half by Karasu with his sword.

"I'll take it from here, boy!" the raven said with jumping off his dear companion's saddle into a free fall toward the ship below.

Fin flew away as Karasu made his way toward the enemy ship, dodging many fireballs before arriving on the foredeck. Once he landed, he swung his sword to send a bolt of lightning that knocked most of the crew off to the sides. Many soldiers surrounded him and started swinging their mighty hammers at him and missed. Karasu knocked them back with swift strikes before hitting the trebuchet with a lightning strike that shattered it into dozens of pieces.

Karasu took down several Fire Nation soldiers and two trebuchets when Fin arrived to whip away the remaining crew members and take his raven friend on his back before flying away. "Thanks for the rescue, buddy!" Karasu happily said.

"You're welcome," the emerald dragon replied with a grin.

As the two rose above the now wrecked ship, Karasu's expression turned to one of horror and surprise as he looked in front of him. The horizon was full of Fire Navy ships as far as the eye could see.

"Shut up...," the raven mumbled.

* * *

Chief Hale once again addressed a group of soldiers, Tama among them. "Men, you'll be infiltrating the Fire Nation Navy. That means you'll all need one of these uniforms..."

An arrogant-looking white wolf man dressed from the waist down wearing what appeared to be a Fire Navy uniform walked out. The uniform he wore, while clearly of the Fire Nation, was not current standard issue. In particular, the armor had wings that curved upward.

Tama burst out laughing at this and put his paw over his mouth. The other warriors turned to look at him in surprise.

"What's your problem?" the wolf growled at him, his eyes narrowed like a cat.

Tama pointed at him. "Fire Navy uniforms don't look like that."

The wolf snorted. "Of course they do. These are real uniforms captured from actual Fire Navy soldiers."

Tama crossed his arms and quirked an eyebrow sarcastically. "When? Like, a hundred years ago?"

Chief Hale looked awkwardly to the side. "Eighty-five."

Tama shook his head and walked forward. "The Fire Nation doesn't wear shoulder spikes anymore. The new uniforms are more streamlined."

The wolf turned to Hale in annoyance. "How do we know we can trust this guy?" He then turned to the grey fox, leaning into him with a threatening expression. "Such bold talk for a new recruit."

Chief Hale glared at him. "Tama is from our sister tribe, he is a capable warrior and I value his input." Tama looked smugly at the wolf who was not too pleased. Chief Hale turned his back to the rest of the room. "Now, our first objective is to determine the identity of their commanding officer."

"His name is Cinead. A red wolf with blue marks and a huge temper," Tama explained.

Hale gestured to the wolf. "Tama, I want you to tell everything you know to Jez, he is leading this mission. Jez, show Tama your respect. I expect nothing less from my future son-in-law."

Hale left as Jez pushed his hair back over his ears. Tama's jaw dropped in shock at the chief's last pronouncement. He recovered and pointed an accusing finger at Jez, jealousy burning inside him. "Princess Weixing's marrying you?!"

"Yeah, what of it?"

Tama turned away, hiding his expression. "Nothing, congratulations..."

* * *

By late afternoon, Karasu was exhausted. He watched as the advancing ranks of Fire Navy ships fired volleys of fireballs toward the city. Some landed inside the city and some hit the outer wall.

Master Tyto could be heard shouting orders. "Stop those fireballs!" As a fireball bore down on them, they collectively raised up a barrier of water to stop the fireball and extinguish it.

Just as quickly as their assault started, everything stopped. The Navy ships dropped anchor for the night, the fleet parked outside the Water City's main wall. Cinead's ship was in the second line of ships and looked double the size of others.

Karasu breathed in relief and flew back, resting his head on Fin's scaly, warm neck. Aurora and Weixing were standing in front of the citadel, looking out over the city and its walls to the line of threatening Fire Navy ships. Plumes of smoke rose over several sections of the city that had been bombed. Fin swooped down, flying closer to them.

"Karasu!" Aurora beamed upon seeing them arriving.

Fin landed on the plaza at the base of the citadel steps. Weixing and Aurora ran down to Karasu and Fin as they landed. The dragon laid down on his belly, his feet too tired to get him up. Karas felt small and dejected in the saddle and slid off his companion's back.

"I can't do it," he moaned, putting his wings to his head. "I can't do it."

Aurora frowned, worried as she came over and wrapped an arm around the raven. "What happened?"

"I must have taken out a dozen Fire Navy ships, but there's just too many of them. I can't fight them all," Karasu said in a distressed voice.

Princess Weixing looked desperately at him. "But you have to! You're the Tao Dragon!"

Karasu sighed and looked at her. "I'm just one raven."

* * *

Now out of uniform and entirely dressed in white clothes, Shen prepared a canoe to be lowered into the water. Behind him, a door opened to reveal Longwei entering. He shut the door quickly behind him.

"If you're fishing for an octopus, my nephew, you need a tightly woven net or he will squeeze through the tiniest hole and escape."

Shen sighed, feeling uptight and anxious as he thought about the upcoming events. "I don't need your wisdom right now, Uncle."

"I'm sorry, I just nag you because, well, ever since I lost my son..." The old peacock looked away, pain evident on his voice and in his voice. Shen felt his chest tighten painfully as he thought of his dead cousin.

"Uncle, you don't have to say it," Shen said, knowing his uncle was suffering enough every day.

Longwei took a deep breath and finished anyway. "I think of you as my own."

Warmth spread through the white peacock at this. After everything he had gone through, his uncle had been the only one who had never strayed from his side for even a moment. He had saved him, helped him, taught him, he had been a father of some sorts. Shen turned to him, a look of genuine concern and understanding on his face.

"I know, Uncle." He bowed and saluted him with his wing over his chest. "We'll meet again..."

Longwei rushed forward and gave his nephew a bear hug. A little uncomfortable, Shen released his uncle and walked over to the canoe. "...after I capture the Tao Dragon."

He got into the canoe and began to lower it down into the water. "Remember your breath of fire! It could save your life out there!" Longwei warned hurriedly.

Shen rolled his eyes. "I will."

"And put your hood up, keep your ears warm!"

"I'll be fine."

Longwei looked on, worried as he watched his nephew depart. Shen nodded at him and then turned to face the city and the line of Fire Navy ships that stood between him and his goal.

* * *

Tama held his paws steady as he sharpened an axe blade on a sharpening wheel. The grey fox was so angry that he applied too much pressure on the blade, causing sparks to fly off the blade everywhere. That repulsive, snotty Jez was performing the same task beside him. No sparks flew from his blade as he remained calm and controlled.

He turned toward the grey fox, mispronouncing his name. "Let me tell ya, Yama, I've been courted by a lot of girls, but Weixing is the finest and she comes with the most perks."

Tama's eyes bulged in anger. "Perks?! What does that mean?"

Jez shrugged. "I mean, Weixing's nice and everything, but the points I'll get with the chief aren't bad either."

"Princess Weixing is being wasted on a self-absorbed weasel like you!" the grey fox snarled in disgust.

Jez was surprised at Tama's outburst. "Whoa. Hang on. Why do you care? You're just a wildling adopted into the South Water Tribe. What would you know about the political complexities of our life? No offense."

That was it!

Tama yelled in anger and tackled Jez to the ground. He ended up on top and punched the wolf in the face. "You're just a jerk without a soul! No offense," Tama sarcastically hissed.

They rolled around a bit more before Chief Hale's hands appeared to break them up. "That's enough! Tama, you're off the mission," he angrily said.

Tama gaped. The chief exited again as Tama looked away, humiliated. Jez turned to the assembled soldiers. "All right, fall in, guys! Everybody listen to what I say and we'll take out this Admiral Sinbad in no time."

"It's Admiral CINEAD!" Tama yelled to the backs of Jez and the departing soldiers.

Idiot.

* * *

As the day turned to night, Shen navigated his canoe through the ice flows near the city. He was wrapped up in his garb and grateful to because it was so cold. Nearby, Kung Fu Dugongs could be heard making noise. The white peacock floated silently near the damaged city wall, unseen by the sentries patrolling atop the damaged barrier. He beached the craft on the ice near the wall and spied several Kung Fu Dugongs disappearing into a hole in the ice.

He narrowed his eyes curiously. "Where are they going? They're coming up for air somewhere..."

The peacock took off his veil, took a deep breath, and plunged into the icy water, nearly gasping from the shock of the freezing water.

* * *

"The legends say the moon was the first Water Master," Weixing said.

Karasu, Aurora, and Weixing were looking at the moon over the city from a room in the citadel. Karasu held his head low, still depressed from what had happened earlier.

"Our ancestors saw how it pushed and pulled the tides and learned how to do it themselves."

Aurora nodded. "I've always noticed my Water Chi is stronger at night."

Princess Weixing smiled. "Our strength comes from the Spirit of the Moon, our life comes from the Spirit of the Ocean. They work together to keep balance."

Karasu's emerald eyes suddenly opened wide as an idea came up to his mind. "The spirits! Maybe I can find them and get their help!"

Weixing frowned in confusion. "How can you do that?"

"The Tao Dragon is the bridge between our world and the Spirit World. Karasu can talk to them!" Aurora explained.

Weixing smiled hopefully. "Maybe they'll give you the wisdom to win this battle!"

"Honestly, I'd prefer a huge water sword that would wipe out the Fire Navy," the raven mumbled underneath his breath.

"The only problem is, last time you got to the Spirit World by accident. How are you going to get there this time?"

Weixing thought for a moment before she smiled. "I have an idea, follow me."

They followed her through the silent city to a courtyard behind the citadel. She stopped in front of a wooden half-height door. "So, this is the way to the Spirit World?" Karasu curiously asked with rubbing the back of his head.

Weixing laughed. "No, you'll have to get there on your own." She opened the door. "But I can take you to the most spiritual place in the entire North Pole."

Karasu entered as Dum Gai followed him. Inside was a long pool of water. At the back of the chamber was a waterfall coming from the glacier way above. On the sides of the pool were two ledges by which one could access the landing at the back of the chamber. The landing was filled with green foliage, another smaller pool that looked almost tropical in nature, and a small T-shaped gate-like structure very much akin to a paifang or perhaps a torii. The landing was connected to the ledges on the side of the chamber by two wooden footbridges.

Karasu's face was filled with wonder at the natural beauty before him. He made his way over to the soft grass and rubbed his wing on it. "I never thought I'd miss grass this much," he admitted.

Aurora and Weixing also walked over to the landing. Aurora smiled, starting to sweat as the temperature changed. "It's so warm here! How's that possible?" she asked as she took off her overcoat.

"It's the center of all spiritual energy in our world," the snowy owl replied, removing her coat as well.

In the pond, Karasu spotted two fish circling each other in a timeless motion. One was white, the other black. Dum Gai curiously looked at them and let out curious screams.

"You're right, Weixing. I can feel...something...it's so...tranquil," Karasu said.

He sat cross-legged in front of the pond and closed his eyes. The raven focused his mind, relaxed his body, and started to meditate.

* * *

Tama sat alone, sharpening his boomerang in the same armory he had the fight with Jez. Hale came behind him and the grey fox prepared for a lecture.

"Is something wrong, Tama?" he asked.

He snorted. "Oh no! Jez's out there on the top-secret mission while I'm sharpening my boomerang. Everything's fine!"

Chief Hale sighed. "Listen to me. I took you off the mission for selfish reasons. I have a special task in mind for you."

Tama turned to the chief in anger. "What? You want me to scrub the barracks?"

"I want you to guard my daughter, Princess Weixing."

The grey fox got up, a look of innocence mingled with desire on his face. "Er, sure. That shouldn't be too hard."

Hale left and Tama grinned triumphantly to himself.

* * *

Karasu was still in his meditating pose beside the pool, Aurora and Weixing behind him. The raven looked at the black and white fish circling each other in front of him. Suddenly, his body glowed with light blue energy and his eyes became white.

"Is he okay?" Weixing asked, worried.

Aurora nodded calmly. "He's crossing into the Spirit World. He'll be fine as long as we don't move his body. That's his way back to the physical world."

Weixing began to walk away. "Maybe we should get some help?"

"No, he's my friend. I'm perfectly capable of protecting him."

"Well, aren't you a big boy now?" a familiar voice spoke and the jackal froze, her skin prickling in alarm.

She turned to the voice in dismay. "No!"

Shen walked over to the footbridge toward them. "Yes!" he sneered as the Egyptian Water Tribe jackal girl. "Hand him over and I won't have to hurt you."

Aurora assumed her fighting stance while Weixing ran away. The white peacock noticed Karasu was in his Draconic Aura mode in front of the pond, his black feathers floating a bit. Shen smiled greedily at that beautiful face.

He launched forward, throwing several throwing knives at Aurora. She blocked them all with water from the pond. He fired some fire blasts, but the jackal used enough water not only to douse the fire but also hurl him backward so that he was lying flat on the ground.

The peacock got up, barely fazed. "I see you've learned a new trick. But I didn't come this far to lose to you."

He fired another blast which the jackal blocked. She then launched another stream of water at him, knocking him back again. The peacock barely retained his balance but Aurora then created a dome of water around him before he could attack again.

Shen glared at the jackal through the water, satisfaction all over her face. "You little peasant! You found a Master, haven't you?" the peacock growled, his voice muffled by the water.

As he ended his comment, the ground began to shake and the water began to glow yellow and orange as he heated it up. With an explosion of fire, the water exploded, releasing the peacock who charged at the jackal. They traded shots which they all missed.

Shen managed to get behind Aurora and almost managed to put his wing on Karasu, only to get blasted away with an aura ball from his enemy which blown him over to the right ledge. While he tried to recover, Aurora raised a huge wave of water and wrapped it around Shen, trapping him just like Master Tyto did at the end of their fight.

Shen dropped his head in defeat as exhaustion took over him. As the sunlight reached him, though, he was filled with strength and such an intense feeling of pure determination he felt renewed. His head snapped up with a look of determination and he breathed steam, breaking through the water holding him in place. He jumped up and charged at Aurora again.

Shen fired a huge blast of fire. Aurora, caught off guard while she was walking back to Karasu, blocked it only partially. She was thrown back into the post of the paifang gate and was knocked out. Shen grabbed Karasu, careful not to disturb him, and looked over at Aurora.

"You rise with the moon. I rise with the sun," he sneered at her unconscious form.

* * *

Aurora emerged from her involuntary nap with a throbbing head. Karasu! Her eyes opened up suddenly and she got to her knees with a start.

Karasu and Shen were gone. Dum Gai was running around, screaming in panic. "Karasu!" she shouted, fear hammering through her as she looked around desperately.

If this peacock hurt her raven friend in any shape or way, she would end him. And she would not be nice about it. She would tie him down and make him suffer until he begged her for death if he was to hurt Karasu!

Fin landed suddenly, Tama and Weixing in the saddle. They moved to hop down and Tama ran over to his sister worriedly. "What happened? Where's Shen?"

"He took Karasu. He took him right out from under me," the jackal sadly said, kicking herself for not being more alert.

"Where did they go?" Tama asked, worry thick in his voice.

* * *

Shen trudged along the massive glacier above the sanctuary. It was snowing hard up there. The white peacock struggled through the storm, carrying Karasu safely on his back, his body still glowing blue with his unconsciousness.

* * *

 **And that concludes the first half of this arc's finale. The Fire Nation is assaulting the Northern Water Tribe, Shen managed to capture Karasu, things don't look good at all!**

 **Can Karasu find the answer in the Spiritual World and save the Water City before it's too late? You'll find out in the arc's conclusion.**


	354. Water City's Battle part 2

**It's time to conclude the Tao Dragon arc.**

* * *

Four massive fireballs arced over the Water City walls and into the city. It was daylight and the battle for the survival of the Northern Water Tribe had begun in earnest. Even though they were still in the sanctuary, Team Tao could still see and hear everything.

Aurora kneeled at the pool in the very place where Karasu had been. She was devastated. "I can't believe I lost him," she murmured, her eyes burning.

"You did everything you could and now, we need to do everything we can to get him back," Tama said comfortingly. The grey fox led Weixing over to Fin and turned to look at his sister. "Shen can't have gotten far. We'll find him. Karasu's gonna be fine."

The jackal sighed and got up, knowing she was being less than helpful right now. "Okay." She walked by Dum Gai who looked over the pond. He chirped softly and sadly. Now standing atop Fin, she turned to look at the little puffin with a seal head. "It's all right. You stay here, Dum Gai, in case Karasu comes back."

Fin launched himself into the air and out of the sanctuary into the frozen, snowing wasteland above. He flew over the ice dunes, the snow coming down hard from the dark, gray sky above.

* * *

Shen tramped through the drifting snow, Karasu's feet dragging behind him. His muscles were aching and he was exhausted after dragging him through the blizzard. The raven's eyes were still closed, but his body was glowing a light blue light. He was basically a deadweight now which wasn't helping the peacock at all.

Far away in the distance, a mere whisper of a sound, he heard the familiar roar of a dragon.

He was running out of time...

The white peacock continued carrying Karasu through the snow. After some steps, the ice underneath began to crack and cave in. Within a few seconds, most of the ground around him was collapsing. He began to run with Karasu on his back as fast as he could. He managed to keep just ahead of the yawning hole that his footsteps over thin ice had caused to appear.

The hole finally stopped expending as Shen tripped and fell, landing face-first in the snow and sending Karasu rolling through it roughly. Shen winced and scrambled to his feet. The raven had rolled to the side, his head feathers covering his face. He rolled him over and brushed his head feathers aside to make sure he was okay. His eyes were still closed in a peaceful state, his body still glowing.

"I'm sorry," Shen grunted as he hoisted the raven up onto his back again.

They were now on the lip of a newly formed canyon. Shen looked ahead to see a rock ledge overhanging a small cave. "Shelter!" he said in relief. Huffing, he dragged Karasu inside as the blizzard continued. He dumped the raven at the back of the cave and tied his wings behind his back with some of the rope he was carrying.

Shen looked out at the frozen wastes where the blizzard raged. Freezing cold, he blew fire into his wings to keep them warm. He looked over at Karasu, hoping he would stay warm as well.

The peacock sighed as he looked at the raven. "I finally have you. but I can't get you home because of this blizzard." He walked over to the entrance of the cave to look at the falling snow. "There's always something. Not that you would understand. You're like my foster sister. Everything always...came easy to her. She's a Fire Chi prodigy and everyone adores her."

The peacock felt his thoughts darken as he thought of his perfect foster sister, Mayuko. "Everyone says she was born lucky. They say I was lucky to be born. I don't need luck though, I don't want it. I've always had to struggle and fight, and that made me strong. It's made me who I am."

Shen didn't know why he was saying these things, talking to the raven while he was unconscious. It was strange, but for some reason, he felt like he might have said those things anyway if he had been awake.

A groaning noise was suddenly heard and Shen turned around to see Karasu waking up and realize he was all tied up. He struggled briefly against his bonds before sitting up to face the white peacock. This last one smiled.

"Welcome back."

"Good to be back," the raven sarcastically replied with a glare.

"You will not escape me this time."

Just then, a familiar roar echoed through the sky with a deafening sound. Karasu looked up just as Fin broke through the shelter's roof and snarled at Shen in rage. "Fin!" Karasu called at his guardian angel.

Fin landed and Aurora dismounted to face Shen. Karasu was so happy to see her he could have passed out. "Here for a rematch?" the peacock asked with assuming his fighting stance.

"Trust me, Shen, it's not going to be much of a match," Aurora sneered back, beginning to summon water.

She blocked a fireball that Shen launched at her and sent a shockwave of aura toward the peacock. When it reached him, he got knocked several yards away and rolled to a stop. He was now unconscious. The jackal rushed to Karasu and undid his bonds.

"Hey, this is some quality ropes," Tama said with examining the ropes and Aurora rolled her eyes.

"We need to get to the oasis! The Spirits are in trouble!" Karasu said in a hurried voice.

He flapped up onto Fin's saddle and the others all swiftly got onboard as well. They were ready to go, but then...Karasu stopped to look over at Shen. After everything he had done, Karasu was still not willing to let him die. Without really knowing how, the Sky Ninja felt like his destiny was connected to that of this peacock.

All he knew now was that he could not leave him here. He would die and then what? He would never forgive himself and would regret it probably forever...

"Wait, we can't just leave him here."

Tama snorted. "Sure we can. Let's go."

"No, if we leave him here, he'll die." Karasu jumped down to grab Shen and bring him up into Fin's saddle.

"Yeah, this makes a lot of sense. Let's bring the guy who's constantly trying to kill us!" Tama growled, very unhappy.

Fin took off as Karasu and Shen got settled into the saddle. The raven looked down at the unconscious peacock with a look of sympathy.

* * *

Team Tao was almost there when the moon suddenly took a haunting blood-red color. It shedded a blood-red light that washed over everything. As they flew over the city, the team spotted Master Tyto riding his water tornado as the blood-red light swept over him. As it did, his tornado collapsed. Another Water Master's water whip disintegrated as the light changed. A war rhinoceros was getting washed away, but the force driving the wave vanished as the light turned. The Water Masters were forced to flee in panic. A line of Fire Nation soldiers fired volley after volley in unison.

They were losing...badly.

As soon as the moon went red, Weixing doubled over, clutching her head in pain. "Ugh...," she groaned.

"Are you okay?" Tama asked in worry.

Weixing shook her head. "I feel faint."

Karasu put his wing on his head as well. "I feel it too." He looked up at the blood-red moon. "The Moon Spirit is in trouble."

"I owe the Moon Spirit my life," Weixing said.

"What do you mean?" Tama asked.

"When I was born, I was very sick and very weak. Most babies cry when they're born...but I was born as if I were asleep. My eyes closed. Our healers did everything they could. They told my mother and father I was going to die. My father pleaded with the spirits to save me... That night, beneath the full moon, he brought me to the oasis and placed me in the pond. My yellow eyes became blue, I opened them and began to cry. They knew I would live. That's why my mother named Weixing, like the moon."

They flew swiftly to the oasis and reached it in no time. Underneath the blood moon's light basked Cinead and his entourage by the pond in the oasis. Of course he was the one behind all of this.

"I am...," he raised his fists to the heavens, "...a legend now! The Fire Nation will for generations tell stories about the great Cinead who darkened the moon! They will call me Cinead the Conqueror! Cinead the Moon Slayer! Cinead THE INVINCIBLE!"

At this moment, Dum Gai jumped onto Cinead's head and started biting furiously at his forehead. "Ugh! Get it off!" the red wolf yelled in pain.

Dum Gai jumped off as the guards and Xing surrounded Cinead to help him. He landed near Karasu just as Fin landed and Team Tao squared off against Cinead and his men.

The red wolf sneered at them. "Don't bother!" He pulled out a knife and held it to the bag with the Moon Spirit in it.

No.

Karasu dropped his sword and raised his wings in surrender. If he had to give himself to save the spirit, he would. "Cinead! Don't!" he pleaded.

"It's my destiny...to destroy the moon...and the Water Tribe," he snapped back.

"Destroy the moon won't just hurt the Water Tribe. It will hurt everyone including you. Without the moon, everything would fall out of balance. You have no idea what kind of chaos that would unleash on the world," Karasu explained, trying t get the red wolf to see reason.

"He is right, Cinead," a familiar, old voice suddenly said.

It was Longwei.

Cinead, in a bored, lecturing tone, talked to the general. "General Longwei, why am I not surprised to discover your treachery?"

Longwei lowered his hood. "I'm no traitor, Cinead. The Fire Nation needs the moon too. We all depend on the balance." Karasu stared at Cinead who was still holding the knife to the bag. Then looked back at Longwei who pointed a feather at the red wolf. "Whatever you do to that spirit, I'll unleash on you ten-fold!" he thundered and assumed a fighting stance. "LET IT GO, NOW!"

Longwei and Cinead locked eyes for a moment. "Admiral, I think we should do what the general says," Xing tried to resonate the red wolf.

After a moment, Cinead faltered and lowered the bag. He kneeled and released the fish back in the water. The red light of the moon vanished, replaced by its normal color.

Cinead's face was suddenly overtaken by a look of madness and desperation. with a cry of rage, he stood up and smote the water with a blast of fire. The fire blast passed Longwei who recoiled in horror. Team Tao's eyes widened as they witnessed the moon wink out of existence.

Longwei sprang immediately to attack. Crossing the footbridge, the old peacock fired blast after blast. Cinead blocked one blast and backed away while Longwei expertly dispatched the four Fire Nation guards. Xing charged, swinging his sledgehammer, only for Longwei to knock him away with a violent kick to the chest. Cinead watched in horror as his men were wiped out by the aging general with such ease and precision. He fled.

Gutless coward.

Longwei stood over the guards who struggled to get up then back to the pond where the black fish swam frantically and the white, a huge gash in its side, floated. Longwei gently lifted the white fish from the water, an expression of sadness on his face. The guards and Xing were now gone.

Weixing was on the verge of tears, Tama resting his paws on her shoulders. "There's no hope now. It's over."

Aurora looked over at Karasu who's sad expression turned to determination as his eyes and body started glowing blue. "No, it's not over," he seriously said.

Karasu walked forward into the pond. Aurora was about to follow but was stopped by Longwei's wing. The raven stood in the middle of the pond, his wings open. He looked down at the black fish whose eyes and white marks on his spine began to glow white. Karasu's feet in the pond began to glow white. Then, he dropped into the pond as if the bottom had fallen out of it and he disappeared.

"NO!" Aurora cried, leaping to her feet but Tama steadied her.

"Wait! Just watch..."

The water in the pool around the oasis itself began to glow a deep blue-veined with white. The glow spread from behind the citadel to encompass the entire citadel area of the city. Everybody all looked on with wonder at the awesome power coming to life before them. A huge, incandescent blue wave rushed under the footbridge as if some huge creature was moving underneath it. Fin, standing on the oasis, was dwarfed by the creature that rose from the pool.

The blue, white-veined creature was a huge fish-like being. At its center was a blue-white bubble in which they could see Karasu standing in a meditating position. A moment later, the Ocean Spirit, for this was truly him in communion with the Tao Dragon, duplicated the motion. The Ocean Spirit towered over the citadel, its arms spread wide, its blue spirit lighting the city like a beacon. The Spirit began to move down into the city.

From where they were, the group could see everything. Master Tyto and his Water Masters instantly bowed to the floor in honor of their god. Across the canal, some Fire Nation soldiers raised their weapons in defiance but were swept away by a wall of water sent by the Ocean Spirit. Karasu, inside the body of the Ocean Spirit, flailed his wings out, directing the power of the Ocean Spirit against the violators of the Moon Spirit and the Water Tribe City.

Fire Nations tanks fired blasts of fire at the Ocean Spirit but they were absorbed with no effect. The soldiers and tanks were washed away as if they were toys. The Ocean Spirit passed by the Water Tribe citizens who made obeisance to their lord. The Fire Nation army was in full retreat, trying desperately to escape the vengeance of a living spirit. The Ocean Spirit reached the main canal in front of the third wall and melted into it.

* * *

Shen woke up somewhere in the city. The world was dark and someone was racing toward him. He looked down and spotted Cinead as he ran over a footbridge.

Well, well...his lucky day.

The red wolf exited onto a parapet and was almost hit by a blast of fire Shen sent off that hit the wall in front of him. As the smoke cleared, Cinead looked up to see the peacock up on the tier up above him. "You're alive?" he gasped, incredulous.

"You tried to have me killed!" Shen furiously hissed. He launched a few fire blasts at Cinead with a cry of anguish but his target dodged, rolling along the parapet wall.

"Yes, I did. You're the Celestial Phoenix and enemy of the Fire Nation!" the red wolf said with much venom. Shen jumped down and the two enemies faced each other. Between them was the panorama of the city. "You freed the Tao Dragon!"

"I had no choice!" Shen yelled back.

The peacock continued his attack, firing volley after volley at Cinead who broke them with his paws held together in a wedge in front of him. As the blasts subsided, the red wolf dropped his smoking cloak to the ground.

"You should have chosen to accept your failure - your disgrace! Then, at least you could have lived!" he screeched and returned the fire.

The two opponents traded volleys as the fight raged back and forth in the darkness. At one point, Shen was able to exploit a moment when Cinead left his chest unguarded. He blasted him and Cinead fell off the parapet onto the tier below.

* * *

Longwei placed the dead Moon Spirit fish back into the pond. Everybody looked at it sadly, knowing that it was all over...the North Pole was done for.

"It's too late. It's dead," Aurora sadly said. Weixing, Longwei, and the jackal girl mourned the passing of the Moon Spirit.

Suddenly, the old peacock looked at Weixing in wonder. "You have been touched by the Moon Spirit. Some of its life is in you!"

Princess Weixing looked up. "Yes, you're right. It gave me life. Maybe I can give it back." She got up and went to the pond's edge.

Tama reached for her, panic all over his face and Aurora felt her heart break for him. "No! You don't have to do that!"

Princess Weixing held his paw behind her but looked down. "It's my duty, Tama."

"I won't let you! your father told me to protect you!" the grey fox cried, tears in his eyes.

Weixing looked up. "I have to do this."

Slowly, she pried her wing from his paw as he started to sob. She walked over to Longwei who held the dead fish in his wings. She put her wings over the Moon Spirit which began to glow. The snowy owl closed her eyes for the last time, exhaled a final breath, and fell over into Tama's arms.

"NO!" the grey fox cried in despair. He placed his paws on her cheeks and looked away as big fat alligator tears rolled down his cheeks. "She's gone," he said in a soft broken voice and hugged the snowy owl's body tightly. "She's gone."

Not knowing what to do, Aurora looked behind her to the Fire Navy ships as they tried desperately to flee. The bowsprits raised quickly as the ships backed out. The incandescent blue of the Ocean Spirit flowed out past the city wall in front of the Fire Navy fleet. The Ocean Spirit reformed and, towering over the fleet, reached out. He pushed two ships back out to the sea at amazing speed. Karasu was in the bubble, still making a slicing motion. The Ocean Spirit made the same slicing motion and made a razor cut through the bridge tower of Cinead's flagship. The cut section slid down to the foredeck and the ship's forward trebuchet was wrecked.

The Ocean Spirit stood over the fleet hauntingly. The Spirit raised its arms, forming a huge wave which upended many vessels and pushed the rest far out to the sea.

Relieved that the tribe was safe, Karasu returned his attention back to the drama unfolding before him. Tama was cradling Weixing's inert form. Her body glowed briefly and disappeared. The fish in Longwei's wings glowed and he dropped it back into the water.

It began to swim in the pond. The pond glowed white and, as they looked on, a ghostly cloud rose from it. It coalesced into Weixing's form but she was now dressed in white - as white as her feathers. Her clothes floated around her. She addressed Tama alone, her voice now echoed and was other-worldly.

She was now the Moon Spirit.

"Goodbye, Tama. I will always be with you." She kissed the grey fox, their hands and paws onto each other's face before the snowy owl faded away. Everything was dark for a little more before the moon reappeared and shone brightly once again.

* * *

Shen and Cinead continued to battle on the footbridge over the canal. They traded blows but a series of direct hits from the prince laid the admiral flat. As Cinead tried to get up, he saw the moon which was suddenly fixed.

"It can't be!" he said in horror, his eyes wide in disbelief.

The essence of the Ocean Spirit Shen had seen him kill approached fast and coalesced around the bridge. It grabbed Cinead and began to pull him off the bridge. The red wolf struggled and Shen automatically reached out for him. The peacock didn't want him dead...just crippled beyond relief.

"Take my wing!" he said, offering it to the red wolf.

Cinead tried to reach for his wing for a moment...before drawing it back, an expression of hate on his face. The Ocean Spirit dragged him under the water and disappeared.

"No!" Shen turned around to see Xing standing there. The wolf dropped his sledgehammer and collapsed on his knees. "Admiral Cinead...what am I gonna become?"

Shen simply walked toward him...and then pulled him up with his wing. "Follow me, Xing. We need to get out of here."

* * *

In the morning, Aurora looked over the heavily damaged Water Tribe City from the citadel. Several figures surveyed the scene from below. Master Tyto was standing before her.

"I've decided to go to the South Pole. Some other masters and healer want to join me," the old owl said and turned to face the jackal. "It's time we helped rebuild our sister tribe."

"What about Karasu?" she asked as she looked over at the raven and his puffin with a seal head friend. "He still needs to learn Water Chi."

Master Tyto turned to her with satisfaction. "Well, then he better get used to calling you 'Master Aurora'."

Meanwhile, Tama stood with Chief Hale, looking out over the city. "The Spirits gave me a vision when Weixing was born. I saw...a beautiful, brave young woman...become the Moon Spirit." He closed his eyes and Tama felt his chest tighten. "I knew this day would come."

Tama swallowed his own aching sadness. "You must be proud."

He nodded. "So proud...and sad." They both looked up to the moon, still visible in the morning sky.

* * *

Shen floated among the wreckage of the Fire Navy ships destroyed in the battle. Among the sunken ships, his small raft sailed. His uncle and wolf friend were next to him, the former relieved that his nephew was still alive after everything that had happened in the past twenty-four hours.

"I'm surprised, Lord Shen, that you are not at this moment trying to capture the Tao Dragon," the old peacock said in amusement.

Shen sighed, remembering his defeat. "I'm tired."

Actually, the prince was confused and frustrated. That raven just loved to play mind games with him. One minute, he thought he hated him and the feeling was mutual, you could trust him. But then, he would turn around and save his life. He could have let him die out there but he didn't. He decided to keep him safe even though he knew he'd come after him again.

This raven was infuriating, frustrating, and utterly fascinating.

Longwei put a wing on his nephew's shoulder. "Then you should rest. A man needs his rest. Xing, help me rafting this canoe."

Longwei stood up as Shen laid down, knowing his uncle was right. He looked up at the sky, a pained expression on his face as he wondered what to do next.

He closed his eyes tiredly, knowing his path and Karasu's would meet again.

* * *

Karasu looked out over the city. Shen was gone and had disappeared, probably taking off somewhere with his uncle. He had to get over him. Their destinies were somehow connected but the young raven just had no idea how. Only time would tell him.

Aurora came up behind him. Karasu turned and they looked at each other for a moment. Then, they came together and hugged fiercely. A chirping noise and the two friends saw Dum Gai looking up at him with his big, black eyes.

Karasu smiled. "Come in too, Dum Gai"

The little seal puffin jumped over and snuggled against Karasu's side. Tama came over and put a paw on the raven's shoulder with a warm smile too. The four of them looked over the city together. With a rumble, Fin rose from below and joined them, nuzzling Karasu with his face which the raven gladly returned to his fateful dragon friend.

 _"The battle of the Water City was done, but the one for all of the Independent Islands was just about to start. Team Tao's journey to accomplish Karasu's destiny was still far from being over and there were still many adventures ahead of them. They were going to make new friends...as well as new enemies..."_

* * *

Lady Mayuko looked up at the Fire Lord himself. He was seated on his throne...similar to the Gongmen's one that would soon be hers. He was silhouetted by the flames that wreathed his dais.

The peahen kneeled before him; cruel, vicious, black-hearted, and ready for whatever he wanted her to do, for whoever he wanted her to kill. She was dressed in blood-red silk robes.

"Longwei is a traitor and your foster brother, Shen, is a failure," the Fire Lord said. "I have a task for you..."

Mayuko's red eyelids half-closed as her black beak twisted into a grin.

* * *

 **Phew! Finally, I finished the Tao Dragon arc (the first part anyway). Not that I wanted to end this arc in a rush; I really did enjoy writing it. It's just that I wanted to finish it before moving on to other stuff. And that it's done...I can :)**

 **This arc was a lot influenced by ATLA's first book: Water. While the next part will follow the plotline of the second book: Earth, I promise to try and add a lot more original content than I did on this one. I'm already talking with some of my friends for this next part and things are looking great so far.**

 **I sure hope you guys enjoyed this arc, especially you, TheDragonSaver, who owns Karasu and Aurora, and allowed me to use them. Tama and Dum Gai are my OCs and Fin Fang Foom is owned by Marvel Comics.**

 **I'd like to take the opportunity to thank all of my friends and readers who, even after all the mistakes I made in the past, keep following and reviewing this story. I cannot tell you how much I appreciate. You are the essence that makes me going on in this site. Without you, I'd feel alone.**


	355. Robots from space

**It's time to kick off a new arc, my dear Owl Lovers!**

 **This one will return to our dear ninja birds. Or should I say...one of them. Indeed, this arc will be focused on our favorite elf owl, Skyler. And it'll take place into one of my most favorite video games of all time...Ratchet: Deadlocked!**

 **Now, I've always been a fan of the R &C franchise. Deadlocked and Up Your Arsenal always had a place in my heart as I grew up with them. I cannot remember how much time I spent on those two classics...I miss them. Sure, the new PS3 and PS4 generation games are good too, but still...**

 **But anyway, I don't own any of the characters, settings, or items from Insomniac. And Skyler belongs to Skyler The Elf Owl.**

* * *

The Four Ninja Birds' lair was pretty cold this morning as Sky was sitting on her workshop's chair. The young elf owl had spent all night long trying to develop a new weapon that would help her and her siblings' fight against the Foot Ninja Clan and other enemies. It was some sort of monkey wrench that she could use should her bo staff be unavailable. It was not lighter than her staff, but at least, she could swing it around with only one wing and could also throw it as she equipped it with a system to bring it back to her wing after.

Sky's feathers bristled as her workshop's door opened, letting the cooler outside air in. The one to walk inside was none other than Sky's new robot friend, Theo. Theo is a little robotic rabbit with white fur and muzzle, a blue belly and ears, and also a fused headset that served as his eyes. Theo was not that much of a fighter, but he could help when he wanted. Sky was really happy to have him as her helper during her work.

"Good morning, Sky," the robot said in a young boy-like voice as he approached his creator.

"Good morning, Theo. Slept well?"

Not even looking up, Theo replied, "As you know Sky, I do not sleep. I recharge and shut down. So if you mean 'did my recharge go well', then yes it did."

Sky rolled her eyes at the logical little robot and turned back to her table on which was lying her special monkey wrench. At least, she could always count on her little robot to keep the facts straight.

Sky's sensitive ears then picked up something above the clicking of Theo's fingers on his little laptop. Footsteps. She listened to them for a moment before deducing those were the footsteps of Alfonso. Alfonso was a human scientist turned monkey that Sky met a few months ago. He often flaunted his skills and got very annoyed if they were not recognized. Alfonso was a good guy. A bit of a nerd but good nonetheless.

He stepped into the workshop holding a delicious-looking donut with sprinkles from the local shop and an extra-large cup of coffee. Mumbling something about Kowalski being annoying, he sat down in a chair to Sky's right and finished his donut.

"Hey, Alf," Sky said, swiveling her chair to face her primate scientist friend.

"Have you fixed the heater yet?" Alfonso asked in his nasal tone. "Because I'm freezing! This coffee isn't helping that much." He then gazed at the monkey wrench on Sky's working table. "What's this?"

However, before Sky could explain anything, her alert siren turned on. It was a system she created in hopes of getting noticed immediately, should the Foots or any potential threat infiltrate the lair. Before the elf owl could give an order, three figures suddenly teleported right behind them. The three robots were huge - bigger than any Foot Sky had ever fought before.

They stood at about 12-feet tall and were all armed with strange futuristic pistols. "Are you the elf owl known as Skyler?" the one in the lead asked.

Sky and her friends immediately got out of their chairs. "I don't suppose you're here to help me with my new gadgets, are you?"

"No, we were sent by Gleeman Vox to capture you, Mrs. Skyler. He is very interested in your work," replied the robot.

"Okay, first, I have no idea who this Gleeman Vox is. Second, I'm not going anywhere!"

With that, Sky reached her wing to her new wrench just in time for one of the enemy's massive hands to grab her head and pull her up. From this uncomfortable position, she was face-to-face with the leader robot.

Sky wiped out her wrench and hacked off the robot's hand and wrist. He yelled and dropped her to her feet. Sky was glad she had built this little wonder with a material strong enough to hack off any kind of strong metal. She began to smack the massive robots around a bit until the back of a gun was brought to her head and knocked her out.

Theo heard a sickening thud as Sky hit the ground. He looked over the table behind which he went to seek cover and saw them scoop up Sky's motionless body. The little rabbit robot knew there was only one thing he could do to help. "Hey!" he yelled.

The robots turned and looked around without seeing the source of the noise. "Down here!" The leader robot (who was missing one hand) looked down and saw him. "Well, look here boys! Looks like we found a toaster!" they all laughed at his ridiculous joke.

However, they didn't laugh long as Theo's eyes turned red as he activated the only defense system Sky installed on him. It was called the "Theo Zapper". "I will not let you take my friend!" he yelled and shot red lasers from his eyes to strike to first robot's chest, chipping his armor and knocking him over.

"Get him!" yelled another one before getting struck by Theo's laser beam too. The single laser being much less powerful than the giant only slowed him down. He picked up, Theo, engulfing him in one hand. Theo frantically charged his eyes for another blast, forcing his power core to the limit. but not fast enough.

"Night, night," said the robot and brought his fist down on Theo's robotic skull.

Alfonso heard all of this from his hiding spot. He knew the little robot stood no chance against those brutes even with his Theo Zapper. Getting desperate, the primate used his telekinesis power to lift one of the robots and push him away into the wall. Unfortunately, that was all he could do before another one hit the back of his gun behind the primate's head, knocking him out along his two friends.

The three bots paraded their catches through the lair and back to their transport waiting for them at the surface. They lugged Sky and Theo into the first holding tank with two other prisoners. A dark-looking shark dressed in red armor and what appeared to be his friend, a female swallow with purple feathers dressed in loose white clothes.

The shark's red armor looked like a swimming dress, leaving his arms, legs, mouth, and eyes exposed. His shark fin was coming out of his back. His eyes were covered by some dark blue googles and his hands had three fingers each.

The other was an anthropomorphic swallow with light purple and dark feathers that covered her body and head. Her hair was styled like a pair of long braids. She had a curved beak, cobalt eyes and two tail feathers. For attire, she wore white gloves with golden bracelets and redlining, a white tube top that left her tummy exposed and flare-designed trousers. She also wore red boots with white accents, a necklace with a red gem and gold glasses.

As the door opened, the swallow came alive. "Let me out of here you bucked-headed morons! I'll tear you from limb to limb!" The avian leaped at the captors and slammed head-first into the one-way force field holding her in. The robots chuckled and tossed in the elf owl and smaller robot who were still unconscious. Then they shut the blast door and locked them in.

The dull blue lights of the holding tank came on as the door shut. "Calm down, Wave," the shark said from his leaning position in the far corner. "When they lower that shield, we'll get them."

"Why did you just stand there?!" complained the swallow known as Wave. "You could have gone wild and torn them to pieces with his fangs!"

"Because I'll do more damage when I can actually touch them," the shark replied calmly.

The ship leached and gained speed as the shark could hear the thrusters turn on, indicating they were probably in space again. "Oh, I get ya," Wave said slyly. "You wait for the right time to strike and then GNAP! You chomp them off! Good plan."

Sky could hear voices. Her head hurt and she couldn't think straight. Suddenly, the short battle came back to her. She marveled at the fact that she wasn't dead and sat up. She looked around and found herself into a prison hold with a strange two-legged shark, purple female avian, and Theo.

"Theo!" she exclaimed, looking down at her robot friend. "Theo, speak to me!"

Theo's eyes fluttered open and he shook his head too. "What happened?" he asked as he sat up.

"We've apparently been captured," Sky answered him.

"Hey, how's the gerbil?" asked Wave.

Sky wiped around to see Wave staring at them cross-armed. "Who are you calling a gerbil, you purple bimbo?" she yelled back.

"Hey, I'm no bimbo!" Wave angrily said, getting into Sky's face. She took a swing at Sky and the elf owl ducked the attack before tackling her to the ground.

"Guys, wait!" Theo suddenly called, causing both girls to stop fighting and look at him, the shark doing the same. "We... We're in space!"

* * *

 **Sky, Theo, and Alfosano are about to go on a new adventure...IN SPACE!**

 **Now, Sky and Theo belong to Skyler The Elf Owl - thought the latter is based on a Mario + Raving Rabbids character. Alfonso also belongs to her - we met him many chapters ago, during the second Four Ninja Birds arc.**

 **Wave The Swallow belongs to SEGA and Landshark is an alternate skin from Ratchet: Deadlocked. I always used him when I played with my friend and ended up pretending that he was a fully living character. You have no idea how happy I am that I can finally use him as a character.**


	356. Welcome to Dreadzone

**Hello, my Owl Lovers. I wanna apologize for not updating anything for so long. As you all know, I got lost for a moment, not knowing if I wanted to continue this or just to stop. But all my friends gave me their support and filled my will to continue once again.**

 **Skyler The Elf Owl: Thank you for forgiving the stupidities I committed in the past and for giving me a second chance to be your friend.**

 **TheDragonSaver: Thank you for reminding me that friendship and happiness must come before popularity and impressing your idols.**

 **AlexRioLover95: Thanks for giving me your support. I feel like we should have properly introduced ourselves a long time ago.**

 **The Grey Coincidence: Thanks for being my harshest and most honest critic along with a shoulder to cry on when I need it.**

 **Nightfly123: Thank you for being my friend even after so many years and failures.**

 **RiodanJaneiro97: Thank you for going as far as to write chapters for my story to help.**

 **DextrousCloth31: Thank you for being my #1 fan and for creating an entire forum dedicated to TDA.**

 **DJ Bat: Thank you for being the nicest and dumbest brothers of them all.**

 **Jaime: Thank you for having so much compassion toward me.**

* * *

Theo had had it up to his servos with the organic life forms he was forced to share the cell with. It was not in his nature to hate but he was so darn close. Sky had come out of her fight with a little bruise on her shoulder and the swallow girl had come out with a bruised eye. Nether was very hurt and both Theo and the two-legged shark whose name Theo heard was Landshark tried to make amends but to no success. Finally, he had given up.

Skyler and Wave spent the last week glaring at each other from opposite ends of the containment bay. When food and water came in, they took what they wanted and moved back to their corners. Wave shared her portion with Landshark while Sky kept her food which Theo had no problem with since he couldn't eat anyway. Theo powered on a convenient recharge station that had been placed in the cell one morning for him. As his optic sensors came online, he saw Sky and Wave glaring at each other again, both daring the other to move.

That was it. This was too much for Theo.

"That's enough!" the robot yelled as loud as he could. All three organic life forms looked at him, startled.

"What's with you, Theo?" Sky asked.

"You are both acting like perfect morons! For a whole week, you have done nothing but silently challenge each other for no reason other than to repair your ego! Had you put as much energy into escaping as you have in hating each other, we would have been free a long time ago!"

Sky and Wave both looked at the floor. They both sat silently for a moment. Then, just as Sky was going to say something, the floor of the cell dropped away and all four of them tumbled out onto hard mettle.

Instantly, Sky and Landshark were on their feet. Sky with her new wrench ready and Landshark with his fists and sharp teeth bared. Looking around, they saw that they were in an arena surrounded by lava. A crowd cheered all around them and cameras watched their every move. Around them, several others were being dropped onto the hard metal surface from the ship, dazed and confused.

"Who are these guys?" Sky curiously asked while looking at the alien creatures.

"I know them!" Landshark suddenly exclaimed. "Agent Zero, Capt. Super Nove, Kid Nova, Hydro Girl, Plasma Woman... They're all heroes!"

"I believe you're right," Wave remarked with a hand on her hip. "But who would want to capture heroes?"

As Landshark shrugged, Sky walked over to them. "Hey, you guys know what's going on?"

"Not a clue," the two-legged shark said. "By the way, my name's Landshark."

"Mine's Skyler, call me Sky. And this is Theo."

"How are you doing?" Theo politely asked.

"Name's Wave," the swallow said with crossing her arms.

"Well, if these guys want us in this arena, I certainly don't," Sky said with looking all around.

"Yeah, let's get back to that thing," Landshark replied with turning toward the ship above them.

Theo attached himself to Sky's back and used his thruster's pack to try and super jump into the opening. Landshark tried to jump as well, but both of them failed. "Damn!" they swore at unison.

Suddenly, the ship's trap doors slid shut with a metallic clang, lifted out into the open roof, and flew off. "Well this stinks," Wave commented.

Everyone was glancing around, asking questions to each other when loud rock music started blasting all around them. "Ladies, gentlemen, aliens of all ages!" yelled an announcer. "Welcome to Dreadzone! The roughest, toughest, meanest blood sport of all time!"

Landshark shook his head. "Oh no. Not this again."

"What?" asked Sky. "You've been here before?"

"No, but I have been in arena battles before who claim to be the 'most violent place in the galaxy'. But they never are," he complained. "All the enemies are push-overs, and most of them come out from small docking stations that extend to the arena. You can usually kill them with a well-placed Nitro Eruptor shell or a Plasma Storm Ball."

Sky raised an eyebrow and looked at Theo who shrugged. "A Nitro Woza what?"

"It's a weapon."

"Oh..."

The announcer continued. "You will be pitted against the toughest competitors in the galaxy; the Exterminators!" Wave snorted, trying not to laugh. "If you live through the entire season of Dreadzone, you'll have a chance to earn your freedom in the Gauntlet of Doooooom! Now is the time to prove you're a true hero! GO!"

A buzzer sounded. "Go?" all four said in unison.

Suddenly, the entire arena was filled with battle bots that teleported in. They were smaller than the ones who captured Sky and Theo but they had the same coloring. Laser bullets flew everywhere. Instinctively, Sky tried to throw them some shurikens only to realize she had not a single one on her. "Shit!"

"Duck!" Theo yelled.

Instantly, Sky fell to the ground as a rocket sailed over her head. "This is unfair! We don't have any weapon to fight back with!" Suddenly, a hand pulled her up by the collar. "Hey! Why you-" She stopped short. It was Landshark pulling her up to her feet.

"Come on!" he yelled and ran after one of the robots.

Sky sighed and pulled out her wrench. "Fine, if I have no other choice, I will melee fight." She followed Landshark to the enemies.

Landshark punched one of the robots who stumbled back. Sky then leaped over Landshark and split its skull with her wrench. The robot exploded and rained shrapnel all over the place. They ran on around the arena into the thick of the battle. Sky wiped her wrench around wildly, counting on Theo to guard her back with his Theo Zapper. The elf owl could hear Wave shouting orders too. "Go left! Now right! Uppercut! Kick, right! No, the other right!"

Suddenly, a metallic assailant chopped Sky in the back of the head. She rolled over to see a gun pointed at her face. that was it. It was all over!

Then, Landshark appeared on the robot's back, holding it in a chokehold. He snapped its head off with his sharp teeth and Sky knocked its knees off. It fell down in three pieces.

"OOOOOH! And Mr. Myseryoso is down!" yelled the announcer. "The first to fall in the fray!"

Landshark held his hand out to help Sky up. The elf owl took it willingly. "Thanks."

"Don't thank me yet!" he yelled over the music.

"And that's the end of round 1!" said the announcer. "On to round 2, heroes!"

An energy rail appeared at one end of the arena, and the lava began to rise to submerge the mettle platform. "Come on!" Sky yelled to Landshark and ran off toward the trail.

The little bird jumped onto it and slid it down easily, her ninja training coming in. She landed in a square arena twice the size of the one she just left. Another one ran adjacent to it. Sky couldn't yet get to the other platform as a stream of lava separated it.

"Sky, look!" Theo said.

Sky spun around to see that all the other heroes were shimmying down the rail. "They don't know how to slide," Sky mumbled. "Their sitting ducks!"

Just as she said it, several of the battle bots teleported into the arena all around her. "And it looks like Skyler is in a bit of a pickle! She was the first one off the rail but also the first and only target! What to do?" said the announcer.

Many of the battle bots charged Sky and Theo but others began to fire at the still shimmying heroes. Sky saw Landshark and Wave among them. "Theo, we need a gun!" Sky yelled.

The robot quickly looked around as did the elf owl. He suddenly noticed a pair of pistol-like weapons on the ground about twenty feet from him and behind about thirty robots. "It's on," Sky said and charged the group.

They were unprepared for the tiny bird's charge and the first four were taken out before they knew what hit them. Parts flew everywhere and Sky kept hacking. She was shot a few times and bled in several places but she was fine. Her training with Master Yoshi made her more endurant than a normal owl. Her path was clear and she dove for the guns.

Grabbing them in both wings, she flipped over onto her back and started firing. "And it looks like Skyler has found the Duel Vipers on the arena floor! Designed by Vox Industries, these little babies can tear apart even the biggest foes with its almighty plasma bolts. Lightweight and efficient, the DZ Strikers are in big trouble!"

"And how," Sky said with a smirk.

The guns blasted through the robots like tissue paper. Armor and bolts flew everywhere as she unloaded her new toys. Finally, she got the attention of all the DZ Strikers and they all opened fire but to no avail. This was Sky's fight now; she was going to win it!

Using her incredible agility, Sky dodged all the incoming fire and sent back a barrage of her own until nothing but robot parts littered the floor. She could feel Theo grimacing; it must have been a slaughtering house for the robot.

"Amazing! Incredible! Skyler has single-handedly finished off round 2! Not only that but she saved the other heroes! Well, not all," the announcer said. "It looks like Capt. Super Nova just couldn't hang on and plummeted to his death!"

The remaining heroes climbed down with Sky, Landshark, and Wave regrouping, panting and sweating hard.

"Damn, man!" Landshark said between his breaths. "This is insane!"

"Round 3 begins!" yelled the announcer.

Platforms appeared, bridging the two rectangular areas. Suddenly, two spider-like tanks fell to the ground and opened fire with plasma gauntlet-guns mounted on the front and moving forward slowly. "Enter the Stalker Tanks. Those lean, mean killing machines can fire two hundred rounds a minute and have four-inch carbonox armor! Our heroes are in for a world of hurt!"

Heroes, blood, and gore flew everywhere as the plasma tore them apart and made Sky's stomach turn. She grabbed Landshark who had been momentarily stunned. "Come on!" she yelled.

They all dove behind a light shield that had popped up when the tanks appeared. "Holy moly!" Landshark yelled as the plasma tore into the light shield with a roar.

"What now?" Wave nervously asked.

"We continue to fight like we always have," Landshark replied.

Other heroes got the idea and found cover behind the radiant blue shields. Then, the tank stopped firing and the back started glowing. Sky stared for a moment, quizzically wondering what was going. Then, it hit her.

"Run! Motars!"

Sky shoved Landshark and Wave out from behind the shield and they all rolled out of the way as well. The plasma motars struck the ground with intense ferocity right where they had been crouching only seconds before. The heat scorched Sky's beak even though she was well out of range. One of the tanks swung its turret around to face her and the Gatling guns started spinning again.

Just as Sky was about to dodge the inevitable hail of bullets, Landshark leaped onto the tank and slammed his fist through the cockpit window to remove a DZ Striker from his seat through the glass. Landshark jumped in and the turret opened on the other tank. The other four-legged monstrosity was caught off-guard and was quickly taken down. Sky ran to Landshark's tank and opened the gunner seat window. Finding a DZ Striker in the seat, she quickly smashed his head a few times with her wrench, pulled him out, and hopped in.

"HELL YEAH!" Wave yelled from the front seat.

"This is unbelievable, folks!" yelled the announcer. "Never in the history of Dreadzone has anyone ever hijacked a Stalker tank right from under a DZ Striker's nose! This is incredible...someone give me a cup of coffee."

Sky learned the controls quickly and used the single joystick to control the target on the H.U.D. of his screen as well as the massive mortar launchers on either side of her.

"Ok folks, we're done to the wire now," the announcer began. "This is the fourth and final round! Bring out the Executioners!"

All at once, the large robots, identical to the ones that had captured Sky and her friends, surrounded the tank. They were truly large and obviously powerful. Four of them grabbed the legs of the tank and began to pull in opposite directions. They were too close to shoot without damaging the tank - or Sky's feathers.

Before Sky could figure out what to do, Landshark popped out of the front cockpit with a large gun and blasted the head of one of the robots with his shotgun-like weapon. "What is this, folks? It seems Landshark has found a Magma Cannon when we weren't looking! That weapon packs a real wallop as you can see. Developed by Vox Industries, the Magma Cannon fires a spray of superheated liquid metal at one's opponents. I don't care what galaxy you are from; that has GOt to hurt!"

With the other Executioners now backing off from the tank, Sky began to charge the motars and Landshark opened fire plasma Gatling guns. They easily dispatched the rest of the Executioners with the storm of death and a little help from the remaining heroes.

New platforms floated to the top of the lava leading to the next arena. With a defining roar from the crowd, Landshark piloted the tank forward to the new platform across the small bridge pads. Suddenly, the tank disappeared around them and they all landed on their rear ends onto the metal floor.

"What happened?" Landshark asked with getting up. "And where did my gun go?"

Sky looked at her wings to see her new guns were gone too. then, several pillars rose from the ground. All of them had teleporter pads on top. "Ladies and gentlemen, we have your champions! But what is this? It seems the teleporter pads are out of reach and the lava is rising again! What will our heroes do?!"

The platform wasn't really that high. Sky easily jumped up to one of them with Theo's thruster pack and Landshark jumped to another one with his strong legs and Wave holding onto his back.

Most of the other heroes made it up easily too - all except one. The platform to the right of Sky was vacant and below it was an aqua-blue clad hero trying to jump to it but he couldn't quite make it. Try as he might, he just couldn't jump high enough. Sky pulled out her wrench and held it out to him.

"Come on! Grab it!" she yelled.

The young hero jumped to reach the wrench but couldn't get it either. Theo saw Landshark move in to help but stopped him. "No, Landshark. The platform is too small. You will knock Sky and me to the floor too."

Landshark stopped, a helpless look on his face. Sky reached out as far as she dared. the lava was getting close now and she could feel its heat on her little beak. "Come on!" she shouted with a begging tone but it was too late.

The lava reached the hero's feet and he began to burn away, his body yielding to the hellish inferno. Sky looked away, hearing his screams of agony, and smell of burnt flesh that she knew would haunt her for the rest of her day.

"Well, in a twist of fate and surprise, the Blue Yonder is burned alive in front of our very eyes!" said the announcer. "And what do our surviving heroes get, Juanita?"

A feminine voice took over. "They get an all-expenses-paid trip to the Dreadzone holding complex where they will rest and wait for their next missions to entertain our fans. They will be pampered beyond all reason. Complete with jacuzzi tubs, workout facilities, and waterbeds, Dreadzone has spared no expense. This season, enjoying our generous accommodations will be Kid Nova, Hydro Girl, Agent Zero, Mustang, Landshark, Wave, Skyler, Theo, Plasma Woman, Electro Boy, The Amazing Equalizer, and Mr. Untouchable."

"And what a season started, he, Juanita?" the masculine voice resumed. "The qualifying round is over but this is only the beginning, Dreadzone fans! Toon in next week for the real fun!"

Sky felt sick, and from their look, so did Landshark and Wave. No one seemed very happy about this "all-expenses-paid trip". They had started out with well over twenty heroes. now, only twelve remained. What would await them in the next part of the death course they were trapped in? Only time would tell. But one thing was for sure; this would be hell of a ride.

* * *

 **Finding this dark yet? Yup, it's not gonna be child-friendly.**

 **Skyler, Theo, Landshark, and Wave have survived the first round to qualify for the main show while others didn't have the same chance. Just to let you know, the true game doesn't start like this; it's not that traumatizing.**

 **Except that, I hope you enjoyed this action-packed chapter. Stay stunned for the next one.**


	357. New quarters and armor

**I'm glad you liked the last chapter. It was pretty hard to kill so many characters. But this is Dreadzone, no rest for the weary, right?**

 **This one won't be nearly as action-packed. Sorry to bring it down a bit but every hero needs some downtime.**

 **Now that our heroes have survived the qualifying round, it's time for them to get accustomed to their new quarters.**

* * *

The teleporter fizzled around Sky's feathers and the view of the arena and the smell of brimstone faded away, replaced by the view of a dar apartment-like room. The elf owl shook off the slight nausea caused by the teleportation and took in her surroundings.

It was a small room with four water beds and a weight set in one corner. Sky heard a cough from behind her that made her jump and prepare her wrench...but it was only Landshark and Wave. They had been teleported too and from the looks of it, they seemed more used to be teleported than her. they fanned out and began to search the place. Theo leaped off Sky's back and began searching as well.

The beds were lined up two by two on either side of the room. The far wall was a huge window displaying a glorious view of the stars and some of the space station they were in. "Hey, look at this!" Wave yelled from across the room. Sky turned around to see the swallow in a doorway with Theo beside her.

"It appears to be a bathroom," the little robot pointed out.

"Not just a bathroom!" the purple bird exclaimed with stars in her eyes. "It's a freaking palace!"

Sky looked in and, indeed, it was a beautiful bathroom. Complete with a jacuzzi tub large enough to fit twelve elf owls. Everything was lined with gold trim and it smelled like a flower that was unknown to Sky. The sweet smell stung her nose and she moved on, not too impressed.

"Hey, I found the computer room," Landshark said with a seemingly uninterested tone.

Sky followed his voice and entered to see three large halo screens surrounding a small chair in a semi-circle fashion. The chair could swivel and a keyboard could swing over to the side. Upon closer inspection, Theo found it would be perfect for his size.

Further searching revealed a machine called chief-o-matic that sell and prepared food, a worktable in the form of a chair for who-knows-what, and a seller of some kind. Suddenly, there was a beep over an intercom hidden somewhere. "Attention, all new heroes. My name is Gleeman Vox and I will be your captor for the new few months in Dreadzone. You probably noticed by now your new quarters will fill all of your needs and ar every luxurious. Please respect our hospitality and don't break anything. It will not be replaced."

The voice sounded monotonic as if Mr. Vox has done this way too many times. "The time you will operate on is Dreadzone standard time. It is currently 2:35 am DZ time. Set your alarms for 6:00 pm DZ time and prepare for teleportation at 6:25 DZ time. That's right, we are giving you the entire rest of the day cycle to rest. Take advantage of it, it may not happen again. Make yourselves comfortable, you may be spending the rest of your lives here." The intercom clicked off.

"Nice guy. Think he eats boring for breakfast," Wave sarcastically asked.

"I have no idea," Sky responded. "But I heard 'rest' and that's what I'm gonna do." Sky removed her ninja gear and tossed it to the side. It was a bit damaged from her fights but she could still wear it. She flopped onto one of the four beds that moved and rippled under her weight, not even bothering to put on the blankets. Landshark decided to do the same. Wave also jumped into a bed and let out a loud yawn, curling up and falling asleep almost instantly.

Theo looked around the room. A bed would do him no good since he could not really fall asleep and he saw no recharge station in sight. Sighing, the robot bunny went to the computer room. Hopping into the little chair, he activated the computer. After a few moments of random noises that Theo understood meant the engines were warming up, the computer's halo screens turned on and asked for an ID to begin. Theo thought for a moment and then just entered his name. Surprisingly, his name worked and the computer asked for a new password for his login. The little robot chose a random password and the computer took him to a menu. All of the programs seemed to be Dreadzone related (except for the internet option). With nothing better to do, Theo began searching what they had to show him.

* * *

"This is your wake up call," said the intercom. "All heroes are to shower and be on the teleporters in twenty-five minutes."

"No, Theo, just ten more minutes," Sky groaned and turned over.

"Hey, get up!" Landshark yelled and pushed her off the bed.

"Ow! Hey, what was that for?!" Sky angrily said with jumping up.

"Shut up, I didn't even hit you that hard," the two-legged shark said and was already wearing his clothes. It seemed he had also been in the shower already. "You smell like a terrible Rito."

"I'm an elf owl, not a Rito," Sky angrily said before going to shower. Once she was done and had her ninja gear back on, she looked around. "Where's Theo?"

"In the computer room," Wave replied as she was preparing to take a shower. "I wanted to play some online video games but he was already on it. He's been on it all night I think."

"Thanks," Sky said with heading toward the computer room.

"Hey, tell him it's my turn!"

Sky entered the computer room. All these screens were displaying either blueprints or information of some kind. Theo was in the middle of it all in his swivel chair. "Hey Theo, what are you doing?" Sky asked with putting her wing on the back of the little robot's chair.

"Finding anything that will be useful to us here. Weaknesses of enemies, vehicle information, planets we will be going on, and info about the galaxy in general."

"Wait, planets we will be going to?" Sky interrupted in surprise. "That's perfect! We can try to escape when they are taking us somewhere!"

"Not likely," replied Theo. "I have been over the transport ship's blueprint and programming. It has a self-destruct mechanism that will go off if any prisoner leaves the ship before schedule or if the nav. computer is tampered with. I see no way this ship can help us."

"Well, that blows. Say, aren't you tired? Wave said you've been here all night."

"Wave is correct, I have been here all night. But no, I am not tired. I have enough power for three-day cycles before my next recharge is required."

"Ok, suit yourself," Sky said with shrugging.

"Hey, Sky!" Landshark called her from outside the door. "It's 6:23! We gotta go!"

"Move your feathered butt!" Wave called too.

"Come on Theo, let's go join Shark Boy and Sassy Girl," the elf owl sarcastically said.

"That is okay. You go, I will stay," the little robot said as he typed on his keyboard.

"What? But the Vox guy said we HAVE to go. He'll probably have some of these Executioner guys come and disintegrate you."

"I don't think so," Theo calmly replied. "You are reporting for new armor. No armor is available for robots so I would be wasting my time. Please go and acquire your armor. I will search for ways to customize it while you are gone since you seem to like that sort of thing."

"Okay, if you really think so." Sky left her robot friend to his typing and joined Landshark and Wave on the teleporters.

"Jeez, what took you so long? Had to kiss your robot goodbye?" Wave asked.

"Oh, shut up," Sky replied.

The teleporters activated at exactly 6:25 and took them to a large room filled with holo screens and different kinds of tools hanging from the ceiling by robotic arms. The room wreaked with old robot oil and burned rubber. It looked a lot like something out of a horror movie.

"Hey, guys!" someone said from behind the tables. "How are you?"

"Alfonso!" Sky exclaimed in surprise.

"You know this primate?" Landshark asked her.

"Yeah. I thought you were dead!"

"Well, I should have bee," Alfonso said. "But they didn't bump me into the arena like you guys. By the way Sky, nice work with the running and shooting."

"Yeah, yeah, anyway," Sky said, urging him on.

"Well, they brought me to their boss, Gleeman Vox, and he told them to disintegrate me. He's not a very nice guy, you know. But they told him how I killed an Executioner with my mental powers."

"You killed one of the big robots?" Sky asked with blinking her eyes.

"Yes," the primate replied, rather annoyed that he avian doubted his skills. "Anyway, Vox became interested in my intelligence level and he said he would make me you guys' engineer. Cool, huh?"

"What's the catch?" Sky said suspiciously, crossing her wings.

"Well, he said I have to charge you for my services. But don't worry, it's not too bad. The first armor is free! Now, about your armor, it so happens I have it all ready for you. It's over there."

Alfonso pointed to the left of Sky and the elf owl turned into that direction. "Yours is there too, Landshark. Take a look." A pod slightly larger than Wave was before her. There was another one next to it that was fit for Landshark's size.

Alfonso pushed a button and the pods slid open slowly with a hiss. Inside were the most impressive suits of armor the friends had ever seen. It was a maroonish color with black trims. The joints plat looked flexible and easily manipulated. The fingers on the gloves ended in claws. It had large shoulder guards with spikes on them.

"This is the DZ 6-900. It is fully compatible with any organic life form that can fit in it. It has a full system readout into the H.U.D. as well and environmental status display, light/dark compensator, nano pack, ammo pack, internal climate control, and ultra comfort jell lining. Also, I took the liberty of modifying it to be compatible with your weapons and have a quick-select menu, put a hole for your tail feathers, and also a place for Theo to latch on."

"What's the material composing it?" Sky asked as she tried on one of the gloves that surprisingly fit well on her wing. It felt strange to have claws on the end of her feathers.

"Huh, well, I'm not really sure. It's not as strong as titanium but it's darn close. Hold on a sec," Alfonso said. "You need this." The primate pulled out four orange rings. They looked rather heavy and dangerous. "These are Deadlocked collars. I have to put one on all of you or mine will be detonated," he sadly said.

"What do they do?" Sky asked with taking one.

"They, huh...explode if you don't do what they say," Alfonso replied with showing the collar around his neck.

"Looks like we have no choice," Sky said with putting the collar around her neck. Wave did it as well and Alfonso held out one to Landshark.

"I'm not putting that thing on!" the two-legged shark firmly said with a growl. "I WON'T be controlled like this!"

"Come on, Landshark," Wave said. "Do you really want to see the inside of monkey boy's head here?"

But it was no use. The shark was losing it. "NO! NO! I won't wear it! NO!" he yelled.

"Calm down, Landshark," Wave said with a hand on his shoulder. "You can't lose it now!" she said with a worried expression.

"NO!" Landshark yelled in hysteria. "YOU CAN'T TAKE ME! I WON'T BATTLE FOR YOUR PLEASURE!"

"Hu-ho," Wave mumbled and backed up to get next to Sky. Landshark's eyes turned a primal black and he showed his sharp teeth. Sky had her wrench out, ready to strike if he came too close.

"Duck!" Alfonso yelled and Sky hit the floor. A small glowing yellow dart flew through the air and hit Landshark in the neck. He wavered for a moment before falling to the ground.

"No, no, you can't take me. I won't fight for your own pleasure," he said quietly as the drug knocked him out.

"They said it might happen," Alfonso said. "No matter. Let's get your armor and go back to your quarters."

"What was that all about?" Sky asked Wave.

"Well, the swallow hesitated, rubbing the back of her neck. "Landshark was forced to participate in arena battles for two years and they made him do very dangerous things. Seeing this place and having your friend offering him death on a platter must have brought back bad memories."

"I see," Sky said with nodding. "Well, as much as he doesn't want to, we have to put this collar on him. I don't wanna see the color of Alfonso's blood."

"Me neither," Wave replied and together, they put the Deadlocked collar on Landshark along with his new armor. Wave didn't want a new armor and got a rebreather mask instead, just in case.

Sky then walked into the machine and tried on her armor. It was surprisingly light. The material was complimenting her slender, curvy body. She also grabbed a collar for Theo who probably already knew it was coming.

"You guys be careful out there," Alfonso said as they left. "And don't piss off Vox! He has the button to your collars."

* * *

 **Like I said, not very exciting but necessary. Sky and her friends got their new armors, new quarters, and also learned that Alfonso is still alive. I gave a glimpse of Landshark's backstory and we will learn more about him as the story goes on.**

 **Stay stunned for the next episode of Dreadzone, my friends ;)**


	358. Catacrom 4

**Thank you to everyone who has read the last chapter. I'm glad I still have fans even during the less exciting parts of this fanfic.**

 **School is gonna start again soon for me. I'm not really excited about it.**

 **However, on the good side...MY MOM AND I ARE GOING ON VACATIONS TO DISNEY THIS SEPTEMBER! Oh my gosh, you have no idea how excited I am!**

 **But enough with my rambling; let's get this chapter started.**

* * *

"Argh! I'm so BORED!" Wave yelled from her bed. Landshark didn't stir from this. He seemed to be rather accustomed to the swallow's random outbursts. "I swear, if I have to stay here one more minute, I'm gonna explode!"

Sky was getting rather annoyed with the swallow's constant jabbering. If she wasn't trying to do some stupid race routine in the middle of the floor to relieve her boredom, she was making everyone else's boredom worse. to make it short, Sky was about to kick the swallow's butt.

Theo, on the other hand, didn't seem interested in the others' activities at all. He had been glued on the computer ever since he had found it on their very first day in the complex. A recharge unit had been teleported about 5 days ago and he used it every so often, but much to Wave's dismay, he had stayed in the chair even when recharging.

It was starting to bother Sky as well as Wave. Even back on Earth, Theo hadn't been this absorbed to a computer. At the moment, Sky was sitting in a meditation position in the corner of the bedroom, trying to ease her mind a bit. She didn't want to lose her mind just because she found herself in space, learned the existence of alien races, and got into a deadly show.

Landshark didn't seem to care very much about his own condition. He mostly lazed about all day. It didn't hurt much so Sky wasn't complaining. The two-legged shark seemed to get strength from within somehow. She remembered how he took down the DZ Strikers with his bare fists and teeth. Even with her new wrench or bo staff, Sky would sometimes get hurt from vibrations. So how could Landshark do it with his bare hands?

"Attention all heroes," came the voice of Vox through the intercom. "Suit and prepare for departure. You will be leaving in ten minutes."

"Finally, some action!" Wave exclaimed, leaping from her bed.

Sky and Landshark put on their armor and waited for the next instructions. Theo wandered out into the main room.

"Well, well," Wave said. "Look who's up and about. Is it my turn to obsess over the computer now?"

Theo ignored her and attached himself to Sky's back. "Any idea where we're going?" the elf owl asked her robot friend.

"Yes, to Catacrom 4. It's an ancient robot burial site."

"What could they possibly hope to kill us with in a cemetery?" Landshark asked.

"It is rumored to be home to many zombies," Theo said. But it is only a rumor."

"Tss," spat Wave. "I don't believe in that kind of crap."

A small ship appeared outside their window and a docking port extended from the side of it to their window that opened up around it like a gel as it pushed through.

"Well, guess that's our ride," Sky said.

All four of them got into the ship and the side door closed, retracted the docking port, and sped off to a larger ship. The ship they were heading towards was very familiar to the one that had brought them to the station but it was larger and obviously had more thrust behind it. It also looked like a "segmented square sausage" as Wave put it. the ship they were currently in lifted into an open trap door on the bottom of the ship that closed behind them. They were then released into a fully furnished room complete with a big television screen.

"Sure gotta hand it to them," Sky said with a wing on her hip. "They don't skimp on the pleasantries around here."

They all ended up wandering to the couches or chairs. As they did, the big screen came on, showing a particular triangular symbol that looked like a DZ Striker's face. Vox then came onto the screen.

Vox is a humanoid shark just like Landshark who has green-turquoise skin and a golden cybernetic left arm. He wears a red suit with orange and yellow highlights, and black and goal shoes. He also had a mustache just covering the top of his lips.

"Welcome to the Dreadzone transport," he said. "This will take you to all of your off-station missions. You will notice there are no exits to the left or right of you. In the case of an emergency, you will be informed you are about to die. Your armor can be used as a sinking device in the case of water crashing. Seat belts will not be provided as we don't expect any of you to try anything smart and rile the ship in anyway. And in case you get any ideas, the ship is set to self-destruct in case it deviates from its course or the nav. computer is tampered with. If you have any questions, shove it and move on. Have a nice flight."

"Ladies and gentlemen, give it up for Vox, the biggest asshole in the galaxy," Wave said with sarcastically applauding.

"Catacrom 4 is about a day's flight away from this station," Theo informed everyone.

"You mean MORE nothing to do?! I don't know if I can take it," Wave said with a groan.

"Say, huh, Theo is it?" Landshark asked to which the little robot nodded. "How do you know so much about all this stuff?"

"When I was on the computer, I was viewing stats of our enemies, environment schematics of all the land that Vox owns where Dreadzone takes place on and many other things," Theo replied with pride.

"Oh, well good work, I bet that will be useful."

The ship did take a day to get to Catacrom 4. After another day of Wave's complaining, Sky was more than ready to kill something. They slept on the floor or the couch, depending on who fell ware until the ship began its reentry descent to the planet's surface, jarring them to consciousness. Over the intercom, a robotic voice informed them that they had arrived on Catacrom 4 and should prepare for battle. Then, almost before the intercom clicked off, the doors beneath them opened and dropped them to the planet's surface. Well, not the surface exactly. In reality, they landed on a pile of robot parts that stretched three miles to the planet's actual surface. With its load dropped, the ship sped off.

"No tip for you!" Wave yelled while shaking a fist at the ship and pulling a shard of metal out of her feathers.

Sky heard her quick-select beep, indicating it was on. Then, a small video screen appeared before her and went directly to the mission's window. In light blue letters rolling across the screen was their mission.

Destroy the burial dome

"What's the burial dome?" Sky asked before closing her armor's window screen.

"The place where one comes to mourn the dead," Theo said from Sky's back.

"Ok." Sky turned the zone's map onto her screen and looked at it. "It says the burial dome is about twenty miles north. Let's get moving."

With a direction in mind, the party moved out, trudging through the mounds of parts and scraps that covered the planet's surface. They walked for well over an hour and only got about two miles.

"Geez, how many robots are buried here?" Sky asked in a complaining tone.

"Over 6.7 billion robots have been laid here to rest, Sky. But how is that relevant to our mission?" Theo asked.

"Never mind." Sky rolled her eyes at her companion's cut and dry attitude.

"At least we haven't run into any zombie," Wave mockingly said.

Just as she said that, a clawed metallic hand reached up through the debris and began to pull its owner out of the would-be ground. Simultaneously, hundreds of hands began to do the same all around them.

"You had to say it, didn't you?" Landshark said with glaring at Wave who grinned and shrugged sheepishly.

Sky pulled out her Dual Vipers and readied for when the monsters would completely breach the surface. Landshark did the same with his Magma Cannon. At once, they were surrounded by zombies.

Sky opened fire, sending a deadly stream of plasma bolts at the foes. She could hear the loud crack of the Magma Cannon firing behind her and the zombies closed in. For everyone she killed, three more seemed to appear in its place. The circle closed in slowly around them, closing off any hopes of escape. As the circle closed, Sky saw the razor-sharp claws shining in the sun and knew there was no way she could beat them all down with her wrench if they came too close to shoot. Theo began to fire away with his zapper and Wave began shouting insults just as quickly.

"Landshark, any idea?" Sky asked over the roar of her guns and the moan of the zombies.

"Just keep shooting!" he yelled back.

It seemed that was all they could do. Sky glanced at the ammo count on her H.U.D. which read 45 and was dropping fast. Within seconds, the guns were empty and useless. She pulled them away and took out her wrench.

"We could be in trouble, Theo," the elf owl said, waiting for the adversaries to come within striking range.

"Are we not always in trouble?" Theo replied with a smile. They then heard Landshark's Magma Cannon clicking, signaling it was empty.

"I'm out!" he yelled.

"Me too."

The zombies closed in. Then, over the grotesque heads of the zombies, Sky spotted their savior. A Stalker tank sat not twenty feet away just past the zombie horde, begging for them to use. The only problem was: how to reach it without getting torn to shreds.

"Landshark!" Sky called.

"Yeah?"

"How far do you think you can throw me?"

"I don't know. Ten feet maybe?"

"Good enough. Throw me that way!"

"Huh?" Landshark said, turning toward her.

"That way! Throw me that way! Then get down!" the elf owl screamed. The shark looked to where she was pointing and smiled, knowing what she was planning.

Landshark picked and threw her up. Sky flew above twelve feet into the air and fourteen feet toward the Stalker. The zombies looked up at her as she flew over them. Just as the monsters began to get bigger with Sky falling lower, Theo's thruster rockets activated by second nature and carried them the remaining six feet to the gunner seat of the Stalker tank, placing them gently into it.

The cockpit closed and the tank came to life with a few beeps and clicks Sky charged the mortars and fired. The deadly bombs blasted robot parts everywhere, some from the zombies and some from the mound. Again and again, Sky unleashed the fury of the mortars into the crowd of zombies until not one was left standing on the partially smoking melted heap of scattered mettle. In the middle of the fray stood Landshark and Wave, slightly blackened from the blasts, but otherwise unharmed.

Landshark and Wave walked over to the tank and Sky opened the cockpit. They both climbed into it. "Nice shooting," Landshark complimented.

Sky glanced over the tank's readouts. It was slightly different from the DZ Striker's tank that they hijacked back in the battle dome. Apparently, this tank had an inventory.

"Look," Sky said. "This tank has extra ammo for us. And something called an Arbiter?"

Sky leaped back out of the tank and to the back where she found a holding bay covered by a removable plate. Her quick-select instantly sucked up the ammo she needed for her Dual Vipers. She then tossed the Magma Cannon over the top of the tank to Landshark. She could hear his quick select suck up the ammo as well.

Then, Sky saw a small rocket launcher. She lifted it up carefully and examined it. It was fairly light for its size and had a superb aiming laser. She stored it away into her inventory and hopped back into the tank before closing the cockpit.

"Which way?" Landshark asked as he put his hands on the controls.

Sky checked her map. "That way. Turn around."

Landshark turned the turret to the north and the legs followed, pushing them forward. Sky kept the mortars charged even though the few zombies they encountered on the way were easily torn apart by the plasma Gatling guns under Landshark's control. Theo, tired of being sat on, forced his way out from behind Sky's back and sat down on the armrest.

They traveled on until dark. They found that the Stalker had no headlights and the charged mortars only lit up the path about three feet. Landshark suggested that they rest until morning. Sky and Wave agreed and put the tank on silent mode so any detection devices the DZ Strikers had wouldn't detect them.

Landshark decided to get out of the tank and made a little campfire where he planned to eat a little sandwich from their food provisions. Sitting down on a piece of robot, he took his sandwich in his hands after letting it warm up near the campfire for a bit. However, before he could take a bite out of it, a little noise caused him to stop and notice four little intruders.

Near the fire were standing four little puffin-like creatures with seal heads. They starred at his sandwich then up at him with their big black eyes.

"No, zoof!" he said, waving his hand in their direction to scare and make them fly off. Smiling in satisfaction, he was about to eat her sandwich...only for another noise to interrupt him again.

This time, it was another puffin/seal, though this one looked way younger than the others and made cut noise with his lower mouth trembling cutely. Landshark stared at his sandwich and then back at him to see he was still giving him the puppy look that could make anyone crack.

It worked.

"Argh! Take it, I don't want it anymore," Landshark sighed annoyingly with tossing his sandwich at the little avian who immediately picked it up in his mouth and flew away with it. Landshark sighed with putting a hand on his cheek. "Porgs..."

"What were those creatures?" Sky asked from the tank, having seen everything.

"They are called Porgs," Landshark replied. "They are not hostile; just very annoying."

Later on, bathed in the red light from the silent mode setting, Sky, Landshark, and Wave fell asleep rather uncomfortably into their seat chairs. Theo took it upon himself to keep watch through the gunner's monitors on the dash.

The night wore on for all the heroes on the planet. Unknown to our heroes, every survivor of the qualifying round was on the planet somewhere. All with different missions that were practically suicide. They hunkered down for the darkness that would hunt them as they slept. The moans and clanks of the zombies kept most of them awake and prevented a good resting, most likely saving most of their lives. Wishing for the beds back at the Dreadstation, some nodded off, one of them never opening his eyes again. The morning would find Mustang's mighty body strewn over the landscape. Only his armor was missing, stolen by the zombies to keep them running.

Sky felt her stomach turn the way it had when Blue Yonder had burned up just out of her reach as she looked at the scene from the gunner's monitors. Morning had broken only a half-hour before and they had moved out. The tank's sensors had picked up organic matter, so they deviated from their course to see what it was only to find this gruesome sight.

"Come on, Landshark. Let's get out of here," Sky said with disgust.

"Yeah," the shark replied and turned the tank back to their objective.

One hour later, they were at a chasm that separated what Wave called the junk lands from the actual land. Just past a hill, they could see the burial dome. They all climbed down from the tank and peered across the canyon.

"Well, now what?" Sky asked.

"We'll jump," Landshark said as if it was obvious. He walked back a bit and got into a runner position. Then, with a bolt of speed, he ran toward the gap. With a mighty leap, Landshark sailed across the chasm and rolled to land on the other side.

"Come on, girls! I wanna get out of this hell-hole!" Landshark called.

Wave ran and jumped to success as Landshark caught her in time. There was only Sky and Theo remaining. The ninja jumped and joined her two friends with Theo's thruster pack.

"Ready to go?" Wave asked.

Before anybody could answer, they heard groaning and grumbling, turning to see a line of zombies watching them. "Oh, crap," Sky mumbled.

"Where did they came from?" Wave asked, hiding behind her shark friend.

"I don't know where they came from...," Sky said as she pulled away her Dual Vipers, "...but I know where they're going." The elf owl dubbed over, seemingly in pain. Wave stepped forward and put her hand on the elf owl's shoulder.

"Sky? What's going on?"

"Get back!" Sky yelled in a double voice.

Suddenly, she roared as dark energy exploded from her body. A red mark was glowing through the abdominal level of her armor and her eyes went from a calm brown to a raging red. Her head feathers became black and a glowing purple mark appeared on the level of her chest.

Wave and Landshark jumped back as the elf owl charged forward. Roaring and slashing, the zombies tried to fight back, but no matter how many times they hit her, Sky just kept coming. She summoned a scythe out of her which she used to slice the zombies down and even spat plasma blasts at them with her beak. The zombies blew apart as it blasted them away, leaving Sky in the middle of the field, panting and drooling a bit. Then, the evil energy subsided and the normal Skyler stood before her friends.

"Wow, remind me never to piss you off," Landshark said, flabbergasted.

"That's what I said the first time I saw her do that," Theo pointed out.

"H-How did you do that?!" Wave asked with a look of pure shock.

Sky looked down and placed a wing on her abdomen. "A few months ago, I met a guy back on my planet who injected something inside of me. It causes me to lose my mind and go berserker against my enemies. I tried to take it out of my body but I couldn't. So instead, I'm trying to learn how to control it. Let's get moving now."

After calming down a bit, the group made their way up to the burial dome via a convenient ramp. They entered, finding an island of mettle in the middle of a bottomless pit. Stepping across the only bridge to the island, they looked around the massive structure. A computer screen floated down and Theo jumped off Sky's back to talk with it.

"Greetings to you, fellow technological being," the computer said. "Please, step aside while I eliminate the biological life forms following you."

At this, Sky and Landshark pulled out their weapons. "Cancel that," Theo immediately said.

"Elimination canceled," the computer said. Sky and Landshark sighed. Theo began speaking in the strange clicks and beeps of the robot language. After a moment, the computer replied in a normal fashion. "Self-destruct activated. Two minutes before detonation."

Sky grabbed Theo and all four of them ran away from the burial dome. Well out of range, they looked back to see the massive structure explode in a magnificent display of firepower that made Sky smile.

"Mission accomplished," Theo said as they were teleported back to the transport ship.

"Phew, we can finally catch our breath!" Landshark happily said as he dropped himself into the couch. However, after a few seconds, he felt a weight on his shoulder followed by a chirp. Turning his head slowly, he was surprised to see the young Porg he had given food to onto his shoulder.

"Hey! What are you doing here?!"

* * *

 **Yup, Sky's team is now caught with a Porg too. What can I say, I just love those little space puffins :3**

 **There was a lot of action in comparison to the previous chapter, right? Catacrom 4 has always been a fun planet in R:D for me. Killing robotic zombies is just so fun.**

 **And we saw Sky using the Outrage for the first time in TDA. For those of you unaware, it's a special power she possessed in Super Rio. It's a bit different in this story's context, but it will be fun to see nonetheless.**

 **Except that, have a nice day and I hope you'll be there for the next chapter.**


	359. Sarathos

**Greetings and, as always, thanks to all of you who took time to read and review my story.**

 **I'm not quite sure how long I'm gonna make this arc last. The idea was to put Sky and her friends through all the levels of Ratchet Deadlocked, but some of the levels just don't provide interesting enough stories to do anything with. So I may end up skipping a few ones.**

 **So, with all of that, I give you the fifth chapter of the Dreadzone arc.**

* * *

After destroying the burial dome on Catacrom 4, Sky had assumed her team would be going back to the Dreadstation, but they had spent three days on the transport ship which was longer than it would normally take to get back. Theo suggested that they must be going to another planet while Wave suggested they must have gone off-course and were about to die. Despite the swallow's pessimism, Sky felt better on the transport ship than back on the ground (or would-be ground) of Catacrom 4.

Sky and Landshark decided to pass time by practicing hand-to-hand combat with each other. Sky was really good thanks to her years of training in Ninjutsu with Master Yoshi, but Landshark was something else. He had obviously fought for his life with nothing but his hands and teeth more than once. Landshark taught Sky some useful tips for melee fighting and in return, Sky taught Landshark some tricks on fighting with weapons. But since the weapons were turned off in the transport ship, the elf owl could only try to explain as good as she could.

Meanwhile, Wave and Theo played a lot with the little Porg that Sky affectionately named "Bobby". While she and the others got attached to the space puffin's cuteness, Landshark found him rather annoying.

Around a day later, Vox came back on the TV screen, probably meaning they were close to the next planet. "Greetings, remaining heroes," he began. "Now that you are officially veterans of Dreadzone, we will not be holding back anymore. You are now being transported to a swamp infested planet called Sarathos. So put on your armor and your smile, you are always on camera during battles, so make it look good. I was very disappointed with some of you on Catacrom 4. I won't mention names, but our cameras caught some of you whining and crying." Vox let out a cough that sounded suspiciously like 'Hydro Girl'. "Now then, have fun and try to stay dry." Vox waved and the screen turned off.

"Cameras? What cameras?" Sky asked.

"Dreadzone is a popular TV show," Theo answered. "They use orbital cameras to watch our progress. I thought you knew that, Sky."

The ship entered Sarathos' atmosphere with a thump and then slowed to a lazy glide. Or so it felt like - here weren't any windows so they could only guess.

"Team Darkstar," said the intercom in the same robotic voice as before. "Prepare for drop."

"Who the hell is Team Darkstar?" Sky asked.

"Don't know," Landshark said. "Maybe it's those-" The floor fell away and they landed with a splash in the marsh.

"Damn it all!" Wave yelled as her beautiful feathers were covered in mud. "Can't you warn a girl?!"

Sky hefted her Arbiter onto her shoulder. "I think they did. We must be Team Darkstar."

"Nice name...," Landshark said, loading his Magma Cannon and cocking a shell into place. "What's our mission this time?"

Sky brought the faint hologram menu and informed them of what it read:

"Locate Puma assault vehicle, locate four lair keys, and destroy King Leviathan. Let's go; I don't like humid places like this."

"I do not like it either," Theo said, latching himself to Sky's back. "I will rust quickly in such an environment."

They headed down a trail that seemed to be on. Finding a swarm of strange sand shark-like creatures, Sky quickly took out her Dual Vipers and dispatched them. Even Wave got in on it this time and killed two with some punches.

They moved on until they found a small building guarded by two strange scorpion-like creatures pacing back and forth. Being natural inhabitants of the region, Sky thought they would be easily dispatched like the small swamp swarmers. But as she opened fire on the beasts, she knew she was sadly mistaken. Her puny plasma bolts only bounced off of the now obvious armor of the beasts. They charged the team and they looked very mad. They brought their tails forward as if to strike.

"Sky! I'm detecting high levels of light energy from their tails!" Theo quickly said.

"This means?" Sky asked as green energy swelled around the three-pronged tip of the monsters' tails.

"Lasers! Get down!" Theo shouted.

Used to obeying Theo's orders while in battle, Sky threw herself into the mud. She heard Landshark doing the same with a squishy splash. Green, burning lasers flew over their heads, just missing the tip of Sky's helmet. After the short assault, the elf owl leaped to her feet Arbiter in wing, and fired the powerful rocket. The rocket, easily finding its target, blew thick armored shell and slimy green bits everywhere. Landshark charged forward, unloading a few shots into the other beast's face, blowing away some of its armor, then, jumping onto its back, hammed his teeth into its neck and the creature fell dead.

"You know," Sky said, walking past him, "you can stop showing-off anytime."

Her visor was covered in mud and grass from hitting the dirt when under attack. The only reason she had hit the beast was by her HUD's red 'locked on' indicator. She tried to wipe it away but only made it worse as she discovered her clawed wing gloves were caked with mud as well. With a sigh, she pushed the button to lower the armor's helmet into the chest piece.

They approached the building to discover the door was locked. A quick rocket fixed that. With the door in pieces, they leaped in, guns ready to fight any enemy that they might find within.

They did.

Three DZ Strikers were waiting on a platform surrounded with thick goo. Sky switched to her Dual Vipers again and Landshark took the lead with his Magma Cannon. He tore into the first with several blasts of red-hot molten metal as Sky assaulted the other two with her Vipers. It took almost half of her ammo to take them both down. Just as she was about to complain about the low ammo count and the poor damage induced by the power of the guns, they began to glow white and shook violently. Their form changed before her eyes and they became larger. The guns spoke: Upgrade complete, added ammo, power, and ricochet ability. New name: Duel Raptors."

"Nice," Sky said with a grin.

"So that's true; weapons really gain experience as we use them and eventually evolve," Wave said with looking at Sky's new guns.

With that, they started down the trail leading out of the small enclosure. Outside the open backdoor was a leviathan guard. With a rocket firmly planted into the monster's head, they moved out onto the small platform it was guarding, now covered in green goo, to meet a truly discouraging sight.

A small trail built on a huge spinal column across the lake of the fowl smelling brown ooze that covered most of the area and along the trail were tons of DZ Strikers and at least four Executioners. To even get to the trail, they had to get past a stationary Stalker turret on their left that hadn't seen them yet.

"Say, Sky, think you can go all crazy again and get past those guys?" Landshark asked after analyzing their chances of success.

"No, unless I wanna lose my mind, I need to rest a bit," the elf owl replied.

"How long does it takes?"

"A few days."

"We don't have so much time!"

Sky jerked a bit because of his sudden change of tone, causing the Arbiter to fire and miss horribly, flying well over its intended target. The turret swung around to face them and the Gatling guns started running.

"Shit! Get into the building!" yelled Sky.

They bolted for the safety of the solid walls in the structure followed by a trail of red-hot plasma. They could hear the bolts peel away the outer wall of the building and they knew their cover wouldn't last long.

"If anyone has ideas, now would be a good time for them!" Sky shouted over the roar of the bullets.

"I have one," Theo said from Sky's back.

"Ok, shoot."

"Quickly," Landshark added, peaking around the corner. "It's recharging its mortars!"

"It is risky, but if Landshark can spin you around several times to pick up momentum and throw you at the turret, you can fire a rocket into the cockpit and hopefully destroy it in one shot," Theo explained.

"No time to discuss it!" Landshark said, grabbing Sky's wings. "It's firing!"

Landshark pulled Sky out into the open as six plasma mortars plowed through the roof of their cover and exploded with a ground-splitting bang. Landshark grabbed Sky's ankle along with her wing and began to swing her around before the turret could reposition itself.

"H-Hey! If you or I miss, we're screwed!" Sky shouted while getting spun around.

Landshark's answer was simple: "Then don't miss!"

And he released Sky toward the turret. Theo used his thrusters to turn Sky around and face the turret that she raced toward. The elf owl struggled to get the Arbiter into place on her shoulder.

"Shit, shit, shit, shit," she repeated over and over again.

Finally, she got the weapon into position just as the turret was below her and she fired directly into the cockpit. The carbonox-armor-piercing rocket easily shattered the reinforced glass of the mighty turret and, much to the dismay of the operators, exploded right in the middle display board inside, sending shrapnel and pieces of mettle everywhere. Sky landed behind the flaming stump of the turn rod that was once part of the turret.

"Nice flying!" Landshark called about forty feet back.

"Should we call that the 'Skyfall'?" Wave quickly added from behind the two-legged shark.

Sky sighed and shook her head. "You really suck at finding names, Wave."

* * *

 **Yeah, I ended the chapter before they made it off the planet. You'll just have to read the next chapter to see how they deal with the bone trial and the trials of the highlands.**

 **Until then, stay cool ;)**


	360. Sarathos part 2

Sky brushed herself off. Landshark and Wave walked over to her with the former shouldering his Magma Cannon and gesturing with his head to move on. They walked up to the trail made from the spine of god-knows-what. Apparently, the thing had died on its back because the ribs lined the sides of the makeshift trail. Below them, the strange brown ooze that created the disgusting lake they crossed churned and bubbled.

"I sure don't want to know what those bones belonged to," Wave said frightfully. "Cause it's relatives are probably still around here somewhere." The swallow shivered at her own idea.

"Don't worry, Wave," Landshark said. "It's probably just a fossil or something. We haven't seen anything that big since we got here and I don't think it can hide in such low lands."

"Yeah, right, sure," Wave answered, not sounding too reassured.

"Shhh," hissed Skyquietly ahead of them, hiding behind a rib bone and pointing ahead.

Landshark pressed his back against a rib bone on the opposite side of Sky and a bit further back. Looking toward where Sky was pointing, he saw two Executioners standing guard on either side of the bone trail and three DZ Strikers on top of the conjoined ribs above them. One of them held a strange long-barreled gun.

"Okay, here's the plan," Sky whispered. "We charge the two Executioners and knock them off the bones. Then, we shoot the base of the ribs to make the DZ Strikers fall too. Ok?" Landshark nodded to her. "Alright, let's go on three."

Sky held a clawed wing toward Landshark so he could see it.

One feather went up. An Executioner scratched his nose.

Two feathers were up. A DZ Striker yawned.

Three feathers up.

Sky and Landshark charged forward, yelling at the top of their lungs. Sky in the lead took the first Executioner by surprise and slammed her wrench into its would-be guts, causing it to double over. then, using a move Landshark taught her, she leaped back on her wing and kicked with both legs, effectively pushing the Executioner off the bone trail into the slimy, sticky mess of the lake. The elf owl turned around to see Landshark sidekick the other one in the chin, knocking its head off clean. The body fell to its knees; Landshark pushed it into the lake and then pulled out his Magma Cannon. He nodded to Sky who shouldered her Arbiter. They both fired a round into the base of the rib ringlet and the bone exploded into fragments, bouncing off Sky's armor with soft dry clunks. Landshark guarded his eyes and leaped back. The bones separated and fell into the messy goo with a loud slosh.

Sky noticed that no dark-orange armored DZ Strikers had fallen into the mud with the bone. She glanced up to see all three of them flying above her, supported by jetpacks. The one with the strange long-barreled gun already had his weapon aimed at Landshark.

"Landshark, look out-" Sky began but it was too late.

A loud crack filled the air and echoed around a bit. Landshark's shoulder exploded from a laser beam. He yelled in pain and fell to the ground. Sky leaped to stand over him and took out her Duel Raptors. She opened fire on the DZ Strikers, fire that they returned. The elf owl let her armor taking the punishment, preventing the bolts from hitting Landshark and blasted the Strikers to the sky. They fell with a metallic scream and splashed into the lake to join their fallen comrades. Sky turned around to Landshark and leaned over him. The two-legged shark sat up and fell back with a yell, holding his shoulder in pain. Crimson liquid was slipping through the cracks in his armor. Wave was yelling something but Sky ignored her.

"How bad is it?" the swallow asked.

"Not too bad. I'll bleed but I'll be okay," Landsahrk replied through clenched teeth.

"Can you stand?" Sky asked her friend.

"Yes. Just give me your wing."

Sky grabbed Landshark's good arm and lifted him up. With a groan, the two-legged shark was on his feet again. He wavered a moment then walked over to pick up his Magma Cannon. He faltered, almost plunging head-first into the smelly goo. Sky caught him in time and stood him up.

"Here, take a minute to rest," Sky said with sitting him down against one of the ribs.

"You...don't have...a minute," Landshark said, weakly pointing skyward behind Sky.

About thirty of the other DZ Strikers from the trail were lazily floating their way toward the team. They were readying their weapons to open fire.

"Shit!" Sky mumbled and shouldered her Arbiter. "Theo."

"Yes?" the little robot replied from her back.

"Guard Landshark. Let me know if you need help. You too, Wave," she added, sensing the swallow's comment before it came.

The elf owl activated the laser guide to help the rockets find their mark. She aimed at the most condensed part of the sloppy formation and fired. The rocket exploded with a defining roar and shrapnel littered the top of the lake for a moment before it sank into its deaths. Sky recharged and chose another target. She fired and once again the rocket blew away the strikers with no resistance. The remaining battle bots continued to press forward. In a few seconds, they would be within firing range.

"Damn," Sky mumbled as she reloaded. She wasn't killing them fast enough and they were still out of Duel Raptors range. The elf owl finished reloading and fired at the firs tone she saw, which was a mistake. The rocket only killed the single target because of its distance from the formation. Sky glanced at the digital ammo count on the weapon.

Only four left. She reloaded the gun and looked up to fire again, only to find hundreds of laser bolts coming at her. She yelped and rolled the other way. Jumping to her left, she launched a rocket, missing her target entirely. She rolled again to dodge the incoming storm before jumping to her feet and trying to reload the Arbiter, but was forced to move again.

"Three left," Sky though and reloaded the gun quickly.

Now, they were on the trail coming to her while the others hovered around the edges of the trail, firing at their small, feathered target. She was surrounded. Sky dodged what she could and took a lot of hits to her armor. She fired two rockets at the ones who had landed and blew them all away. She reloaded as fast as she could and readied to find a new target. More landed on the trail and ran toward her.

"My last one," Sky mumbled to herself.

She fired her last rocket into the crowd and robot pieces rained around her. She put the Arbiter away and took out her Duel Raptors. The DZ Strikers hovered back away as she unloaded them into their ranks but not into a full out retreat.

Sky blasted more and more of them away but they just kept coming. Finally, she heard the fatal click from her guns, meaning there was no ammo left to save her. Sky put the guns that had served her so well in the past few weeks away and pulled out her trusty wrench from her belt. If this is how she was going to die, then she would go down fighting, taking as many of those bastards down as she could.

"Sorry, everyone," she mumbled to herself, thinking about all the ones she cared about. "Sorry, Lilly, Kowalski, Sparky, Master Yoshi, Ryker, Tiny, Hario, Aqua, everyone I never thought I would die in space fighting in a deadly show." After taking a deep breath, she glared at the strikers. "COME ON!"

They returned her shout with bullets that she dodged. One came close and she threw her wrench at it, clipping one of the thrusters and sending him flying around in uncontrolled spirals until he hit the brown ooze. One tried to sneak up on her from behind but aided by her acute hearing, Sky moved just in time to avoid a gun butt to the back of her head and bring the heavy wrench down on its neck.

They moved in for the kill now. Sky kept them at bay with some wild swinging of her wrench but knew it was useless. Suddenly, the one in front of her lost its head with a loud clang and fell to the ground. A flying piece of metal rounded and flew back to where it came from. A blue figure caught it easily in one hand and flipped it up and down.

"Wanna try for two?" she asked. She was an aquatic-like creature with blue skin and small twin antennas on top of her head and dark, almost black long hair tied in a ponytail. She wore a dark blue under armor that fit snugly. She was a little smaller than Landshark by about two inches. She flipped forward into the group next to Sky who was completely taken aback by her new ally.

"Hey, name's Aqua Girl. I like flowers, especially blue roses from Florana, chocolate - but not caramel - my favorite color is green and I'm 23," she quickly said while looking at the Strikers. "Now that we've had our first date, let's get to the fun part!" She smiled at the elf owl, holding her four-winged boomerang dangerously.

Sky took a moment before taking her fighting stance. "Let's," she said with an evil smile.

They launched in opposite directions over the battle bots. Sky landed behind two of them and swung her wrench around behind her, blowing out their knees and sending them into the solid bone of the trail. She then smashed their heads in with two quick slams of her wrench. She charged into the group, swinging wildly.

Meanwhile, Aqua Girl threw her blade with deadly accuracy, decapitating anything in the path. She was probably used to close range weapon too. With a flick of the wrist, it collapsed into a double-bladed knife and she lashed out both armor and gears with ease. In no time, nothing but robot parts and armor plats threatened them.

"Hell yeah! We rock!" yelled the aquatic alien. she held out her hand for a high-five which Sky gladly accepted. "You're Skyler, aren't you?" she asked. "You must be, no other avian creature fights like you. You're a ninja from planet Earth right?"

"Yeah, that's me," Sky said with a nod.

"Very cool."

Suddenly, the lower half of a DZ Striker launched at her from behind, its deadly claws aimed at her heart. There was no time to react. Then, just as its claws were about to cut her flesh, its head exploded from a laser beam accompanied by a loud crack that echoed across the lake and came from behind the elf owl. Sky turned to see Landshark holding the strange barrel gun that belonged to the DZ Striker.

"Do...I...always...have...to...save...your...butt..." He wheezed and dropped the gun. Sky walked over to him and checked the wound. It was bleeding really bad and Landshark was going into shock.

"That's bad," Sky nervously said. She thought for a moment about what to do. She needed something to fix his shoulder but had no med kit with her. Dreadzone should have included one with their armors.

"Here, let me help," Aqua Girl said.

She pulled out a tool and released a small bit of flame onto the wound, effectively cauterizing the bloody hole. Landshark winced in pain as the flame touched his skin and quickly relaxed as the wound lost any feeling. Sky stared at her friend for some moment, wondering what to do when it suddenly hit her.

"Theo! Do you still have my emergency medical equipment?"

"Yes, of course! How could I have forgotten?" Theo said.

He opened the small port leading to his compression storage area and went to work on ameliorating Landshark's state. But it wasn't enough. The two-legged shark's shoulder was still torn up, but at least, it wouldn't bleed anymore.

"Ok, Landshark," Sky said with pulling her shoulder under his good arm. "Up we go." She lifted Landshark up and hefted him onto her shoulder (which was a feat, considering her size).

"I got a Puma not too far. Let's get him there," Aqua Girl said with motioning Sky to follow her.

"What's a Puma?" Sky asked as she carried Landshark along with Wave helping.

"It's a light-armored assault vehicle. It works can of like a land car but it has guns."

"Oh right, that's one of our missions. To locate the Puma Assault Vehicle," Sky said with checking her mission menu. It currently had the Puma Assault Vehicle and Locate the Four Lair Keys missions checked off. "Hey, do you have the lair keys to something?"

"Huh, why?"

"Because we don't have them and it's marked off on my mission log," Sky replied, shifting Landshark a bit.

"Yeah, I got one. I was going to the Leviathan King's lair when I saw all the DZ Strikers heading into one direction. I followed them and found you," Aqua Girl explained. "Look, there's my Puma." She pointed to a small land car ahead on the end of the bone bridge.

They loaded Landshark into the passenger side of the front cockpit. Wave joined him and sat on his lap. Sky got into the gunner's seat in the second cockpit while Aqua Girl hopped into the driver seat of the front cockpit.

"Ok, Aqua Girl," Sky said over the COM link in the vehicle. "Let's go kill that King Leviathan and get Landshark out of here."

"Sounds like a plan, but you can call me Aquill."

"In that case, call me Sky," she replied with a smile which Aquill returned.

Aquill floored the gas pedal and the Puma launched forward. They passed some of the strange scorpion-like creatures which Sky assumed must have been the regular Leviathans and shot a few. Finally, they were heading up a ramp into a cave mouth. They reached a door and Aquill got out and turned the keys. The door slid open and they moved on into the cave. They didn't go far as the cave opened into a massive chamber filled with the brown goo and several islands around it. Sky hopped off the Puma along with Aquill and Theo who attached himself to Sky's back as usual.

"Wave, you stay here and look after Landshark," Sky said.

"Alright," the swallow said with a nod as the cockpit shut. Sky checked the ammo bay and recharged her weapons.

"Okay, let's do this," she said and leaped onto the first island.

Aquill was right behind her. As they entered the chamber, the goo at the far end of the chamber churned and flowed. Sky pointed out the spot to Aquill and got down on one knee to fire her Arbiter. She launched the rocket into the spot and watched as it went under the goo. With a muffled boom and a huge bubble that formed and fell in the goo, she knew she had hit the mark. A roar echoed through the cave and a large tail shot out of the liquid just in front of Sky. The same energy at the end of the Leviathan's tail formed on it.

"Move!" Sky yelled before she and Aquill jumped in different directions.

The huge beam blasted the island they were on and it went up in flames. Sky realized they weren't islands; they were plants. Much like lily pads. Meaning the massive creature could move around uninhibited by low depth. The tail went under again and Sky looked at Aquill.

"Careful, it could come out anywhere!" she shouted.

And as if it had accepted the invitation, it reared up next to Aquill head-first, wailing its pincers opened wide. Sky launched a rocket at it but realized it wouldn't arrive soon enough. Then, from out of nowhere came Aquill's boomerang-blade which sliced off its right pincer. The monster roared in frustration and slid back into the brown liquid. Sky's rocket hit the wall behind it and it exploded with massive force, echoing several times and making Sky's ears ring.

Then, a stalactite hit the goo just off to her left with a sploosh. Sky looked at Aquill who smiled back. Now they had a real plan. Sky moved to another lily pad to confuse the monster and so did Aquill. Suddenly, it appeared right in front of Sky as she was getting ready to leap to the next pad. she fired the Arbiter into the ruff and the explosion caused the stalactites to fall in waves. The sharp rocks impaled the creature over and over again, making it roar in pain. Green blood seeped out around the rocks and with a moan, it slid back into the goo.

From Sky's armor computer came the long awaited phrase: mission accomplished.


	361. Pay-per-view on Kronos

It has been a good two days since Sky had left the surface of Sarathos, her armor covered in muck and Landshark's blood. She hadn't been able to repair the helmet's retract function since she had gotten mud caked on the visor. Retracting the helmet had caused the mud to get jammed in the suit, sticking the helmet down and jamming it into place. She hadn't seen Landshark in that time either. When they had teleported back into the transport ship, Landshark and Aquill hadn't been with Sky, Theo, and Wave. The female swallow was genuinely worried about her friend, constantly asking questions Sky had no answers for.

Finally, Landshark showed up about 2:00 am DZ time with his arm in a sling and his shoulder expertly wrapped and treated with care. Wave launched herself at the shark, yelling incoherent things about never doubting him. Landshark explained that the Dreadzone physicians had taken care of his arm quickly and easily. "We've seen much worse," they said. Unfortunately, he wouldn't be much use in battle for some time. His arm had nearly been blasted off by the powerful rifle. If it hadn't been for Sky's quick thinking with Theo's medical use, Landshark would have likely lost his arm. Landshark thanked his elf owl friend and wanted to thank Aquill as well but they had no idea where she was or how to contact her. So they just sat and waited for their next drop, planning what to do with Landshark for the next round.

He couldn't hold a gun and his movement was fairly limited due to the pain. They ultimately decided to just keep Landshark in the background for the time being. Landshark wasn't very happy with this decision but didn't have much choice in the matter.

Three days after Landshark returned, Theo was able to get the large monitor in the room to work. They were now able to watch television to pass time. Unfortunately, the only channel they got was the Vox Channel. The shows were fairly lame. "Desperate Blarg Wives", "Who Wants To Be a Hero?", "Dark Galaxy Idol", and "Find The R.Y.N.O." But with nothing better to do, they watched anyways. During a commercial break in one of the shows, an advertisement came from Dreadzone:

"Some call her the owl from hell...," said the dramatic voice as a picture of a wrench flying into a DZ Striker's head was shown. Then a DZ Striker with a plate on his head came on as if being interviewed. "It was terrible!" he confessed. "She came out of nowhere! 1886 and I were just standing on the platform and BAM! he was down. BAM! I was down. It was over! I've never seen such carnage!"

The camera faded out. "Some call her the Butcher." Another DZ Striker came on - this one mostly made from repair parts. "There was nothing we could do!" he said. "I was just about to start firing at her and shit started blowing up. I don't know..." He faded out.

"But this week, you will call her past," said the voice and rock music started playing. "The Owl From Hell, the Butcher, Skyler The Killer will be going head-to-head with the mighty Shellshock!"

A robot came on the screen. He is a large, green and metallic warbot with an appearance similar to a Mega Bot. His face is similar to that of a skull, while his upper body is given thick armament covering his shoulders. Two missile launches also feature on both of his shoulder blades. He also carries a cigar with him on the left side of his face.

"I vill crush the tiny creature," he said in a strange German accent. "She vill never know vhat hit her. He, he, he." Shellshock faded out and an explosion filled the screen.

"She broke the rules and now she's going to pay... On Dreadzone! Watch it only on Pay-per-view!"

"What?!" Sky exclaimed after the commercial. "What did I do? I didn't break any rules! Did I?" She looked over to Theo.

The little robot cleared his throat. "Chapter 6, section 8 in the Dreadzone Rules of Conduct book states: 'No hero or heroine can interfere, aid, or otherwise come in contact with another hero, heroine, or team that is not determined to be their partner under any circumstances during an official Dreadzone mission unless otherwise instructed to do so under penalty of extermination," Theo explained. "It seems accepting help from Aquill has qualified you for extermination, Sky."

"But _she_ helped _me_ ," argued Sky.

"Yes, but we are not the ones making the rules, Sky. You know as well as I do that the people in charge of Dreadzone about what is fair or just; they only want ratings. A one-on-one match with Shellshock and the "Owl From Hell" would surely bring in a lot of ratings and a lot of money. Besides," Theo shrugged, "Aquill will likely be punished as well, unfortunately."

* * *

Several hours later, Sky received a message that she was to be ready for battle in two days. Her team would not be aiding her in her mission against Shellshock but would be given free admission to the pay-per-view live show.

"Nice," Wave said. "We can't help but we can watch and wish we could." She sat down with a huff. "I hate this stupid place, and if I ever meet the guy in charge of this insanity, I'm gonna put my foot right up his..."

"Cool it, Wave," Landshark said. "Sky can take care of herself."

"Yeah, I've been up against worse," the elf owl confirmed.

However, she wasn't really sure if this was true. For all she knew, Shellshock could be stuffed with nuclear missiles but it seemed to calm Wave down a bit. Theo didn't seem disturbed by any of this. When Sky asked him about it, he said: "You have done crazier things without me on your back. I have complete confidence in you, Sky." That made the elf owl feel better. She knew Theo didn't rely much on "hopes" or "wishes". He was all about cold-hard facts and if Theo said it could be done, Sky believed him.

Sky spent the next few days with the television, watching Shellshock's old battles. It seemed he had guns and such bit didn't use them as a major part of his arsenal. From watching the videos, it was apparent that Shellshock liked to herd the hero or heroine between him and a wall or a cliff or anything else he could back them up against. Then he would start to smash them with his bare hands. It seemed that close combat was his strong point. Sky made a mental note to not get close to him, keep on the move, and don'T get stuck between the battle-bot and a hard place.

The transport ship lurched and shuttered as it came into Kronos' atmosphere - the place where Sky was to fight Shellshock. She prepared her armor and had Theo and Landshark check it out. Wave was even able to help. She somehow managed to remove the mud from her armor and get her helmet able to be used again. She thanked them all for their help and started making her mental prepping.

"Attention, Skyler," said the voice over the intercom. "Prepare for teleportation in 20 minutes."

"Well, here I go, guys," Sky said. "Wish me good luck."

"No worries, girl," Landshark said with giving a thumb up.

"Good luck, Sky. Take care and watch your back," Theo said. Sky nodded to him and felt the tingle sensation of getting teleported.

Within seconds, she rematerialized on a platform. Quickly taking in her surroundings, she saw that this place was a pretty dark city. The platform sat above water on pillars and the buildings rose up and out of the water. Everything was, in short, suspended above what appeared to be an endless ocean. It was raining hard and the dark clouds blocked out what little light came to the night side of the planet.

Sky flicked the button to activate her helmet with a small groan as it broke away from the last of the dried mud and snapped up over her head. She was blinded only for a moment just before the screen clicked on and ran through a self-diagnostic in seconds. Then, she switched to the night-vision mode.

"Welcome, Skyler," said a voice over her COM link. She recognized it as Shellshock's. "This is very rare they zey have chosen for me to exterminate you, but I decided to spice things up a bit. I personally don't sink you are vorthy of me, so I have set up a test to see if you are. I've locked myself in the center building; you have to get the key from my men zat I've placed all over ze zity. Good luck, little bird, I'll be waiting for you." Then the link clicked off.

"Great," Sky sarcastically mumbled. She checked her mission menu and it said: "Defeat Shellshock".

Sky then noticed that all of her and Landshark's weapons were in her quick-select. Good, this will be very useful. She brought out her trusty Duel Raptors and started walking down the path that the platform made. She made her way to a vacant plasma turret, standing by it a moment to see if anything would happen, but nothing did, so she moved on quickly. The path veered left a 90-degree angle straight toward the center building. On the left of the path was a smaller structure. As she got closer, Sky noticed heat signatures inside the building on her mini-map. She saw that if they attacked, it would likely be a more close quarter battle. She therefore switched to the Magma Cannon.

Then, to take them by surprise, she ran and rolled sideways, facing the opening that led to the structure. The beasts were taken by complete surprise and Sky blew them away in two shots with no problem. They were not DZ Strikers like she had thought they would be. For a moment of horror, she thought perhaps locals inhabited this place and she had shot innocent bystanders, but then realized that they had blades on their four arms, kind of like a reverse praying mantis.

Her fears released, she switched back to the Duel Raptors and started to move into the building, but glanced down the trail she was on and saw movement close to the door of the main complex where Shellshock was supposedly waiting. She switched to the weapon Landshark had acquired during the last mission. She had learned from Theo that it was called the Fusion Rifle. Using the scop and her HUD zoom quality, she took a closer look.

She saw about 20 DZ Strikers and 4 of the large Executioner robots guarding the door. She sighed. "This Shellshock guy seems scared of me. Good." She smirked behind her helmet.

That might give her an advantage. She put the rifle away. She could have easily shot the DZ Strikers and the Executioners, but didn't have enough ammo to kill them all, figuring she would need them for later. She would deal with them later.

She headed into the small structure where the beasts had been and found it was more like a terrace to keep out of the rain. The path ran straight through it and out on the other side. She shrugged and passed through it. Then, something caught her eye. A dropship was dropping DZ Strikers into a round, walled arena and then sped off. Sky contemplated shooting the ship for a moment, but decided to go with stealth for now. Firing at the ship would likely invite its wrath upon her and give away her position. She noticed another plasma turret guarding what appeared to be the entrance to the walled arena, only this one was manned. She switched to the rifle again and took aim. A loud crack filled the air and reverberated off the large main complex. The Striker never knew what hit him. Sky passed the turret casually and kicked the Striker's body away as she walked by.

Then, the gray part of the arena wall slid open with a snap and several of the bladed beasts ran out at him in ranking formation. Sky started and flipped backward into the turret. It activated at her touch and she pulled the triggers, hurling plasma balls at the enemy as they approached. They fell before her barrage of plasma like grass to a weed-wacker.

Sky left the turret and cautiously stepped into the walled area. It was apparent now that it was an arena. That suited Sky. She had seen this kind of challenge before. As she entered the arena and passed over the grey gate, she noticed a closed gate on the other side of the circle. The one behind her snapped shut.

"Shit, "Sky mumbled and lifted the Magma Cannon into position.

DZ Strikers poured out of hidden compartments in the walls and floor. Several trap doors opened around Sky. She filled holes around her with molten metal shots from the Magma Cannon and decided this place was as good as any to defend from the oncoming attack. With the wall to her back, she could see all of her opponents at once. She switched to the Duel Raptors and started to unload on the wave of opponents. They scrambled to get out of the way and some even returned the fire. Sky easily dodged their hasty projectiles. Soon, nothing but robot parts littered the arena.

Then, she detected another wave of dropships inbound on her heat sensors. She took out the Arbiter and got on one knee. The first one flew over the wall and found a rocket waiting for it. The carbonox-armor-piercing projectile slammed into the cockpit's frail glass and exploded, sending a column of fire out of the front, blasting the front end off in the process. The ship crashed, pilotless. The other ship strafed past him, firing rockets in Sky's direction. The rockets weren't near as fast or powerful as the Arbiter's and lazily hit nothing but the metal platform as they sailed past Sky. She loaded another rocket and fired. The powerful projectile blasted into the side panel of the ship (that also happened to be one of the exit doors for the robots to get out) and made a major dent into it. It wasn't enough to take the ship down but the pilot obviously decided it was safer to be away from the rocket-wielding elf owl and flew off, smoke trailing from its left panel.

The door at the back of the arena opened, revealing a Stalker turret swiveling around, trying to find its prey. It spotted Sky after a moment and the gauntlet guns began to spin, signaling it was going to fire. Sky side-stepped the deadly plasma barrage and hid behind the safety of the arena wall. Confident she was out of mortar range, Sky took her time reloading the Arbiter and stood for a moment to catch her breath. She could hear the turret swiveling around, trying to get an angle on her. Just then, she saw a floating device flying around the arena. Sky cocked an eyebrow under her helmet and used her HUD zoom feature to get a closer look. Upon closer inspection, she found that it was an armored camera. It had its len squarely pointed at her, and at the moment Sky had seen it, it dipped behind the wall.

"Weird," Sky said. "I wonder how long it has been following me and why I didn't notice before now."

Thinking back, Sky realized she had been on camera every time she had been on a mission. She had never noticed before now but the strange movement she was always seeing that made her jump was the cameras. She had thought she was just seeing things and was just jumpy so she never told the others of what she had seen.

She made a note of it and shouldered the Arbiter. She ran out back in the open, strafing the turret and unloaded two rockets into the deadly machine. It exploded beautifully and sent the operators' lifeless shells flying.

Satisfied with her work, she headed in the direction of the flaming stump that was the remains of the turret. She stepped over it and made her way onto the slightly raised platform behind her. There, she found a blue key-card. The elf owl picked and examined it up. It was the same blue as the main complex that stood behind her. She would have likely missed it, had her HUD not pointed it out to her since the path was also of a similar color. On the card, in white, it said "1 of 2".

Sky sighed. "There's never just one card, is there?"

She saw that the platform had a power cable connected to it that ran somewhere else. She was about to jump onto the cable when something caught her eye down the line. She squinted to see then zoomed in. There was a platform next to the cable, floating in mid-air, likely from hover pads on the bottom. And on the platform was a DZ Striker with a Fusion Rifle. He seemed to be trying to take an aim at Sky, so she dropped to her belly with a metallic clank as the metal of her armor met that of the platform she was on.

She got her Fusion Rifle from the quick-select and took aim swiftly. She squeezed the trigger slowly, keeping her aim true. The thin column of energy shot straight through the Striker's power core in the center of its chest. The Striker clutched its chest for a moment as if it had been shot in the heart (which it technically was). Then, locked up as stiff as a board, it fell over in the water. Sky followed the rail with her scope and found two more Strikers along the way. She quickly sent beams of energy through their chests as well, then got to her feet, put the rifle away in favor of her Duel Raptors, and leaped onto the trail.

The rail went well until Sky heard the sound of teleportation behind her. She looked back and saw two DZ Strikers fly past her on either side. They flew in front of her and opened fire. Sky leaned and jumped to dodge the fiery bolts but against her best efforts, she still took some hits. Her armor absorbed most of the damage but she could feel painful burns on her skin despite the protection. With a yell of frustration, she unleashed a furry of her own from the Raptors. Her targets were extremely hard to hit due to their ability to move as they pleased, and the rail's constant swerving and dripping beneath her, but eventually they fell from the sky, torn by the Raptors' powerful rain of death.

The trail came to an end on another platform. This one was long - almost like a landing strip, and led straight to another arena. Sky could see the turret guard from where she stood. She used the Fusion Rifle to kill it easily, blasting its head clean off with a single shot just like the other one. Then, she heard the roar of dropships around her. She shouldered the Arbiter quickly but too late. The ships dropped their loads of DZ Strikers on the path and flew off at full speed. There were twelve of them and they all charged at Sky at once. She was just about to pull the trigger of the Arbiter so they might see whatever hell robots went to, when a black ball about the size of a soccer ball flew out from the crowd.

Sky stared. She recognized it as a grenade-launcher-like weapon. Once it hit the ground, it would erupt in a fiery holocaust. If the explosion didn't kill her, the fall off the platform by the blast would. The elf owl looked around for where to dodge but the platform was just too small to evade such a wide range weapon. Acting on impulse, Sky pulled her wrench from her belt and swung hard at the ball of tightly packed explosives. She hit it with great force and it raced back to the incoming slew of robots. They all looked up at the ball that was descending on them quickly, glowing eyes wide. Frozen by their surprise, none was able to come out of their stupor in time to evade the explosion that rocked the very foundation of the platform.

Shrapnel from the remains of the battle-bots and the black ball rained down on Sky, bouncing off her armor harmlessly. Then, something orange caught her eye. She realized it was the source of the explosive soccer ball and reached out her wing to extend a hyper-shot energy cable to it. The gun flew into the wings of Sky and she gave it a good look. Her HUD displayed the data on it:

B6 Obliterator

Ammo capacity: 6

Damage: 5-10

Firing rate: 1 per 4 seconds

Weapon style: grenade launcher

Sky nodded in satisfaction and added the weapon to her quick-select. She walked toward the arena and the grey door slid open just like the last one. Several of the bladed beasts swarmed out and Sky tested her new weapon on them. It blew them off the platform clean and she looked around at the arena. She wasn't really looking to another episode of arena battle with more DZ Strikers. She happened to glance down at her gloves and noticed the claws on them. "I wonder...," she said to herself and put her grenade launcher away.

She approached the wall of the arena and jammed her feathers into the metal. Her claws slid into it easily. She smiled under her helmet and began climbing up the wall and soon stood upon the overlooking top of the interior. She carefully walked along the narrow wall and soon found her way to the opposite end of the ring.

After long, she found the second key, meaning she was ready to get to the main building. "Watch out, Shellshock, here I come..."

* * *

 **A lot of action here, isn't there? I always liked Kronos and its dark atmosphere. My friend and I played so much on that map when we were younger.**

 **So, Sky has commited a "crime" and is on her own against a series of trial which she successfully passed. She won a new weapon and is now about to go face the first Exterminator, Shellshock. Do you think she will survive?**


	362. Face to face with Shellshock

Sky thought about her strategy to take out Shellshock. Her best bet was to stay away from the homicidal maniac and blast him with all she had. Not too fancy of a strategy but that was the best she could come up with the info she had. The end of the trail came into view; it let out just next to the main door of the dark cathedral with about 20 DZ Strikers and 4 Executioners standing guard. She was about to open fire when a crackle came over her headset:

"Sky...can...hear...me?" said the fuzzy voice.

"Huh? Say again, I don't copy," she replied.

"Sky, can you hear me?" Theo said over the radio.

"Yes, I can. Theo, how did you-"

"There's no time to explain. I can see you and everything around. So listen to my instructions."

"Theo, I don't have time. The Strikers-"

"...are decoy, Sky," Theo finished for her. "A Hovership is waiting for you just above the edge of the cathedral's entrance. Do not engage the enemy here; it is the signal the ship is waiting for."

Sky thought quickly. The rail ended just above the Strikers. If she went all the way off, she would land smack dab in the middle of them. What to do? She looked at the claws of her armor and then it hit her. She jumped off the trail only ten feet before it ended. She reached as far out as she could and found her mark. The sharp claws of the armor dug deep into the edge of the platform. There, she hung only three feet from an Executioner who absently scratched its head and yawned.

"Good work, Sky!" Theo said. "I could not have thought of a better strategy myself!"

"Ok, now what, Theo? I'm kind of in a tight spot here." She turned off the outer speaker so that the robots wouldn't hear her.

"Do not go through the main entrance, Sky. It is rigged with a trap."

"So how am I supposed to get in there?"

"The only other way in is a hangar under the temple itself at the center. It is used to deliver and transport supplies in and out of it. The keys you have will open it but you will have to climb under the temple."

"What do I look like, Theo? Spiderman?"

"It is the only way. If you open that door, the explosion is sure to kill you."

"Ok, ok, I'll see what I can do."

"Excellent. I'm closing our connection now so that we don't get caught."

"Alright. Sky out."

She heard the radio click off. Then, wing over wing, she shuffled left to the temple's underside, slamming her claws into the mettle to hang on. The Strikers didn't even flinch at the sound she was making. Eventually, she made it to the end of the platform just under the door. There was no way she could climb down the underside of the temple. It was curved like a dome. Once she reached the part that was facing down, she would fall. Sky found herself wishing she WAS Spiderman but such thought only distracted her and she focused again. She examined the bottom of the temple and noticed several cords that led from the edge of the temple to the underside. The closest one to her was a good thirty feet ahead of her and fifty feet down. If she could get just enough momentum...

Sky began to swing back and forth until she felt she was moving a good amount, then let go. She flew under the platform, the wind whispering death in her ears (well, the speakers on the outside). The cable came up fast and she reached out, her wing snagging the cable. She could hear the suit's mechanics straining to obey her command to hang on. She slid down the cable at an alarming speed and could feel the heat from the friction on her armored wing. She reached the part of the cable that started back up to the temple and hung there with one wing, dangling over the water that promised a quick end.

Sky swung her legs up and wrapped them onto the cable, grasping it with all she had. Then, she began to shimmy up to the other end of the cable that led to the center of the temple where the entrance would be.

Sky smiled under her helmet. "I can hear it now. Unbelievable, she's under the temple, folks! Oh, mercy, what can't this owl do?!" she mimicked the announcer.

She reached the opening to the hangar and took out the key cards. They flashed once and the door opened. Sky swung herself back and forth again before flipping into the opening, landing on her feet in a crouching position. She took out the Duel Raptors and surveyed the area. Several drop shields filled the hangar that was about one hundred feet long and two hundred feet tall. No enemies were in sight. She made her way at a sprint to the exit door and flew down the hallway. She wanted to move and fast. There was no telling how many alarms her secret entrance had set off. She ran as fast as she could down the halls, looking into rooms until she saw a sign reading: "Main entrance".

"Ten pizzas that he's waiting for me there."

She skid around the corner and found herself looking at a shear droop. She stopped only inches from the edge, waving her wings to stay balanced. She managed to catch herself and let out a sigh of relief. The opening led down into a circular room that had a ramp leading up to the opening she was in. Down in the room was Shellshock, completely obvious to the elf owl's presence. Sky lifted the Arbiter onto her shoulder and took aim.

"This one's for you," she said under her breath and let loose a rocket.

The explosion reverberated off the walls of the cathedral and hurt Sky's ears. She heard a monstrous roar from down in the room. Through the fire and the smoke came Shellshock, a twisted sneer on his robotic face and guns in his hands.

Sky turned and ran down the hall again. She could hear Shellshock's huge steps right behind her. The elf owl turned and fired the rocket launcher again, the rocket exploding into the huge bot's chest but he still kept coming. Sky shot all the rockets she had at him but to no avail. Shellshock's armor was badly damaged but he didn't seem to bother much.

"Time to die, little furry one!" he said.

Sky switched to the Duel Raptors and opened fire. The plasma tore into his armor and slowed him down a bit but he kept coming. Finally, they ran out of ammo with a click. Sky unloaded everything she had at him. The Magma Cannon and Fusion Rifle both didn't stop the homicidal robot.

Sky turned and ran for her life. She outdistanced the slower robot easily and came out into the hangar again. She dove behind a drop-ship to think about her strategy. She had nothing left to shoot. What could she do? Sky took out her wrench and examined it. Her last resort. The only thing that stood between her and death. It was well-polished and reflected the light of the hangar.

"Well, if I'm going down..."

Suddenly, Shellshock's heavy steps could be heard in the hangar. "Come on, little feathered one! I'm not going to hurt you; you'll be dead before you can feel anything!"

Sky climbed up the side of the drop-ship she was hiding behind and onto its roof. Shellshock had his back to her, looking under another ship. Sky leaped onto the robot's back and this last one reared back in surprise, the elf owl beginning to hack his head with her wrench. Each hit felt like a nice dent in the back of his head.

"Argh! Get off me! Now!"

Shellshock's huge metallic hand closed over to Sky's body. He tore her off and slammed her into the ground several times. Sky saw blood on her HUD when the white cleared from her vision, but she made out Shellshock's huge boot coming down on her. She rolled out of the way and could hear Shellshock's boot coming down again and again, trying to crush her small body. Finally, she made it out of his range and rolled to her feet. Her head swarm and the blood impaired her vision.

Sky placed a lock on Shellshock to keep track of him on her HUD. The battle bot turned around and pointed his gun at Sky. "Say goodnight, little owl!"

Sky jumped onto his arm and ran up to his head before kicking it with all of her might. "GOODNIGHT!"

Shellshock fell over like a bag of potatoes. Sky leaped off him and landed on his chest as he hit the ground. The wrench dug again and again into Shellshock's exposed under armor that the rockets had torn away. The bot's hands suddenly filled her vision and Sky was slapped off of Shellshock. She hit the cockpit of one of the drop-ships and broke through it, landing in the pilot's chair. The poor little elf owl shook off the pain and got up. Shellshock stomped up to the front of the ship, grasping it in his hands and lifting it up from the ground. He started swinging it with Sky watching as the world turned around her and the robot. This last one grinned with the cigar in his mouth.

"This is my variation of the 360 Tomahawk Body Slam!"

"Really? This is my variation of the GO TO HELL!"

Sky grasped the control sticks and fired the rockets from the ship. Both rockets blasted into Shellshock, forcing him to release the ship. This last one flew across the hangar and Sky jumped out just in time to avoid becoming part of the wall as the ship did with a huge explosion. The elf owl hit the ground hard, rolling to a stop onto her back. She laid there for a moment, wondering if this was what it felt like to die.

A scratching of mettle on mettle and dazed moans reached Sky's ears. She reluctantly got to her feet...and widened her eyes. Shellshock had a huge hole in the center of his chest. He stumbled a bit and looked at the elf owl who took out her wrench and, with a swing, charged forward. Shellshock slammed the ground, missing the avian who slid under his legs. She hit both the back of his knees on her way past which caused him to fall to the ground, his leg servos blown out. Sky skidded to a stop and leaped back onto Shellshock's back, pounding his head with her wrench over and over again. Mettle ships flew everywhere as the armor was torn away. With every blow, the robot fell closer to the ground until nothing was left of his head but a crumpled mess of carbonox steel.

Sky leaped off the robot, turning to face him. Shellshock's face was unrecognizable now though one eye seemed still operating. "Sky...ler...," he stammered, reaching his hand toward her.

"I think you're about done," Sky said with lowering her helmet.

"No... This is only the beginning... The other Exterminators...will avenge me..." The light in his eye began to fade. "You won't...make it out of Dreadzone...alive..."

Sky walked up to Shellshock's ruined face. "That's what you think, pal. I'll fight you a hundred times if that's what it takes. You guys don't know who you're messing with."

Shellshock made a disturbing laugh-like noise. "Don't...underestimate us...Skyler. Ace...will take care of you...like all the others..."

The light finally disappeared. Sky gave a scoff. "Sweet dreams, Shellshock."

* * *

 **Sky has defeated the first of the Exterminators! Only four of them left. With some luck, next time, she'll get back up from the rest of the team.**

 **I'm not in the mood to make a long AN, so...have a nice day.**


	363. Encounter with Ace Hardlight

Gleeman Vox was sitting in his office that was filled with boxes of merchandise that he could not sell, watching the defeat of Shellshock on his giant TV screen. This caused him to groan in anger.

"Look at those idiots cheering! Six million bolts of hardware gone the drain and these ungrateful morons are celebrating like-like-like they won the freaking lottery!" Sighing impatiently, he turned his swiveling chair to face the only other person in the room. "Remind me why I put up with those morons?"

The other person in the room with him was none other than the leader of the Exterminator and star celebrity of Dreadzone; Ace Hardlight.

Ace Hardlight has an athletic and bulky build, with large muscular arms and thin yet muscular legs. Ace has long blond hair, which is long at the front and short at the back. He also has a long face, tanned skin, and short brown fur, some of which forms a goatee. Darker colored spots also appear around his face, and he has large upper canine teeth. His eyes are relatively small, and he has blue-colored irises.

Ace wears a skin-tight red-orange colored suit covering most of his body, which allows his muscle details to show through. It is marked with various blue patterns, and brown legging and gloves. He also has various blue symbols on his suit and black-colored padding on his thighs and abdomen. Ace wears minimal armor, only covering his upper body, wrists, and shoulders, and also wears a jetpack on his back and a red visor in front of his eyes.

"Who else would watch Box News?" Ace asked with a smile. "The Temptation Asteroid? Galaxy's Funniest Decapitations?"

"Yeah, yeah," Vox annoyingly said.

"I Starve For The Tyranoïdes?"

"I got it!" Vox impatiently said. "Sound like we underestimated our little friends."

"She got lucky; Shellshock was too slow and too stupid to be an Exterminator. He should have retired years ago," Ace said with no remorse for his destroyed companion.

"Well, he's retired now. Skyler and Landshark however...," Vox mumbled, pressing his hands together and forming a sinister grin on his mouth. "They may just be useful. They're even more popular than you were back in your heroic youth. And to think of it, they do remind me of you."

"I said they got VERY lucky!" Ace seriously said, slamming his fists on the desk. "But their luck won't last forever!"

* * *

Back at the Dreadstation, Sky returned to her quarters where the rest of the team had been waiting for her. Landshark was sitting on his bed, trying to push away the little Porg who wanted to play with him, Wave was reading a comic book she bought at the store, and Theo was still doing stuff on the computers. She decided to walk over to her robot friend first.

"Theo, did you see me out there against that Shellshock guy? Yeah, I was so awesome!" she beamed and started mimicking the moves and sounds she made during the fight.

Theo, however, just shook his head. "You worry me, Sky."

The elf owl stopped and starred at her robot companion. "Come on, Theo, can't I just enjoy the moment?"

"Do you realize how many other heroes they have killed? Here, watch this," the little robot said, pressing a button which brought something to the computer screen.

"And now, for our Box Action News update," said the announcer. "The new season of Dreadzone is underway and promises to break ratings once again. This year's contestants include the notorious mafia leader from Earth known as Skyler."

"And to think that the people on Earth think of her as a hero," the other announcer sarcastically said.

"It's truly said, Dallas. Other notable contestants include Skyler's ruthless aquatic partner, Landshark."

"I never liked the look of him, Juanita."

"I'm just glad he's off the streets. And lucky for us, the Box all-star Exterminator crew led once again by five-time Grand Slam Champion, Ace Hardlight, is set to compete again. Last season, Ace shocked the galaxy by terminating a record of thirteen contestants. Including Captain Starshield, Lone Ranger, and Mad Monkey Midnight."

"Dreadzone's six trillion fans are in for unbelievable action in the coming weeks."

"That's certain, Dallas."

And the video ended. Sky ruffled her feathers in indignation at how those announcers dared to call her a criminal while she was just a ninja from New York who tried to survive a deadly game she never wanted to compete in, to begin with. Landshark and Wave joined them during the video.

"Yeah, I remember hearing about Ace Hardlight when I was a kid," Wave said with rubbing her chin. "He was this famous hero who disappeared."

"It must have been someone else," Theo said. "Why would a hero kill other heroes for money?"

"Not money, thin man." Everybody turned and jumped upon seeing Ace Hardlight himself walking toward them. He leaned down and brought his face right in front of Theo. "Fun."

"I...do not...understand," Theo simply said. Ace stood up again and laughed like a mad man.

"You traitor!" Sky angrily said. "You think all of this is some kind of game?!"

"That's exactly what it is, fluffy ball," Ace said with slamming a fist in his palm. He then glanced amusingly at both Sky and Landshark. "You guys are gonna become the stars of my highlight reel." Scoffing, the Exterminator turned around and lowered his orange visor over his eyes. "See you soon, kids."

And with that, he walked away. Sky and Landshark exchanged a glance, knowing their fight against this guy wouldn't be an easy one. If they managed to defeat the other two Exterminators that is.

For the rest of the day cycle, Sky decided to take a rest from her fight against Shellshock. She sat on her bed and tossed a little at the Porg whom she affectionately decided to name "Bobby".

"Can you remind me why we took this little calamity with us?" Landshark asked with a sigh.

"We didn't; he sneaked on the transport ship after we were done in Catacrom 4," Wave said before smiling and picking the small space puffin in her hands. "He's so adorable!"

"Sky," Theo called from the computer room. "Alfonso wants to see you in the engine room. He says that he has a new weapon that could interest you. Same for you, Landshark."

The two friends exchanged glances before getting over to the teleporter and getting to the engine room. After recovering from the teleportation's sensation, Sky followed Landshark over to her primate friend.

"Hey, Alf, you wanted to see us?"

He looked at them with a smile. "Ah, yes, thanks for coming so fast. With all your missions becoming harder, I fabricated new weapons that would be useful to you." His smile dropped. "However, as you know, I'm forced to charge you money for them."

"It's not a problem; our latest missions brought us a lot of money," Landshark said. "What are your weapons?"

The primate used his telekinesis power to bring the two objects in question on the counter. One of them was a strange metallic handle while the other was also a handle but the difference was that it had a round ball on the tip of it. "Landshark, this one's your weapon," Alfonso said with pointing at this last one.

"What is it?" the two-legged shark asked with taking the weapon.

"It's called the Scorpion Flail."

Landshark's eyes widened. "T-The Scorpion Flail?! You managed to re-create it?!"

"You know this, weapon, Landshark?" Sky asked her friend.

"I sure do!" he answered with a smile as he started examining his new tool. "This was the favorite weapon of my idol, Quaternion X. He often referred to it as the "old ball and chain". It's a very powerful melee weapon."

"Who's Quaternion X?" Sky asked with a curious eyebrow.

Landshark's smile faded away, replaced by a glare of anger. "Quaternion X was one of DreadZone's greatest contestants, who had been abducted from his home of Metropolis, Kerwan, and forced to fight for Gleeman Vox at around the same time as Captain Starshield. Almost rivaling the latter in dread points, Quaternion X was killed in the Battledome before he could surpass the Captain. It was the second-best Exterminator, Levicerator, who did it. I swear that I will make him pay for this."

Sky backed up a bit, not used to see this dark side of her shark friend. "So...what's my weapon, Alfonso?"

"Turn the switch on."

Sky took the little handle in her wing and did as she was told, pulling up the handle on the side of it. Suddenly, a light green glowing blade came out of the handle and brought some light in the dark place. "W-What's this?" Sky asked in surprise.

"Impressive, isn't it?" Alfonso asked with a proud smile. "I call it the Lightsaber. It's based on a very ancient weapon that used back in the ancient China days. I don't know what happened to the originals, but this blade is made of laser and can cut through anything. It's gonna be much more useful than your wrench."

"Wow...," Sky said in awe, doing some moves with her new weapon. "Too cool. The force is with me!" She noticed Landshark giving her a curious look. "That was just a pop culture reference."

* * *

 **Not as much action as in the previous chapter. But as I said, every hero needs some break.**

 **Sky and Landshark got new weapons in the form of the Lightsaber and the Scorpion Flail (my favorite weapon in Ratchet Deadlocked). They also got the attention of Gleeman Vox and Ace Hardlight. Finally, we learned that Ladnshark had an idol that got killed by of the Exterminators.**

 **Stay stunned for the next chapter as this one will have a little more action to it.**


	364. Team Darkstar vs Reactor

A few weeks have passed since Sky's encounter with Shellshock on Kronos. Team Darkstar led many more missions with success, their new weapons being very helpful. The two friends knew they would get to face the next Exterminator very soon and could only hope that it wouldn't be too hard. But at least, this time, Sky would not be alone like with Shellshock.

The two friends returned from a mission and entered their quarters to see Theo, Wave, Alfonso, and Bobby watching a report on Box News. "After making his fortune selling cigarets to children, Landshark went on to pilot a tanker on Saxon," the announcer said. "A week later, Landshark got drunk and crashed her tank onto the oceanic world of Aquatos. Who could forget these graphic images of baby seals killed by radioactive waste? Little coco never had a chance."

As the report ended, Alfonso turned toward Landshark with a glare. "How could you?!" He gripped him by the collar of his armor. "What did little coco ever do to you?!"

"Would you calm down?! I have nothing to do with this?" Landshark defended himself, pushing the primate away.

"Alf, how could you believe these lies?" Theo asked.

"Huh, no, I was just...huh...," Alfonso tried to explain himself.

"Come on guys, we need to get out of here before we all end up dead," Landshark said. "What's the plan?"

"I have been chatting with a techno robot on the operation level," Theo told everyone. "She might be able to provide the blueprints for these deadly collars."

"That's great," Sky said.

"But we must be very careful. Vox has eyes everywhere," the little robot added. "And Sky, Landshark?"

"Yeah?"

"You are scheduled to face against your second Exterminator this weekend. His name is Reactor."

"About time!" Landshark said with a grin and slamming his fist into his palm. "I can't wait to expose those morons for the failures they are. Right, Sky?"

"Yeah," the elf owl said with a nod. "Let's use our time to get ready for the fight."

* * *

And so, Sky and Landshark spent the next few days studying about this Reactor. Apparently, he was very similar to Shellshock in the sense that he was a big robot relying a lot on close combat and in powerful guns. If he was like Shellshock, then Sky could win, especially with her new weapon and back up from Landshark.

Then, the fateful day came. Sky and Landshark said goodbye to their friends who wished them good luck before they walked on the teleporter that sent them to their destination. Arriving into the battle dome, the two members of Team Darkstar were met by loud cheers from the crowd. This was odd; after all the false reports that made them pass for criminals, they expected the fans would be hostile toward them. But not at all.

"Ladies and gentlemen," the announcer said, "heeeeere's Reeeeactor!" Huge steps caused the arena floor to tremble a bit and the two friends turned to see Reactor arriving.

Reactor was a large, yellow and brown robot with a very bulky upper body design. He had green eyes, and in his center a large green nuclear reactor.

"Team Darkstar, huh?" the robot asked before scoffing. "You look like a lost squirrel and a fish out of the water. I'm gonna take my time in taking you down. My fans will get their money's worth. And try not to get crying or anything, alright? I want this to look good for the champ."

"Believe me; this won't last ten minutes," Landshark said in a threatening tone.

Sky jumped out of the way of Reactor's fist and landed rocket from her Arbiter to his face. He staggered back a bit, but Landshark wasn't gonna let him breathe. He darted past Sky and hit Reactor in the chin with a swing from his Scorpion Flail that extended with a chain. Sky followed his lead and charged to shoot another rocket from the Arbiter into his torso.

Reactor recovered most of his senses and started to retaliate. He tried to hammer Sky with both of his fists, but the elf owl was faster. She jumped and landed behind the robot, grabbing her lightsaber and swiftly swinging it across his back. While it did not cut too deeply in, it was enough to make the robot stumble forward.

Landshark hit him in the chest with his Scorpion Flail and sent him stumbling back toward Sky. He was unbalanced, so the elf owl took the opportunity to sweep her lightsaber at his legs, making him fall on his head with a thud. She then jumped up and planted her weapon into the reactor of his chest.

"Yeah, you're definitely weaker than your Shellshock pal," she said mockingly with retracting her lightsaber.

Landshark saw the destroyed robot's chest glowing and gasped. "SKY! WATCH OUT! HE'S GONNA EXPLODE!"

The two-legged shark jumped in time to pull his friend out of the way just as Reactor exploded, creating a small crater on the arena floor. "Are you okay?" Landshark asked as he offered his hand to the owl.

"Yeah, thanks," she said with accepting it and standing back up.

"I-I can't believe it!" the announcer said. "T-Team Darkstar has actually defeated Reactor in less than five minutes! It's incredible!"

As the audience cheered for them, Sky and Landshark waved at them with smiles. "I told you thid wouldn't last ten minutes," Landshark said, winking toward the camera as he knew Vox and ace Hardlight saw all of this.

* * *

 **I know this fight didn't really last long...but honestly, I never really had trouble with Reactor in the game. Seriously, the guy's so weak that how he became a an Exterminator to begin with is beyond me. You seriously need to re-think on how to recruit your elites, Vox.**


	365. The Shark vs The Bug

Following their victory against Reactor, Sky and Landshark's popularity with the DreadZone fans grew even more. Now, along with their missions on other planets, Sky and Landshark also had to attend press conferences organized by DreadZone for fans to meet the heroes. While Sky had no problem taking pictures with the fans or signing them autographs, Landshark found this rather boring.

After a few more missions, not only did they win from Dread Points for their place on the DreadZone's official ranking of heroes, more money on their net worth, but their weapons even evolved. The Magma Cannon became the Vulcan Cannon, the Fusion Rifle became the Anti-Matter Rifle, the Arbiter became the Silencer, the B6 Obliterator became the B 11 Vaporizer, and the Scorpion Fail became the Leviathan Fail. Additionally, they also managed to buy some new weapons: the Holoshield Launcher, a tool that allowed them to shoot protection shields, the Hunter Mine Launcher, a weapon that, as its name suggested, launched mines which hunt enemies approaching it, and the Mini Turret Launcher, a weapon which launched autonomous gun turrets that targeted and fired lasers at enemies.

Today, Sky and Landshark had the luxury of the day off. Sky could play video games with Wave while Landshark tried to spend a little more time with Bobby and Theo was still on the computers (they understood that he had to find a way for them to escape, but still). Landshark paused his playtime with Bobby to check on the official DreadZone's leaderboard:

-1st position: Ace Hardlight with 278,050 points

-2nd: Captain Starshield, 234,400 points

-3rd: Quaternion X, 201,700 points

-4rth: Eviscerator, 199,220 points

-5th: Team Darkstar, 197,450 points

-6th: Quasar Flare, 131,300 points

-7th: Plasma Ray, 124,900 points

-8th: Reactor, 103,400 points

-9th: Agent Zero, 97,110 points

-10th: Shellshock, 78,400 points

-11th: Aqua Girl, 71,200 points

-12th: Kid Nova, 57,540 points

"Hey Sky, you've seen this? We're now classed number five on the official DreadZone leader board!" Landshark called at his feathered friend.

"After all the missions you accomplished in the last few weeks, it's not that much of a surprise," Wave remarked before losing her game against Sky. "No fair! You're using cheat codes!"

"How am I supposed to use cheat codes if it's the first time I'm playing this game?" Sky asked with a giggle.

Wave just sighed and dropped her controller. "Come on, let's go see how Theo is progressing on our escape."

The group did just that and went to see their little robot friend. This last one was sitting on his swiveling chair, talking to a female robot on his computer screen. "Hey, Theo," Landshark said.

"Huh, I will call you right back," Theo said with turning the screen off.

"Who's that?" Wave asked.

"Huh, nobody, really."

"Was that the techno robot you were talking about the other day?" Sky asked. "Did you finally get the blueprints?"

"Yes," Theo confirmed with a nod of his head.

"Wonderful! You're the man!"

"But I learned that many other heroes are held captive in this facility - Aquill is one of them. We must help them, guys."

"Well, sure, but how?" Landshark asked.

Theo leaned toward his friends and made sure that the cameras could not hear what he was going to say. "I have noticed that the security monitors tend to go inactive when there's a big arena match-up."

Sky rubbed her chin as she thought about it. "So...if we face one of the Exterminators in the arena, it'll buy us some time, huh?"

"It is dangerous, but it is the only way."

Sky grinned. "No probs; those guys are toasted."

And so, Team Darkstar submitted their demand to face the second Exterminator of the team, Eviscerator. After a few days, their demand was accepted and a match scheduled to take place in the dome was organized in a pay-per-view format. Apparently, it has been a very long time since Eviscerator was so excited for a fight.

"Have you studied about this bug guy?" Wave asked as Sky and Landshark were getting ready for their fight.

"Yes; apparently, Eviscerator is only fighting using his razor blades and agile moves. He has an incredible speed which makes it hard to keep up with him in battle, hence why he scored some of the fastest victories in DreadZone history," Sky said. "But if Landshark and I can avoid close combat, then we should be okay."

"I'm going alone."

Sky and Wave froze, then turned to face their two-legged shark friend who looked dead serious. "Landshark?"

"I wanna fight Eviscerator by myself," Landshark said. "You guys stay here with Alfonso to try and find how to unlock those collars while I fight."

"Are you crazy?!" Wave exclaimed. "You can't fight this Eviscerator guy alone; he's gonna-"

"Wave, please!" Landshark cut her off. "I told you that Quaternion X was my idol and that Eviscerator is the one who killed him. I appreciate your help, but this is something I gotta do on my own. Please!"

Sky wanted to argue that she couldn't let her friend go fight an Exterminator alone...but he sounded so serious about this. She knew that it was personal to him and that, in this state, she would most likely get in his way instead of forming a good team as they did against Reactor. So she sighed.

"Alright, we'll stay here to help Alfonso and Theo on finding out how to unlock the collars. Meanwhile, try not to get killed, okay?"

"I'm not planning to," Landshark replied before walking over to the teleporter.

"Good luck," Sky said to which Landshark smiled before getting teleported.

* * *

Landshark shook off the dizzy feeling caused by the teleportation and looked up to see all the fans in the audience cheering for him.

"Welcome to the match-up of a lifetime, Dreadzone fans!" the announcer said. "Our challenger, known for his implication in organized crime, his devilling in the occult, and his hating for sunshine, puppies, and chocolate, Landshark of Team Darkstar!"

Despite this negative presentation, Landshark's reception from the fans was very positive. This caused him to grin happily and raise a fist for the audience.

"His opponent is a master of decapitation and a fantastic chef. Ladies and gentlemen, THE EVISCERATOR!" After announcing his name, the Exterminator came down into the arena by flapping his bug wings.

The Eviscerator is a large, insectoid creator wearing an incredibly strong Carbonox Armor and wielded razor-sharp titanium blades. These blades seemed to be comprised of four parts, one on each elbow that protruded backward, while the other two were on the Eviscerator's wrists.

"This match is going to be very quick and very bloody! I almost feel sorry for little Landshark," the announcer said with a chuckle.

Eviscerator flew close to Landshark and held his titanium blades close to his neck for intimidation. The two-legged shark responded by baring his sharp teeth and growling to intimidate him in return.

Landshark did a backbend, dodging Eviscerator's incredibly fast horizontal slice. Before the bug could dash back to a safe distance, Landshark blocked his escape, delivering a firm headbutt to his nose.

The bug let out a growl of pain. Before he could blink, Landshark slammed his fist into Eviscerator's nose.

However, the Exterminator was smart. He used the momentum of Shifu's strike to roll onto his back, planting his feet into his opponent's chest and monkey flipping him onto him back. This put a fair amount of distance between them, giving Eviscerator time to recover.

The evil bug touched a hand to his nose. His fingers came away bloody.

Landshark rose to his feet, and was nearly sliced in two as Evsicerator's titanium blades came down in a lethal overhead swing. He barely shot his holo-shield up in time to block the flat of the blades in a parry. The display of evil emotion on the shark's face was terrifying. He looked almost…excited and happy. Landshark took advantage of his stumble, stomping down hard on his foot. One fist lashed out to thwack Eviscerator in the eye.

Eviscerator fell into a handspring, leaping back to land on his feet. He stared Landshark down with intensity and urgency in his gaze. This two-legged shark was dealing too much damage. It was time to take things up a notch.

With a flick of his wrist, Eviscerator vanished from his opponent's grasp, sailing at him far too fast for a normal person to react. Landshark's enhanced senses barely enabled him to move, but the blade still slashed his upper arm.

"Darn it!" he swore.

Eviscerator rushed at Landshark in midstance. Landshark tried to block with his holo-shield, but Eviscerator swapped to low stance and slashed the back of his opponent's knee. Landshark collapsed forward with a cry of dismay. Eviscerator followed up by ramming his elbow into the back of Landshark's head, then nonchalantly kicking him in the ribs, sending him flying several yards.

"Oh! Is Landshark finally done?" the announcer said. "He fought well so far and lasted longer than 60 seconds, I'll give him that! But it seems luck has finally turned against him!"

Landshark hit the ground hard. He was winded and bleeding, and his vision swam from the pommel strike. He turned his head, expecting to have to counter a killing blow. However, Eviscerator was just grinning maliciously at him, visibly enjoying the moment of killing his opponent. This made Landshark's anger tingle even more.

Eviscerator ducked to one side as Landshark took out the Arbiter and fired a rocket at him. He heard it exploding against the wall before seeing Landshark launching at him and planting his sharp teeth into his shoulder. He screamed in pain for many seconds before pushing his opponent back.

"Someone didn't pay attention to my match," Landshark remarked with a smile and licking the green blood off of his teeth.

Landshark flicked into fist mode. He slugged Eviscerator in the stomach as hard as he could. It barely phased him. The young shark quickly detected his counter and he jumped back to avoid a knee that would have caught a very sensitive place.

But Eviscerator wasn't stupid. He slid forward and spat some green mist that flew right into Landshark's eyes.

"Agh!" Landshark's hands flew to his blinded eyes. His cry was stifled when Eviscerator's elbow slammed into his throat. Battered, bruised, and struggling for breath, Landshark collapsed to his knees.

"And Landshark falls to his knees! There is nothing that can stand against Eviscerator's deadly tactics! This is the end for Team Darkstar!" the announcer said.

Eviscerator did a back leap, dropping into a low stance. Once again, Landshark's rocket came flying at him. But Eviscerator wouldn't fall for the same trick twice. Instead of dodging, he raised his blades, slicing the rocket in two as it passed and exploded behind him.

However, even Eviscerator was too slow to stop Landshark from shooting right into his leg with the Fusion Rifle. As he dropped onto one knee in pain, Landshark shot another time through his shoulder, blasting his whole arm off, and causing him to fall on his back.

Eviscerator struggled to look up as the blood-covered shark walked over him, staring down at him in disgust. He took out the Leviathan Flail and held it close to his face. "You remember this weapon?" he asked in a low, hateful voice. "It belonged to a valiant hero that you murdered in cold blood - I know you killed hundreds, so I'm gonna refresh your memory. His name was Quaternion X. And I'm here to avenge his death at the hand of your blades!"

Landshark rose the Leviathan Flail for everyone to see before bringing it down with force onto Eviscerator's head, sending green blood flying everywhere. The whole arena fell dead silent at the incredible, deadly event that happened before their eyes.

Landshark had killed Eviscerator, number 2 of the Exterminators, and avenged Quaternion X.


	366. Team Darkstar vs Ace Hardlight

Following his victory against Eviscerator and the end of the third member of the evil team, Landshark made a quick stop at the station's infirmary to get bandaged before returning to his quarters. Upon arriving there, he found Theo standing on Alfonso's engine room with the primate analyzing the collar around his neck. Sky and Wave were present as well.

"Sorry for being late, guys," he said. "This Eviscerator guys was pretty though."

"Silence," Alfonso cut him dry. "Can't you see I'm trying to concentrate?" he said before getting back to work on Theo's collar.

"Alfonso thinks he might have found the way to remove the collars without activating the explosion," Wave explained.

"Are you sure you wanna do that, Theo?" Sky asked in worry for her robot companion.

"It's a risk to take," he replied.

"Shhh. I just need to cut one more circuit..." Alfonso slowly reached his tool toward the back of Theo's collar, ready to cut the final circuit. Everybody closed their eyes, the tension being too strong as Theo's life was on the line. Alfonso cut the final circuit...and Theo's collar opened.

"You did it!" Sky beamed. "Alf, you're a genius!"

The primate chuckled a bit. "Thanks, Sky-ARGH!" Alfonso groaned in pain and fell to the ground as he received a laser right into his side.

"NO!" Sky shouted in horror before turning her head toward the entrance door of their quarter where Ace Hardlight was holding a laser pistol. This last one was still smoking a bit from the shot it just launched.

"Breaking the rules, heh?" he asked with a chuckle.

Sky grabbed her wrench out while Landshark bared his teeth and charged toward the Exterminator. However, before he could touch him, the human pressed on a remote button which activated the two friends' collars. Sky and Landshark screamed in pain as they felt thousands of jolts coursing through their bodies. They collapsed on their knees, groaning in pain and the world spinning around them.

"Put it back on!" Ace ordered toward Theo, pointing his pistol at him. Wave was too afraid to do anything and Theo could not really fight him off, so he had no choice but to put his collar back around his neck.

"A-Ace...," Sky mumbled while coughing. "You're a dead man!"

Ace just scoffed. "Oh, great, I like that spirit. Save it for the arena, ha, ha, ha!" The leader of the Exterminators turned around and walked out of the quarters. Leaving Team Darkstar to get around the now injured and unconscious Alfonso.

* * *

A few moments later, the four friends could only watch helplessly as Alfonso was taken away in a medical transport to the medical complex of the DreadStation. Sky fell down in a sitting position, taking her head in her wings.

"This should have never happened. This is all my fault," she mumbled, close to tears.

"No, Sky," Theo said with putting his hand on her shoulder. "Ace pulled the trigger. And Vox gave the order."

The elf owl's sad face suddenly turned into a hateful glare. "They committed a huge mistake by taking on my friend. They will regret this!"

"Exactly," Landshark said with a glare just as hateful as his friend's.

"So what are we gonna do now?" Wave asked.

"It's simple," Sky said, standing up. "We keep on taking missions and get stronger until we're ready to face Ace and take him down."

"I totally agree with this plan," Landshark said with a mischievous grin.

* * *

And so, Team Darkstar took on many more missions on other DreadZone planets, upgrading their equipment and gaining in experience and notoriety. Before long, they won so many Dread Points that they broke Captain Starshield's score, becoming no. 2 on the leader board right next to Ace Hardlight. This could only mean one thing, of course: there would be a death match between the DreadZone Champion and the underdog team.

DreadZone started pulling on advertisements and other marketing stuff to promote the event. According to them, this would be "the greatest match between a hero and a duo of criminals in galaxy's history". The Vox News Channel kept trying to make Team Darkstar pass for the bad guys while Ace was the big hero...but to no success. Theo checked the online ratings and Team Darkstar's merchandise was selling more than any other hero at the moment. That and they also received plenty of emails from fans and other heroes giving them their support and wishing them good luck against Ace.

Sky and Landshark spent the next few weeks getting ready physically and mentally for their showdown against their future opponent. Then, the big day finally came. Millions of fans gathered into DreadZone's battle dome for the event and Team Darkstar got forced to participate in a press conference to sign autographs, take pictures with fans, and hold interviews with media.

Right now, the two friends were sitting together in the backstage of the battle dome, waiting for their cue to come out. They adjusted their armors, making sure they wouldn't leave any opening Ace could use, and charged their weapons to full capacity. The last thing they wanted was to go up against Ace without their complete arsenal.

"So...there we are," Landshark mumbled.

"Yeah. We're going to face Ace Hardlight, the strongest gladiator of DreadZone who has ever lived," Sky mumbled in an absolutely not enthusiastic tone.

"Don't be afraid, Sky; we defeated Shellshock, Reactor, and Eviscerator. I'm sure we can take down this arrogant show-off and avenge Alfonso."

Sky looked down. "Master Yoshi taught me not to act on anger and hatred but on determination, courage, and intelligence. As much as I'd like to cut this guy to pieces...I have to keep a good head level." She then rose her head. "Honestly...I don't know if we're gonna make it, Landshark."

Her two-legged shark friend suddenly placed his hand on her shoulder, causing her to raise her head and look into his black eyes. "Listen, Sky, I don't care about getting out of this alive. But I want you and the others to do so. If I was to lose my life during the upcoming battle, I want you to know that fighting at your side was an honor."

Sky smiled and gave a big hug to her shark friend. This last one was a bit taken aback but returned the gesture nonetheless. Suddenly, the voice came over the intercom: "Skyler and Landshark of Team Darkstar are called inside the battle dome's arena for the upcoming battle."

Exchanging a stare, Sky and Landshark nodded at each other before stepping out of the backstage and into the arena. They were instantly welcomed by an eruption of cheers from the millions of fans in the audience. Normally, they would have waved at them, but they were not exactly in the mood right now.

"Listen to that crowd, Juanita!" the announcer named Dallas said. "It's nights like this that I'm glad I gave up my ballerina dancing career."

"Tonight, we bring you DreadZone's most anticipated match yet. In one corner, the undefeated Grand Champion, Exterminator, a legend in his own time, ACE HARDLIGHT!" The human Exterminator came out from the other end of the battle dome and received mainly negative reception from the fans.

"And in the other corner, probably forming a combining weight of seventy-nine pounds, the team that nobody likes, TEAM DARKSTAR!" Dallas said in less enthusiasm, thought the fans' reception was much more positive than with Ace.

"This is it, runts," Ace said as he approached the two friends. "I almost wish it wasn't gonna end so quickly. Just try to keep it interesting while it lasts, would you? Ha, ha, ha, ha!"

Getting annoyed by his laughter, Landshark wasted no time in baring his teeth and jumping toward Ace. "YOU'LL PAY FOR ALFONSO!"

However, Ace knocked the two-legged shark aside with a good spinning kick. Sky quickly unsheathed her Duel Raptors in hope of dealing a good hit right off the bat. Pulling the triggers, a barrel of plasma bolts was shot toward Ace who pressed a button on his wrist, summoning a shield around him to deflect the bolts.

"Nice try, little owl, but the Great Ace won't fall for such a simple trick," he said before taking his laser pistol out and started shooting at Sky. The elf owl used her ninja agility to dodge the plasma bolts before taking out her lightsaber to deflect them.

After around 15 seconds, Ace's shield faded away, just as Landshark regained from the earlier spinning kick and took out his Anti-Matter Rifle while Sky took out her Duel Raptors once again. Ace was going to be trapped in a cross-fire from either side.

Unfortunately, the DreadZone Champion still had a few tricks up his sleeve. Pressing another button on his wrist, Ace created many clones of himself all around him, causing Sky and Landshark to lose sight of him. Swearing under their breath, the two friends started randomly shooting at the many Aces, each one of them fading away after getting hit.

Eventually, the true Ace grabbed a trapping rope from his belt and threw it at Sky. The elf owl found herself trapped as the rope wrapped itself around her body and caused her to fall face-first onto the arena floor. Smirking, the Exterminator reached for his belt and took out a lightsaber of his own, though this one was smaller and the blade was orange to fit with his costume. He charged toward the immobilized Sky, ready for the kill.

Luckily, Landshark quickly got done with the remaining Ace clones and managed to stop the real Ace's lightsaber with his Leviathan Flail before he could touch Sky. "I won't let you take another soul!" he firmly said before kicking Ace back.

The shark went on the offensive and forced Ace to dodge his swinging Leviathan Flail while fighting back with his lightsaber. The close combat lasted many seconds before Ace kicked Landshark in the chest and went to strike him with his blade, but the shark surprisingly blocked it with his weapon.

"You really think you meaningless fish stand a chance against me?" Ace asked in a low, deadly voice.

"No...I KNOW that I can," Landshark said with a smirk before slamming his free fist into Ace's face which caused him to fall down on his back.

Landshark jumped, ready to smash him with his Leviathan Flail, but Ace quickly activated his jetpack to take off in the sky, letting him smash the arena floor instead. While in the air, the Exterminator put his weapon back to his belt and threw small bombs which exploded upon impact and forced the shark and roll away to avoid getting hurt.

After dodging another bomb, Landshark grabbed his Anti-Matter Rifle and aimed before shooting. He intended to touch Ace's shoulder but instead touched his jetpack which caused him to fall back on the arena floor. No the expected result, but still better than nothing. Ace groaned angrily as he took his jetpack off and glared at Landshark.

"For DreadZone!" he screamed before charging with his lightsaber. However, Landshark slammed his Leviathan Flail near the Exterminator who got thrown in the air and then charged to hit a strong kick into his back as he was falling, sending him a few feet away. Both participants seemed tired as they were panting in exhaustion while glaring at each other. The crowd was totally into that match.

"Woah! This is intense!" Juanita said in excitation.

"They're on equal levels!" Dallas added. "I'm not even sure about who's going to win this!"

"Ace will win," Juanita insured. "I'm sure he will. He's the Grand Champion of DreadZone!"

Back in the fighting zone, both opponents charged forward and engaged another close combat. This time, Landshark actually managed to land a few strikes with his bare fists. He didn't crack Ace's armor, but this last one still felt the shock through his body. Unfortunately, Ace was clearly superior in close combat and ended up knocking a badly beaten Landshark to the ground.

"It's over...," Ace said with taking out his pistol, and aiming it at the blood-covered shark, pressing one foot on his chest to keep him down.

"I'll...never...beg you...," Landshark said with spitting blood to Ace's face. The crowd began to panic as they thought these were going to be their beloved shark's last words.

"For Alfonso..."

Ace barely had time to turn around that he felt a burning pain into his midsection. He widened his eyes as before him stood Skyler with a glare of anger, her lightsaber in both wings and held to the right. Ace slowly looked down to see a burning cut across his abdomen which had no doubt been caused by her lightsaber. Dropping his pistol, Ace fell to his knees, clutching his wound, and coughing in pain.

The arena fell silent as everyone understood what this meant. Ace Hardlight, leader of the Exterminators, 5 times Grand Champion, and star of Dreadzone...was defeated.

Sky did not pay attention to the fans cheering loudly throughout the dome nor to the announcers talking bullshit as she went to help Landshark standing up. He stumbled a bit on his legs but was still alive. The two didn't exchange a word and walked over to Ace who coughed in pain and looked up at them.

"Skyler... Landshark..." He stopped to cough a bit. "You can't...beat me... You're... You're just halflings with...little weapons..."

"Stay down, Ace. Don't embarrass yourself," Sky said, shaking her head with pity as she turned around to leave with her friend.

"Embarrassed?! Me?!" Ace shouted before coughing some blood. "I'm Ace Hardlight! The hero!"

"You're a _former_ hero, Ace," Landshark pointed out, looking at the pathetic human over his shoulder.

"...Skyler, Landshark," Ace mumbled with a begging look toward Team Darkstar. "Don't let Vox do to you what he did to me. You guys are...the new heroes..." Ace coughed more blood before finally passing out.

* * *

 **First of all, sorry for not updating this chapter earlier; I fell ill to a gastro that was very painful and I puked a lot in the last two days. Not only that, but I had a hard time sleeping, my back was hurting like hell from always sitting in the same position, and my stomach refused to digest anything. But now, I'm feeling better.**

 **So, Team Darkstar has defeated Ace Hardlight, though it was pretty sad to see him coming back to his senses after his defeat, and are now the new Champions of DreadZone. This arc is not over yet though as we still have a few loose ends to tie up.**


	367. No deal with a tyrant

After defeating Ace Hardlight in the battle dome, Sky and Landshark were brought to Gleeman Vox's office at the siege of DreadZone. Two battle bots pushed them through the big that opened itself upon sensing their presence. They stepped into the large office filled with unsold merchandise (probably Ace's) and Vox himself sitting behind his desk. Landshark wanted nothing more than jumping above this desk and plant his fangs into this sadistic's neck.

"You wanted to see us, Vox?" Sky asked in a calm almost emotionless voice.

The shark chuckled a bit. "Kids, you're the great champions of DreadZone! The whole galaxy wants to see you! Don't you see, kids? I did everything in my power to make stars out of you. I've transformed you from worthless nobodies to the hottest celebrities in the galaxy." At this point, Vox stepped up from his chair and walked around his desk to stand in front of his guests.

"Right, so that's why your news show is trying to pull us down every six minutes," Sky sarcastically said, rolling her eyes in annoyance.

"I was just building your bad boy/girl image. And this is the thanks I get?"

"Whatever," Sky scoffed with looking to the side.

"No, no, don't be such a baby. I'm about to offer you the opportunity of a thousand lifetimes," Vox said, a grin forming on his face. "I'm about to make you the new co-captains of the Exterminators. The stars of the show. Think of it: you'll make billions! We'll sell Team Darkstar action figures, Team Darkstar sports shoes, deodorants, breakfast cereals, cosplaying costumes, soft drinks, hot drinks, energy drinks, breathe mints!" The shark was rambling on about all the stuff he wanted to make with his new stars. "You'll get record deals, movie rights, reality shows, video games, and commercials, commercials, commercials, commercials, commercials..." Vox had to stop talking to catch his breath from saying "commercials" so many times. "And then... And then..."

"No deal, Vox."

The shark widened his eyes, looking at Sky in surprise. "What did you say?"

"We're not your puppets, Vox. You actually thought we'd kill other heroes to get rich? You're just corrupted, you're stupid," Sky declared with Landshark nodding in agreement.

"Why you..." Vox started mumbling words and shook his hands around as if holding himself back from jumping onto the two heroes to choke them out. "You just signed your death warrant."

"We're done then," Sky said and walked out of the room by rudely pushing the two battle bots out of the way, Landshark on her heels. Once they were out, Vox contacted another bot on his communication device.

"Yes, sir?"

"We got one final DreadZone campaign," he said. "Have them prepare that, hum...experimental one we developed."

"You don't mean the...Gauntlet Of Doom, do you?"

"Yes," Vox replied with a smirk.

"But sir, it was made to be guaranteed unbeatable."

"And...?"

"I'm on my way, sir."

* * *

The battle that took place at the battle dome, as well as its outcome, shook the world of Dreadzone to its core. The words of DreadZone's Grand Champion Ace Hardlight's defeat at the hands of a gladiator duo that was relatively unknown for many weeks spread around like wildfire. Gleeman Vox shared the news that Ace did not survive this battle and held funerals in his memory (trying to promote the former champion's merchandise in the process).

Sky and Landshark immediately returned to their quarters after their "chat" with Vox was done. Theo and Wave were very happy that they survived and hugged their friends really hard. Thanks to all the ratings and money they brought to DreadZone with the event, Team Darkstar was given many days off to rest. During that time, they celebrated with their friends and secretly prayed Alfonso would be okay.

One day, after waking up from partying all night long, Sky, Landshark, and Wave joined Theo who asked to see them in the computer room. "Guys," he said. "I have found a way to shut down the confinement fields and release all the heroes."

"You're kidding? That's amazing!" Sky positively said.

"He's had help, y'know."

The three friends jumped and turned their heads to see a figure they were not expecting to see again sitting on the swiveling chair. "A-Alfonso?! You're alive?!" Sky exclaimed.

"This is great; they said your body was beyond repair!" Landshark said, happy to see his primate friend still alive.

"No biggie; I got a new one." Alfonso turned around and got off the chair, revealing that the right half of his face, as well as his right arm, was now robotized. "Check this out. Cool, huh?"

"Oh, okay, impressive," Sky said with nodding her head. "So, what's the plan?"

"We have acquired schematics of the entire battle dome," Theo informed the team. "There is a central computer on the control level that regulates power to the containment fields."

"So what?" Landshark asked. "We program it? Hack it?"

"Blast it!" Afonso said. "Just blow it up and the fields go down."

"Okay, so, how can we get to the control level?" Sky asked.

"I have reprogrammed the battle dome shuttle to take both of you there," Theo said. "But it is a one-way ride."

"You mean...that it can take us to the containment level...but not out of it?" Landshark asked.

"Yes, Landshark. This means that once you get there, you will have only two possibilities: succeeding and releasing all the heroes, or failing and dying."

Sky and Landshark exchanged a gaze. They finally had a chance not only to escape this crazy TV show but also to put a complete end to it. However, they only had one shot at it and should they fail, they would die and their friends would probably share the same fate. But they already risked their lives thousands of times before and during their time in DreadZone. They would continue if they were to stay in this deadly show.

"Alright, let's go," Sky said, turning around toward the shuttle supposed to bring them to the battle dome.

"Right," Landshark said, following her.

"Be careful, guys," Wave said. "But quick, I can't wait to see the look on Vox's face after we destroy his precious show."

Sky and Landshark got into the transport shuttle which made its way toward the battle dome. However, instead of getting into it by the open roof as it usually did, the ship entered the control level by a small opening in the lower portion of it.

Sky and Landshark sat in silence onto their seats during the whole traject. Since this was possibly their last mission together, Landshark decided to go ahead and ask a question: "Sky?"

"Yeah?"

"You said you have a family on your planet?"

"Yes," Sky said with a nod. "I have a big family and many friends too." She looked down, tears forming in her eyes. "I miss them so much..."

Landshark reached his hand on her wing to get her attention. "Don't worry; you'll see them again once we're done with this place. I can promise you that."

"Thanks" Sky smiled and wiped her tears away. "Do you have any family on your home planet?"

Landshark looked down. "No. No family, but I do have friends whom I care about. I can't wait to see them again too."

Suddenly, the shuttle started making an alarming beeping noise and the lights turned red before turning to green once again and coming to a complete stop. "Looks like we arrived at our destination," Sky said with getting up ."Let's go, partner."

The two friends got teleported out of the shuttle and into what seemed like the start of a very long pathway. There were some computers here and there and no enemies in sight. But the two members of Team Darkstar still took out their lightsaber and Leviathan Flail to be sure.

"Theo, come in, do you read me?" Sky mumbled toward the communicator in her wing. "Something doesn't seem right here. It's too quiet-"

"Shit," Landshark immediately said. At least ten floating cameras appeared out of nowhere and surrounded the dup. "Of course it was WAY too easy."

"Well, well, well," Gleeman Vox's voice came over an intercom. "What do we have here, Dreadzone fans? Contestants trying to sabotage the battle dome? How exciting! If they succeed, the rest of the contestants go free! But if they fail...I wired the battle dome with six giga-tons of nitroglycerine. If Team Darkstar doesn't disarm the detonator before time runs out, the battle dome will be blown into a trillion pieces!"

"What?!" Sky and Landshark exclaimed at unison. "Are you insane?!"

"Au contraire. If I was still in the battle dome, _then_ it would be insane. But I happen to have a lovely view of the event from a remote location."

"What about the thousand fans in the battle dome?" Landshark asked. "You're gonna kill all of them too?"

"Of course not. YOU are. Unless you two shut your cake holes and get moving. Go on now; you only have ten minutes before everything blows off. Good luck! Ha, ha, ha, ha!"

Right after the intercom clicked off, Landshark grabbed Sky's wing and started running forward. "Quick, Sky! We only have ten minutes ahead of us!"

* * *

 **Team Darkstar has finally found a way to defeat Vox and end DreadZone. Can Sky and Landshark succeed and save everyone before it's too late? Stay stunned for the final chapter of the DreadZone arc, my friends.**


	368. The show's finale

**Here we go for the final chapter of the DreadZone arc, my Owl Lovers! I hope this final will satisfy you!**

* * *

Team Darkstar quickly made their way across the pathway of the control level in hopes of reaching the computer powering the containment fields of the battle dome. Running from one hallway to another, they ended up on the side opposite of where they originally snuck in. The coast seemed clear, so they quickly made their way to the unguarded main room.

"I think this is where the main computer is located!" Theo said through the communicator. "Hurry up; the station is about to explode!"

Landshark made it to the door and Sky backed him up. They opened it to reveal a room filled with at least 20 DZ Strikers and 3 Executioners. They would have to make their way through them before reaching for the huge computer on the other end. Well, at least, this final episode was going to be a memorable one.

"That's all you guys got?" Landshark questioned after one Striker got a good swing from his Leviathan Flail.

He was dispatching the Strikers one by one. Sky was backing him up with her lightsaber, cutting through the enemies and sending bolts flying everywhere. She would have probably enjoyed this, had their time not be limited.

By swinging his Leviathan Flail, Landshark took out at least three our four of them at once. He was actually enjoying this a little too much. Even the Executioners were not much trouble for the deadly duo.

"Batter up," Landshark said before getting ready to deliver a heavy swing to an Executioner. He hit him so hard that all of his upper body was now gone.

Before long, all the robots in their path got defeated and Team Darkstar made their way over to the huge computer at the end of the room. "It's freedom time," Sky said before raising her Duel Raptor and planting a good shot into the screen, blowing it up.

"Great! Now let's get out of here!" Landshark said with a smile as he and Sky jumped on a small platform on the far end of the room which rose up. The duo arrived into the battle dome's main arena and stepped out into it.

"Well done, guys!" Theo's voice came through their communicator. "The containment fields are deactivated. The station is no longer on lockdown."

"Good. Now get on a shuttle and get out of here," Sky ordered.

"Sorry, Sky, but we're not leaving without you guys," Wave said.

However, before the talk could go on, the arena floor shook and the two friends almost lost their footing. Before them appeared Gleeman Vox into some sort of big robot that had two big arms, electric wings, and a cockpit to protect the boss. The DZ sign was marked onto the robot's chest level.

"Oh, for the love of cookies, cut your melodrama before I lose my entire audience!" he said. He then smirked down at the duo. "I've been waiting for this moment for a long time!"

"Try to start with a more cliché catchphrase," Sky mumbled under her breath.

"I'm gonna give DreadZone fans the finale they've been waiting for! It's a little one-act-play I call "Death of the Darkstar"! Ha, ha, ha, ha!" Vox broke down in a fit of laughter.

Sky gave a deadly glare to the shark. "You're gonna pay for everything you did to my friends and all the heroes in the galaxy." The elf owl thought about all the heroes who died during the qualifying round - the one she failed to save from getting burned alive, the pain she was forced to go through, Alfonso getting permanently injured...

Landshark ran at Vox's robot with his Leviathan Flail. He saw Vox rising his robot's fist in the air like he was about to crush him. He rolled to the left as he brought his metallic fist to the ground, turning up dust.

Landshark then delivered three hard swings of his flail to the robot's side, but it didn't seem to affect him that much outside of a few sparkles flying here and there. He attempted to back fist Landshark, but he ducked under his robotic arm, avoiding the blow. He looked up to see his cockpit was open for an attack and gave him a quick swing to the protection glass.

Somehow, the protection glass managed to survive the hit and Vox swung his robotic hand to finally touch Landshark and knock him many feet away, badly damaging his ribs in the process. Sky used this chance to aim the Silencer and shoot a rocket straight into the cockpit. The explosion created a wall of smoke which, once cleared, revealed the cockpit wasn't that damaged again.

"What?!" Sky exclaimed, shocked that her strongest weapon barely made a little hole into Vox's cockpit.

Vox laughed mockingly at her. "You idiot! I designated these weapons myself! You think I didn't come prepared and that you could defeat me so easily! Nah, that would have been too anti-climatic!"

He charged at Sky with incredible speed. Normally, a robot of his size would get slow down, but his freakish strength removed this disadvantage. As he headed for a strong punch, the little elf owl moved to the side with a cartwheel, leaving the robot to hit the ground where he left a crater.

"What?!" he said, surprised that she moved so fast. Next thing he knew, a powerful strike was delivered to the side of his robot, causing it to stumble to the opposite side. He looked over to see Landshark, who had recovered from the earlier hit, standing there with his Leviathan Flail in hand.

"H-How can you recover so fast?! My robot is supposed to give devastating strikes!" Vox angrily asked.

"Because you committed the same mistake you've been doing over and over again since we arrived here." Landshark gave a grin through his slightly blood-covered teeth. "You underestimated Team Darkstar!"

"Okay, enough with the playing, little fish!" He charged at Landshark again with his two robotic arms, ready to kill him.

Unfortunately, the robot got stopped in its assault by a grenade that came out of nowhere and exploded right into the cockpit. It was Sky who used her B-11 Devastator. Cracks started forming into the cockpit's glass and probably wouldn't be able to hold on for much longer. Vox decided to fly up in the air and released little metallic balls that, upon touching the ground, turned into robotic spiders crawling toward Team Darkstar.

Sky shot some of them with her Duel Raptors which caused them to explode. Crawling grenades. Luckily, none of them managed to reach the duo as they combined the firepower of the Duel Raptors and Vulcan Cannon to push them back. Once there was none left, Vox lowered his robot to ground level and charged his robotic arms with electric energy. He then shot a lightning beam toward Sky and Landshark.

They managed to dodge it by moving aside, but Vox kept bringing the beam toward them left and right. This forced them to leapfrog many times. Eventually, the beam touched Landshark's right leg, causing him to groan in pain and collapse down, holding his steaming leg in his hands.

"GET LOOOOST!" Vox screamed as he swung his huge robot fist and hit the ground, causing Sky and Landshark to be sent flying back many feet away. Sky ended on her back and got back up with a few marks on her body.

"I thank you a lot, little elf owl. You might have killed my show, but thanks to you, I won enough money to take my retreat and this final episode will have the highest rating level in this galaxy's history," Vox said. "However," he rose his robotic hand in the air, "it's time to end this now." He brought his huge robotic fist down onto the elf owl.

DZZZZ!

In one swift movement from her lightsaber, Sky managed to cleanly cut the robotic fist off. She then ran up the arm it formerly belonged to and jumped right into Vox's damaged cockpit, glaring angrily at him. "You can't touch me; even damaged, your lightsaber cannot cut through my protection!" he said with a grin.

"Who said I was going to hit there?" Sky asked before suddenly planting her lightsaber into the robot's chest, touching its power core. Vox widened his eyes in shock as the robot started shaking violently and electricity emanated from everywhere.

Sky jumped off the robot and Vox pressed on all the buttons of his weapon'S board. But there was nothing to do; he completely lost control! Eventually, the robot exploded and Vox was sent flying through his damaged cockpit glass, landing badly onto the arena floor. He had burning marks and many bleeding cuts because of it. This caused him to cough a lot.

Sky helped Landshark standing up on his good leg and walked over to the defeated shark. "It's over, Vox."

"No. *cough, cough* But it will be soon!" Vox grabbed a remote from his pocket and pressed on a red button.

"Destruct sequence initiated," said a voice over the intercom. "Sixty seconds before battle dome detonation."

"What?!" Landshark exclaimed in shock.

"The escape shuttles all left long ago," Vox weakly said. "Now we'll all die together live on television. It'll be the best rating I've ever had!" The shark started laughing/coughing with blood pouring out of his mouth.

Sky and Landshark looked around at the dome which was now empty save for all three of them. The two friends then exchanged a gaze and Sky sighed sadly. "Even if we don't make it out of here alive, at least a lot of other heroes escaped tonight."

Vox coughed again. "Enjoy your pathetic idealism *cough, cough* for the last few seconds of your lives!"

Suddenly, right after he said that, a shuttle came down from the sky and ascended into the battle dome. Landing close to the group, the door opened to reveal none other than Theo and Wave.

"What?!" Vox exclaimed in shock.

"Get in, guys, there is no time remaining!" Theo quickly said.

Wave rushed down to help Sky bring Landshark inside the shuttle. Theo closed the door and the group could hear Vox shouting: "NOOOOO!" as they parted away from the battle dome about to explode.

Sky and Wave helped Landshark to sit down in one of the chairs after they were far enough. "How did you guys found this shuttle?" he asked them.

"He did," Wave said, pointing a thumb behind her to the board chair into which was sitting Alfonso.

"Alf? You know how to drive a space shuttle?" Sky asked.

"Theo and I studied a lot of things. But right now, you need to remove your collars before it's too late!" the primate replied.

Theo quickly jumped onto Landshark's back first to remove his collar before doing the same with Sky. Once it was done, Theo opened a window of the shuttle and quickly tossed them out into space as they exploded together. Coincidentally, the DreadStation which was far behind by now also exploded into a powerful blast that slightly shook the ship but otherwise left it unharmed.

"Dreadzone has been destroyed and Gleeman Vox is dead," Wave said. She turned toward her friends. "Guys, it's finally over."

"About time," Landshark said with a chuckle. "I was growing tired of running, jumping, and shooting everywhere all the time." Theo started healing his hurt leg with the ship's medical kit.

"Guys! We're receiving calls!" Alfonso announced everyone and turned the screen on to reveal an orange robot boy.

"Skyler? Landshark? Hey, it's Kid Nova!" he said. "What can I say, I thought I was a goner back there. I owe you guys big time."

"Another call!" Alfonso announced as he pressed on another button to reveal a familiar blue friend.

"Aquill?! You're alive?!" Sky exclaimed in surprise.

"I sure am, guys!" the female alien said with a smile. "Thanks a lot for ending this madness, guys. I knew that you were going to be something special when we teamed up! Will you visit me to my homeworld of Aquatos one of these days?"

"Maybe. We'll have to check our schedules," Landshark said with a chuckle.

* * *

Over the next few hours, Team Darkstar received grateful calls from other heroes to which they all replied with "you're welcome" or "it was nothing, really". The group decided to go back to Earth first since it was the closest planet in their reach. By the time they arrived there, a whole day cycle had passed and everyone was tired.

Sky was giving away her armor and all the weapon she acquired during her time in Dreadzone to Landshark and Wave. "Are you sure you don't wanna keep at least a few of them?" Wave asked. "They could be useful to you in the future."

"No thanks; I don'T wanna have anything to do with those bloodthirsty bastards anymore," Sky said. "And besides, I'm missing my old ninja gear right now. That being said, I might take inspiration from their tools to craft my own," she added with a smile.

"We've arrived," Alfonso announced. The group looked out by the window to indeed see the wonderful blue of their good old planet glowing against the ship. Sky exchanged a smile with Theo before Alfonso came to join them. "It's time for us to go."

Sky looked at Landshark and Wave. "So...I guess this is goodbye then?"

"Yeah..." Wave looked down with a sad look. "Listen, it was nice knowing you. You guys are actually pretty cool." She held out her hand for Sky, Theo, and Alfonso to shake.

"You are pretty cool too, Wave," Alfonso said with a smile.

Landshark then stepped forward and shook hands (or wings in this case) with Sky and smiled. "Sky...you are a truly honorable warrior. It was an honor for me to fight these cowards at your side. I hope our paths will cross again."

Sky answered by hugging the two-legged shark. "I'm gonna miss you, Landshark."

He returned the gesture. "I will miss you too, Sky."

Once all was said and done, Sky waved her wing at him as the teleporter took them away for good. The dizzy sensation invaded both Sky and Alfonso once the process was done before they looked around them...and smiled.

They were greeted by the familiar sight of Sky's workshop into their lair. It was smelling bad as nobody must have thought about cleaning it for a very long time...but she still enjoyed it.

"S-Sky?" The trio turned around to see Lily standing in the doorway.

"Hey, sis," Sky said, smiling as she waved at her.

In a split-second, the little elf owl found herself caught in a tight hug from her macaw sister who was on the verge of tears. "OH MY GOSH, SKY! YOU'RE BACK! We've been searching for you for two months! Where have you been?!"

A smile formed on Sky's beak. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you."

It was good to be home.

* * *

 **And that's the end of the Dreadzone arc, ladies and gentlemen. I sure hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it.**

 **"Ratchet: Deadlocked" will always have a special place in my heart and it was a big joy for me to adapt it into a fanfic on this site. This arc sure brought a lot of character development to Sky, didn't it? Failing to save a poor hero, being dragged in space and being forced to learn how to survive, etc.**

 **Now that this arc is done, I'd like to make a special announcement to you, my Owl Lovers. "The Dynamic Adventure" is my longest fanfic - at over 800,000 words - and it's not about to end yet. However, as much as I love to write it, I can't keep it going on forever; I'll have to end it one day or another. The problem is that I won't be able to insert all the elements O originally had in mind when I started it.**

 **Therefore, I decided that I was going to write a spin-off book called "The Dynamic Adventure Legends" where I will share plotline and other elements that didn't make it into the main story. A bit like George Lucas did with Star Wars and Nintendo with The Legend Of Zelda. It won't be 100% required to understand TDA, but if you want some extra info about my world, then this spin-off shall satisfy you.**

 **Except that, thank you all for the recovery wishes about my gastro, I can't wait for my vacations at Disney World to start, and I hope you'll all have a great day, Owl Lovers :)**


End file.
